Our favorite Bali -- Ubud, Amed, Seminyak, Pemuteran – 2012
Mar 3rd, 2012, 11:13 PM
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Our favorite Bali -- Ubud, Amed, Seminyak, Pemuteran – 2012
Our favorite hotels and restaurants of Bali – Ubud, Amed, Seminyak, Pemuteran – 2012
$1 = ~9,000 Rp 2012
$1 = ~10,000 Rp 2009
We are a couple in our 50’s who have traveled to Bali six times since 1996. We base ourselves in Ubud, taking beach excursions to Amed or Pemuteran for a few days during each visit. We don’t spend much time in the Kuta/Seminyak/Sanur area, but for people looking to party those are the best bases.
Please also see our attached notes on travel in Bali dated 1996, 2000 and 2004, though some of that information is out of date.
Questions? Write me at swittetATpathDOTorg
If any of the links are broken or hidden, or if you would like to see some pictures, visit http://faculty.washington.edu/swittet/Bali
Scott Wittet
NOTE: US currency printed prior to 2006 may not be accepted in Indonesia. The government changes this rule every few years, so check on the web ahead of time. Before leaving the US examine any cash you plan to use.
What do you want from Bali?
Beaches
Sanur, Seminyak, Jimbaran, Kuta
South, near the airport. These places are international party and vacation zones with beautiful beaches. Jimbaran is famous for fresh seafood. You’ll find great restaurants and any kind of fast food. Boutique stores. Lots of bars and clubs. Gay bars in Seminyak.
Amed
Northeast coast. Quiet, rural, beach accommodations. Great snorkeling off the beach. Great diving nearby. A few restaurants—try “The Grill.”
Many people also like Candidasa, south of Amed.
Pemuteran
Northwest coast. National Parks above and beneath the water. Tremendous snorkeling at Menjangan Island or off the beach. Quiet, rural area. Dry and weaker economy. Nice resorts, but not a lot of choice. Private villas for rent.
Lembongan Island
I haven’t been, but you might want to read up on it.
Hills + culture
Ubud and surrounding villages (Peliatan, Sayan, Mas, etc.)
Central hills. Hotel rooms with incredible views for $100, great views for $40 or less. Always lush foliage. Rice field and ridge trekking. Vibrant arts scene with impressive museums. Temple festivals and public cremation ceremonies. Authentic cultural performances every night. Great restaurants. No chain restaurants (except Starbucks) or billboards! Local boutiques and good shopping. Prices lower than Kuta?
Drive time from Airport to Ubud—45-60 min. (90 min. in traffic)
Ubud to Seminyak—45-60 min. Ubud to Amed---2.5 to 3 hrs. Ubud to Pemuteran—3.5 to 4 hours.
Ubud
Ubud Hotels
Sayan Terrace Resort
http://www.sayanterraceresort.com
mailto:[email protected]
Jl. Raya Sayan, Ubud, Bali
Tel: (62 361) 974 384, Fax: (62 361) 975 384
As usual, in Februrary 2012 we spent our first week in a very special place, Sayan Terrace Resort (just outside of Ubud). The views and energy are spectacular there. Room 110 has the best view, then 111. The owners are planning major renovation and expansion, so check on the status of construction when booking. See our 2004 notes below for more on the hotel.
The hotel only has a small pool, but if you want to swim laps, you can pay for a day pass for the big pool at Taman Bebek, right next door.
Sayan Terrace is a bit out of Ubud and requires transport. The hotel charges $4-5 per trip into town. Ubud is bikeable, though the roads can be hazardous. For a family, it might make sense to book a driver for a few hours, or to have him on call. Meet someone with a car you like (they are everywhere as you walk the streets), get a ride back to the hotel and make conversation, and get his business card with mobile number. He’d love to become your regular chauffeur.
Anhera Hotel
Jl. Raya Sanggingan, Ubud, Bali
Tel. +62-361-977-843 and 845
mailto:[email protected]
http://www.anherahotelbali.com
At the end of our 2012 visit we shifted from Sayan Terrace to Anhera for a change of scene, peeking over a different valley. The rooms are built into the hillside and all have beautiful views of the Campuhan Ridge. Anhera provides free transport around town—they will drop you at the restaurant, then pick you up when you call after dinner. (Many hotels have this service if they are a bit out of town.)
The restaurant at Anhera now features “Thai-style steamboat banquets,” which include many courses. General Manager Imam and Chef Jawini personally supervise each event. Consider booking your feast at the open air, rooftop bar.
Anhera is close to a very good and reasonably priced Indonesian restaurant called Pulau Kelapa (see below).
Next door to Anhera is Indus restaurant. It has great views during the day, but we find the food a bit mediocre (except for the desserts). Same owner as Casa Luna and Honeymoon Bakery.
Down the road is the award winning Mosaic (975-768-reservations recommended), run by Chef Chris Salans, who used to work at the French Laundry in Napa.
It’s only a short drive from Anhera to Café des Artistes (see below) and transport is free for Anhera guests.
You might also look at ARMA Resort (connected to the museum). It’s a beautiful and fascinating place to stay. See our 2004 notes below.
Cheaper sleep: a promising, $30-40 alternative right in the middle of Ubud (but hidden in a quiet oasis) is
Gayatri Bungalows 2
Monkey Forest St., Beji Lane
(it’s down the alley which lies across from the intersection with Jl. Dewi Sita, at the north end of the soccer field)
Tel. +62-361-979129
mailto:[email protected]
We haven’t stayed here, but a friend loved it. Ask for an upper level, rice field view room. They have both A/C and fan rooms.
In the rice fields: the village of Bangkiang Sidem is on the rice field walk and biking trail that begins at Ibah Hotel. The village sits on top of the ridge that you see from Anhera. It’s a quiet place with private bungalows and villas for rent, beginning at about $30 a night. Longer term rentals can be much cheaper—with some units available for only $350 per month.
Suchik House
+62 81 747 60 855 (from overseas)
mailto:[email protected]
http://www.sucikhouse.blogspot.com/
There actually are several small houses in this compound. “Del’s House” is the largest and nicest, with an incredible view down the valley.
Ajik’s Guest House
+62 85 237 259 105 (from overseas)
mailto:[email protected]
We haven’t stayed at either of the private bungalows on Ajik’s compound, but they looked comfortable, the owners are friendly, and the setting is very green and relaxing.
Ubud Restaurants
Café des Artistes
Jl. Bisma
Tel. 0361-972-706
mailto:[email protected]
http://www.cafedesartistesbali.com/
Café des Artistes is our favorite restaurant on the island. It offers great food and great value. Belgian owner Rudy Kerremans raises his own beef, and the aged tenderloins are fantastic. In fact, everything is good—continental or Indonesian. A steak with two sides and a drink is only about $15!
Café Wayan (Monkey Forest Road)
Tel. 975-447
At Café Wayan the waiters are super-friendly—one invited us to his temple festival the next evening, but we had spa appointments we couldn’t miss. During our last visit the grandmotherly owner remembered us from two years earlier, thanked us for being “return guests”, and sent over a free dessert! Alas, she has become a priestess since then, but her daughter presides over the garden dining room in her place.
Warung Pulau Kelapa
0361-8215502
http://pulaukelapa.webs.com/
Just up the road from Anhera a minute or two by foot, Pulau Kelapa (Coconut Island) serves excellent Indonesian food at good prices. The owner “collects” old houses from across Indonesia—you are dining in some of them. He displays more of his houses at his museum, the House of Masks and Puppets, just outside Ubud.
In 2009 we had a delicious, perfectly traditional American Thanksgiving feast at Tutmak Restaurant (on Jl. Dewi Sita, off Monkey Forest, near the football field).
Excellent drivers based in Ubud
One of our favorite drivers is Kadek Cenik. This personable young man speaks English well and is honest and reliable. He can make suggestions for itineraries all over the island.
Kadek Cenik
Mobile 081 747 60 855
mailto
[email protected] or mailto:[email protected]
http://www.balisimpledriver.blogspot.com
Another regular driver, who always is accommodating and punctual, is
Gus Putu
Mobile 081 933 005 931
mailto:[email protected]
When not booked, Putu is based near the top of Monkey Forest Road (Zona X)—other drivers in that area can point him out. We were invited to his baby daughter’s “earth touching” ceremony in 2007—interesting and charming!
