Bali's immediate neighbour, Lombok offers the same landscapes without the density. The Indonesian government has named it one of the country's five national “super-priority destinations”, a status that brings dedicated infrastructure budgets and fast-tracked regulatory treatment.
At the heart of this strategy lies the Mandalika Special Economic Zone (KEK Mandalika), 1,175 hectares of coastline master-planned by state-owned ITDC, minutes from the development: an international circuit hosting MotoGP and WSBK, hotel zones, roads, utilities and sanitation — a programme funded in part by a USD 248 M loan from the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. By the end of 2025, investment committed in the zone exceeded 6,000 billion rupiah (≈ €290 M), from 27 Indonesian and international companies.
The momentum shows in the figures: over the first four months of 2026, Zainuddin Abdul Madjid International Airport handled more than 850,000 passengers, up 18.4 % year on year. Twenty minutes from the development, it has a capacity of 3.5 million passengers, expandable to 7 million, and is adding new international routes: Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Darwin.
1,175 haSpecial economic zone
≈ 290 M€Invested in the zone
+18.4 %Airport traffic 2026
Top 5Priority destinations
Accessibility
International airport 20 min away, growing regional links, fast boats from Bali.
Profile
MotoGP and World Superbike draw over 100,000 visitors on a single race weekend.
Government backing
Priority destination status, tax and customs incentives within the Mandalika zone.
Sources: ITDC / KEK Mandalika, BPS-Statistics Indonesia, airport authority (2025–2026).