Has anyone been to Bali before?

I am staying in Ubud and Nusa dua would you recommend any places to eat/ activities etc…

Yes. Brilliant place. Absolutely lovely. Especially this time of year. Good pubs and excellent parking. Locals can get a bit arsey though if you park up on the free street parking!

Didn’t think you could travel there atm

cricketfieldclarets wrote: ↑

Mon Jul 19, 2021 10:08 am

Yes. Brilliant place. Absolutely lovely. Especially this time of year. Good pubs and excellent parking. Locals can get a bit arsey though if you park up on the free street parking!

Would you recommend renting a vehicle or just hire a driver?

I have heard that hiring a driver is a really good experience

joey13 wrote: ↑

Mon Jul 19, 2021 10:20 am

Didn’t think you could travel there atm

Booked up for early next year

Newcastleclaret93 wrote: ↑

Mon Jul 19, 2021 10:20 am

Would you recommend renting a vehicle or just hire a driver?

I have heard that hiring a driver is a really good experience

There's some great hills to climb round there so Id look into hiring a Sherpa. They have a strange accent and their grasp of the English language isn't the best but it will make the climb much easier and more enjoyable for you

Driver defo.

I’d heard Bali was full.

If you get there early, theres usually some locals who are so grateful for your passing trade, they put cones out to reserve your parking.

A couple even have CCTV in operation so your car is extra safe.

Newcastleclaret93 wrote: ↑

Mon Jul 19, 2021 10:20 am

Would you recommend renting a vehicle or just hire a driver?

I have heard that hiring a driver is a really good experience

I believe Captain Kirk charters his own bus services for hoards of visitors.

Brilliant place..Hire a driver to take you to the rice fields and volcanoes etc.Full day trip.
Bali is a fabulous place and lovely people.

Newcastleclaret93 wrote: ↑

Mon Jul 19, 2021 10:29 am

Booked up for early next year

Hopefully during the January transfer window.

Best of luck that its safe to get there with Covid, even next year.
Bail is suffering at the moment. For the previous 12 months with no tourists, many hotels became empty and in disrepair through lack of maintenance. Most of the staff returned to their villages and fishing as there was no work for them.
The last few months saw much improvement with Bali ready to open up again. Unfortunately Covid has rehit, and Bali/Indonesia is experiencing massive numbers of the Delta variant with many deaths, similar to India a couple of months ago.
Anyway, if you do get there, both spots are nice, Ubud in the forests & Nusa on the coast can be expensive and is mainly full of Europeans.Sanur is quieter, like Bali was 20 years ago. A couple of ex Burnley lads have a great Pub/Restaurant there - The Wicked Parrot.
As soon as the virus is contained i will be back there. I normally go twice a year as its only a 3.5 hr flight from Perth.

Made me smile has this thread, usual suspects up to no good

Hummmm i was there 33 years ago , now it is like today would be a different world so happy the way i remember it with a Bintang on the beach .

cricketfieldclarets wrote: ↑

Mon Jul 19, 2021 10:08 am

Yes. Brilliant place. Absolutely lovely. Especially this time of year. Good pubs and excellent parking. Locals can get a bit arsey though if you park up on the free street parking!

Tremendous post

You could go sea walking off Sanur beach. It really is a great experience. Just look it up on Google to see a video of what is involved. You won't be disappointed.

cricketfieldclarets wrote: ↑

Mon Jul 19, 2021 10:08 am

Yes. Brilliant place. Absolutely lovely. Especially this time of year. Good pubs and excellent parking. Locals can get a bit arsey though if you park up on the free street parking!

Classic CC.

Go for a meal at Tannah Lot overlooking the temple at sunset. Magical.

Watch out for the protection scam in Ubud. The monkeys will steal stuff out of your pockets and handbags and then you have to pay to get them back.

If you lose something go to the nearest shrine, it acts as a lost and found.

Always haggle but if you start haggling then walking away is considered poor form (threatening to is fine though). Mahal means too expensive.

been numerous times as it was a stopping off point for me doing business in SE Asia, only stayed one or two nights each time but thoroughly enjoyed. I would definitely recommend a driver as best option. I only say this as it was the company rule and was to do with safety, therefore I had no options.

So many good hotels/bars etc. to choose from but I only ever went to those close to whichever hotel I stayed at, beaches super and most of the hotels have water features, the last one I had you could go out of the bedroom into the water and swim round for breakfast, if you want.

Enjoy

My wife did a number of activities including;
Turtle release charity on the beach at Kuta www.baliseaturtle.org/?m=1

Waterfalls treks

Dolphin related activity in the sea (ethical?)

Tannah Lot

Monkey temple

Thank you for the feedback. Some really interesting activities listed

Been a number of times. I got married there as my wife is an Indonesian muslim but we didn't want a muslim wedding so we chose Bali which is mainly Hindu religion not Islam. We married on Seminyak Beach and had the reception at Chez Gado Gado restaurant which is right on that beach.

Over the times I’ve been, I’ve stayed at Seminyak, Sanur Beach, Kuta Beach, and Nusa Dua. My favourite is Sanur Beach as, it was then, a quieter area. Went a few times after the wedding then with our two small kids but I've not been back for over 10 years now.

My wife says that neighbouring Lombok Island is better than Bali as it's not so commercialised. I'm not a sunbather, swimmer, surfer, or beach lounger but Bali does have great beaches if that's what you look for in a holiday destination.

Newcastleclaret93 wrote: ↑

Mon Jul 19, 2021 10:20 am

Would you recommend renting a vehicle or just hire a driver?

I have heard that hiring a driver is a really good experience

Just hire local transport. A beja!!!

Better still a Bajaj? Automatuc Rickshaw as its called in India.

daveyclaret wrote: ↑

Mon Jul 19, 2021 7:21 pm

Been a number of times. I got married there as my wife is an Indonesian muslim but we didn't want a muslim wedding so we chose Bali which is mainly Hindu religion not Islam. We married on Seminyak Beach and had the reception at Chez Gado Gado restaurant which is right on that beach.

Over the times I’ve been, I’ve stayed at Seminyak, Sanur Beach, Kuta Beach, and Nusa Dua. My favourite is Sanur Beach as, it was then, a quieter area. Went a few times after the wedding then with our two small kids but I've not been back for over 10 years now.

My wife says that neighbouring Lombok Island is better than Bali as it's not so commercialised. I'm not a sunbather, swimmer, surfer, or beach lounger but Bali does have great beaches if that's what you look for in a holiday destination.

That sounds like an amazing wedding.

I want to try see the cultural side of Bali and maybe try a few experiences like the sea walking.

My only concern is the number of people saying you have to get to some places literally at day break due to pure number of tourists

I would not be too worried about having to get there early because of the number of tourists. Bali is much quieter than five years ago and also more areas have opened up, Kuta and Ubud will be still busy, being the main tourist areas, however, things have expanded greatly.

One place to certainly visit is the Bali Safari Park. Expensive, but a full day out and transfers to and from the park are included in the price.

I saw a report last night on the state of Bali at the moment. It has really suffered due to the fact Aussies have not been able to visit since the strt of the pandemic and are still banned from doing so. This has had a massive financial impact on Bali and I feel it will be a long time before it becomes the vibrant place it once was....it's a shame, many year I go I spent awesome times in Bali...