Ubud Spas
There are many, many spas in Ubud and most offer much better value than getting a spa treatment in your hotel. Typically a one hour massage with exfoliating scrub, yogurt wash and soak in a hot tub filled with tropical flowers costs $15 in a spa (could be $50 in your hotel). There are many different packages.
A favorite again in 2012 was Zen Spa, with its beautiful setting. Sang Spa (three locations) also is good and a bit less expensive. They provide free transport and offer discounts to customers who arrive before 2pm.
Amed 2012
We spent two nights on the beach in Amed at
Puri Wirata Dive Resort
mailto:[email protected]; mailto:[email protected]
http://www.puriwirata.com
Tel. (0363) 23 523
Rooms were very comfortable with AC, DVD players, and a large deck. The old rooms are a bit dark—we preferred to spend a bit more for the newer, brighter rooms. There are two pools, the restaurant was fine, and the dive shop excellent. Puri Wirata is convenient for divers but the resort is great also for non-diving companions. The hotel sits right on the (pebbly) beach, where there is fantastic snorkeling (and diving). We did a drift dive from down the coast to the house beach—very nice corals, tons of colorful fish, a huge moray, rays, etc. The divemaster said that if there had been current, we definitely would have seen more shark, barracuda and tuna. Next time!
The Grill
0818 0550 3193
mailto
[email protected]
Our new favorite restaurant in Amed, The Grill, opened in October 2011. Australian hostess Susana has put lots of interesting dishes on the menu, from all over the world. She grills anything, and bakes a mean coconut lime pie. She will be happy to pick you up from your hotel (just call), and drop you back later on.
Sails Restaurant
0363-22006, mobile 0852 3710 2701
http://restaurantamedbali.com/food/
Sails is a cute, trendy restaurant that puts together some interesting dishes. Great view during the day, spectacular starry sky at night! They also will pick you up.
Other resources
Gay travel agent
Rio Maryono
Bali Gaya Tours
+62 81 2392 3814
mailto:[email protected]
http://www.baligay.net
Luxury private villa in Seminyak
Villa Vayu
mailto:[email protected]
http://http://www.villavayu.com/
If you would like to spend time in Seminyak, charming, totally private Villa Vayu is a great value. This beautiful garden villa with private pool sits in quiet lane minutes from “restaurant row,” and just a short hike to Petitenget Beach, near the Oberoi Hotel.
Our best hotels and restaurants of Bali 2004: Ubud, Sayan, and Amed
Here are some notes about some favorite places during our three-week visit to Bali in May 2004. We spent six nights in Ubud, four nights in Amed, another two nights in Ubud, then two nights in Sayan, just outside of Ubud. It was low season and tourism was still slow in the aftermath of the 2002 bombing. Of course Bali felt as safe, friendly and magical as ever.
General comments about travel in Bali:
You can sleep in Kuta, Sanur, Seminyak, etc. if you arrive in the evening. But on this, our third visit, we chose to skip that part of the island altogether. We arrived in Denpasar at about 7pm--and our hotel in Ubud sent a car to meet the flight. Then it was a 45 minute ride up north.
It’s easy to arrange day (or night) trips to the Kuta area from Ubud if you like.
If you want to drive yourself, rather than hiring a car and driver, you’ll need an international driver’s license, which is not hard to get.
We booked our first three nights in a place I’d read about in other people’s posts: Tegal Sari Resort. But our first morning we hired a driver to take us to look at 8 or 9 other places I’d read about. We wanted to see the rooms and the pools and find out what kinds of deals we could negotiate face to face. That worked out quite well. In one place, we eventually ended up getting an incredible room for US$75 per night (it listed for $175). I don’t know if that strategy would be as effective in high season (Dec.-Jan. and July-August), but it might work then as well.
I won’t quote the prices we negotiated for the hotels below since they would be misleading--the price you get depends on the situation at the time you’re negotiating. But be sure to bargain--it’s natural here.
There must be crime on Bali, but we’ve never seen evidence. Rome and Amsterdam are MUCH more dangerous in terms of pickpockets and robbers.
Ubud
Note on Tegal Sari: the hotel was very good value for the money (rooms ~ $20-40), but it wasn’t quite as spectacular as we have come to expect from Bali and it was a tad too close to road noise. However, we can see why people like it!
There are lots of places to stay in Ubud–you won’t have any trouble finding accommodations. Just ask your driver to help you check things out; or park your bags and walk for awhile.
Unfortunately our beloved Vila Bukit Ubud (see our 2000 and 1996 posts) is no more. The grounds were a busy construction site during our visit (the new resort is called Uma). Since we couldn’t stay at Vila Bukit, we were forced to find new homes. And that worked out well!
Hotels:
ARMA Resort.
http://http://www.armaresort.com/
mailto:[email protected]
PO Box 9696, Pengosekan, Ubud 80571, Bali.
Tel. (62-361) 976 659
ARMA stands for the Agung Rai Museum of Art--it’s one of the three main museums in Ubud and is located in the vicinity of the Monkey Forest (it’s close to Tegal Sari and adjacent to the village of Peliatan). But ARMA is much more than a museum--it’s a performance venue (Balinese dance and music), it’s a gallery space, it’s a foundation dedicated to preserving traditional Balinese culture (especially through training and promoting young artists), and it’s 15 bungalow-style rooms and 5 amazing villas. The resort grounds are Bali-gorgeous! We spent eight nights there and loved it. The deluxe room we had during our second sojourn was truly spectacular! I am a swimmer and always look for a decent lap pool--the one at ARMA was reasonable and usually empty. They offer free tea, coffee and traditional Balinese snacks by the pool in the afternoon. But the greatest thing about ARMA is the culture connection: every day after school, children come to ARMA to learn Balinese classical dance--it’s always free, and great fun, to watch! The most talented kids dance each Saturday night at the ARMA Open Stage, next to the Museum--don’t miss it. And the charming and informative Agung Rai himself-- owner of the resort and director of the museum and foundation--often hosts guests on short field trips to see “his” Bali or to receive a special blessing from the Peliatan high priest. He is an amazing man! ARMA offers a wide range of cultural classes, but the time with Agung Rai is gratis. ARMA also is very generous with it’s in-house transport service--they are willing to drop and pick you up anywhere in the Ubud area, free, up until 10pm. ARMA has air-conditioning, but no TV and no on-site web access. However, there are web cafes, a supermarket and ATMs on the road, outside the Café ARMA entrance. Finally, the staff are great--very, very helpful with all things--and ARMA was a wonderful place to stay!
Sayan Terrace
http://www.sayanterraceresort.com
mailto:[email protected]
Jl. Raya Sayan, Ubud, Bali
Tel: (62 361) 974 384, Fax: (62 361) 975 384
Having read “A House in Bali” by Colin McPhee several times, we wanted to hike on the Sayan ridge, northwest of Ubud. Following directions in our guidebook, we started out from the Sayan Terrace resort. When we returned after the hike, we looked at their rooms (and those incredible views of the Ayung River gorge!) and decided to spend our last two nights in Bali at Sayan Terrace. It is next to, and above, the Four Seasons, so you get the same view at 25% of the cost! The Sayan Terrace staff were great--they even carved us some Balinese sate sticks to cook with at home. Unfortunately, the Sayan Terrace pool is for splashing only, but it IS a cute little “infinity pool” and, again, offers those fantastic views. Shopping Op: there are some very tasteful art, jewelry and décor shops on the road, near the Sayan Terrace entrance. There are also two restaurants nearby: Gaya and Red Rice. We timed our move to Sayan to coincide with a once-in-25-year festival at the temple in the next town. It was the most amazing we’ve seen! The Sayan Terrace staff were kind enough to give us rides to the town on their motorcycles, then we easily found paid transport back a few hours later. It was a great experience! One caution: Sayan is several kilometers from Ubud and the Sayan Terrace isn’t set up for guest transport as well as ARMA. They got us where we needed to go, but be sure to ask if you need to pay for the ride (we didn’t, but at first all the rides were on our bill). In spite of those minor complaints, we certainly will stay at Sayan Terrace again. The memories of lying in bed, looking out the nearly-all-glass wall of the bedroom at the clouds and river gorge as they change color during sunrise are too sweet not to repeat. PS--if you’ve read “A House in Bali,” the Sayan house was adjacent to the current Sayan Terrace resort. And the owner’s mother used to cook for McPhee!
