MY BALI GUIDE BASED ON MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE

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Best time to visit Bali

Where we stayed in Bali

Things to do in Bali

Places to eat in Bali

Places to shop in Bali

My useful tips and guide to Bali

Best time to visit Bali

My sister Nara and I had forced leave during December 2018 as our companies shut down over Christmas. With a few weeks in our hands and with my workaholic husband Tomasi working through the holidays Nara and I impulsively booked an overpriced first trip to Bali from 22 to 30 December.

There was huge panic for us on Christmas Eve, we woke up in our hotel with several messages from our friends and family in Australia. They were worried about our safety as there was breaking news all around the world that a dangerous tsunami and earthquake had hit the islands of Java and Sumatra in Indonesia.

Being on holidays we were oblivious to our surroundings but my mind was with the poor Indonesian people, they have been put through so much already this year with one earthquake after the other. After Googling for more information, we were fortunate to discover that we were at a safe distance from the disaster areas.

During our stay, we were faced with heavy rain during the early mornings and nights. It would rain for a few hours but then it would stop and we would get some sun. The weather would be a bit unpredictable which meant we had to carry our umbrellas everywhere we went. Throughout our trip, it was still warm regardless of how heavy or windy the rain was, we never needed warm clothes.

For more sunshine and less rain, it’s best to plan a trip to Bali between May to September as the wet season hits from October to April.

Where we stayed in Bali

Tourists usually a toss-up between Seminyak and Kuta. Everyone kept telling us that popular Kuta is party central filled with obnoxious low rent people. Seminyak, on the other hand, we were told is more classier with a chilled atmosphere but still close to everything. Well, that advice tore at us cause Nara is tacky and loves to party, whereas I am reserved and full of class…. okay maybe not all the time, but I try to be.

We stayed at TS Suites Seminyak which is the cheaper end of the 5-star hotels. Our room was nice and very spacious, compliments to housekeeping for keeping our rooms cleaned and replenished daily with quality toiletries. Our accommodation included daily buffet breakfast and complimentary WiFi, but what was most impressive was they filled our room daily with a free bar fridge which provided us with non-alcoholic drinks, chips and chocolate. Yay for freebies!

Their hotel facilities included an infinity pool, gym, room service, day spa, hairdresser, shops, cafes and a restaurant. The staff at TS Suites were always friendly with genuine kind smiles and went out of their way to help us out.

I don’t recommend paying anything additional to eat at the hotel. Let me tell you a little story. On our first night when we arrived, it was raining heavily so we had no choice but to have dinner at the buffet in the hotel. We noticed it was only the two of us dining there. The limited buffet ranged from bland pasta, salad, fried rice and roast chicken. We were so hungry at the time but still did not enjoy the food. To make matters worst we were charged with IDR 856,200 (USD 60) for two non-alcoholic drinks and two ordinary buffet meals.

TS Suites is located on a very busy road, so expect to be stuck in a traffic jam as soon as you leave the hotel. By foot, you can access small local shops and food places but to get to the main attractions you will need a car.

On my next visit to Bali, I may bite the bullet and stay in Kuta for the experience. I would also consider Ubud for the peaceful scenery, Nusa Dua or Jimbaran for a luxury resort on the beachfront.

Things to do in Bali

UBUD – It took us just over an hour drive from Seminyak to get to rural Ubud. A country town with glorious mountains, it is also home of the breathtaking rice terraces and the famous Bali swings. Ubud also has markets, temples, arts and crafts, spa treatments and rich Balinese culture.

Unfortunately on the tour, we selected we only cruised past a few spots in Ubud. I was attracted to Ubud as soon as we were there, the sight of the green and vibrant rice terraces stacked on top of each other blew me away.

Ubud is an ideal place to hide away from the noise, rejuvenate from all the stress of work and take in the beauty of Bali. I would happily stay here for a week just to unwind and relax.

TEMPLES – Uluwatu is a Balinese Hindu Sea Temple perched on a 70 metres cliff looking down into the water. To get here from Seminyak took us over an hour drive.

Uluwatu is also known as the Monkey Temple. Here you will find cheeky monkeys aggressively snatching belongings from unsuspecting visitors. Pouring rain shortened our visit so regretfully we didn’t have the opportunity to look around or bond with those naughty little monkeys.

