Indonesia’s Gili Asahan, Lombok’s best-kept secret: island as peaceful as it is beautiful

My pre-booked boat pushes off from a beach on the Indonesian island of Lombok, gliding through calm waters and passing the emerald-green hills and empty beaches of Sekotong Bay – a welcome indicator of the weekend ahead.

Minutes later, my destination draws into focus, stark white sand glistening in the morning sun.

Jumping into the shallow waters of Gili Asahan, off the southwest “tail” end of Lombok, is to be transported to a desert-island paradise.

Asahan has no roads or motor vehicles, and only five hotels. There is just one, small community of permanent residents, all of whom live here only because of the tourism work.

It is a world away from Lombok’s better-known gilis (islands) to the north – Trawangan, Meno and Air, collectively known as the Gili Islands – where tourists arrive in crowds on the fast-boat service from Bali.