Mount Rinjani Trek hiking guide: route map, stages & where to stay

The Mount Rinjani Trek crosses the second-highest volcano in Indonesia, on the island of Lombok in West Nusa Tenggara. The classic route starts in Sembalun on the dry east side, climbs to the crater rim at Pelawangan Sembalun (2,639 m), goes up to the summit (3,726 m) before dawn, drops into the caldera to the crater lake Segara Anak and its hot springs, climbs out to the Senaru crater rim and descends through rainforest to Senaru on the north side. Most groups take 4 days and 3 nights. You sleep in tents at three official camps, and foreigners may only trek with a licensed trekking organiser, a certified guide and porters. The whole mountain lies in Mount Rinjani National Park (Taman Nasional Gunung Rinjani) and the Rinjani-Lombok UNESCO Global Geopark.

The route

From the Sembalun trailhead, about 1,000 m up at the edge of the fields above Sembalun Lawang, the path crosses open savanna past shelters Pos 1, Pos 2 and Pos 3, then climbs a long series of steep, dusty ridges to the rim at Pelawangan Sembalun. That first day gains about 1,650 m. At around 2 or 3 am the next morning you leave the tents for the summit: 3.9 km and about 1,090 m up a narrow ridge of loose volcanic sand and scree, past the exposed section called Cemara Nunggal, to the top for sunrise. You come back the same way, pack up and descend 600 m of steep rock to Segara Anak (about 2,010 m), where the young cone of Gunung Barujari rises out of the lake. Day 3 is a short, steep climb to the Senaru rim (about 2,641 m), and day 4 is a long descent of about 2,000 m through forest to Senaru.

This guide follows the route mapped on OpenStreetMap and splits it into 4 stages, about 6.4 km each. The line is 25.7 km from trailhead to trailhead. The summit is an out-and-back from the first camp: it adds 7.8 km and is described with stage 2.

Highlights

• Sunrise from the summit (3,726 m), with views over Lombok, the crater lake and, on clear mornings, Bali's Mount Agung
• Pelawangan Sembalun: sunset over the caldera from the first camp
• Segara Anak: the crescent-shaped crater lake and the Aik Kalak hot springs, a welcome soak after the summit
• Gunung Barujari: the active cone that grew inside the caldera of Samalas, whose eruption in 1257 was one of the largest of the last thousand years
• Senaru's waterfalls, Sendang Gile and Tiu Kelep, a short walk from the village after the trek

When to go

The park is closed every year from 1 January to 31 March for the rainy season; in 2026 tickets went on sale on 6 March and the trails reopened on 1 April. The drier months from about May to October are the best time, and July to September is the busiest. In the dry season fire is the main risk: in September 2026 new bookings were paused, and a fire that started on 22 September near Torean closed the Senaru route until 3 October. Check the eRinjani app and the park's notices before you book and again before you travel. Nights at the camps and on the summit are cold and windy all year.

How hard is it?

Rinjani is graded 4 of 5 under Indonesia's national mountain grading, and Indonesian climbers must show they have climbed an easier mountain first. Expect about 3,500 m of ascent and 3,900 m of descent over 4 days, counting the summit. The summit climb is the hardest part: loose scree where you slide back with each step, in the dark, in cold wind, at altitude. Day 1 takes 6 to 9 hours, the summit 5 to 7 hours return, and the descent to Senaru 5 to 6 hours. Porters carry tents, food and water, so you carry only a day pack, but you need good fitness and trekking experience.

Permits and booking

• eRinjani: every trekker needs a ticket in the official eRinjani app (Android and iOS), with a fixed route and dates. Quotas are limited, and you must check in and check out at the gate.
• Licensed organiser: foreign trekkers must book through a licensed trekking organiser (TO). From 2026 one guide may lead at most 4 trekkers, and a porter serves at most 2 foreign trekkers. The organiser books your ticket and arranges guides, porters, tents, food and transfers.
• Fees: since 3 November 2025 the park fee for foreign visitors on the Sembalun and Senaru routes is Rp 250,000. Packages usually include it.
• Health and insurance: you need a health certificate issued the day before the climb (Nusa Medica Clinic in Sembalun Lawang issues them), a signed consent statement and the safety briefing. The 2025 rules require insurance that covers evacuation, so carry your own travel insurance that covers trekking to 3,726 m and helicopter rescue.
• At the gate you get an RFID wristband. Drones need a special permit, speakers are banned, and all rubbish must be carried out of the park.

Getting there and away

Lombok International Airport near Praya has flights from Bali and Jakarta, and boats run from Bali. Organisers usually collect you from the airport, Mataram, Senggigi or the Bangsal harbour, and many put you up in Senaru or Sembalun the night before. On the morning of day 1 you register in Sembalun Lawang (about 1,150 m) and are taken to the trailhead. Senaru and Sembalun are about 45 minutes apart by car, so you can leave luggage at your organiser's office and collect it after the trek.

Money, phone signal and water

Bring rupiah in cash for tips, drinks and any extra porter; cash machines are few in the mountain villages, so withdraw money in Mataram or at the airport. Mobile signal is patchy and often absent in the caldera, so do not rely on your phone; guides carry radios. Porters collect water at springs near the camps; treat or boil it.

What to pack

A warm jacket, a fleece, hat and gloves for the summit, a waterproof shell, a headlamp with spare batteries, poles, gaiters, boots with good grip, sun protection for the open savanna, a 2 litre water bottle, snacks, blister plasters, your medicines and a power bank (there is no electricity on the mountain). Check what sleeping bag and mat your organiser supplies.

Safety

Most serious accidents happen on the summit trail. In June 2025 a Brazilian hiker died after falling at Cemara Nunggal, about 2,800 m up, and rescuers had to carry her 8 km because fog stopped the helicopter. Stay with your guide, keep to the marked path, and turn back if fog, wind or exhaustion set in. Altitude headache and cold are common on summit night. In an emergency call 112 or the search-and-rescue number 115 and tell your guide. Rinjani is an active volcano: check its alert level with Indonesia's volcanology agency (MAGMA Indonesia) and the park's notices. The 2018 earthquakes closed the trails for about a year.