Restaurants:
Mozaic may be the best continental-style restaurant in Bali. Run by a Franco-American chef formerly with the French Laundry in Napa Valley, California, dining at Mozaic is a wonderful experience. One is steered by the staff towards the prix fixe dinners, but everything also is available a la carte. With wine, we spent about US$75 each. UPDATE 2012: Prices have increased at Mozaic and dinner will be more like US$150-200 with wine. The restaurant is near the Neka Museum and Indus Restaurant.
Three Monkeys is a pleasant bistro with good food on Monkey Forest Road. Sometimes dessert is free with dinner!
2012 UPDATE: A new Three Monkeys has opened in Sanur and Denise Abe, the owner, also has a new Italian restaurant in the heart of Ubud, Il Giardino.
Gaya is a pyramid in Sayan, five minutes walk from Sayan Terrace. It’s set in a rice field--the bottom floor is an art gallery. and on top is a charming restaurant and bar. Gaya specializes in Italian cuisine, but has Indonesian dishes as well.
Amed
Amed is a small fishing village whose name is commonly used to refer to a semi-developed coastal area north of Candidasa. There are many small hotels and restaurants scattered along this beach road. Some are right on the beach, others on bluffs above (with fantastic views). There are black sand beaches here, though they often are crowded with fishing boats.
Diving and snorkeling: There is a great WWII wreck to dive in Tulamben (north of Amed) and reefs and walls in Amed itself. We saw sharks, rays, turtles, and many other creatures. I dove with EuroDive. They were fine, but some of their equipment was old—once my depth gauge got stuck, another time the booties they gave me gathered more pebbles than they kept out. So next time I might try EcoDive instead. The “Japanese Wreck” is about 10 meters off a beach near the southern end of the Amed stretch (2012 UPDATE: currently home of Baliku Resort). Snorkelers also will enjoy this wreck and the coral and fish are nice all along this beach. Some people I spoke with were staying at the next bay south, at the Meditasi bungalows. They said the snorkeling was even better there, but I didn’t see it for myself.
Hotel:
Blue Moon Villa
Selang Beach, Amed – Karangasem, Bali
Tel: (62 812) 362 2597 (International), 0812 362 2597 (Local)
http://www.bluemoonvilla.com
mailto:[email protected]
Blue Moon Villa has wonderful staff, comfortable rooms, and beautiful views. The restaurant is nice too. Blue Moon is on the bluff, but the stairs to the beach are only a minute or two away. The Japanese wreck beach is a kilometer south--an easy walk.
Have a great time in Bali!
Scott Wittet
swittetATpathDOTorg
Our best of Bali 2000: Kuta – Amed - Pemuteran (north coast) - Ubud
Here are some notes about the favorite places of a 40-something couple during our three-week visit to Bali in March 2000. Because it was the rainy season and due to the previous political troubles in Timor, Lombok, and other parts of Indonesia, tourism was down. It was bad for the businesspeople but great for us since we could bargain for everything, especially hotel rooms and rental cars!
The exchange rate was about 7,330 rupees to US $1.
Kuta
Kuta is the very touristy area close to the airport. It has the best surfing beaches (and wave action) on Bali and also has beautiful, long white sand beaches. Body surfing was a blast! The biggest waves I’ve ever been abused by! You can find better exchange rates here. There is good shopping and this is the place to pick up beach clothes, sunscreen, etc. There are lots of bars and clubs. The problems with Kuta are overcrowding and obnoxious beach hustlers selling sarongs, watches, massage – you name it! This is also the place with the most cyber-cafes, though you’ll see plenty in Ubud and Lovina too. If you want to do parasailing, snorkeling, “big banana-ing”, or jetskiing, go to Nusa Dua (near Kuta). But the snorkeling is much better on the North coast, Amed, or Lembongan Island (near Nusa Penida).
Kuta is not our favorite part of Bali by a long shot, but there are some treasures…
Restaurants:
La Lucciola, tel. 261047. Continental and global cuisine. Beautiful open location on the beach, just north of the Bali Oberoi and Bali Pesona hotels. It’s on Jl. Oberoi Kayu Aya, next to a large temple. We watched boys practice gamelan in the temple courtyard after dinner.
Ketupat, tel. 754209. Indonesian cuisine. Interesting menu, nice location behind an antique store. Jl. Legian 109, just south of McDonald’s Legian.
Jimbaran Beach (a 20 min. ride from Kuta) is famous for seafood. Most folks go in the evening to watch the sunset; we went during the day to play in the water (it’s a nice beach with good waves for body surfing). The food was great and we could sit all day for the price of lunch and a few drinks.
Hotel:
Ida Beach Inn, tel. (0361) 751205. Quiet garden setting smack in the middle of Kuta. Pretty, though overshadowed by Matahari dept. store (at least it’s convenient!). AC rooms, small pool, nice outdoor baths attached to some rooms. We paid 200K net with breakfast. Fax (0361) 751934
Different:
Drag show at Hulu Café Shows at around 10:30 Wed., Fri., and Sunday. Near the Bali Padma Hotel off Jl. Legian.
Pemuteran
Pemuteran is a small village one hour west of Lovina, 1.5 hours west of Singaraja. The main reason to go there is to relax at a quiet beach resort with diving and snorkeling offshore. You are also just 17 km. From the national marine park (for the best snorkeling you’ve ever done)! It is very quiet in Pemuteran and there is nothing going on at night (not even videos), so bring some books!
The Pondok Sari Bungalows (Pemuteran/Pulaki, N. Bali. Tel./Fax (0362) 92337. We paid 210K net for three people with air con and breakfast. This was our second stay—we checked out the competition this time, but decided that Pondok Sari was the best value. The bungalows are in a pretty setting with nice snorkeling from the beach. They have those great “outdoor” private bathrooms that you will learn to love on Bali. You can rent snorkeling equipment at the hotel or from a dive shop a hundred yards east on the beach (about 30K/day for mask, snorkel, and flippers). Next door is the beautiful Taman Sari Resort, but it is a bit more expensive. However, we want variety in menus, so we stayed at Pondok Sari but sometimes ate at Taman Sari. The Pondok Sari food was much better than in ’96.
Fantastic snorkeling and diving: There is no need to book with a dive shop to go snorkeling at Pulao Menjangan (Deer Island). To get to the park entrance, catch a “bemo” (local mini-bus, costs 1K) outside of Pondok Sari. It will take you the 17 km. to Labuan Lalang, the entrance to the park (it is not on most maps – but is well before Cekik). Don’t worry, it’s a common destination. At the park you will have to pay for a boat and guide (about 217K whether you have one person or six, so try to arrange a group) and rent equipment if you need it. The guides are good and necessary. Our guide was Suparno (nickname No-No) and he was great. You can get box lunches, drinks, or snacks at the small restaurants in the park. The boat fee is for about 3 hours. You can add $$ to stay longer and visit more sites around the island. In 1996 we snorkeled at 5 sites in two days (it was well worth it); but it would have been cheaper to do it in one. Unfortunately, due to reef dynamiting, in 2000 there were only 3 snorkeling spots left. Go soon before they all disappear! One caution if using bemo: they can be harder to catch in the late afternoon, so it’s best to finish by 2 or 3 pm if possible.
Beware of Fire Coral (I still have scars!) and a kind of really obnoxious starfish that’s super poisonous and is destroying the reefs. The guide will tell you all about it (part of their job is to kill as many of these starfish as possible).
Ubud
Hotel
[UPDATE 2007—VILLA BUKIT NO LONGER EXISTS, IT HAS BEEN REPLACED BY OVERPRICED UMA RESORT]
…life at Villa Bukit: I am relaxing with a fresh fruit juice and book, on a private porch, gazing along a vast valley south, towards Sanur and the sea. Birds and frogs serenade me; butterflies, dragonflies, banana flowers dance in the breeze. Magic! A woman walks down the ridge in the middle of the valley, balancing a load on her head, holding her young son by the hand. The bored waiter in the restaurant begins to play a hypnotic bamboo gamelan to pass the time. Heaven!
Villa Bukit is a gorgeous place with charming service and reasonable prices. It is right next to the Museum Neka. We had a luxury double, normally US$90, but because there was only 25% occupancy at the time, we got a discount. We stayed here in ’96 too. The photos on their webpage don’t give a hint of how lovely it is there. Some amenities are a bit run down (like the pool furniture), but our room was clean and everything worked and in general a quiet, peaceful charm prevails. The waiters and waitresses were particularly friendly and helped us out with many things, like finding safety pins to help secure our sashes and drawing maps for fun rice paddy treks. The front desk staff are also very good and helpful. We were invited by staff to temple festivals several times. It is easy to get a car from the desk anytime, or catch a bemo into town during the day. Indus Restaurant is 10 minutes walk towards town – from there you get a different view of the same wonderful valley. Taxis from town at night back to Vila Bukit usually cost 10K. We spent 8 nights there and really got to feel at home. I would have loved to make it 18 nights…
There are lots of cheaper places to stay in Ubud – you won’t have any trouble finding accomodations. Just ask your driver to help you check things out; or park your bags and walk for awhile.
