Gili Meno is the middle island and the smallest, roughly two kilometres long and one wide. A few hundred people live here, there is no real village centre, and the sandy ring path can be walked in about an hour and a half. There are no cars or motorbikes, very few bicycles compared with Trawangan, and at night the stars are properly dark-sky bright.
What Meno has in abundance is beach. The east coast, facing Gili Air and Mount Rinjani, has deep white sand and calm water; the west coast has the sunsets, the turtle reef and, a few metres off the beach, Nest — the circle of life-size human figures by sculptor Jason deCaires Taylor that has become the most photographed spot in the Gilis. Inland lies a shallow salt lake ringed by mangroves and coconut palms.
The island suits couples, honeymooners, readers and anyone who finds Trawangan too much. It is not the place for nightlife, shopping or a wide choice of restaurants, and services are thinner: fewer ATMs, fewer boats, earlier nights. That is the point. If you are unsure, compare all three in Which Gili island?
Highlights
- Snorkelling over the Nest underwater statues early, before the day boats arrive
- Turtles on the reef off the north-west coast, often several on one swim
- The wide, quiet white-sand beach on the east and south-east coast
- Walking the ring path around the whole island in an hour and a half
- The salt lake and its birdlife at dawn or dusk
- Dinner with your feet in the sand and almost no light but lanterns
In pictures: Gili Meno
How long to stay and where to base yourself
Two or three nights is right for most people: long enough to slow down, snorkel the west coast twice and walk the island. Many visitors see Meno on a day trip — the public island-hopping boat makes that easy — but the island is at its best early and late, when the day boats have gone.
Choose your side by what you want from the day. The east and south-east coast around the harbour has the best swimming beach, most of the restaurants and sunrise over Rinjani. The west coast has the statues, the turtle reef and the sunset, with upmarket resorts and a few simple bungalows. The north is the emptiest stretch. Nothing is more than twenty minutes’ walk from anything else. Hotel picks are in Where to stay.
