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Lance AAlthough we departed on time, I arrived to my destination more than 2 hours after the scheduled time. Also, the van ride was miserable. The van was old, cramped and extremely hot. The weak AC wasn’t cold enough to counteract the sun coming through the windows, and for most of the trip, the driver turned off the AC completely. Unfortunately, none of the windows on my side of the van could open, so I felt like I was going to suffocate in the scorching heat with 10 other sweaty bodies crammed around me for two hours.
Gili Islands to Bali, Ferry Ferry, Bali Tour, Jul 4, 2025
JA
Jaime ANo shade up stairs and was full inside. Very good trip over all
Gili Islands to Bali, Ferry Speedboat, Karunia Perkasa, Jul 3, 2025
DL
Dimitri LOur boats were okay and our trips want well and they both were late.
Gili Islands to Bali, Ferry Speedboat, Ganggari Fast Boat, Jul 2, 2025
SH
Stéphane HNot a surprise, considering all the bad reviews but they meet expectations : boat left late, no explanation, boarding is chaotic and no AC in a boat totally full and closed. People were feeling bad, not even a bottle of water for the inconvenience, captain was sailing roughly,... We had no choice as it was the only seats left but if you have a choice, choose another company.
Gili Islands to Bali, Ferry Speedboat, Karunia Perkasa, Jul 2, 2025
LG
Lorenzo GBest boat experience in Bali
Gili Islands to Bali, Ferry Speedboat, Wahana Virendra Fast Boat, Jul 1, 2025
A
Alexandra The first ride was excellent — on time and smooth.
The return trip, however, had several issues. It was confirmed at first, but then we were informed of technical problems. They offered to arrange another driver for 12:30, which was later changed to 1:00 PM.
We arrived at check-in by 12:00 and ended up waiting — quite anxiously — until 1:30.
That said, we’re truly grateful to the captain, who brought us safely back to shore despite the challenging sea conditions. His calm and professional manner made all the difference.
Still, the operations team will need to step up — better coordination and communication would go a long way in improving the overall experience.
Gili Islands to Bali, Ferry Speedboat, Wahana Virendra Fast Boat, Jun 29, 2025
MC
Michael CThe crossing in a new speedboat was excellent. The service and friendliness of the staff on board are also positive. Unfortunately, the check-in area at Ocean Café 2 in Gili T is so uncomfortable that I would choose a different option next time. It was dark, hot, and the staff member tried to foist an overpriced transfer at the port in Bali. It left a very bad taste in our mouths...
Gili Islands to Bali, Ferry Speedboat, Gili Gili Fastboat, Jun 29, 2025
BS
Bindu SA below average experience overall. The boat was delayed by 1.5 hrs without any message/communication. I got to know after inquiring at the Gilli Air ticket counter. The ferry itself was okay but the seating could have been better, leg space was almost non-existent. There was a lot of confusion regarding luggage, yet again poor communication and to top it all of it was pouring in the padangbai harbour, luggage were being mishandled, dropped into water puddles. Not a pleasant experience.
Gili Islands to Bali, Ferry Ferry, Bali Tour, Jun 26, 2025
A
Aria Ok. I’ve been living in/travelling around Asia for 10 years now. I’ve taken many of these types of fast boats around several countries, including Indonesia. I grew up on boats and lived on a boat. My expectations for something like this are very low. I always give 5 starts, but not today.
First off, to no fault of the operator- the Lombok strait is one of the most difficult crossings in the world. The Lombok Strait is the main channel of the Indonesian Throughflow, funneling water from the Pacific to the Indian Ocean through a narrow (~20 km) and deep (250–4000 m) passage. This creates strong semi-diurnal currents and internal waves, which means even on a good day, this crossing will be rough. The N/S direction of the waves combined with the fact that you are crossing W/E, means that it will most be beam waves (hitting from the side) which is the worst for motion sickness. We caught this crossing on a relatively good forecasted day, here was my experience.
The Good:
The boat departed on time and arrived to our destination slightly early, and alive.
There was AC in the main cabin.
The Bad:
Uncomfortable: My row had 5 inches of legroom. I’m not exaggerating. I’m only 5’5, and I could not fit my legs in the row. Myself and the 3 others squished into my row had to sit sideways in order to fit. Some of the other rows had more legroom, but they’ve obviously squeezed some extra rows of seats in there.
Oversold: Whilst I believe we were still under the “legal” operating maximum of passengers, this boat was realistically oversold. There were not enough seats for all passengers, so passengers who boarded last were forced to sit on top of the boat, with no covering, even though it was storming and raining on approach to Bali. As I said before, we caught the crossing on a good day with only .5 -1.5 meter wave height (can go up to 3m usually during rainy season), and the people on the top were absolutely soaked from the waves. Not to mention, the winds in the crossing were about 35km/h. Imagine getting constantly drenched with waves, it’s raining on you, windy, and you’re cruising at speed. No thanks.
Reality: Unless you know that you do NOT get seasick, or are willing to heavily dose yourself with seasickness tablets, do not take the ferry. Fly from Lombok to Bali. As soon as the journey started, several people jumped up from their seats to run to the bathroom to vomit. The whole journey was filled with people getting sick. It is not an easy crossing. Again, we had it on a good day. If you have to take this crossing and you get seasick, sit towards the back/center.
Safety: During the crossing, a row of the seats inside the back of the boat collapsed. The iron support bar bent and came out of the seating track, and all 4 people fell to the floor, on top of the legs of the people in the row behind them. The crew were nice and let those 4 people go sit in the captains wheelhouse, so they didn’t have to sit on the floor for the rest of the journey. Which was a good thing, considering there was a fair amount of water that had leaked in and was sloshing around the back of the boat floor.
I could be wrong but I believe there were only accessible life vests for those of us in the cabin. Not enough for everyone on board. Normally I’m not too concerned about life vests- but if you went overboard or capsized in these currents, it would be literally impossible to swim against.
An added ick: At the end of the journey, a cockroach crawled out of a crack in the ceiling and into a woman’s hair in front of me. So there’s that.
I really don’t recommend this journey unless it is your only option 😬
Gili Islands to Bali, Ferry Speedboat, Karunia Perkasa, Jun 26, 2025
PC
Paul CWe had to wait in front of Padang Bai for around 1 hour because all speed boats arrived at the same time, this is a general issues and should be addressed properly to avoid such situations for customers! Less is more, there is no need for hundreds of speed boat...
Gili Islands to Bali, Ferry Speedboat, Wahana Virendra Fast Boat, Jun 23, 2025