Things to do:
You can go to a cultural show every night of the week in Ubud and they are generally worth it. Tickets are about 20K. We saw a wonderful Kecak dance in a small town near Ubud. They performed in front of a marvelous split temple gate, lighting by oil lamp! It was great and the people were extremely gracious.
Ask a driver, waiter, bellboy, or friend if there are any upcoming temple festivals. The festivals are a mix of praying, eating, shopping, seeing and being seen, and gambling. Be sure to take a sarong and sash to wear inside the temple. It’s nice to get a headscarf too – you’ll feel well-dressed. Get a copy of “Have You Been In Bali?” if you can. It’s a local guide full of practical, interesting information on religion and culture (including how to tie a headscarf!)
The Museum Neka is a good art museum – visit it on one of your first days in town to get oriented to Balinese painting. It is next door to Villa Bukit. The Puri Lukisan museum downtown is also very good. The grounds are spectacular!
Since we hadn’t gotten quite enough snorkeling yet, we booked with Bali View Dive Center (Tel. 062 0361 753441) for a day trip to Lembongan Island (next to Nusa Penida, off of Sanur). For $40 each they picked us up at our hotel in Ubud at 7 am, took us in a speedboat to the island (about 45 minutes or an hour), let us snorkel in two different spots, gave a box lunch, and got us back home by 3 pm). Nice, professional bunch and one of the cheaper options for that trip. You can pick up their brochures at the reception area in Vila Bukit and probably at many other hotels as well.
Have a great time in Bali!
NOTES FROM DECEMBER 1996
I’ve organized this by geographical area on Bali. Hope it helps! It is by no means exhaustive, I’m just passing on things we did during our recent two weeks there.
Airport/Seminyak
Kuta has expanded north and now incorporates the villages of Legian and Seminyak, which are less crazy. We spent our first two nights at the Dhyana Pura Hotel, Jl. Seminyak, Kuta. Tel. 0361-730442, Fax 0361-730463. $50 inc. breakfast. (Note: Jl. means “jalan” or street). I highlighted it on the map. It was very comfortable with hot water, air con, cable TV, and pool. The beach outside is gorgeous with incredible sunsets. It was not too crowded when we were there and the vendors weren’t too bad. There is bungy jumping nearby! You can get a taxi from outside the airport easily and the prices are fixed (you buy a ticket at a window near the taxi stand).
North Coast
It takes several hours from Kuta to reach the north coast. You’ll go through the mountains, past Lake Bratan with a nice lakeside temple (your driver will probably want to stop there), then to the capitol of the north, Singaraja. You want to either head for the Lovina area or go straight to Pemuteran.
Lovina: This is an area where a bunch of small villages along the road/coast have developed for tourism and sort of melded together. It’s the most touristy part of the north, but it’s nothing compared to Kuta. There are many cheap and less cheap places to stay and many restaurants. The black sand beach is OK, but not that great. If you stay in Lovina, go on an early morning dolphin watch. It’s fun. You won’t have any trouble booking a boat since everybody will be offering. If you want to terminate the conversation quickly, tell them you’ve already seen the dolphins.
We stayed at the Aditya Bungalows (west end of Lovina; $46/night with air con, cable, and hot water) – but I wouldn’t particularly recommend it. I checked out another place that was much cheaper, more central, and seemed quite nice. We would have moved there if we hadn’t gone on to Pemuteran. It’s the Bayu Kartika Beach Bungalows, Lovina/Kalibukbuk, Phone (0362) 41055 or 41219. It was about $20/night with hot water, fan, no TV. Bungalows right on the beach. Very clean and nice setting.
Restaurant: Don’t miss Warung Made. It’s next to the Aditya (a 15 min. walk west from Baya Kartika. Lian Chinese Restaurant (across from Aditya) was also good.
Music/Entertainment: Every Saturday there is a gamelan and dance performance at the town stage in the center of Lovina. We missed the show, but happened to sit in on a gamelan practice which was very interesting and fun. Many restaurants have cultural shows, but the one we checked out was pretty amateurish and awful. Many places also show videos at night to attract customers.
Ubud
We spent a week in Ubud and still didn’t get to do everything. It’s wonderful!
The first hotel we stayed in was Melati Cottages, Penestanan, Ubud, 80571. Tel. 62-361-974650 Fax 62-361-975088. $25-35. Pool, very big rooms, fans, clean, views and breakfast is included. It is in a quieter area about 1 km. from downtown Ubud.
But we wanted air con, so we moved to a spectacular place called Villa Bukit Ubud (Sanggingan/Ubud, Phone 361-975371, Fax 975787), right next to the Museum Neka. You’ve seen our pix of the view from Villa Bukit. We were able to get a double for $50/night inc. tax and breakfast. Normally the rooms are $70 plus tax and breakfast, but we bargained.
Things to do: You can go to a cultural show every night of the week in Ubud and they are generally worth it. Be sure to catch the shadow puppets at Oka Kartini’s. One of our favorite shows was the “Ciwa Ratri” (Night of Shiva) performance at the Tirtasari Dance Stage (I think that was the place, anyway it’s on the next street east of Oka Kartini’s). Ask a driver or friend about temple festivals (be sure to take a sarong and sash to wear inside the temple).
The Museum Neka is a good art museum – visit it on one of your first days in town to get oriented to Balinese painting.
Rice Paddy/Ridge Walk: There is a nice 2-3 hour hike beginning either at what used to be Ubud Indah Garden Restaurant (now closed, hard to see sign) or, by the bridge in town, near the Campuhan temple. We bought our paintings from a shop along the walk.
A mountain stay: We drove through Munduk on the way back from the north coast but didn’t stay. Someone on the net highly recommended Puri Lumbung Cottages, Munduk. $50/night. Very pretty. NW of Bedugal, going towards Lovina.
$1 = ~9,000 Rp 2012
$1 = ~10,000 Rp 2009
We are a couple in our 50’s who have traveled to Bali six times since 1996. We base ourselves in Ubud, taking beach excursions to Amed or Pemuteran for a few days during each visit. We don’t spend much time in the Kuta/Seminyak/Sanur area, but for people looking to party those are the best bases.
Please also see our attached notes on travel in Bali dated 1996, 2000 and 2004, though some of that information is out of date.
Questions? Write me at swittetATpathDOTorg
If any of the links are broken or hidden, or if you would like to see some pictures, visit http://faculty.washington.edu/swittet/Bali
Scott Wittet
NOTE: US currency printed prior to 2006 may not be accepted in Indonesia. The government changes this rule every few years, so check on the web ahead of time. Before leaving the US examine any cash you plan to use.
What do you want from Bali?
Beaches
Sanur, Seminyak, Jimbaran, Kuta
South, near the airport. These places are international party and vacation zones with beautiful beaches. Jimbaran is famous for fresh seafood. You’ll find great restaurants and any kind of fast food. Boutique stores. Lots of bars and clubs. Gay bars in Seminyak.
Amed
Northeast coast. Quiet, rural, beach accommodations. Great snorkeling off the beach. Great diving nearby. A few restaurants—try “The Grill.”
Many people also like Candidasa, south of Amed.
Pemuteran
Northwest coast. National Parks above and beneath the water. Tremendous snorkeling at Menjangan Island or off the beach. Quiet, rural area. Dry and weaker economy. Nice resorts, but not a lot of choice. Private villas for rent.
Lembongan Island
I haven’t been, but you might want to read up on it.
Hills + culture
Ubud and surrounding villages (Peliatan, Sayan, Mas, etc.)
Central hills. Hotel rooms with incredible views for $100, great views for $40 or less. Always lush foliage. Rice field and ridge trekking. Vibrant arts scene with impressive museums. Temple festivals and public cremation ceremonies. Authentic cultural performances every night. Great restaurants. No chain restaurants (except Starbucks) or billboards! Local boutiques and good shopping. Prices lower than Kuta?
