BigDiamonds
Brilliant_Rock
- Joined
- Mar 29, 2007
- Messages
- 702
Hi everyone!
FI and I just got back from 2 weeks in Bali and I thought I would write up a review of our vacation and post a few pictures. I know Bali is a popular honeymoon spot, so hopefully someone will be able to use this info. We had a really great time and would definitely recommend it as a destination. It''s a good honeymoon spot for a couple who loves to travel - there is plenty to do and see, but there is enough luxury and time for relaxation if you plan it right. We stayed in four different areas in Bali, so we got a pretty good feel for the island. So here we go...
We flew from Denver to Bali via Los Angeles and Singapore. We had the good fortune of flying Singapore Airlines by virtue of booking with United miles (Singapore Air is their primary Asian partner). I HIGHLY recommend Singapore Air
; for a 16 hour flight you really cant ask for more. Even in coach the seats are large, recline quite far and have leg and foot rests. They also have individual TVs with free on-demand movies, tv, and video games. I got totally addicted to Super Mario Bros again!
The food was decent and served very frequently.
A few things about Bali overall:
Beware the 20% government tax that is added to all stated prices - it adds up fast.
The hotels give you bug spray. Take that as a hint, and use it. You won''t see them, you won''t feel them, but they will EAT YOU ALIVE.
Check if breakfast and afternoon tea are included with your room, which is quite common.
Service, although exceptionally friendly and sincere, is just plain slow. Expect it, get used to it, and let it go. We saw too many people let this ruin their vacation. It''s just a different pace and a different style.
Check into hiring a private driver and tour guide. We had one who was very knowledgable and even cheaper than a taxi or hotel-arranged transport. I believe we paid roughly $25 for a half-day and $40 for a full day. During that time they will take you wherever you want and personally guide you through the sites.
We started the vacation on the beach in Seminyak, which is supposed to have one of the nicer beaches on the island. It''s not the best in the world as the waves are quite large, which makes the water a little murky, but they''re certainly nice enough. It''s important to know that the beaches in Bali are public, so most hotels have the beach chairs set up on their property facing the ocean but slightly off the beach. We stayed at the Samaya Villas, which was very nice. Not quite five star, but at about US$400/night, not priced like it either. Our room was a private villa enclosed by a fence with our own plunge pool, and everything was lovely. I know a lot of people complain that the private pools are too cold to enjoy, but they''re really not bad at all. You just can''t expect a Caribbean-style bathwater pool in a fenced, shaded area. The food at the resort was quite good, especially the breakfast, which is included. The town itself has some shopping, mostly geared towards European and Australian tourists. If you get out of the resorts, food and drink is very cheap so it''s a nice break to get out and explore.
After Seminyak we headed to the east coast of Bali, which is where the best diving is located. We stayed in Candi Dasa, the most tourist-accessible town on that side of the island. This is definitely not the 5-star Bali from the magazines; the hotels and restaurants are small and local, and everything just feels a little less...glossy. The beaches are mostly black sand or rock, so be aware and find a hotel with a nice pool. We stayed at the Watergarden, which was very nice and at less than US$100, is one of the most expensive hotels in the area. Each villa has a nice patio that overlooks one of serveral koi ponds on the property, and although all villas have air conditioning, they are not entirely sealed from the elements. As such, be prepared for a few creepy-crawlies and wear bug spray at night. There were no TVs, which was actually quite nice and seemed to fit the atmosphere. We took an iPod and some speakers and listed to murder mysteries. We also played a LOT of Trival Pursuit (very fun, btw. we highly recommend it
) While in Candi Dasa we went diving one day with Aquamarine diving. The hotel arranged everything and even added the cost to our bill. There is a large US military ship wreck right off the coast, but the waves were too big the day we were diving to do that one safely, so we dove on a reef wall just down the shore. It was very nice and had tons of fish and wildlife, although the visibility was not the best.
From Candi Dasa we headed to Ubud. We chose to stay about a 15 minute drive outside of the city itself, which really gave us the peaceful atmosphere we wanted. Our resort was Komaneka Tanggayuda, and we LOVED it. We had a private villa with our own infinity pool overlooking the lush valley with terraced rice fields. It was amazing. Again, not quite 5 star due to a few tiny details, but also priced at about 25% of the Four Seasons down the road (we booked early and paid only US$220). The town of Ubud is a little touristy, but it''s still a very third-world touristy. Make time to check out all the art galleries along the main road, as well as the smaller art stalls hidden in the back of the central market. We picked up several large acrylic on canvas paintings for just over US$100. Of course, we paid more than that to ship them home, but it was still worth it. Shipping was actually very easy, the artists just un-staple them from the boards and roll them up, then we took them back to the hotel and let them handle it. They packed them all up for us and had them Fed-Exed back to meet us the day after we got home. Perfect! We also enjoyed the spa while we were there - we each got a massage, a body scrub, foot wash, facial massage, and flower petal bath for US$250 total. There are many good inexpensive spas around, so definitely take advantage if you like that sort of thing (and who doesn''t???
)
Finally, we moved to Nusa Dua and spent our final night at the Conrad, which is the upper-end Hilton brand. We did this partly to be closer to the airport, but mostly because we love the ocean and wanted to see it one more time before we left. We were very glad we did it this way, but there''s really no need. The Conrad was great and extremely nice, although the food and drink were CRAZY expensive ($25-$30 for two drinks). They have a few sand-bottom pools, which was a cool novelty. They also have the covered day beds on the beach, which would be nice if you can grab one. The beach is not great, but at low tide you can walk 100-200 yards out in to the ocean in knee-deep water. There are plenty of crabs, starfish, and little fish to play with, although you have to watch out for the sea urchins. You can''t really see the bottom due to sea weed, so I was a little creeped out (I''m a HUGE baby when I can''t see where I''m stepping). This was by far the most family-oriented hotel we stayed at in Bali - it''s just like any mega-resort on a beach.
