Mataram

Mataram is the capital of the Indonesian province of West Nusa Tenggara. The city is surrounded on all the landward sides by West Lombok Regency and lies on the western side of the island of Lombok, Indonesia. It is also the largest city of the province, and had a population of 402,296 at the 2010 Census; the latest official estimate is 420,941.In addition to serving as the provincial capital, Mataram has also become the center of government, education, commerce, industry and services. Three towns constitute the Mataram area; from west to east, these are Ampenan, Mataram, and Cakranegara. They are distinct towns, but run together. Broadly, Ampenan is an aging seaport city, Mataram is the governmental and office center for the province, and Cakranegara is the major commercial center on the island. The city is administratively divided into six districts, namely Ampenan, Cakranegara, Mataram, Pejanggik, Selaparang, and Sekarbela. The Mataram area contains 50 Kampungs and 297 kampung sub-sections.The city is served by the Lombok International Airport near Praya in Central Lombok, by the Lembar Harbour seaport in the southwest and Labuhan Lombok ferry port on the east coast which provides connection to Poto Tano on Sumbawa. Mataram is located near west coast of Lombok, so it is very close to the island's tourism centre of Senggigi beach, which is a short distance northward from Ampenan.