Drive time from Airport to Ubud—45-60 min. (90 min. in traffic)
Ubud to Seminyak—45-60 min. Ubud to Amed---2.5 to 3 hrs. Ubud to Pemuteran—3.5 to 4 hours.
Ubud
Ubud Hotels
Sayan Terrace Resort
http://www.sayanterraceresort.com
mailto:[email protected]
Jl. Raya Sayan, Ubud, Bali
Tel: (62 361) 974 384, Fax: (62 361) 975 384
As usual, in Februrary 2012 we spent our first week in a very special place, Sayan Terrace Resort (just outside of Ubud). The views and energy are spectacular there. Room 110 has the best view, then 111. The owners are planning major renovation and expansion, so check on the status of construction when booking. See our 2004 notes below for more on the hotel.
The hotel only has a small pool, but if you want to swim laps, you can pay for a day pass for the big pool at Taman Bebek, right next door.
Sayan Terrace is a bit out of Ubud and requires transport. The hotel charges $4-5 per trip into town. Ubud is bikeable, though the roads can be hazardous. For a family, it might make sense to book a driver for a few hours, or to have him on call. Meet someone with a car you like (they are everywhere as you walk the streets), get a ride back to the hotel and make conversation, and get his business card with mobile number. He’d love to become your regular chauffeur.
Anhera Hotel
Jl. Raya Sanggingan, Ubud, Bali
Tel. +62-361-977-843 and 845
mailto:[email protected]
http://www.anherahotelbali.com
At the end of our 2012 visit we shifted from Sayan Terrace to Anhera for a change of scene, peeking over a different valley. The rooms are built into the hillside and all have beautiful views of the Campuhan Ridge. Anhera provides free transport around town—they will drop you at the restaurant, then pick you up when you call after dinner. (Many hotels have this service if they are a bit out of town.)
The restaurant at Anhera now features “Thai-style steamboat banquets,” which include many courses. General Manager Imam and Chef Jawini personally supervise each event. Consider booking your feast at the open air, rooftop bar.
Anhera is close to a very good and reasonably priced Indonesian restaurant called Pulau Kelapa (see below).
Next door to Anhera is Indus restaurant. It has great views during the day, but we find the food a bit mediocre (except for the desserts). Same owner as Casa Luna and Honeymoon Bakery.
Down the road is the award winning Mosaic (975-768-reservations recommended), run by Chef Chris Salans, who used to work at the French Laundry in Napa.
It’s only a short drive from Anhera to Café des Artistes (see below) and transport is free for Anhera guests.
You might also look at ARMA Resort (connected to the museum). It’s a beautiful and fascinating place to stay. See our 2004 notes below.
Cheaper sleep: a promising, $30-40 alternative right in the middle of Ubud (but hidden in a quiet oasis) is
Gayatri Bungalows 2
Monkey Forest St., Beji Lane
(it’s down the alley which lies across from the intersection with Jl. Dewi Sita, at the north end of the soccer field)
Tel. +62-361-979129
mailto:[email protected]
We haven’t stayed here, but a friend loved it. Ask for an upper level, rice field view room. They have both A/C and fan rooms.
In the rice fields: the village of Bangkiang Sidem is on the rice field walk and biking trail that begins at Ibah Hotel. The village sits on top of the ridge that you see from Anhera. It’s a quiet place with private bungalows and villas for rent, beginning at about $30 a night. Longer term rentals can be much cheaper—with some units available for only $350 per month.
Suchik House
+62 81 747 60 855 (from overseas)
mailto:[email protected]
http://www.sucikhouse.blogspot.com/
There actually are several small houses in this compound. “Del’s House” is the largest and nicest, with an incredible view down the valley.
Ajik’s Guest House
+62 85 237 259 105 (from overseas)
mailto:[email protected]
We haven’t stayed at either of the private bungalows on Ajik’s compound, but they looked comfortable, the owners are friendly, and the setting is very green and relaxing.
Ubud Restaurants
Café des Artistes
Jl. Bisma
Tel. 0361-972-706
mailto:[email protected]
http://www.cafedesartistesbali.com/
Café des Artistes is our favorite restaurant on the island. It offers great food and great value. Belgian owner Rudy Kerremans raises his own beef, and the aged tenderloins are fantastic. In fact, everything is good—continental or Indonesian. A steak with two sides and a drink is only about $15!
Café Wayan (Monkey Forest Road)
Tel. 975-447
At Café Wayan the waiters are super-friendly—one invited us to his temple festival the next evening, but we had spa appointments we couldn’t miss. During our last visit the grandmotherly owner remembered us from two years earlier, thanked us for being “return guests”, and sent over a free dessert! Alas, she has become a priestess since then, but her daughter presides over the garden dining room in her place.
Warung Pulau Kelapa
0361-8215502
http://pulaukelapa.webs.com/
Just up the road from Anhera a minute or two by foot, Pulau Kelapa (Coconut Island) serves excellent Indonesian food at good prices. The owner “collects” old houses from across Indonesia—you are dining in some of them. He displays more of his houses at his museum, the House of Masks and Puppets, just outside Ubud.
In 2009 we had a delicious, perfectly traditional American Thanksgiving feast at Tutmak Restaurant (on Jl. Dewi Sita, off Monkey Forest, near the football field).
Excellent drivers based in Ubud
One of our favorite drivers is Kadek Cenik. This personable young man speaks English well and is honest and reliable. He can make suggestions for itineraries all over the island.
Kadek Cenik
Mobile 081 747 60 855
mailto
[email protected] or mailto:[email protected]http://www.balisimpledriver.blogspot.com
Another regular driver, who always is accommodating and punctual, is
Gus Putu
Mobile 081 933 005 931
mailto:[email protected]
When not booked, Putu is based near the top of Monkey Forest Road (Zona X)—other drivers in that area can point him out. We were invited to his baby daughter’s “earth touching” ceremony in 2007—interesting and charming!
Ubud Spas
There are many, many spas in Ubud and most offer much better value than getting a spa treatment in your hotel. Typically a one hour massage with exfoliating scrub, yogurt wash and soak in a hot tub filled with tropical flowers costs $15 in a spa (could be $50 in your hotel). There are many different packages.
A favorite again in 2012 was Zen Spa, with its beautiful setting. Sang Spa (three locations) also is good and a bit less expensive. They provide free transport and offer discounts to customers who arrive before 2pm.
Amed 2012
We spent two nights on the beach in Amed at
Puri Wirata Dive Resort
mailto:[email protected]; mailto:[email protected]
http://www.puriwirata.com
Tel. (0363) 23 523
Rooms were very comfortable with AC, DVD players, and a large deck. The old rooms are a bit dark—we preferred to spend a bit more for the newer, brighter rooms. There are two pools, the restaurant was fine, and the dive shop excellent. Puri Wirata is convenient for divers but the resort is great also for non-diving companions. The hotel sits right on the (pebbly) beach, where there is fantastic snorkeling (and diving). We did a drift dive from down the coast to the house beach—very nice corals, tons of colorful fish, a huge moray, rays, etc. The divemaster said that if there had been current, we definitely would have seen more shark, barracuda and tuna. Next time!
The Grill
0818 0550 3193
mailto
[email protected]Our new favorite restaurant in Amed, The Grill, opened in October 2011. Australian hostess Susana has put lots of interesting dishes on the menu, from all over the world. She grills anything, and bakes a mean coconut lime pie. She will be happy to pick you up from your hotel (just call), and drop you back later on.
Sails Restaurant
0363-22006, mobile 0852 3710 2701
http://restaurantamedbali.com/food/
Sails is a cute, trendy restaurant that puts together some interesting dishes. Great view during the day, spectacular starry sky at night! They also will pick you up.
Other resources
Gay travel agent
Rio Maryono
Bali Gaya Tours
+62 81 2392 3814
mailto:[email protected]
http://www.baligay.net
Luxury private villa in Seminyak
Villa Vayu
mailto:[email protected]
http://http://www.villavayu.com/
If you would like to spend time in Seminyak, charming, totally private Villa Vayu is a great value. This beautiful garden villa with private pool sits in quiet lane minutes from “restaurant row,” and just a short hike to Petitenget Beach, near the Oberoi Hotel.
Our best hotels and restaurants of Bali 2004: Ubud, Sayan, and Amed
Here are some notes about some favorite places during our three-week visit to Bali in May 2004. We spent six nights in Ubud, four nights in Amed, another two nights in Ubud, then two nights in Sayan, just outside of Ubud. It was low season and tourism was still slow in the aftermath of the 2002 bombing. Of course Bali felt as safe, friendly and magical as ever.
