Things to do in Lovina
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Komang Dodik
Komang Dodik leads highly recommended hikes in the hills along the north coast. Trips start at 250,000Rp per person and can last from three to seven hours. The highlight of most is a series of waterfalls, over 20m high, in a jungle grotto. Routes can include coffee and vanilla plantations.
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Jasmine Kitchen
The Thai fare at this elegant two-level restaurant lives up to the promise of the trays of chillies drying out front: it's excellent. The menu is long and authentic and the staff gracious. While soft jazz plays, try the homemade ice cream for dessert. You can refill water bottles here for 2000Rp.
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Kantin 21
Funky open-air place where you can watch traffic by day and groove to acoustic guitar or garage-band rock by night. There's a long drinks list (jugs of Long Island iced tea for 75,000Rp), fresh juices and a few local snacks.
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Dolphin Watching
Sunrise boat trips to see dolphins are Lovina's much-hyped tourist attraction - so much so that a large concrete crowned monument has been erected in honour of the over-touted cetaceans. Some days, no dolphins are sighted, but most of the time at least a few surface.
Expect constant hassle from your hotel and touts selling dolphin trips - and if you want to go, it's best to buy a ticket the day before. The price is fixed by the boat owners' cartel. Trips start at a non-holiday-like 06:00 and last about two hours. Note that the ocean can get pretty crowded with loud, roaring power boats.
There's great debate about what all this means to the dolphins. Do they like being chas…
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Warung Rasta
Right on a strip of beach, a growing number of tables, chairs and picnic benches mix with fishing boats. The menu not surprisingly leans towards simply grilled fresh seafood; given the name, the endless loop of music shouldn't surprise either. It's run by dudes who have clearly realised that lounging around here all day beats fishing. That snorting you hear is a nearby pen housing worried-looking pigs.
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Mr Dolphin
Right on the beach, the fresh juices are good at this place, which, not surprisingly given the name, is a hang-out for dolphin tour skippers.
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Diving
Scuba diving on the local reef is better at lower depths and night diving is particularly recommended. Many people stay here to dive Pulau Menjangan, a two- to three-hour drive west.
For a two-dive trip, including transport and all equipment, expect to pay about US$35 for a Lovina reef or night dive; and around US$50 to Amed, Tulamben or Pulau Menjangan.
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Akar
The many shades of green at this cute-as-a-baby-frog cafe aren't just for show. They reflect the earth-friendly ethics of the owners. Refill your water containers here and then enjoy organic smoothies and fresh and tasty noodle dishes that include Asian sesame, beetroot and cheese lasagne and chilli garlic spaghetti. A tiny back porch overlooks the river.
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Snorkelling
Generally, the water is clear and some parts of the reef are quite good for snorkelling, though the coral has been damaged by 'bleaching' and, in places, by dynamite fishing. The best place is to the west, a few-hundred metres offshore from Billibo Beach Cottages - boat trips include equipment. You can also rent snorkelling gear for the day.
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Kwizien
The big news in Lovina dining is this excellent place run by the folks behind the much-lauded Café des Artistes in Ubud. The location back from the road has a relaxed elegance, which sets the mood for a perusal of the long wine list. Grilled seafood tops the menu highlighted by creative Indonesian fare. The tuna is a treat.
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Café Spice
Part of Spice Dive, this delightful beachside place is right at the western end of the beach path. The walls are covered in artwork and the menu is interesting and good. Besides the dive vibe you can sometimes hear the squeals of local kids learning English at the shop's free school upstairs.
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Warung Bamboo
A small, open-fronted place. Bamboo fronts a lively section of beach; watch fishers prepping boats, traveller's making out (or planning to…) etc. One of several here, it serves classic fare and cheap beer. To find it, walk east along the beach from the end of Jl Kubu Gembong.
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Triple 9
It's almost too appropriate: an oldies bar with sleepy crooners from the 1950s lilting out from the sound system. This attractive open-sided cafe boasts that you can hear conversations and, yes, you can. Or be a grump and use the wi-fi (every table has a power point).
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Kakatua Bar & Restaurant
A squawking sulphur-crested cockatoo at the front of the restaurant beckons you in (or tells you to get lost; who speaks cockatoo after all?). The menu merges Mexican, Thai, Indian and Balinese (and let's not forget pizza) - all of which is decent.
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Warung Peni
One of a few tropical hideaway warung on this quiet street. The long menu is mostly Indonesian with a few Chinese, Western and Balinese (grilled tuna with spicy sauce) dishes for variety; the mushroom omelette is just the thing after days of rice.
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Tropis Club
The long menu at this beachside place is right out of the traveller rulebook: there's Indo, Western, sandwiches and wood-fired pizza. Choose a table under the soaring roof or out along the beach walkway. Sunset specials include cheap Bintang.
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Le Madre
Two married chefs who worked at some of south Bali's best Italian restaurants run this cute little polished bistro that looks like somebody's home (actually it is). Enjoy fresh pasta and seafood with crusty Italian bread that's baked daily.
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Pappagallo
A three-level travellers' cafe in the heart of town − the views from the top are good at sunset. Wood-fired ovens on the ground floor produce pizzas and fresh baguettes for sandwiches. There's also pasta and Indo classics.
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Khi Khi Restaurant
Well off Jl Raya Lovina and behind the night market, this barn of a place specialises in Chinese food and grilled seafood, including lobster. It's always popular in a rub-elbows-with-your-neighbour kind of way.
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Tiki Lounge & Restaurant
The name lets you know this place takes its tropical motif seriously, right down to the bamboo detailing everywhere. The long Indonesian menu has pictures to help you choose, or you may just drop by for a beer.
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Spunky's
A real comer in the sunset drinks department, sprightly Spunky's serves Indonesian classics right on the beach. Like Lovina, it's a snoozy place day and night; walk here from anywhere along the sand.
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Warung Dolphin
Right on the beach, this cheery hang-out for dolphin-tour skippers serves a killer grilled seafood platter (which was probably caught by the guy next to you). There's live acoustic music many nights and a few other cheery warung nearby.
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Warung Bias
Worth a trip, Bias serves home-made baked goods, as well as Indian curries, European dishes like wiener schnitzel, pastas and pizzas. It's in a simple open-air setting surrounded by a carp pond.
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Zakia's
Wood from the hills behind town is carved into all sorts of fascinating items and furniture. It's artful in a primitive way and much better than the typical tourist trash everywhere.
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Main Beach
The best beach areas include the main beach east of the Dolphin Monument as well as the curving stretch a bit west. The cluster of cheap hotels in Anturan also enjoy fun in the sand.
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