What‘s Included

Meeting and Pickup

What To Expect

Reviews

• Absolutely Incredible, start to finish!

  Daniel R,

  Oct 3, 2025

  - Viator

  5.00

  I cannot stress how professional this entire operation was from start to finish. I know I was looking for an incredibly detailed review when I was looking to book a tour operator so here it is: As part of the package, they pick you up from anywhere on Lombok. We arrived at Bangsal and we had a driver waiting for us holding a sign with my name. he drove us to headquarters. we were sat down with the person who gave us a detailed map of the mountain and made sure we understood everything we were getting ourselves into. We were then driven to a hotel nearby, which is part of their package. Very, very cute place, overlooking an insane view of nature (pictured). Infinity pool and amazing vibes. There’s a little restaurant on site that gives incredible food. After settling into the hotel, we were brought to two nearby waterfalls which were honestly better than I could’ve imagined. A guide brought us so we knew exactly where we were going. He took 1 million pictures of us as well. for a little extra money, there is an opportunity to do a short rafting ride that’s built into the bridge and mountain. we didn’t have cash on us so he just paid for us so we paid him back at the hotel. In the morning, we were then driven to Mount Rinjani base camp at approximately 1000 foot elevation. We had one main guide Bayu and one partial guide Ari that was with another couple, but we were usually nearby during our climb. It was Bayu’s first time being a guide and honestly, he exceeded expectations. He made sure we got up and down safely and he didn’t care how slow we went. He made sure we were comfortable, well fed, well hydrated, and offered to carry everything that we needed even when we insisted we could carry it. I cannot stress how much food they give you. I promise you will not go hungry and it was all delicious. Coming down the mountain afterwards was challenging because of the small pebbles that slipped beneath your feet, but they provide you hiking poles to make sure you are ok. Bayu even went so far as to hold our hands when we weren’t sure of our next step. He was literally trying to have us switch shoes with him because he thought ours may have been too small and they were hurting our toes. Camping at the crater rim was far more comfortable than I thought it would be, and again they kept you incredibly well fed and hydrated. The views were completely insane. We were woken up at around 2:30 in the morning to hike to the summit in total darkness. If you forget a headlamp, they will supply them for you. We didn’t quite make it to the summit as it was extremely windy and well out of our comfort zone. The last leg of the hike is essentially an 8 foot trail with sheer cliffs on either side. Unless you were extremely focussed on each step and using your poles properly, the wind had the capability to knock you off your feet. If you fall off either of the sides, you can guess what happens next. Once Bayu saw we weren’t comfortable, he immediately turned us around. We backtracked to the closest safe checkpoint to watch the sunrise, which honestly was still the best sunrise I’ve ever seen. Actual climb timeline: Around 8:30am - Begin the climb. During the climb, there are four designated rest stops where you can relax in the shade. There is never a time in which you are hiking for more than two hours straight usually. The second rest stop is essentially a hikers safe Haven. There’s hundreds of hikers coming up and down and there’s bottomless food and drink being served. Around 2:30pm - Arrive at Crater Rim This is where they will set up your tent for you and get you ready to sleep for the night. One of the most incredible views I’ve ever seen of the lake inside the crater. They will serve you food and drink at around 5:30. When it turns to complete darkness at around 6:30 everyone just pretty much goes to bed. Around 2:30am - Hike to the summit. It’s cold, usually around 5 to 10°C. Most people need long pants and long sleeves for this part of the hike. Around 7:30am - Arrive back at Crater Rim for breakfast. This entirely depends on whether or not you reach the summit, if you do, you’ll arrive much later. Around 9am - Begin descent down the mountain Around 2:30pm - depending on your pace you could smash this time or you could be slower. As part of their package, they offer you a public slow ferry ride to the Gili Islands. The last one departs at 5 PM. This is the part of the whole thing I wish I knew ahead of time. We were incredibly slow coming down the mountain so the driver that drove us to Bangsal literally had to go warp speed to get us there at 4:57 PM and we sneaked onto the last boat to Gili T. If you are going to Gili afterwards, and you think you are slower than the average person, do not bank on making this ferry, especially if you have a hotel lined up for that night on the islands like we did. If you are faster than the average person, you shouldn’t have a problem making it on time. Hopefully this helps! PS tip your guide generously. At some point of this hike, they may literally be life savers. PPS they have local porters that carry all of the supplies up the mountain (40ish lbs per person), and they do it in flip-flops. Please enjoy that as you struggle your way up the mountain in proper hiking gear!