Gili Islands Budget: What Boats, Rooms, Food and Fun Cost in 2026

21 October 202631 October 2026

“How much will two or three nights on the Gili Islands cost in total?” “Are rooms and food more expensive than in Bali, or cheaper?” Cost is usually the first question once you start planning a Gili trip. In short, the money you spend on the islands comes to about Rp500,000 to 800,000 per person per day if you travel on a budget, and around Rp1,550,000 if you stay in hotels and eat in restaurants. The two things that make the biggest difference are the fast boat from Bali and the type of room you choose.

All prices here are ones we could confirm in October 2026, from Lonely Planet, the travel site tiket.com, Indonesian news reports, and official tourism and business websites.

It is written for people planning one to three nights on the three Gili Islands (Gili Trawangan, Gili Air and Gili Meno), most of them coming from Bali. International flights vary too much to include, so they are left out of the calculations. Dollar figures use US$1 = about Rp17,800 (September 2026).

As of October 2026

What this article covers

✓A daily budget for budget and mid-range travellers, and what it is made of
✓Typical prices for boats, the island entry fee, rooms, food, getting around and activities
✓How to add up the total for two nights from Bali
✓Costs that are easy to miss, such as tax, service charges and card fees
✓How the season, the island and the boat you choose can bring costs down

In short

As of October 2026, the money you spend on the Gili Islands is about Rp500,000 to 800,000 (about US$28 to 45) per person per day if you sleep in a dorm and eat at local warungs, and around Rp1,550,000 (about US$87) if you stay in a hotel and eat in restaurants. On top of that, the fast boat from Bali costs Rp250,000 to 800,000 (about US$14 to 45) each way. For two nights from Bali, a rough total per person is Rp1.57 to 2.67 million (about US$88 to 150) on a budget and Rp3.52 to 4.62 million (about US$198 to 260) mid-range.

Contents

How much does a day on the Gili Islands cost?

Lonely Planet’s article “How to visit Indonesia’s Gili Islands on a budget” (updated July 2026) puts a budget traveller’s daily spend at Rp500,000 to 800,000 per person. The travel site tiket.com (updated June 2026) also gives sample daily budgets: about Rp600,000 for a budget traveller, about Rp1,550,000 mid-range, and Rp3,000,000 or more for luxury.

In tiket.com’s breakdown, the budget day is a public boat return trip from Bangsal Port on mainland Lombok (Rp50,000), a hostel (Rp200,000), three meals (Rp150,000), a bicycle (Rp50,000) and a snorkelling trip (Rp150,000). The mid-range day is a fast boat return trip (Rp200,000), a hotel (Rp800,000), three restaurant meals (Rp300,000) and activities (Rp250,000). In both, the room is the largest single cost, so the type of room you pick moves the total the most.

Figure: What one day costs per person (tiket.com example)

Source: sample daily budgets from tiket.com (updated June 2026). The boat is a return trip from Bangsal Port on mainland Lombok.

What do the boat and the island entry fee cost?

After rooms, the boat over is the biggest part of a Gili budget. Fast boats from Bali, from Padang Bai and other harbours, cost Rp250,000 to 800,000 each way, depending on the company, whether hotel transfers are included and where you leave from: detikBali (August 2025) reported Rp250,000 for the cheapest Padang Bai operators, and Scoot Fast Cruises’ official site (October 2026) lists Rp800,000 from Gili Trawangan to Sanur. Lonely Planet gives Rp300,000 to 600,000, at the higher end in July and August. The routes between Bali and Lombok are compared in our guide to getting from Bali to Lombok.

If you fly into Lombok International Airport, you drive to Bangsal Port and take a boat from there. The car costs about Rp150,000 to 400,000, per car rather than per person: about Rp150,000 to 200,000 by ride-hailing app according to the Lombok guide Sundays Lombok (May 2026), and Rp300,000 to 400,000 by metered taxi according to Wikivoyage. From Bangsal to Gili Trawangan, tiket.com gives Rp23,000 to 25,000 per person for the wooden public boat (it leaves when full), Rp85,000 to 100,000 for the public fast boat, and Rp350,000 to 500,000 to charter a whole boat. How the port works is explained in our Bangsal Port guide.

Separately from the boat, there is a fee to enter the three Gili Islands. According to the local paper Radar Lombok (3 February 2024), from 1 February 2024 foreign visitors pay Rp20,000 per person. If you cross from Bangsal or other Lombok harbours, you pay at the island entrance; if you come by fast boat from Bali, you pay before boarding or it is included in the ticket. tiket.com adds that a port fee of about Rp2,500 to 5,000 may also apply.

