Bali....anyone been?

Ello!

We're planning an overseas trip next year and considering Bali as the destination as we have never been there before. We're looking at 2 weeks there. We know Kuta is the main hub and busy area where everyone seems to be. Is it nicer further north in areas like Legian Beach? We are after a pretty relaxing holiday next year as we dont get the chance to get away much....
If anyone has been to Bali and stayed can you recommend anything? Places to stay and where to avoid? :)

Thank you!

Hi Renstar, I went to Bali in 2000 so I am a little foggy in names of places, but we stayed at Legian Beach for most of our trip which was a little quieter than Kuta, but still had lots to do. I can't remember the name of the resort we stayed in, but there are heaps of great ones there.

We visited Jimbaren Bay for dinner on the beach which was absolutely awesome. (I think some of the restaurants may have since been bombed in the terror attacks from memory...so sad). We then travelled up north and stayed in Lovina, which was lovely, but there wasn't as much to do (that can be a good thing!). We visited the volcanos in Kedisan, but the accomodation was dodgy and the locals loved their mushies, so I wouldn't recommend staying overnight there! We stayed one night in the mountains where the well known markets are (I am having a mental blank of the name of the town, I will get back to you when I remember it) and it was awesome. There was some gorgeous accomodation there. We even had a garden bathroom with no roof!

We had a fantastic time in Bali and the Australian dollar does so well there that you can really have a lot of fun. If you do go I'm sure you will love it.

Hi Renstar,
I am a travel agent and go to Bali at least once a year. It's great, I love it. Kuta is the main hub, but these days a little further up at Legian and Seminyak are getting almost as busy. I was there at easter and it seemed even busier than the main parts of Kuta. The beaches are not great in Kuta/Legian to be honest, but I think as Australians we are a little fussy with beaches because I think we have some of the worlds best right here. They are not really dirty, but the sand is volcanic so it is quite dark. It gets a little nicer at Seminyak, and if you want to be half an hour out of Kuta there are some really beautiful areas with great beaches.
There is Nusa Dua in the south. It is a little quieter and has mostly 4 star and up resorts. Or on the other side of the island, still only half an hour away is Sanur, which is again, pretty quiet. The beaches are nice there too and there are plenty of great resorts and hotels at all levels. There are alot of great restaurants there too, in fact you probably will not eat a bad meal in Bali at all, the food is great.
Shopping-wise, Kuta/Legian/Seminyak are the best areas, there isn't as much to choose from in the other areas.
If you need any other info on areas or hotels, let me know.

hi renstar

i haven't been to Bali before but we are ploanning on going over with friends in April next year, Archie will be 23 months old by them so it will be interesting travelling with a toddler.

I will keep an eye on this thread too.

Widdly,
I have a now 3and a half year old, and we have been taking him to Bali since he was 11 months and he absolutely loves it. Also, on our last trip, our friends came along with their 3 year old and their 6 month old. Bali is great for kids, the locals love children and there are some fantastic hotels that cater for kids (kids meals, playgrounds, bigger rooms, kids pools etc)We just stayed in Sanur this last easter and found it was really good with the kids, quieter and cleaner, not so much hustle etc. Again, if you need any other info, let me know :)

Thanks girls! Wow! So helpful.... yeah i am expecting the beaches to be nice but not so pretty as here! I live on the gold coast and we really do have some of the "top" beaches in the world right here! :lol: we're so lucky.
Another thing I forgot to mention! If all goes to plan, we'll be bringing our 3mth-6mth baby with us! Depending on when we conceive of course!!! we are TTC#1 after our wedding at end of this month :)
i was relieved to see that your friend brought her 6mth old child with to Bali and that it is very child/baby friendly, thats a good thing!!

I lived in Bali for 4 years, my hubby is Balinese & we are heading home on Saturday!
We usually stay in hubby's village in Tuban, but this trip I have booked a villa in Seminyak.
It has a private pool, 3 bedrooms, a kitchen & open lounge, plus staff (cleaner & cook). We could have a driver too, but Hubby drives & we hire a car!
We are going for 3.5wks & staying in the Villa for 3 wks & will head up to Ubud to stay in a Losmen (family run accom) for the last few days!

