Hotel Tugu Lombok

There are beach hotels that blend into the landscape — streamlined interiors in shades of sand and seashell, the separation between indoor and outdoor, and between water and sky, almost seamless. And then there are beach hotels that swing the other way. Take one look at Hotel Tugu Lombok, and the giant rooster sculpture, visible from miles away, proudly perched atop a towering, dramatically lit open-air restaurant, and you know that this resort falls firmly into the latter category.

The Tugu Lombok is over-the-top, to be sure, but the aesthetic is firmly rooted in the region’s rich pre-colonial history, most particularly the ancient Majapahit era, when a prosperous Hindu kingdom ruled the island. The palm-fringed property is located on the northwest coast of Lombok. It’s just a hop, skip, and a jump away from Bali, its hugely popular sister island, but feels like a world apart, devoid, as it is, of nightclubs, high-end shopping and namedrop-worthy resorts. What Tugu Lombok does have is an opulent 200-year-old temple, a pristine white-sand beach, a huge freshwater swimming pool, yoga classes, a state-of-the-art indoor-outdoor spa, a wine cellar, bike rental — you get the picture.

Guests receive a complimentary foot and shoulder massage on arrival, just the ticket to loosen you up for further relaxation in your private villa, suite or bungalow. The colonial-style Bhagavat Gita suites are dreamily romantic, with high thatched ceilings, flower-strewn beds beneath filmy white canopies, bathtubs carved out of massive boulders, and private oceanfront plunge pools. Flat-screen TVs with home theatres, rain showers, and private lotus ponds are standard amenities across the board.

Higher up on the food chain, a night in the exquisite Villa Puri Dadap Merah feels like sleeping inside a luxurious archaeological museum, if such a thing exists: based on the architectual structure of an ancient temple and packed with antiques from the Indonesian islands, the villa has a private rooftop terrace where you can lounge or dine under the stars. That is, if you’ve already experienced a meal beneath the big rooster, and seafood on the beach beneath the glow of bamboo torches, and drinks at the old teak bar at Lara Djonggrang, a cocktail venue modeled after the look of a traditional Balinese hut. Leave Bali to the crowds — you can have Lombok all to yourself.