Alden Beach House

You arrive at a resort made for keeping the day simple: a garden, a terrace, a pool and the sea directly outside. Alden Beach House suits divers who want the coast close at hand, a proper place to eat and enough space to sit down without turning the evening into another expedition. English and Indonesian are spoken by the hotel team, so you can sort out the practicalities without resorting to underwater sign language on dry land.

The mood is relaxed rather than dressed-up. A white-sand beach, outdoor seating and a beachfront restaurant give you somewhere to wander once the kit is put away elsewhere. There is also a 24-hour front desk, private check-in and check-out, luggage storage and a tour desk, which makes the property workable for both a settled stay and a few days of exploring Lombok.

Alden Beach House is in Sekotong, Indonesia, on the coast of Lombok. The beach is directly accessible from the property, with white sand, sun loungers, parasols and a beach bar. Sekotong Beach is about 200 metres away, while Tawun Beach is roughly 1 km from the resort; Kemos Beach is about 1.5 miles away.

The surrounding area gives you a few places to reach rather than a dense strip of restaurants and cafés. Villa Yukie Restaurant is about 1,700 feet away and Rumah Makan Putri about half a mile away. Gita Nada is around 3,250 feet away, and the Transport Gili Nanggu point is roughly 1.5 miles from the property. For wider outings, the resort can arrange island hopping and waterfall visits, while bicycles and car hire are available for exploring under your own steam.

The room choice is mainly about the view and the bed rather than fitting a large group. Couples can choose a king-size room facing the sea or garden, while two friends travelling together have twin-bed options. The Deluxe Double Room with Sea View is the one to look at when the view matters and you want the larger of the double-room layouts. Every room is designed for two guests, so this is a place for pairs rather than a base for spreading a whole expedition team across one room.

Air conditioning matters in Lombok, particularly when the day has involved heat, salt and a long spell outdoors. Rooms also have soundproofing, a private bathroom with a shower, a wardrobe and a socket near the bed. Garden and inner-courtyard views are available, while selected rooms add a balcony or a sea view. The practical end of the evening is covered by daily housekeeping, room service and free WiFi throughout the property.

The ground-floor layout can be useful if stairs are an irritation after a full day. A family-room option is available, and children of any age are welcome; cots and extra beds can be requested, subject to the chosen room and availability. Children aged six and over are charged as adults, so check the occupancy details carefully before booking rather than leaving the arithmetic until arrival.

The Beachfront Restaurant serves breakfast, lunch and dinner beside the beach, with seafood and local Indonesian cooking at its centre. The setting does some of the work: you can eat with the ocean in view rather than treating dinner as a separate trip away from the resort. The wider dining offer also covers Asian dishes, halal Indonesian food and barbecue grill cooking.

Breakfast is a buffet and is included in the stay. For a diver, the useful point is the full daily service rather than a mysterious promise of endless snacks: there is a restaurant, plus a snack bar for something less formal. Breakfast can also be served in your room, and special-diet menus are available on request.

The Sunset Bar is the single named bar on site, set on the beach and built around signature cocktails and the evening view. This is where you can watch the light go down over the ocean without having to organise transport, which is exactly the sort of logistics worth avoiding once you are pleasantly tired.

The Main Pool is outdoors, with comfortable sun loungers around it. It gives you a second place to cool off when the sea is not the plan, or when you want to read horizontally for an hour and call it recovery. The beach adds another set of loungers and parasols, with the water close enough to make the decision between pool and sea suitably uncomplicated.

Alden Spa offers massages and facials, a sensible pairing with a quiet afternoon rather than an ambitious schedule. The garden, terrace, patio, outdoor furniture and picnic area provide several places to sit, while an outdoor fireplace adds a focal point for the evening. There is no need to turn every non-diving hour into a programme.

When you do want to move, bicycle use and bicycle rental are available, along with walking tours, bike tours and visits focused on local culture. Snorkelling, kayak use, paddleboarding and boat excursions are also available, and the resort can arrange island hopping and waterfall visits. Some activities take place away from the property, so your afternoon may involve a short outing rather than simply stepping off the terrace.

Lombok International Airport is about 27 miles from the resort by road, with a driving time of roughly 48 minutes. An airport shuttle is available to arrange with the hotel. Car hire is also available, and private parking on site is free, with no reservation required. If you are driving, the property has parking-garage access as well as its coastal setting.

Check-in runs from 13:00 to 21:30, and check-out from 07:00 to 11:00. A 24-hour front desk, express check-in and check-out, luggage storage and a wake-up service cover the less glamorous but genuinely useful parts of travel. Cash, Visa and Mastercard are accepted.

WiFi is available throughout the property, alongside daily housekeeping, room service, a safety deposit box and 24-hour security. The resort is non-smoking throughout, with a designated smoking area, and pets are not allowed. For families, babysitting and child services are available, while cot and extra-bed arrangements depend on the selected accommodation.