Bali is exceptionally child friendly, Maddison has travelled back & fourth to Bali from 9wks of age, Zyon is only 7wks when we head over & I have no hesitation in travelling there with him..
The only problem is having the kids be spoilt with kindness when you get home from Bali they will wonder where are the beautiful smiling faces are!

I agree Bali has devine food too......

If there's anything you need to know just ask!

Yeah.. im one who hated Bail. Went to Kuta for schoolies in December 1997 and hated every minute of it. It was dirty and dusty, you couldnt leave your hotel and walk down the street without at least 3 men following you trying to touch you and sell something. When you walk into a store, not matter how long you are in there they wait outside for you. Then you get stopped by women trying to steel your jewellry. In the evening if you go out all you get is dirty men trying to sell you pot and asking for a jiggy jiggy.. yuck, i absolutely hated it!
We did go north on a 2 day tour thing which was kinda nice, as long as you were in the bus! The sites were beautiful though.
The beaches were disgusting.. the sand was BLACK!

Yeh so i would never ever evvveerrr myself go back to Bali.. esp with the whole drug thing going on at the moment.. id rather go somewhere like New Zealand, alot more beautiful and comfortable.

so is Ubud up in the hills/mountains? near the rice fields?
Tracy - thanks for the advice/tips! I'm sure i'll have lots of questions! great about bringing young bubs over too, becoz i am not sure at this stage how old our baby will be when we go over there. we plan to go Dec 08 so we want to book dec07 so we have 3mths yet to consider it more.
the food over there sounds delicious!!!! i'd love to stay in seminyak or legian beach we are looking at also... perhaps we could even do a few days up in the hills too like in a village perhaps? wow that sounds great! Kuta sounds nice but if its very crowded perhaps not the best place for us, with a young bub we'll probably just want a relaxing quiet holiday.

Kellx - i've been to NZ before, it is beautiful i agree. We like Asian countries as they are so different to Australia/NZ etc different foods, cultures, sights, sounds... its the whole experience of it. we were in Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore in Dec just gone and loved it! loved the bartering of it and ppl chasing us down streets didnt bother us too much at all! we just laughed it off and it was all experiences. i'm sure the beaches wont be as beautiful as ours here though, i live 10mins from one of the most beautiful beaches in the world (Kirra, QLD!). i've heard they are dirtier than our beaches but not BLACK!
thanks for sharing your experiences though its good to hear both good and bad..... at first i was a bit hesitant to go after the drugs and bombings happening but i suppose we cant let things like that stop us otherwise we would never get to see anything in life... and i s'pose anywhere can be bombed too hey. we arent safe anywhere.

Alot of people say the the same things about Bali as the pp, but Bali in 1997 is very different to Bali today. There are definetly parts that are dirty and dusty, like any city in the world, but you will be surprised how very cosmopolitan it is in other parts. The 'hawkers' are no longer aloud to follow you down the street, I remember when they did and it was a little much, but they cannot do it anymore. And of course there are some tourist traps, again like every other city in the world, but you must remember that these people do not have alot of money and do rely on our tourist dollar to live. In all of my travels, I have never come across friendlier people than the Balinese. Honestly, it is an amazing place.

Yes, Ubud is in the hills near the rice fields and is a pleasant hour to 2 hour drive - depending on how you decide to travel there.

thanks Bailey its nice to hear that the Balinese ppl are so very friendly :) I found the Thai people are so beautiful too so probably very similar ppl? I loved Thailand so i can only imagine i'll love Bali too.

And Thailand and Malaysia werent very clean in some places either!!! ew! some of the dirt in those places... but i LOVED every minute of it as it was "different" to here where i live in Australia

Renstar sounds like it's a place you'll love!
I would never travel to a place that I can do/see etc the same stuff I can in OZ.. It just doesnt interest me, if I travel I want to experience something I cant at home!
As for the drugs, if you dont pack them in your bag you wont have any trouble ;)
We have some Thai friends & they are similar to the Balinese! So I'm sure you will have a ball...


My next new place to travel to is Kathmandu, just wiating til Maddy is older as hubby isnt interested, but Maddy & I are!

I never had any probs with Hawkers etc, but it does help to know some of the language, but I feel bad that they are no longer there! After all it was their job, their way to make money, I guess I just saw it as their means to feed their family & have a roof over their heads...
I think they are entitled to make a life, after all there arent alot of jobs for ppl in Bali, so they have to make their money the only way they know how...???

