A Balinese Experience
A five day with a five star experience.
It is my first time to be in Indonesia and this is the second leg in my Southeast Asia tour! I booked a one way ticket to Denpasar, Bali. The Philippines, as my terminal country, only have three airlines that offer a direct flight to DPS available, Philippine Airline, Cebu Pacific Air and Air Asia.
Tips: If you want to have a variety of flight options, scout for flight prices in Google flights BUT book it on the airline’s website. And if you want to have a discount every time you fly with a certain airline try to enrol yourself with their frequent flyer program.
Preparations
Accommodations: Airbnb, Hostels, Homestays
Prices: 60 CAD to 120 CAD per night
Transportation: KLOOK, TAXI, GrabCar, Go-Jek
What to expect?
Bali is a small province of Indonesia that boosted their tourism and economy because of their pure white sand beaches, hiking, surfing and breath-taking views. The book published by Elizabeth Gilbert called ‘Eat, Pray, Love’ became so famous and it garnered attention of readers and influenced spiritual goers to see Bali themselves. Then in 2010, they made a film adaptation of the book starring Julia Roberts and made its way to a blockbuster film earning more than 200 million dollars.
Now, Bali has developed areas where you can use cars as your means of transportation but most of the places in the island still remain the same which is only accessible through the use of small bikes.
So if you’re from a big city be prepared seeing a flock of motorbikes on the major road and they ignore traffic rules so when crossing the streets just take precautions.
Where to stay?
If you are into shopping and night life, I would recommend the Kuta area and Seminyak area for you to explore. They have a variety of stores for you to shop, from the fanciest local brands and imported ones to the sidewalk stalls that you can bargain with for as low as 10k IDR.
Most tourists flock in Kuta since the airport is nearby plus you have a public accessed beach right away. Plus the dining is not as expensive as the other places in Bali. Seminyak, on the other hand, has a different market. It caters the middle class to Elite groups where shopping malls or boutiques are designed as elegant as possible. This area has a lot of beach club, Fancy Vegan shop, and colourful buildings and alleyway. Just imagine 70’s to 80’s vibe with the presence of modern and industrial vibe.
If you prefer beach and adventure, you might consider checking out the other side of the island. The Sanur Area where you can spot a lot of tours in and out of the island. If you are planning to check out the Nusa Pineda Island, the place for those adventure junkie and beach bum. Besides the island hopping and excursion to the said island, you can also avail those scuba and snorkelling packages.
If you prefer wellness, peace, and nature (Like I do), I recommend the Ubud Area. This place has a lot of things to offer for those who seek relaxation, escape from the modern world activities, and just simply be with nature. It differs from the areas above because mainly it has no sign of big development, it’s in the mountainous area of Bali, and it’s cooler in temperature than the city. You can find the infamous Bali Swing, the Tegallalang Rice Fields, the numerous waterfalls, the abandoned resorts, and other nature-related stuff in Ubud.
What not to miss?
Up for some early morning walk in between the rice fields.
We chased the sunrise and booked a place nearby the Tegallalang Rice Fields. We planned to be up early to avoid a heavy crowd along the rice fields plus we wanted to get the golden color of the sunrise but we failed to do so since the weather was gloomy and the cloud covered the field.
Note that visiting there is free, but they ask for you to drop a small amount of donation for the maintenance of the pathway so the future tourist can safely walk through the muddy path . Use covered shoes instead of flip flops especially during the morning since the path is a bit slippery. Always take precaution, it is not an easy trail as you think. The terraces is made of mud and clay. In some instances it might not carry your weight, some pathways are just plain muddy terrace.