General comments about travel in Bali:
You can sleep in Kuta, Sanur, Seminyak, etc. if you arrive in the evening. But on this, our third visit, we chose to skip that part of the island altogether. We arrived in Denpasar at about 7pm--and our hotel in Ubud sent a car to meet the flight. Then it was a 45 minute ride up north.
It’s easy to arrange day (or night) trips to the Kuta area from Ubud if you like.
If you want to drive yourself, rather than hiring a car and driver, you’ll need an international driver’s license, which is not hard to get.
We booked our first three nights in a place I’d read about in other people’s posts: Tegal Sari Resort. But our first morning we hired a driver to take us to look at 8 or 9 other places I’d read about. We wanted to see the rooms and the pools and find out what kinds of deals we could negotiate face to face. That worked out quite well. In one place, we eventually ended up getting an incredible room for US$75 per night (it listed for $175). I don’t know if that strategy would be as effective in high season (Dec.-Jan. and July-August), but it might work then as well.
I won’t quote the prices we negotiated for the hotels below since they would be misleading--the price you get depends on the situation at the time you’re negotiating. But be sure to bargain--it’s natural here.
There must be crime on Bali, but we’ve never seen evidence. Rome and Amsterdam are MUCH more dangerous in terms of pickpockets and robbers.
Ubud
Note on Tegal Sari: the hotel was very good value for the money (rooms ~ $20-40), but it wasn’t quite as spectacular as we have come to expect from Bali and it was a tad too close to road noise. However, we can see why people like it!
There are lots of places to stay in Ubud–you won’t have any trouble finding accommodations. Just ask your driver to help you check things out; or park your bags and walk for awhile.
Unfortunately our beloved Vila Bukit Ubud (see our 2000 and 1996 posts) is no more. The grounds were a busy construction site during our visit (the new resort is called Uma). Since we couldn’t stay at Vila Bukit, we were forced to find new homes. And that worked out well!
Hotels:
ARMA Resort.
http://http://www.armaresort.com/
mailto:[email protected]
PO Box 9696, Pengosekan, Ubud 80571, Bali.
Tel. (62-361) 976 659
ARMA stands for the Agung Rai Museum of Art--it’s one of the three main museums in Ubud and is located in the vicinity of the Monkey Forest (it’s close to Tegal Sari and adjacent to the village of Peliatan). But ARMA is much more than a museum--it’s a performance venue (Balinese dance and music), it’s a gallery space, it’s a foundation dedicated to preserving traditional Balinese culture (especially through training and promoting young artists), and it’s 15 bungalow-style rooms and 5 amazing villas. The resort grounds are Bali-gorgeous! We spent eight nights there and loved it. The deluxe room we had during our second sojourn was truly spectacular! I am a swimmer and always look for a decent lap pool--the one at ARMA was reasonable and usually empty. They offer free tea, coffee and traditional Balinese snacks by the pool in the afternoon. But the greatest thing about ARMA is the culture connection: every day after school, children come to ARMA to learn Balinese classical dance--it’s always free, and great fun, to watch! The most talented kids dance each Saturday night at the ARMA Open Stage, next to the Museum--don’t miss it. And the charming and informative Agung Rai himself-- owner of the resort and director of the museum and foundation--often hosts guests on short field trips to see “his” Bali or to receive a special blessing from the Peliatan high priest. He is an amazing man! ARMA offers a wide range of cultural classes, but the time with Agung Rai is gratis. ARMA also is very generous with it’s in-house transport service--they are willing to drop and pick you up anywhere in the Ubud area, free, up until 10pm. ARMA has air-conditioning, but no TV and no on-site web access. However, there are web cafes, a supermarket and ATMs on the road, outside the Café ARMA entrance. Finally, the staff are great--very, very helpful with all things--and ARMA was a wonderful place to stay!
Sayan Terrace
http://www.sayanterraceresort.com
mailto:[email protected]
Jl. Raya Sayan, Ubud, Bali
Tel: (62 361) 974 384, Fax: (62 361) 975 384
Having read “A House in Bali” by Colin McPhee several times, we wanted to hike on the Sayan ridge, northwest of Ubud. Following directions in our guidebook, we started out from the Sayan Terrace resort. When we returned after the hike, we looked at their rooms (and those incredible views of the Ayung River gorge!) and decided to spend our last two nights in Bali at Sayan Terrace. It is next to, and above, the Four Seasons, so you get the same view at 25% of the cost! The Sayan Terrace staff were great--they even carved us some Balinese sate sticks to cook with at home. Unfortunately, the Sayan Terrace pool is for splashing only, but it IS a cute little “infinity pool” and, again, offers those fantastic views. Shopping Op: there are some very tasteful art, jewelry and décor shops on the road, near the Sayan Terrace entrance. There are also two restaurants nearby: Gaya and Red Rice. We timed our move to Sayan to coincide with a once-in-25-year festival at the temple in the next town. It was the most amazing we’ve seen! The Sayan Terrace staff were kind enough to give us rides to the town on their motorcycles, then we easily found paid transport back a few hours later. It was a great experience! One caution: Sayan is several kilometers from Ubud and the Sayan Terrace isn’t set up for guest transport as well as ARMA. They got us where we needed to go, but be sure to ask if you need to pay for the ride (we didn’t, but at first all the rides were on our bill). In spite of those minor complaints, we certainly will stay at Sayan Terrace again. The memories of lying in bed, looking out the nearly-all-glass wall of the bedroom at the clouds and river gorge as they change color during sunrise are too sweet not to repeat. PS--if you’ve read “A House in Bali,” the Sayan house was adjacent to the current Sayan Terrace resort. And the owner’s mother used to cook for McPhee!
Restaurants:
Mozaic may be the best continental-style restaurant in Bali. Run by a Franco-American chef formerly with the French Laundry in Napa Valley, California, dining at Mozaic is a wonderful experience. One is steered by the staff towards the prix fixe dinners, but everything also is available a la carte. With wine, we spent about US$75 each. UPDATE 2012: Prices have increased at Mozaic and dinner will be more like US$150-200 with wine. The restaurant is near the Neka Museum and Indus Restaurant.
Three Monkeys is a pleasant bistro with good food on Monkey Forest Road. Sometimes dessert is free with dinner!
2012 UPDATE: A new Three Monkeys has opened in Sanur and Denise Abe, the owner, also has a new Italian restaurant in the heart of Ubud, Il Giardino.
Gaya is a pyramid in Sayan, five minutes walk from Sayan Terrace. It’s set in a rice field--the bottom floor is an art gallery. and on top is a charming restaurant and bar. Gaya specializes in Italian cuisine, but has Indonesian dishes as well.
Amed
Amed is a small fishing village whose name is commonly used to refer to a semi-developed coastal area north of Candidasa. There are many small hotels and restaurants scattered along this beach road. Some are right on the beach, others on bluffs above (with fantastic views). There are black sand beaches here, though they often are crowded with fishing boats.
Diving and snorkeling: There is a great WWII wreck to dive in Tulamben (north of Amed) and reefs and walls in Amed itself. We saw sharks, rays, turtles, and many other creatures. I dove with EuroDive. They were fine, but some of their equipment was old—once my depth gauge got stuck, another time the booties they gave me gathered more pebbles than they kept out. So next time I might try EcoDive instead. The “Japanese Wreck” is about 10 meters off a beach near the southern end of the Amed stretch (2012 UPDATE: currently home of Baliku Resort). Snorkelers also will enjoy this wreck and the coral and fish are nice all along this beach. Some people I spoke with were staying at the next bay south, at the Meditasi bungalows. They said the snorkeling was even better there, but I didn’t see it for myself.
Hotel:
Blue Moon Villa
Selang Beach, Amed – Karangasem, Bali
Tel: (62 812) 362 2597 (International), 0812 362 2597 (Local)
http://www.bluemoonvilla.com
mailto:[email protected]
Blue Moon Villa has wonderful staff, comfortable rooms, and beautiful views. The restaurant is nice too. Blue Moon is on the bluff, but the stairs to the beach are only a minute or two away. The Japanese wreck beach is a kilometer south--an easy walk.
Have a great time in Bali!