Renstar ask any q's!!! But I have also travelled to Malaysia & Singapore & although Sing is cleaner it's too clinical for me & unfriendly, the Balinese have smiles as big as Luna park!

It's something you will miss once home, the friendliness!

i have a question about the filght with a 23 months old. I think we can pay just 10% and have DS on our laps, is this the done thing? Also any tips on keeping DS happy and kinda quiet and still would be fantatic!

Tracey - as soon as we decided to go to Bali i turned to DH and said there is a woman on BB who used to live there and is going back there soon with her 3 kids one a new baby, im sure she will have great tips. Thanks for being so helpful.

Renstar - Ubud is the place in the mountains that I couldn't remember the name of in my first post! Thanks to others for mentioning it. It has great markets and is very beautiful so definitely worth a visit. We too found the Balinese people so friendly. My DH & I tried to learn a few words and they seemed to love that! If you do go I am very sure you will love it!

ETA - the only places with black sand that we found were up north, not in the Kuta/Legian area.

Widdly,

It depends on the airline!
We are flying JETSTAR this trip, as it leaves at 6:45pm & we can have had dinner by then & really no need to purchase drinks/meals after that time, the kids (fingers crossed) will sleep.
As Zyon is under 2 & Indah is not yet 2 on the way over they are Free but sit on our laps as such (it's only a 5hour & 50min flights so very bareable!)
Other Airlines you do pay something like 10% (from memory) & they also sit on your laps!

We pay for Indah coming back as she turns 2 whilst we are there!

I hope that helps...

tracey - thanksyou so much that really helps! Will certainly look into Jetstar then, we re going with friends who were planning on going April/May, as DS turns 2 start of May we are definately going in April.

ok thanks Trish. yeah i thought "Ubud" was the place up in the hills... :) DF and i got a couple of brochures from the travel agent recently and we've been doing some reading!

cool! thanks girls i'm getting really excited!!!

Maybe 1 week in Legian Beach and then 1 week up in Ubud perhaps? If we stay at Ubud is there things to do? Or can you catch transport every day down to Kuta from there etc? or somewhere close by to shops etc? or is it isolated up in the hills (ubud)??

is it like Thailand, where there are "tuk tuks" and "taxis" everywhere???!?!? is the public transport safe when travelling with a 5mth old baby for example? I ask that because in Thailand like phuket, there are no such things as seatbelts!!! haha those tuk-tuks were dangerous and flying about 80km per hour through busy streets filled with people on the side of the road! it was a bit scary, fun but scary! but the thought of bringing a baby on one of those scares me

I love this thread! my hubby and I went to Ubud when we were just a couple and it was fantastic. Stayed at a beautiful, gorgeous hotel and not that expensive either. The food was fantastic and cheap and I just LOVE the Ubud markets - THE BEST! we did not go there to do heaps of beach things, but instead walked through rice paddies, meet locals, did the markets and relaxed by the gorgeous resort pool.

I cannot wait to take my 4 year old son there now......one day, especially after reading this thread! Have a great time !!

Thanks Runnermum!!! :) We are tossing up between Fiji or Bali!!

HELLO!!

Very very jealous of the lovely Tracey and her family sunning it up in Bali right now!

We went in May last year and LOVED every minute of it.

We stayed at the Ramada Bintang Resort in Tuban which was very close to Kuta. You could very easily have walked if you weren't as lazy as me :p

Taxis are EVERYWHERE and I mean everywhere! They are sooooooooooo cheap too.

Once we were in a taxi for 45 minutes and it cost us less than $5 Aussie dollars!

My Mum went to Bali years ago and said the beaches were black, and she got chased by people selling things and hated every minute of it. Believe me....it has changed SO much since then.

People only asked us to buy things if we walked directly in front of their shop. They never ever followed us though. Because of all the terrorism, they are really struggling with a decline in tourism and dont want to scare you off!

Food is wonderful there and oh so cheap. Bought HEAPS of clothes for peanuts too. Cant wait to go back one day :)

thanks Danni!! :) Sounds like a great place!!!

we're still deciding.... Fiji or Bali.... probably more Bali at this stage.... we'll have a 5mth old baby with us (maybe if we conceive soon!)

oh yes sorry,...i forgot to comment about Fiji!!

