Kiluan Bay

Teluk Kiluan is a bay on the south-west coast of Lampung where the water drops away steeply offshore, and pods of spinner dolphins - along with bottlenose - move through in numbers, often in the hundreds. Watching is done at dawn from jukung, small outrigger canoes taking two or three passengers each, going out a few kilometres to meet the pods; the boats are unstable and the sea is open, which is worth knowing before boarding. Behind the bay is Laguna Gayau, a natural rock pool on the coast reached by a walk through forest and rubber, and there are hills, beaches and a small island. Accommodation is village homestays. The road in is long, rough and slow, which is why the place stayed obscure for a long time and is still mostly domestic.

What you actually see

• Dolphin pods at dawn - spinner and bottlenose, sometimes in hundreds.
• Outrigger canoe watching - jukung taking two or three passengers each.
• Laguna Gayau - the natural rock pool on the coast behind the bay.
• Village homestays - the accommodation, and how trips are arranged.

When to go

April to September; dawn for the dolphins. Two days.

Honest expectations

The road in is genuinely rough and takes hours. Canoes are small and the sea is open - not for the nervous or those who cannot swim. Dolphins are wild and not guaranteed on any morning.

Nearby

Bandar Lampung is north-east; Bukit Barisan Selatan is west along the coast.