Where to sleep near Rinjani

Should you stay in Senaru or Sembalun before the trek?

Sleep where your trek starts. The summit trek and the 3-day traverse start in Sembalun Lawang, and the Senaru rim trek starts in Senaru.

Checked 23 Oct 2026. Heights from a Rinjani travel guide and operator sites; distances from the road table.

One operator quotes 2.5–3 hours by road from Mataram or Senggigi to Sembalun. Treks start early, so a night in the village saves you a pre-dawn drive.

Senaru

Senaru is 8 km up from the north coast road at Bayan, next to the national park office. There are budget rooms with views over rice fields to the summit, a few mid-range bungalows, and a German-run garden in Teres Genit with camping, a pool and hot showers. Hot water is not standard, and several of the listed rooms have cold water only.

Arrive a day early and you can visit the Sendang Gile and Tiu Kelep waterfalls. Tiu Kelep has a bathing pool below the falls.

Sembalun Lawang

Sembalun sits in a high valley on the east side. There is a homestay here with cold-water showers and a restaurant. One operator site says there is no scheduled bus into the valley, so plan on your operator’s transfer or a hired car.

The night after

Book the night after the trek near wherever you go next. The common 3-day traverse ends in Senaru.

• Gili Islands. Senaru is about 61 km from the boats at Bangsal. The Gilis have the full range of rooms.
• Senggigi. Most of Lombok’s better-quality hotels are on the Senggigi strip, on the west coast.
• Tanjung, Sira and Medana. Resort hotels on the north-west coast, closer to Senaru.
• Kuta Lombok. The south-coast town, popular with surfers. It suits resting on the beach after the trek.
• Mataram. The island’s main city has little tourist accommodation.

Most operators include transport after the trek too. The trek cost page shows what each package covers.