Jl. Raya Tegallalang, Tegallalang, Kabupaten Gianyar, Bali 80561, Indonesia
Chase waterfalls, not love nor people (Charot)
“Nungnung waterfall, located 40 kilometers north of Denpasar with a height of 900 meters above sea level. This tourism object is located in Badung District evening. It lies about – about five miles before the bridge Tukad Bangkung known as the tallest bridge in Asia with a specific height of the pillars reached 71.14 meters. In this village there is a waterfall with a height of 50 meters with large water discharge, to reach the location of such waterfall we must trace hilly rice fields about 2 miles from the highway.”[1]
This waterfall is a gem that needs to be experienced and discovered. But there’s a catch, you will experience 10 minutes of hell going down and a dead-ass 20 minutes or so depending on how fit you are going up. *winks
Is it free to go down and see this beauty? The million dollar answer is no, but for them to give us a better stairs to hell to see heaven you need to drop 10,000 IDR before you go down. A value you always waste for a cup of a Starbucks coffee.
Belok/Sidan, Petang, Badung Regency, Bali, Indonesia
Explore the forgotten gems (UrBex)
When driving around Bali, you will pass by a lot of abandoned places. One of this was the Hotel Pondok Indah Bedugul. You will stumble upon this abandoned hotel on the cliff of the mountain on your way to Handara golf club.
“There is a version that the hotel was owned by Tommy Soeharto, the youngest son of the former president Soeharto. The constructions were launched in 1993 and frozen in 1995. There are many rumors and legends about it: After bombing in Kuta in 2002, Tommy’s plans were ruined as tourists didn’t want to come to Bali. He violated some obligations and couldn’t invest in further constructions. Tommy got in jail for an assassination of the Supreme Court judge.”[1]
Batunya, Baturiti, Batunya, Baturiti, Kabupaten Tabanan, Bali 82191, Indonesia
Found another abandoned amusement park, located south of the island. The park host a theatre, cinema, large function hall, a man-made mountain and few small buildings.
Today, the complex — known as Taman Festival Bali — is slowly being swallowed by the jungle, with vines creeping through the cracks in the walls of long-abandoned buildings and twisting through derelict game stands.
Jl. Padang Galak No.3, Kesiman, Kec. Denpasar Tim., Kota Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia
Have some afternoon drink by the beach at the beach club
One I visited was the Tropicalo Beach club owned by the people who created the Mexico Bar, established last year. An 80’s concept diner vibe restaurant in Seminyak. A 45 minute drive from Kuta proper. They open around 11 AM and serve you alcohol anytime you want. Well it’s 5 o’clock somewhere. In terms of music, it’s all loud party music. And don’t forget to apply sunscreen if you’re planning to visit at day time. The sun is a bit rough.
Eat Like a Balinese
Everywhere is super cheap but if you have a little extra and can afford restaurants it will do as well, but for us we want to taste the local food. I wish I took a lot of photos of the food we ate but oh well it was too good to remember taking pics of it.
Go surf-up the Indonesian waves
Bali, Indonesia has one of the best waves in Asia. So if you’re a surf enthusiast you should check out the surfing points around the island. The one I went to was actually an exiled one which has a very little number of people around. The only challenge is that you need to hike up and down just to see and experience this beauty.
Explore hidden beaches
When you want to experience such exotic and different scene than the usual Kuta and Seminyak beaches you probably consider hiking or going off route than the usual spot where tourist flocks. Since the early 2000s, Bali became a destination for people who wants vacation with a touch of wellness. They opted Bali as a destination since Hawaii became so famous and expensive. Tourists became Expats and you sometimes bump into them as your local guide or a receptionist in your hostels. Sometimes we opted to ask those local people who can converse well with you and ask for those pointers on where the least touristy places to check out. I am sure they can suggest 1 or 2.
Breakfast like a boss.
Book a villa that will let you eat breakfast like no other. Bali is famous for their floating breakfast. For sure most hotels and villas that has pool can provide this experience.
*if you have any questions about the places mentioned or my whole itinerary, drop me a message here or comment down below.
All photos and content are all mine unless stated.
Check out my instagram as well and leave a comment down below! Share some insight and suggestions as well. :)