We also visited Pura Tirta Empul Temple (holy water spring) which was 2 hours away from Seminyak. This temple is famous for the holy water used by Balinese Hindus for purification. We witnessed locals and tourist bathing happily in the fountains containing the holy water.

A famous temple we, unfortunately, didn’t have time to visit was Tanah Lot Temple, which is famous for being in the sea. From the photos I have seen, it looks very scenic and impressive, this will definitely be on my agenda on my next revisit Bali.

Overall, Bali has many enchanting and sacred ancient temples to visit, if you love visiting temples Bali is the place to be.

SPA TREATMENTS – I always do this when I am in Southeast Asia, I get a cheap and expensive massage. Yes, the cheap ones are the ones with the girls sitting in the front of their shop luring you in and once you are in they sit you down on an old torn sofa. Hey, don’t judge I found some surprisingly good massages in these types of places, but sadly Bali was a miss.

For the good life, we went to Tjampuhan Spa in Ubud. What attracted us here was their spa treatment rooms which are situated right by the river. To get to the spa area we had to climb up many stairs, there was no other alternative. Once there, we passed an impressive stone-carved cave that had spring water pools.

It is ideal to book ahead as they were fully booked out when we arrived. We only had the option to go for the one-hour traditional Balinese massage for IDR 340,000 (USD 24), what a bargain!

Once we paid, they lead us to a change room with a toilet, it’s wet and it’s not clean, squeamish to use. Then it was off to the treatment room for us, the room opens up to the river so you can hear, smell and see it in all of its glory, just ignore the massive spider relaxing with you on a nearby tree. The rooms do need a bit of renovation, the bathtub looked a bit crusty.

The masseuses were fantastic, my lady had the right touch and pressure, she easily got me into a state of total relaxation within the first 5 minutes.

BALI NIGHT SAFARI – The night safari cost us IDR 990,000 each (USD 69 not including transfers), it’s not a cheap excursion but it sure did bring the inner child in us. Included in the price are a walking safari, buffet dinner,  fire show and the 20-minute safari cage drive. The cage drive is short and sweet as there were so many tourist waiting for their turn and each cage can only carry 20 people at a time.

The wow moments come from close encounters with the big cats.  The guides feed them through the cage with small pieces of meat which lures them very close to our cage. Hearing the lion growling and seeing his majestic long coat of mane up close was an experience like no other.

The tigers do jump on top the cage, but be prepared to keep your mouth closed when you look up as you are likely to get tiger juice all over you. The guide told us it was from when they were swimming earlier during the day. We had silly tourists touching the tigers when the guide repeatedly asked them not to. The Youtube clips below captures our meeting with the big cats.

We also got to feed zebras, buffalos and elephants during the cage drive which was fun. After the cage drive, we had dinner at their buffet restaurant which is surrounded by glass, we could clearly see the lions in their enclosure while we were eating. I was glad to see that the animals here were well looked after, happy and healthy.

Breakfast with the orangutangs at Bali Zoo – This is not the same place as Bali Safari park but is approximately the same distance away. We paid IDR 652,500 (USD $69), again not cheap but I was keen to be entertained by the cheeky apes whilst having breakfast. The price includes entrance fees to the zoo, a breakfast buffet and photos with the orangutangs.

When we entered the buffet, we saw 4 orangutangs perched on a makeshift tree/stand on each side of the restaurant with keen tourist swarming around them for a photo.

The buffet was far better than other buffets we had in Bali. The food was freshly made and the dishes on offer were tasty.

Overall we had a good experience but I would give it a miss next time. I felt sad that the guides continuously made the orangutangs hug and touch each tourist for photos, the poor things were clearly agitated.

Places to eat in Bali

Bali works overtime to keep travellers from all over the world happy. With a wide variety of cuisine selections from Italian to Japanese to smoothie bowls and vegan choices. So no matter what your dietary requirements are, Bali will most likely tick your box.

During our short stay at Bali, we sampled almost everything Bali had to offer including their local cuisine. I wish we had more time to sample their local cuisine as we only had Mie Goreng, Nasi Goreng, grilled seafood, and sate chicken/fish. The dishes were enjoyable but in recalling the places we stopped by, there wasn’t any place we could give a rave review for. I feel disappointed and we are to blame, I wish we spent more time looking for delicious Balinese food.