Whew! *deep breath* That was a lot. If anyone has any questions, I am happy to answer. This is mostly so that when someone wants to go to Bali in 6 months, they can search and find this thread.
However, since I know this is what everone wants anyway, here are pictures!
Starting out with our room at the Samaya in Seminyak:
We flew from Denver to Bali via Los Angeles and Singapore. We had the good fortune of flying Singapore Airlines by virtue of booking with United miles (Singapore Air is their primary Asian partner). I HIGHLY recommend Singapore Air
A few things about Bali overall:
Beware the 20% government tax that is added to all stated prices - it adds up fast.
The hotels give you bug spray. Take that as a hint, and use it. You won''t see them, you won''t feel them, but they will EAT YOU ALIVE.
Check if breakfast and afternoon tea are included with your room, which is quite common.
Service, although exceptionally friendly and sincere, is just plain slow. Expect it, get used to it, and let it go. We saw too many people let this ruin their vacation. It''s just a different pace and a different style.
Check into hiring a private driver and tour guide. We had one who was very knowledgable and even cheaper than a taxi or hotel-arranged transport. I believe we paid roughly $25 for a half-day and $40 for a full day. During that time they will take you wherever you want and personally guide you through the sites.
We started the vacation on the beach in Seminyak, which is supposed to have one of the nicer beaches on the island. It''s not the best in the world as the waves are quite large, which makes the water a little murky, but they''re certainly nice enough. It''s important to know that the beaches in Bali are public, so most hotels have the beach chairs set up on their property facing the ocean but slightly off the beach. We stayed at the Samaya Villas, which was very nice. Not quite five star, but at about US$400/night, not priced like it either. Our room was a private villa enclosed by a fence with our own plunge pool, and everything was lovely. I know a lot of people complain that the private pools are too cold to enjoy, but they''re really not bad at all. You just can''t expect a Caribbean-style bathwater pool in a fenced, shaded area. The food at the resort was quite good, especially the breakfast, which is included. The town itself has some shopping, mostly geared towards European and Australian tourists. If you get out of the resorts, food and drink is very cheap so it''s a nice break to get out and explore.
After Seminyak we headed to the east coast of Bali, which is where the best diving is located. We stayed in Candi Dasa, the most tourist-accessible town on that side of the island. This is definitely not the 5-star Bali from the magazines; the hotels and restaurants are small and local, and everything just feels a little less...glossy. The beaches are mostly black sand or rock, so be aware and find a hotel with a nice pool. We stayed at the Watergarden, which was very nice and at less than US$100, is one of the most expensive hotels in the area. Each villa has a nice patio that overlooks one of serveral koi ponds on the property, and although all villas have air conditioning, they are not entirely sealed from the elements. As such, be prepared for a few creepy-crawlies and wear bug spray at night. There were no TVs, which was actually quite nice and seemed to fit the atmosphere. We took an iPod and some speakers and listed to murder mysteries. We also played a LOT of Trival Pursuit (very fun, btw. we highly recommend it
From Candi Dasa we headed to Ubud. We chose to stay about a 15 minute drive outside of the city itself, which really gave us the peaceful atmosphere we wanted. Our resort was Komaneka Tanggayuda, and we LOVED it. We had a private villa with our own infinity pool overlooking the lush valley with terraced rice fields. It was amazing. Again, not quite 5 star due to a few tiny details, but also priced at about 25% of the Four Seasons down the road (we booked early and paid only US$220). The town of Ubud is a little touristy, but it''s still a very third-world touristy. Make time to check out all the art galleries along the main road, as well as the smaller art stalls hidden in the back of the central market. We picked up several large acrylic on canvas paintings for just over US$100. Of course, we paid more than that to ship them home, but it was still worth it. Shipping was actually very easy, the artists just un-staple them from the boards and roll them up, then we took them back to the hotel and let them handle it. They packed them all up for us and had them Fed-Exed back to meet us the day after we got home. Perfect! We also enjoyed the spa while we were there - we each got a massage, a body scrub, foot wash, facial massage, and flower petal bath for US$250 total. There are many good inexpensive spas around, so definitely take advantage if you like that sort of thing (and who doesn''t???
Finally, we moved to Nusa Dua and spent our final night at the Conrad, which is the upper-end Hilton brand. We did this partly to be closer to the airport, but mostly because we love the ocean and wanted to see it one more time before we left. We were very glad we did it this way, but there''s really no need. The Conrad was great and extremely nice, although the food and drink were CRAZY expensive ($25-$30 for two drinks). They have a few sand-bottom pools, which was a cool novelty. They also have the covered day beds on the beach, which would be nice if you can grab one. The beach is not great, but at low tide you can walk 100-200 yards out in to the ocean in knee-deep water. There are plenty of crabs, starfish, and little fish to play with, although you have to watch out for the sea urchins. You can''t really see the bottom due to sea weed, so I was a little creeped out (I''m a HUGE baby when I can''t see where I''m stepping). This was by far the most family-oriented hotel we stayed at in Bali - it''s just like any mega-resort on a beach.
Whew! *deep breath* That was a lot. If anyone has any questions, I am happy to answer. This is mostly so that when someone wants to go to Bali in 6 months, they can search and find this thread.
However, since I know this is what everone wants anyway, here are pictures!
Starting out with our room at the Samaya in Seminyak:
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