Scott Wittet
swittetATpathDOTorg
Our best of Bali 2000: Kuta – Amed - Pemuteran (north coast) - Ubud
Here are some notes about the favorite places of a 40-something couple during our three-week visit to Bali in March 2000. Because it was the rainy season and due to the previous political troubles in Timor, Lombok, and other parts of Indonesia, tourism was down. It was bad for the businesspeople but great for us since we could bargain for everything, especially hotel rooms and rental cars!
The exchange rate was about 7,330 rupees to US $1.
Kuta
Kuta is the very touristy area close to the airport. It has the best surfing beaches (and wave action) on Bali and also has beautiful, long white sand beaches. Body surfing was a blast! The biggest waves I’ve ever been abused by! You can find better exchange rates here. There is good shopping and this is the place to pick up beach clothes, sunscreen, etc. There are lots of bars and clubs. The problems with Kuta are overcrowding and obnoxious beach hustlers selling sarongs, watches, massage – you name it! This is also the place with the most cyber-cafes, though you’ll see plenty in Ubud and Lovina too. If you want to do parasailing, snorkeling, “big banana-ing”, or jetskiing, go to Nusa Dua (near Kuta). But the snorkeling is much better on the North coast, Amed, or Lembongan Island (near Nusa Penida).
Kuta is not our favorite part of Bali by a long shot, but there are some treasures…
Restaurants:
La Lucciola, tel. 261047. Continental and global cuisine. Beautiful open location on the beach, just north of the Bali Oberoi and Bali Pesona hotels. It’s on Jl. Oberoi Kayu Aya, next to a large temple. We watched boys practice gamelan in the temple courtyard after dinner.
Ketupat, tel. 754209. Indonesian cuisine. Interesting menu, nice location behind an antique store. Jl. Legian 109, just south of McDonald’s Legian.
Jimbaran Beach (a 20 min. ride from Kuta) is famous for seafood. Most folks go in the evening to watch the sunset; we went during the day to play in the water (it’s a nice beach with good waves for body surfing). The food was great and we could sit all day for the price of lunch and a few drinks.
Hotel:
Ida Beach Inn, tel. (0361) 751205. Quiet garden setting smack in the middle of Kuta. Pretty, though overshadowed by Matahari dept. store (at least it’s convenient!). AC rooms, small pool, nice outdoor baths attached to some rooms. We paid 200K net with breakfast. Fax (0361) 751934
Different:
Drag show at Hulu Café Shows at around 10:30 Wed., Fri., and Sunday. Near the Bali Padma Hotel off Jl. Legian.
Pemuteran
Pemuteran is a small village one hour west of Lovina, 1.5 hours west of Singaraja. The main reason to go there is to relax at a quiet beach resort with diving and snorkeling offshore. You are also just 17 km. From the national marine park (for the best snorkeling you’ve ever done)! It is very quiet in Pemuteran and there is nothing going on at night (not even videos), so bring some books!
The Pondok Sari Bungalows (Pemuteran/Pulaki, N. Bali. Tel./Fax (0362) 92337. We paid 210K net for three people with air con and breakfast. This was our second stay—we checked out the competition this time, but decided that Pondok Sari was the best value. The bungalows are in a pretty setting with nice snorkeling from the beach. They have those great “outdoor” private bathrooms that you will learn to love on Bali. You can rent snorkeling equipment at the hotel or from a dive shop a hundred yards east on the beach (about 30K/day for mask, snorkel, and flippers). Next door is the beautiful Taman Sari Resort, but it is a bit more expensive. However, we want variety in menus, so we stayed at Pondok Sari but sometimes ate at Taman Sari. The Pondok Sari food was much better than in ’96.
Fantastic snorkeling and diving: There is no need to book with a dive shop to go snorkeling at Pulao Menjangan (Deer Island). To get to the park entrance, catch a “bemo” (local mini-bus, costs 1K) outside of Pondok Sari. It will take you the 17 km. to Labuan Lalang, the entrance to the park (it is not on most maps – but is well before Cekik). Don’t worry, it’s a common destination. At the park you will have to pay for a boat and guide (about 217K whether you have one person or six, so try to arrange a group) and rent equipment if you need it. The guides are good and necessary. Our guide was Suparno (nickname No-No) and he was great. You can get box lunches, drinks, or snacks at the small restaurants in the park. The boat fee is for about 3 hours. You can add $$ to stay longer and visit more sites around the island. In 1996 we snorkeled at 5 sites in two days (it was well worth it); but it would have been cheaper to do it in one. Unfortunately, due to reef dynamiting, in 2000 there were only 3 snorkeling spots left. Go soon before they all disappear! One caution if using bemo: they can be harder to catch in the late afternoon, so it’s best to finish by 2 or 3 pm if possible.
Beware of Fire Coral (I still have scars!) and a kind of really obnoxious starfish that’s super poisonous and is destroying the reefs. The guide will tell you all about it (part of their job is to kill as many of these starfish as possible).
Ubud
Hotel
[UPDATE 2007—VILLA BUKIT NO LONGER EXISTS, IT HAS BEEN REPLACED BY OVERPRICED UMA RESORT]
…life at Villa Bukit: I am relaxing with a fresh fruit juice and book, on a private porch, gazing along a vast valley south, towards Sanur and the sea. Birds and frogs serenade me; butterflies, dragonflies, banana flowers dance in the breeze. Magic! A woman walks down the ridge in the middle of the valley, balancing a load on her head, holding her young son by the hand. The bored waiter in the restaurant begins to play a hypnotic bamboo gamelan to pass the time. Heaven!
Villa Bukit is a gorgeous place with charming service and reasonable prices. It is right next to the Museum Neka. We had a luxury double, normally US$90, but because there was only 25% occupancy at the time, we got a discount. We stayed here in ’96 too. The photos on their webpage don’t give a hint of how lovely it is there. Some amenities are a bit run down (like the pool furniture), but our room was clean and everything worked and in general a quiet, peaceful charm prevails. The waiters and waitresses were particularly friendly and helped us out with many things, like finding safety pins to help secure our sashes and drawing maps for fun rice paddy treks. The front desk staff are also very good and helpful. We were invited by staff to temple festivals several times. It is easy to get a car from the desk anytime, or catch a bemo into town during the day. Indus Restaurant is 10 minutes walk towards town – from there you get a different view of the same wonderful valley. Taxis from town at night back to Vila Bukit usually cost 10K. We spent 8 nights there and really got to feel at home. I would have loved to make it 18 nights…
There are lots of cheaper places to stay in Ubud – you won’t have any trouble finding accomodations. Just ask your driver to help you check things out; or park your bags and walk for awhile.
Things to do:
You can go to a cultural show every night of the week in Ubud and they are generally worth it. Tickets are about 20K. We saw a wonderful Kecak dance in a small town near Ubud. They performed in front of a marvelous split temple gate, lighting by oil lamp! It was great and the people were extremely gracious.
Ask a driver, waiter, bellboy, or friend if there are any upcoming temple festivals. The festivals are a mix of praying, eating, shopping, seeing and being seen, and gambling. Be sure to take a sarong and sash to wear inside the temple. It’s nice to get a headscarf too – you’ll feel well-dressed. Get a copy of “Have You Been In Bali?” if you can. It’s a local guide full of practical, interesting information on religion and culture (including how to tie a headscarf!)
The Museum Neka is a good art museum – visit it on one of your first days in town to get oriented to Balinese painting. It is next door to Villa Bukit. The Puri Lukisan museum downtown is also very good. The grounds are spectacular!
Since we hadn’t gotten quite enough snorkeling yet, we booked with Bali View Dive Center (Tel. 062 0361 753441) for a day trip to Lembongan Island (next to Nusa Penida, off of Sanur). For $40 each they picked us up at our hotel in Ubud at 7 am, took us in a speedboat to the island (about 45 minutes or an hour), let us snorkel in two different spots, gave a box lunch, and got us back home by 3 pm). Nice, professional bunch and one of the cheaper options for that trip. You can pick up their brochures at the reception area in Vila Bukit and probably at many other hotels as well.
Have a great time in Bali!
NOTES FROM DECEMBER 1996
I’ve organized this by geographical area on Bali. Hope it helps! It is by no means exhaustive, I’m just passing on things we did during our recent two weeks there.
Airport/Seminyak
Kuta has expanded north and now incorporates the villages of Legian and Seminyak, which are less crazy. We spent our first two nights at the Dhyana Pura Hotel, Jl. Seminyak, Kuta. Tel. 0361-730442, Fax 0361-730463. $50 inc. breakfast. (Note: Jl. means “jalan” or street). I highlighted it on the map. It was very comfortable with hot water, air con, cable TV, and pool. The beach outside is gorgeous with incredible sunsets. It was not too crowded when we were there and the vendors weren’t too bad. There is bungy jumping nearby! You can get a taxi from outside the airport easily and the prices are fixed (you buy a ticket at a window near the taxi stand).
