Amber Lombok Beach Resort, Indonesia Review
Amber Lombok Beach Resort is a well-known and popular resort along the southern coast of Lombok, Indonesia. Lombok is often called the next Bali or Bali 30 years ago due to its quite, laid-back surfer vibe. The proximity and distance to Bali give you a sense of being away from the crowds, with the convenience of a short internal flight.
Located in Torok Bay, Amber is one of the few resorts on the southern coast of Lombok that has direct beach access, a world-class day spa and is reasonably affordable.
So what’s it like to stay there? We’ve visited multiple times, staying as well as stopping by for food, massages and drinks. There’s a reason we keep returning!
Location
The absolute best thing about Amber Resort is its location. It is set far enough away from the bustle of Kuta (both Lombok and Bali) that you forget you’re on a populated island.
Nearby is Selong Belanak Beach, which has a range of excellent restaurants, a beginner surf beach and a world-class cocktail bar.
Looking out from your breakfast table, you watch waves crash on the outer reef. It looks as if you’re on a completely deserted island. All you can see are the local farmers walking their cows and buffaloes along the beach. There aren’t (yet) any other resorts in this bay, so it feels remote and peaceful.
But the international airport is only 45 minutes away. It’s not well-serviced internationally yet, but excellent connections through Bali, Jakarta, Singapore, and Kuala Lumpur will take you wherever you need to go.
The roads are well maintained, but sometimes, local traffic is a little hectic. Festivals, school traffic and weekly markets on the road can all impact travel times. The easiest way to get from the airport is to book a driver.
Overall Resort
The overall area of Torok Bay is quiet. There are no other significant developments down by the beach. The local houses are not that close. And there isn’t a mosque close to the resort.
The resort is single- and double-level (not a high-rise) and spread over quite a large area. The buildings are all concrete, blocking the few sounds around you. You'll be pleasantly surprised if you want a good night’s sleep.
The hotel includes a small gym with everything you need for a good workout.
Room Types
We stayed in a private room with a small pool shared between three rooms. We accessed this from the back of our room, so we didn’t have complete privacy, but we never saw anyone else in the pool. The main pool can get crowded at times!
The rooms are spacious, giving a luxurious feel. The design keeps most of the sun out, keeping the space cool even during the hottest part of the day.
We were in a downstairs unit, and you could hear guests walking upstairs in the evening, but it didn’t significantly impact us.
Bathrooms
I know some people love the exoticness of outdoor bathrooms. But sometimes, especially if there are a lot of insects around, they’re more about mosquitos and geckos than romance and relaxation.
Instead, Amber opts for indoor, beautifully tiled, large bathrooms.
However, the toilets seem to have issues. I don’t know if it’s because water is scarce, the design of the systems or the toilets themselves, but we had multiple malfunctions, which we also heard about from other guests.
Restaurant and Bar
The food is hit-and-miss. For breakfast, they have a buffet along with a plate of food like avocado on toast or a smoothie bowl. The buffet has bread, pastry, fruit, nasi goreng and mie goreng. There isn’t any pork on the menu, so expect chicken sausages and beef ham.
Because they offer a buffet and plates of food, the plates are pretty small—one piece of sourdough and one egg, rather than a whole meal. They should either pick to have the buffet or do a plated meal rather than trying to do both, as it doesn’t land well. If I order a smoothie bowl, that’s what I want for breakfast, rather than just a taste.
For dinner, we also had some great meals and some less-than-great ones. The gnocchi (a special) was fantastic. The bundles were beautifully pan-fried on the outside and fluffy on the inside. Meanwhile, the risotto was heavy and lacked finesse. The calamari was overcooked, but the snapper was beautifully done. So dining here isn’t cheap and is a little risky.
Spa Treatments at Mukti
If I had to choose where to get a facial along on the south coast, I would pick Mukti in Amber.
The spa ambience is relaxed, as you would expect. You’re given a welcome drink on arrival, and there is a small gift shop to browse. Once you’ve finished, you’ll be served delightful ginger tea and biscuits.
There are some rooms downstairs for private treatments, then a larger room upstairs where curtains provide privacy from other guests. We’ve had a couple’s massage downstairs, but when I visited alone, I was given a facial upstairs.
Mukti is popular with both guests of Amber and others, so make sure you book your treatments in advance. We’ve been unable to find enough time in the schedule before for all the treatments we wanted.
Final Note
If you’re looking for a self-contained resort where you feel like you’re getting away from it all, you’ll like staying at Amber Lombok Beach Resort.
However, I don’t think the overall hotel quality was worth the money. I would expect a hotel of this quality to have a restaurant that consistently provides excellent food and for the bathroom facilities to not experience so many issues.
I’ll most likely revisit the spa and stop to have a coffee with the incredible views but I’ll skip the meals and stay nearby. If you’ve ever visited Amber Lombok Beach Resort, let me know about your experience in the comments.