According to insideLombok (17 April 2026) and Times Indonesia (7 May 2026), North Lombok Regency has put a bill to the regional council to raise the fee for foreign visitors to Rp50,000. On 7 May the regency’s tourism office described it as not yet formally debated, and the council said it would only agree if facilities on the islands were improved first. We could not confirm whether the new amount applied as of October 2026.

← Scroll the table sideways

Item	Price we found	Source and notes
Fast boat from Bali (one way)	Rp250,000 to 800,000	Operator fares reported by detikBali (August 2025) and on official sites (October 2026). Lonely Planet gives Rp300,000 to 600,000
Car, airport to Bangsal Port	Rp150,000 to 400,000 per car	Ride-hailing Rp150,000 to 200,000 (Sundays Lombok, May 2026); metered taxi Rp300,000 to 400,000 (Wikivoyage)
Public boat from Bangsal (one way)	Rp23,000 to 25,000	tiket.com (updated June 2026). Leaves when full
Fast boat from Bangsal (one way)	Rp85,000 to 100,000	tiket.com (updated June 2026). detikBali (November 2025) gives Rp85,000 to 400,000 for boats from Bangsal in general
Island entry fee (foreign visitors)	Rp20,000 per person	Radar Lombok (February 2024). A rise has been proposed
Port fee	Rp2,500 to 5,000	tiket.com (updated June 2026). Varies by port

Figures as published by each source, checked in October 2026. Fares change with the season and the company, so check the price when you book.

How much are rooms, and does the island matter?

Rooms range from a dorm bed to villas costing millions of rupiah a night. Lonely Planet gives Rp200,000 (about US$11) for a dorm bed and Rp350,000 (about US$20) for a budget room for two. tiket.com puts budget rooms at Rp200,000 to 500,000 a night, mid-range at Rp600,000 to 1,500,000 and luxury resorts at Rp2,000,000 or more.

For Gili Air and Gili Meno, Indonesia’s official tourism site lists some affordable places to stay. Its five picks on Gili Air cost Rp200,000 to 300,000 a night, and its five on Gili Meno cost Rp200,000 to 400,000, with one example of a shared-room bed on Gili Meno at Rp100,000. Neither page shows a publication date, so the prices may have changed. How the three islands differ is covered in our comparison of Gili Air and Gili Meno.

Many room prices are per room, so two people sharing pay roughly half each. Lonely Planet also says that in the low season (November to March), a homestay for a month or more can often be negotiated down to about a third of the daily rate.

How Trawangan, Air and Meno differ as places to stay, room prices from dorms to villas, and what to check before booking, such as fresh-water showers and power cuts, are covered in our guide to Gili Islands hotels.

What do food and drinks cost?

Eating at local warungs keeps food costs low. According to detikBali (26 November 2025), dishes at warungs on Gili Trawangan cost Rp15,000 to 50,000. Lonely Planet gives Rp20,000 for fried rice from a food cart and Rp25,000 for a coffee.

For places to eat whose existence we could confirm, the night market on Gili Trawangan and whether you can pay by card, see our guide to Gili Islands restaurants and cafes.

Eating at places aimed at visitors and ordering drinks pushes the cost up. Lonely Planet’s examples are Rp30,000 for a beer at a bar, Rp60,000 for a cocktail at a sunset bar, and Rp200,000 to 400,000 for dinner for two on the beach. tiket.com puts daily food at Rp150,000 for three meals on a budget and Rp300,000 for three restaurant meals mid-range.

Watch out for

Tax and service on top: according to Wikivoyage, most upmarket restaurants add 21% for tax and service, sometimes noted in small print at the bottom of the menu.
Card fees: Wikivoyage also says cards are accepted at some upmarket places and all dive shops, usually with a 3% charge.
Refill your water bottle: according to Wikivoyage, cafes, dive shops and stores refill bottles for Rp3,000.

What do getting around and activities cost?

There are no cars or motorbikes on the three Gili Islands, so you walk, cycle or take a cidomo (horse cart). Lonely Planet (updated July 2026) gives Rp50,000 to 100,000 a day for a bicycle, and at least Rp100,000 for a cidomo, with the price agreed before you set off. If you cycle, getting around costs almost nothing.

To move between the islands, Lonely Planet (July 2026) gives Rp35,000 to 40,000 one way for the scheduled public boat (two departures a day in each direction) and Rp85,000 for the fast boat.

Snorkelling is the main activity. A shared snorkelling trip costs Rp150,000 according to detikBali, Rp170,000 according to Lonely Planet, and Rp100,000 to 200,000 according to tiket.com. Chartering a boat costs Rp700,000 to 1,200,000 per boat, according to tiket.com. Diving costs more: on the official website of Manta Dive on Gili Trawangan, a half-day Discover Scuba Diving session costs Rp1,350,000 (about US$76), plus a one-time marine park fee of Rp100,000. Lonely Planet gives Rp150,000 for a 60-minute massage.