North Coast
It takes several hours from Kuta to reach the north coast. You’ll go through the mountains, past Lake Bratan with a nice lakeside temple (your driver will probably want to stop there), then to the capitol of the north, Singaraja. You want to either head for the Lovina area or go straight to Pemuteran.
Lovina: This is an area where a bunch of small villages along the road/coast have developed for tourism and sort of melded together. It’s the most touristy part of the north, but it’s nothing compared to Kuta. There are many cheap and less cheap places to stay and many restaurants. The black sand beach is OK, but not that great. If you stay in Lovina, go on an early morning dolphin watch. It’s fun. You won’t have any trouble booking a boat since everybody will be offering. If you want to terminate the conversation quickly, tell them you’ve already seen the dolphins.
We stayed at the Aditya Bungalows (west end of Lovina; $46/night with air con, cable, and hot water) – but I wouldn’t particularly recommend it. I checked out another place that was much cheaper, more central, and seemed quite nice. We would have moved there if we hadn’t gone on to Pemuteran. It’s the Bayu Kartika Beach Bungalows, Lovina/Kalibukbuk, Phone (0362) 41055 or 41219. It was about $20/night with hot water, fan, no TV. Bungalows right on the beach. Very clean and nice setting.
Restaurant: Don’t miss Warung Made. It’s next to the Aditya (a 15 min. walk west from Baya Kartika. Lian Chinese Restaurant (across from Aditya) was also good.
Music/Entertainment: Every Saturday there is a gamelan and dance performance at the town stage in the center of Lovina. We missed the show, but happened to sit in on a gamelan practice which was very interesting and fun. Many restaurants have cultural shows, but the one we checked out was pretty amateurish and awful. Many places also show videos at night to attract customers.
Ubud
We spent a week in Ubud and still didn’t get to do everything. It’s wonderful!
The first hotel we stayed in was Melati Cottages, Penestanan, Ubud, 80571. Tel. 62-361-974650 Fax 62-361-975088. $25-35. Pool, very big rooms, fans, clean, views and breakfast is included. It is in a quieter area about 1 km. from downtown Ubud.
But we wanted air con, so we moved to a spectacular place called Villa Bukit Ubud (Sanggingan/Ubud, Phone 361-975371, Fax 975787), right next to the Museum Neka. You’ve seen our pix of the view from Villa Bukit. We were able to get a double for $50/night inc. tax and breakfast. Normally the rooms are $70 plus tax and breakfast, but we bargained.
Things to do: You can go to a cultural show every night of the week in Ubud and they are generally worth it. Be sure to catch the shadow puppets at Oka Kartini’s. One of our favorite shows was the “Ciwa Ratri” (Night of Shiva) performance at the Tirtasari Dance Stage (I think that was the place, anyway it’s on the next street east of Oka Kartini’s). Ask a driver or friend about temple festivals (be sure to take a sarong and sash to wear inside the temple).
The Museum Neka is a good art museum – visit it on one of your first days in town to get oriented to Balinese painting.
Rice Paddy/Ridge Walk: There is a nice 2-3 hour hike beginning either at what used to be Ubud Indah Garden Restaurant (now closed, hard to see sign) or, by the bridge in town, near the Campuhan temple. We bought our paintings from a shop along the walk.
A mountain stay: We drove through Munduk on the way back from the north coast but didn’t stay. Someone on the net highly recommended Puri Lumbung Cottages, Munduk. $50/night. Very pretty. NW of Bedugal, going towards Lovina.
Jun 19th, 2013, 07:18 PM
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[email protected]
Villas Amed (Bobby's Villas) [email protected]
Bali Jl. Raya Amed, Karangasem, 80361 Indonesia
in Amed Beach Jemeluk
I have a loft if you want to visit
https://sites.google.com/site/bobbysvillasbali/
http://www.travelpod.com/z/wiredbrain/2/1371222388
Immigration
http://www.travelpod.com/z/wiredbrain/1/1358462387
Bali to Singapore
Pictures of Amed
Open google search "images" put in Amed Bali go...
LONG TERM RENTAL AT $1000 USD OR LESS
You can be a long term resident then pay by the month - with a 50% discount from listed prices. Are you looking for a large room or Villa; do you desire a STAND ALONE bungalow with nice big balconies in a Superior or Deluxe AC Bungalow where you can boast of magnificent sea views, and a very good pool, big size-bed in a villa with 8 m high ceilings, Air Conditioning, hot & cold water shower, WiFi, minibar or fridge, very quiet and peaceful? Looking for a place to live or visit, that is cheap, safe and orderly, warm all year, you can't do better than Bali. And Amed is best place on the island- it is on a side road 10 Km from the highway. It is quiet from the motorcycles; it is a international center for divers, it has good karma. You can set up housekeeping, get service that cleans, cooks, drives, shops, etc at nominal cost.
Are you looking for a large room 30² meters with a nice big balcony, a Superior or Deluxe AC Bungalow is desirable. It has a magnificent sea view, at least one good size-bed, Air conditioning, hot & cold water shower, WiFi, minibar or fridge, very quiet and peaceful, with a wonderfully helpful and friendly staff; in Amed Bali for a little under $1,000 a month.
The girls cook and clean, the native guide shops and drives, you can set up a mini kitchen, or you can order from nearby restaurants, or go next door to the Cafe Amed restaurant for really good food, and there is a mini mart across the street. It is the good life on the cheap.
https://sites.google.com/site/bobbysvillasbali/
http://bobbysvillasbali.com/
Nice web site, these are my work on where Home: AWAY FROM HOME
Dr. Peter E. Pflaum, GlobalVillages
[email protected]
Villas Amed (Bobby's Villas) [email protected]
Bali Jl. Raya Amed, Karangasem, 80361 Indonesia
in Amed Beach Jemeluk
For more information please contact the
owner Bobby Artana
Telephone: +62(0)36323471
Villas Amed (Bobby's Villas) [email protected]
Bali Jl. Raya Amed, Karangasem, 80361 Indonesia
in Amed Beach Jemeluk
I have a loft if you want to visit
https://sites.google.com/site/bobbysvillasbali/
http://www.travelpod.com/z/wiredbrain/2/1371222388
Immigration
http://www.travelpod.com/z/wiredbrain/1/1358462387
Bali to Singapore
Pictures of Amed
Open google search "images" put in Amed Bali go...
LONG TERM RENTAL AT $1000 USD OR LESS
You can be a long term resident then pay by the month - with a 50% discount from listed prices. Are you looking for a large room or Villa; do you desire a STAND ALONE bungalow with nice big balconies in a Superior or Deluxe AC Bungalow where you can boast of magnificent sea views, and a very good pool, big size-bed in a villa with 8 m high ceilings, Air Conditioning, hot & cold water shower, WiFi, minibar or fridge, very quiet and peaceful? Looking for a place to live or visit, that is cheap, safe and orderly, warm all year, you can't do better than Bali. And Amed is best place on the island- it is on a side road 10 Km from the highway. It is quiet from the motorcycles; it is a international center for divers, it has good karma. You can set up housekeeping, get service that cleans, cooks, drives, shops, etc at nominal cost.
Are you looking for a large room 30² meters with a nice big balcony, a Superior or Deluxe AC Bungalow is desirable. It has a magnificent sea view, at least one good size-bed, Air conditioning, hot & cold water shower, WiFi, minibar or fridge, very quiet and peaceful, with a wonderfully helpful and friendly staff; in Amed Bali for a little under $1,000 a month.
The girls cook and clean, the native guide shops and drives, you can set up a mini kitchen, or you can order from nearby restaurants, or go next door to the Cafe Amed restaurant for really good food, and there is a mini mart across the street. It is the good life on the cheap.
https://sites.google.com/site/bobbysvillasbali/
http://bobbysvillasbali.com/
Nice web site, these are my work on where Home: AWAY FROM HOME
Dr. Peter E. Pflaum, GlobalVillages
[email protected]
Villas Amed (Bobby's Villas) [email protected]
Bali Jl. Raya Amed, Karangasem, 80361 Indonesia
in Amed Beach Jemeluk
For more information please contact the
owner Bobby Artana
Telephone: +62(0)36323471
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