Will Gili Air Become a Second Gili T?
Gili Air
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| Will Gili Air Become a Second Gili T? |
For many years, visitors, expats, and long-term business owners have repeated the same sentence when talking about the Gili Islands: “We like Gili Air because it is not Gili T.”
That comparison has always been at the heart of Gili Air’s identity. Calm instead of chaotic. Sunsets instead of parties. Community instead of crowds.
But since the end of COVID, a growing number of people are asking an uncomfortable question: Is Gili Air slowly becoming what it once promised never to be?
Businesses are popping up everywhere. Beachfronts are getting busier. Hotels are getting bigger. Sustainability is often mentioned in brochures and social media captions, yet concrete remains the main building material. Rules and regulations exist on paper, but enforcement feels increasingly optional.
So the real question is not whether Gili Air wants to become a second Gili T—but whether current choices are quietly pushing it in that direction.
The Post-COVID Rush: Fear of Missing Out on Paradise
After COVID, something changed across many tropical destinations, and Gili Air is no exception. The island experienced a sudden rush of investment and construction. People who had been waiting on the sidelines felt a strong sense of urgency:
“If I don’t build now, I’ll miss my chance.”
This fear of missing out has driven rapid development. New restaurants, beach clubs, guesthouses, boutique hotels, and multi-story accommodations appeared in a remarkably short time. In isolation, development is not necessarily bad. Islands evolve. Tourism economies need income. Locals and newcomers alike deserve opportunities.
The problem lies in how this development is happening.
Instead of carefully following Indonesian coastal regulations, marine park rules, and zoning laws, a growing number of projects appear to stretch—or outright ignore—the boundaries. Beach extensions, semi-permanent structures close to the waterline, and concrete foundations in sensitive coastal zones are becoming more common.
What was once slow, organic growth now increasingly feels like a rush without reflection.
Sustainability: Vision or Marketing Buzzword?
Almost every new business on Gili Air claims to be “eco-friendly” or “sustainable.” The words are everywhere: on websites, Instagram bios, menu covers, and signs.
Yet when you look beyond the slogans, the reality is often less inspiring.
Concrete remains the dominant building material. Natural airflow design is often replaced by air-conditioned rooms. Septic systems are sometimes placed far too close to the coastline. Wastewater management remains a serious island-wide challenge.
True sustainability is difficult. It requires compromises, higher costs, and long-term thinking. It often means not building as big, as fast, or as close to the beach as possible. That is where marketing and reality start to diverge.
When sustainability becomes mainly a branding tool rather than a guiding principle, the island slowly drifts away from the values that once defined it.
Rules, Regulations, and the “Wild West” Feeling
Indonesia has clear regulations for coastal development, marine parks, and beach zones. Gili Air falls under those rules just as much as Gili T and Gili Meno.
Historically, older generations of business owners respected those boundaries—not only out of legal obligation, but out of understanding. They had seen what uncontrolled development could do elsewhere. Gili Trawangan served as a visible example of both success and excess.
In recent years, however, many locals and long-term residents describe a growing “Wild West” mentality. New investors arrive, build fast, ask questions later—or not at all. Enforcement feels inconsistent. Once a structure exists, it is rarely removed.
This creates a dangerous precedent. If one business pushes the limits and gets away with it, others will follow. Over time, the exception becomes the norm.
The Real Differences Between Gili Air and Gili T
Despite these worrying trends, it would be inaccurate—and unfair—to say that Gili Air is already becoming a second Gili T. There are still very real and important differences.
Target Audience and Atmosphere
Gili Trawangan has long focused on a younger travel market, including large numbers of party-oriented backpackers and short-stay visitors. Nightlife, bars, and social scenes dominate much of the island’s identity.
Gili Air, on the other hand, still attracts couples, families, digital nomads, divers, and mid-age travelers. People come to slow down, not to speed up. The evenings are quieter. Music is softer. Conversations last longer.
Social Life vs. Natural Rhythm
Gili T is designed around meeting people—bars, clubs, organized parties, and social events.
Gili Air revolves around sunsets, beach walks, early mornings, yoga sessions, and shared dinners. Social interaction happens, but it is not forced or amplified.
Local Community
Perhaps the most crucial difference is that Gili Air still has a functioning local village. Original families live, work, pray, and raise children here. Ceremonies, mosques, schools, and daily routines exist alongside tourism.
On Gili T, much of the island’s original village structure has been pushed to the margins. Tourism dominates almost every aspect of life.
This living local community is one of Gili Air’s greatest strengths—and also one of its most vulnerable assets.
Laid-Back Does Not Mean Lawless
Gili Air has always been laid-back. That relaxed atmosphere is exactly what many people fall in love with. But there is a crucial difference between laid-back and lawless.
Respect for rules does not ruin paradise—it protects it. Zoning laws are not designed to stop business; they are meant to ensure that businesses can exist long-term, without destroying the very environment they depend on.
If “relaxed” becomes an excuse to ignore regulations, the island risks repeating mistakes already made elsewhere.
The Risk of Copying Gili T’s Mistakes
Gili Trawangan’s growth brought jobs, infrastructure, and global recognition. But it also brought overcrowding, environmental stress, waste challenges, and a loss of balance.
Many older business owners on Gili Air used to point at Gili T and say: “That’s exactly what we don’t want.”
The irony is that without conscious restraint, Gili Air may slowly replicate parts of that model—not intentionally, but through accumulation. One beach extension here. One oversized hotel there. One ignored regulation at a time.
Change rarely happens overnight. It creeps in gradually, until one day the island wakes up and wonders when it lost its soul.
A Choice Still Exists
The most important point is this: Gili Air is not too late.
The island still has a chance to define its future consciously. That requires cooperation between local government, village leaders, long-term businesses, new investors, and the community.
It means enforcing existing regulations—not selectively, but fairly.
It means rewarding businesses that genuinely invest in sustainable systems.
It means listening to locals who have lived here for generations.
It means understanding that less can sometimes mean better.
Gili Air does not need to compete with Gili T. It never did.
Conclusion: Becoming Itself, Not a Copy
So, will Gili Air become a second Gili T?
The honest answer is: only if it chooses to.
The pressure is real. The temptation is strong. The money can be fast. But the identity of Gili Air has always been rooted in something deeper than profit alone—community, calmness, and connection to nature.
If those values are protected, Gili Air can grow without losing itself.
If they are ignored, the transformation may happen quietly, one concrete foundation at a time.
The future of Gili Air is still unwritten.
The question is whether the island will remember why people fell in love with it in the first place.
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