We got our Italian fix at Mozzarella Seminyak, we were pleasantly surprised how well they made their pasta. We had a delicious plate of chilli squid ink pasta, their black fettuccini was freshly made and cooked to perfection.

We were lured to Above Eleven in Jimbaran as we discovered they offered an interesting fusion of Peruvian and Japanese dishes.

Above Eleven, is hidden in Mövenpick Resort, to get to the restaurant we had to enter a lift that took us right to the top floor. There is a dress code, smart casual so no walking around in bikini tops for women and topless for men.

The waitress gave us the best seat in the house, a high bar table that gave us an amazing view of Bali and it’s night lights. The venue had a trendy bar feel than an intimate restaurant, they had an open kitchen where we could clearly see the chefs doing their masterpiece, a few chefs were non-Balinese.

The cocktails that we ordered were made skilfully, they did not skimp out on the alcohol. I did order a Klungkung Breeze that had vodka, Midori, mint, lemon and cucumber; sounds mellow right? nope, I almost fell off my barstool and I can so take my drinks!

Food-wise we got greedy and ordered almost everything off the menu including, seafood ceviche, mango salsa, beef empanadas and Oysters Chalaca. Our dishes were presented beautifully and overall everything was very fresh and flavoursome, but my feedback would be a tweak in the balance of flavours, I found that some dishes were too tart, sweet or salty.

How does dining on the beach with sand between your toes watching Bali night sky turn from day to night? on a good night, you will witness a magical array of sky colours from amber, pink and purple. If this doesn’t impress you then add on some cocktails, wine and a large serve of grilled seafood. Yes, this was what was on offer at Bawang Merah Beachfront Restaurant Jimbaran.

When we arrived the waitress lead us to our seat on the sand looking over the beach, as we sat down our white tablecloth gave us a warm welcome by swiftly slapping us across the face. So before we made ourselves comfortable we had to handcuff the abusive tablecloth by tying tight knots around the four corners of our table.

We ordered grilled seafood platter with lobster. I was so excited when it came as I love seafood but I felt my excitement dwindle when I started eating. The seafood did not taste fresh, the claims, lobster and squid were all overcooked and smothered in too much marinate. At least the Balinese dips and sambal were delicious. We paid just under USD $80 for the two of us.

The night itself was very dreamy and romantic and we had a good time, the sunset was spectacular but Nara ruined the mood by taking multiple selfies of herself.

Places to shop in Bali

Bali is known for its traditional handmade carved sculptures. If you are interested in Bali’s arts and crafts you are in luck as there are plenty to choose from, there are many stores waiting for you to have a look.

I am too scared to invest in any wooden products as I have seen Custom Officers take these items and slam dunk them into the bin many times. If you do decide to purchase wooden/plant-based items make sure they have been chemically treated, to avoid any disappointment visit your country’s biosecurity website for more information.

We hired a driver for a day just for our retail therapy needs, we stopped by 7 or more malls located in Seminyak, Kuta and Denpasar. Of all the malls we went to, we agreed there were only 3 malls worth visiting in Bali:

The Bali Collection in Nusa Dua – We discovered Bali Collection when we spent a day at Nusa Dua beach, the mall is only a short stroll away. Bali Collection is massive with 8 hectares of shopping on one level, here you will find many restaurants, foot spas, souvenir shops and international sports brands. I bought a couple of Nike and Nautica polo tops for Tomasi for IDR 652,500 (USD 25) each.

Kuta Beachwalk – Brand new and just opened in February 2018, this mall is built to impress, all you need to do is cross the road from Kuta beach. It’s spacious with a modern design and has 3 levels of shopping. Here you will find more of the high-end brands and shops we have back home. If you are looking for a bargain this is not the place, prices were not cheap.

My favourite part of this mall is the cool looking hawker food court on the top level, unfortunately, we already ate prior so we didn’t sample any of the food. There were Malaysian, Chinese, Vietnamese, Indian and much more to choose from. I noticed that they did not take money from the customers, I think you had to purchase some sort of token/tickets for the food there.

Mal Bali Galeria – We asked our driver to take us here, but he dropped us at the T Galleria Duty-Free mall instead.

T Galleria is a modern new mall with all luxury brands but the pricing was not good for us, we would have paid the same amount or perhaps less for Prada sunglasses or a Coach handbag.