What does two nights from Bali cost in total?

Using the prices above, here is one person’s trip from Bali by fast boat with two nights on the Gili Islands. Add the return boat, the entry fee, two nights’ accommodation, three days of food and activities. The budget version uses a dorm bed, a bicycle and one snorkelling trip; the mid-range version uses a hotel room and Rp250,000 of activities on each of two days.

Travelling alone, you pay the whole room rate that two people would split. Gili Islands solo travel compares dorm and private room prices for one person and lists what to ask a guesthouse before you book.

Figure: Adding up two nights from Bali (per person)

Our estimate from the prices in this article (fast boat from the operator fares above; rooms, food and activities from tiket.com and Lonely Planet). Budget uses a dorm bed; mid-range uses a room for one. US$1 = about Rp17,800 (September 2026).

Most of the range in the totals above comes from the difference between boat companies. If two people share a mid-range room, each saves about Rp800,000. This is an estimate built from published prices, and diving and drinks can change it a lot.

How can you keep costs down?

The season makes the biggest difference. Lonely Planet says prices are lowest in the rainy season from November to March (expect rain), reasonable with less rain from April to early June and in September and October, and that July, August and the New Year holiday leave little room for discounts. Fast boats fill up in the busy months, so it recommends booking online in advance.

Next come the island and the room. Lonely Planet says Gili Trawangan has the most cheap food and budget lodging, Gili Air is in between, and Gili Meno tends to cost more. For the boat from mainland Lombok, the wooden public boat is cheapest; choose the fast boat only if you want to avoid waiting.

How you carry money matters too. According to Wikivoyage, Gili Trawangan has more than ten ATMs, but money changers on the island give noticeably poorer rates than on the mainland and small change often runs short, so it suggests bringing small notes and coins from Bali.

Check before you set your budget

✓Have you checked the return fast boat fare at the final booking total (with or without transfers and tax)?
✓Is the room price per room or per person, and does it include tax and service?
✓Do you have small notes for the entry fee, port fee and cidomo?
✓Does your trip fall in July, August or the New Year holiday?

A note from us in Sekotong

A Gili budget is easier to manage if you split it three ways: boat, room, and cash for the islands. Fast boats are sometimes cancelled because of the weather, so plan to leave the islands the day before an international flight to avoid paying for a missed one.

The downsides of Gili costs, and who they suit

The downsides first. The Gili Islands are made for visitors, so restaurants and bars cost more than local places on mainland Lombok. The shorter your stay, the larger the fast boat’s share of your budget, and in July, August and over the New Year discounts are rare. If you expect a cheap island, you may find you spend more than you thought.

On the other hand, with a dorm bed and warung meals you can get by on a modest daily amount, and a shared snorkelling trip costs little. The Gilis suit people who can adjust their plans to their budget.

Apart from the three Gilis, there is another group of small islands, the South Gilis, off Sekotong in southwest Lombok. They are one option for people who prefer quiet to a lively scene. How they compare is covered in Gili 3 vs South Gili, and the islands themselves in our South Gilis guide. In a fishing village in Sekotong, we run a beach cafe (SAKURA CAFE, 10:00 to 22:00, closed Mondays), a market and a beach club with local Sasak people. What you can book now is a stay programme of 3 to 5 nights at Rp4,800,000 (about US$270) per person, including airport transfers, transport during your stay, a guide, a welcome dinner and a massage (flights and accommodation are separate). Thirteen private villas are under construction, and the first is due to be completed in early 2027 (plan as of August 2026).

Frequently asked questions

Q. How much is the island entry fee, and where do I pay it?

Since 1 February 2024, foreign visitors pay Rp20,000 per person. According to Radar Lombok, you pay at the island entrance if you cross from Lombok, and before boarding or as part of the ticket on fast boats from Bali. A rise to Rp50,000 has been proposed; we could not confirm whether it applied as of October 2026.

Q. Which island is cheapest?

Lonely Planet says Gili Trawangan has the most cheap food and budget lodging, Gili Air is in between, and Gili Meno costs more.

Q. Can I pay by card? How much cash should I bring?

Some upmarket places and all dive shops take cards, but Wikivoyage says there is usually a 3% charge. Warungs, cidomos and the entry fee are cash, so bring enough small notes for your time on the islands.

Summary

As of October 2026, plan on about Rp500,000 to 800,000 per person per day on a budget and around Rp1,550,000 mid-range. With the fast boat from Bali and the entry fee, two nights from Bali comes to roughly Rp1.57 to 2.67 million per person on a budget and Rp3.52 to 4.62 million mid-range. Three things shape the cost: the boat company, the type of room and how many share it, and the season. Check the latest prices on the booking page before you go.