Meaning ‘soul’ in Indonesian, The Jiwa offered our group a soul-soothing experience in Tanjung, Lombok. We couldn’t have planned a better place to spend the last two days of our adventure discovering the hidden gems of Lombok. The service was immaculate and the sunsets were awe-inspiring (the image above was the sunset experienced on our last night; with no need for editing as this is exactly the show that mother nature provided).
The Villa
Found on the coastal shores of Tanjung, The Jiwa is a grand five-bedroom villa each with equal sized bedrooms featuring private ensuite bathrooms. Spaciously perche on the scenic hilltops overlook Sire Beach – you will feel as though you have this panoramic oasis to yourself. There are no neighbours to be seen and only the faint sounds of the nearby mosque to provide a moving soundtrack inviting you to enjoy sunset – thus offering us an alluring sense of uninterrupted privacy.
Moving outdoors through the enclosed open-plan living and dining room you will find the villas infinity pool. If you are travelling with little ones’, we all agree that the adjoining children’s pool is perfect for them to spend endless hours of fun whilst mum or dad retreat to the private spa pavilion for in-villa relaxation.
Service at The Jiwa: The Perfect 10/10
As you may know, we like to personally experience our villas to ensure they all meeting our high standards set for Ministry of Villas – The Jiwa exceeded our expectations and then some. The team of professionally trained staff came with a resume of over 10 years experience in some of Indonesian’s best resorts and restaurants: and it showed! They achieved ninja status when we were dining on breakfast, the same and discreet team managed to served breakfast seamlessly whilst still making up our bedrooms and preparing us for the day ahead.
Each night, their team has planned with us what we would like for breakfast, lunch and dinner the following day – we would like to note that though the options of dining out were limited; after night one, we knew there was no better choice for us than making use of the exquisite culinary skills of The Jiwa’s team.
Exploring The Gili Islands
During our stay, we thought it was the perfect opportunity to cruise over to the Gili Islands for the day. We departed from Bangsal Harbour and negotiated a full-day rate with one of the local fisherman boats. Our captain was very accommodating and offered us a price of IDR 800,000 or USD $57 – this included approximately 9-hours of touring throughout all three Gili Islands.
We first visited Gili Air which when looking from the Lombok shoreline is the island to the far right – this is ideal for those wanting to relax in one of the many white-sand beach clubs and simply enjoy island life as it passes you by.
The second island was Gili Meno – though this island is quiet, it is well known for its incredible snorkelling and scuba diving spots that boast colourful schools of fish and bale of turtles. Most famous for turtle point where some of the turtles reach 1m in width.
The last island we ventured to was the ‘party island’ known colloquially as Gili T or Gili Trawangan. This island definitely has a vibrant beat where the murmurs of the day’s findings could be heard from the stream of divers and backpackers that explored under the sea. This is where we chose to enjoy lunch, browse the cute boutiques and cool off in the crystal clear turquoise waters between the fishing and diving boats bobbing up and down.
Breaking it Down
Whilst we stayed here for two nights, I would personally recommend staying longer. With ease of access to nearby Gili Islands and a palatial property to enjoy there is more than enough to keep you occupied. Better yet, this villa is available from $675 per night in the low season for a five-bedroom option. This incredible price point works out for as low as $67.50 per person if you are travelling with 5 couples or a group of 10 guests.