Luckily, Mal Bali Galeria is only a short walk from T Galleria. This mall is older compared to the previous places mentioned but it’s worth stopping by. I loved that they had a mix of their own local independent stores and big-name shops like H&M. We bought lots of shoes and clothes from their local brands, the prices here were much more reasonable. Food-wise, there was a decent selection of restaurants and coffee cafes outside the mall to choose from.

My useful tips and guide to Bali

Culture – A majority of the Balinese people are warm and friendly. We were two girls travelling on our own, we always felt safe. When we were lost a local would always kindly guide us the right way without expecting anything in return. I hope Balinese people stay this way forever as it’s so rare to be surrounded with so many genuine and happy people.

The Balinese are conservative when it comes to women sunbaking topless and some will find this highly offensive. When visiting temples, they will provide you with a sarong to wear, in one temple they asked me to tie my hair up.

Cleanliness – Having travelled to many Southeast Asian countries I was surprised how clean Bali was. There were no sewage smells and the streets had proper pathways to walk on. Best of all I survived Bali without puking my guts out or getting gastro.

In our hotel they gave us complimentary water every day, we used this to brush our teeth. It’s best to stay clear of local water and non purified ice.

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Money exchange – There is money exchange everywhere in Seminyak and Kuta, keep an eye on the exchange rate as it largely fluctuates daily so on a good day you can get a bit extra. The cheapest way for us to get IDR was to bring a few thousand Australian dollars with us, the exchange rates in Bali was much better. We only exchanged AUD $200 to IDR in Australia as they charged us with a high commission fee.

Credit Card – Most big malls and restaurants have credit card facilities.

Tips – It is not custom to tip in Bali but we did, I love that the Balinese people never expected a tip but was very gracious every time we did so.

Language – Touristy area and the places I have mentioned in this blog have locals that speak English. If you are ever in need of help with directions they would be more than happy to assist.

Getting around – There were lots of cars and motorbikes (but funny enough no tuk-tuks) on their roads; however, there were always opportunities to cross safely. The drivers were quite respectful of pedestrians and would often give way to them. In saying this, still, be cautious when crossing their roads.

We relied a lot on our hotel to call us taxis. The advantage of getting our hotel to call is they will only book us ‘Bluebird’ an honest taxi company that uses there metre and getting around with them is not expensive. If you hail one on the street you may get ripped off like we did, instead of paying USD $5 getting home from Kuta we paid $20 to a driver in a car that looked exactly like a Bluebird taxi but it wasn’t.

You can also hire personal drivers that would charge a fixed rate for 10 hours per day, we were able to hire a driver for IDR 450,000 (USD 32) which is great value if you want to do you own private tours.

The traffic around the touristy area at times is so bad that it’s bumper to bumper so make sure you add every 30 minutes or more if possible on top of your destination duration.

Tours – Our hotel was able to arrange our tours only a day in advance. All our tours were private and more expensive as it was booked through the hotel.

On our tour there are many shop stops, they showed us how they made paintings, sculptures and jewellery. Once completed they lead us into their store and their staff did a very hard sell on us, pressuring us to buy their goods. Everything in their store is way overpriced, you can get them much cheaper in Bali markets. If you do decide to buy anything, make sure you negotiate a lower price, it’s not rude and they would be surprised if you didn’t.

Below are website links to the places I have mentioned in my blog. These are external links and I am in no way affiliated with or sponsored by them. If you click on the links you will no longer be governed by my privacy and disclosure policies.

All accommodation, food and services were paid independently by us. What I have written is based purely on my experiences in Bali and my personal opinion.

TS Suites  http://www.tssuites.com/bali/

Tjampuhan Spa https://www.tjampuhan-bali.com

Bali Night Safari https://www.balisafarimarinepark.com/safari/night-safari/

Bali Zoo (Breakfast with the orangutang) https://www.bali-zoo.com

Mozarella restaurant  http://mozzarella-resto.com

Tiger Balm restaurant https://tigerpalmbali.com

Above Eleven https://aboveeleven.com/bali/

Bawang Merah restaurant https://www.jimbaranbeachrestaurant.com

Bali Collection shopping mall http://bali-collection.com

Kuta Beachwalk shopping mall https://www.beachwalkbali.com

Mal Bali Galeria https://malbaligaleria.co.id