Planning a trip to Indonesia can leave you overwhelmed. Spanning 17,508 islands stretching over the Indian ocean, it is the world's largest island country.With a mix of landscapes, oceans and volcanoes, I spent 6 weeks travelling through Bali, Lombok, Gili Islands, Komodo National Park and Flores. To help inspire your trip, I've put together my top 5 experiences of Indonesia.

Climbing Mount Batur

Home to over 127 active volcanoes and waves of seismic activity, it's possible to visit volcanic peaks all over Indonesia. With varying levels of difficulty, there's almost one for every level of fitness.It's always been a bucket list item of mine to climb an active volcano. Located north of Ubud, Mount Batur's most recent activity was recorded in 2000. From the peaks, lava left from the 1968 eruption is still visible today.Above the clouds,  a 2-hour hike brings you to the summit where you're rewarded by views onto Mount Agung. The hike itself is classed as an intermediate trek. There are hot springs nearby for those wanting to relax their fatigues muscles after the hike.Also, check out this article about what it's like to climb Mount Batur for sunrise.

Stunning views as the sun rises above the clouds!

Learning to ride a Scoopy

I'm not sure how much riding a Scoopy is in my fondest of memories but I'm definitely glad I did it! Breezing over hilltops, through rice paddies was the most fun way to get around! It felt liberating not having to rely on a taxi service or a driver.

Public transport is pretty much non-existent in most parts of Indonesia and despite my failed attempted to learn after taking a couple of lessons, I had no choice but to learn whilst visiting Lombok. Don't get me wrong, it's really not hard. It's easier to learn if you know how to ride a bike. The difficulty arises when faced with chaotic traffic and roads made of gravel and sand.Alas, the gravel and sand coupled with going downhill around a curve just after sunset as it was getting dark, on a road with construction work, my bike slipped and fell abruptly on my leg, twisting my foot underneath. Where a helmet, wear good shoes! As tempting as it is to ride in flip-flops, wearing trainers saved my foot from being crushed underneath the bike.

Despite my accident which left me limping for the next couple of weeks, I wouldn't hesitate to get back on a Scoopy and try again! It really was an awesome way to experience a new country!

Grinning after my first successful day of riding a Scoopy

Sunsets on Gili Air

Wow!! Is all I can say...I'm a sucker for sunsets and this one viewed from the north west of the island left me speechless.Located just off the north-west coast of Lombok, Gili Air, Gili Trawangan and Gili Meno make up a three island trio where the only way to get around is by foot, bicycle or horse carriage. The name 'Gili' simply means small island and you'll find many of the islands around Lombok begin with Gili.Getting there from Bali, I bought a ticket from an agent in Ubud for IDR 500,000 open return so I could choose the date and destination to return to. You also have the option of returning to Bali from Lombok if you decide to spend some time exploring Bali's eastern neighbour.

Exotic Fruits and Vegetables

Yellow watermelon, green oranges, over a hundred varieties of bananas and varying colours of pumpkins, Indonesia is rich in fresh diverse produce.As my Airbnbhost put it, we have over a hundred varieties of bananas varying in colours and sizes and in Europe, they send you the yellow one! He's not wrong, after my visit I felt somewhat deprived of the insane amount of choice they have.

Meeting a real life dragon

The Komodo Dragon is a species of lizard living uniquely in the Komodo National Park. As the largest living species of lizard, they can grow to over 2 metres and in rare cases stretch to 3 metres.These large carnivores dominate their territory, commonly eating birds and mammals.I wouldn't say it was my lifelong dream to meet these dangerous creatures but I couldn't resist the detour to meet these impressive creatures! The best time of year to visit is between May-August when the mating season begins.

The young usually hatch out of their eggs around April time and you can see then nestled high up in trees.Also, check this post out for a guide on how to organise your trip to the Komodo Islands.

Perspective shot ;)

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More on the blog…

• Guide to Kelimutu Volcanic Lakes in Flores

• Reflections on one month in Bali

• Back to The Sanctuary, Thailand