We went to Fiji on our honeymoon and stayed at the Shangri-La Fijian Resort

In a few words...I wont be going back.

The amount of money we spent on food was ridiculous as you cant really leave the resort. Everything was such a rip off and I could have done everything I did there...here at the beach/pool iykwim?

Bali had so much more to see and do and a hell of a lot more cheaper :)

Hi Renstar,
I found you. I just wanted to wish you well for your wedding day. I had you in my diary and thought of you. I remember 1 week before mine. It was the most amazing time. I really hope you have a wonderful wedding. Sorry if you don't remember me...Endo TTC. Anyway. Congratulations and Best wishes hun!
Take care and hope you take that baby to Bali with you!!
Hippy Mum

Danni - thank you! We were looking at that exact resort in Fiji at one point! I'm glad you told me that! thanks! Sounds like the kinda place me and DF wouldnt like! ;)

Hippymum - you are so sweet! Yes i do remember you of course!! As soon as i saw your username i remembered you. you are very kind and thoughtful. thank you for the wedding wishes :) !!! you've made my day! xx

What do you girls think of "renting a villa" when in Bali? rather than staying in a hotel suite?

We're looking at renting a villa and with it you get - Each villa in the #### (name of villa) has a beautiful tropical garden, private swimming pool and reliable, well-trained house staff including a private cook, maids, house boys, gardeners etc, sometimes even a trained personal Butler.

has anyone done this? or know anyone who has done this?? It sounds expensive anyway!!! lol....

thats what tracey is doing right now!! hers was not expensive at all and the photos looked to die for! She will be home soon and hopefully can give you more info :)

great!!! I'll have to see her photos and hear her stories! yay! :)

I will pist about it later, as we just flew in today & I havent slept!

The Villa was gorgeous we were in, although we eat from the carts so no cook, but a cleaner came every second day, plus a pool guy...

It was really good as the kids had their own rooms & privacy, we had a pool & so if the kids were asleep we could swim & be in the same place as them...

I'll grab your e-mail & give you details & send a few pic's if you want!???

ooohh trace i cant wait to hear all about it!

Thanks Tracey, i'll PM you! :) Get some rest and then when you have the time, i'd love to hear about it!

Tracey_D_photos - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

here are some pic's...

I'll write up something soon..... lol

love the pics tracey!!

The pic of Dede and Indah from behind would look so nice in b&w!
And we are definitely gunna try and come with you next time!

Tracey i looked at some of your photos! they look great! sounds like you all had a wonderful trip!!! I really want to go to Bali now!!! :P thank you...

i wanna come too ren!!

LOL was going to say Tracey from my BB Baby Buddies group as she has just been but I see she has popped in already!!

Renstar a friend contacted the guy from the Villa & he quoted her $130 US p/night!

We actually paid less than $60 Aust p/night!

So I'm gonna have a look at other places & if you want me to enquire about any thing in particular you need/want in accom let me know!!!

how come he is charging them so much mroe trace?

Who knows!???
I think he's had a bit of interest in the property & also it only opened in March so he said 'Tracey got my special opening price!?"

Thankfully we got the details of his staff whom look after other properties!? See what I can find!
However looks like next trip we'll be staying with my sis & bro in law...

Unless my older sis, her hubby & kids come then we'll look for a 5 bedroom place!?

hey Tracey,

Its funny you mention that actually! I've been meaning to message you... we emailed the guy and he emailed back with prices and they were no way near $60 AUD p/nt! they were like $180 AUD p/ntfor the villa you stayed in!!!!! However in saying that, its christmas time we are looking at going (xmas 08).
however it still shouldnt be DOUBLE + what you paid for it hey!?? so we cant trust the guy it seems.....
you're lucky you got a good price by the sounds of it.

thank you for the offer to help me Tracey. I guess we are just looking at a 1 or 2brm villa nothing too big... it will only be DH and I plus (hopefully) a bub.

No probs I'll see what I can find....
Yeah a few friends have argued back & fourth with him regarding prices!!!

I knew we were getting a gREAT price, but to triple it is a bit stupid, might be out pricing himself & end up ruining his own business!?

I'll see what i find!