impacked

I get to spend 4 days on my own in Ubud (and have that all planned) before my hard working husband will join me. So, after he spends 2 days in Ubud we will have 11 full days for adventure together.
That's where the questions come in. I've been reading the reports on Yogy and it sounds Great.
Should we stay 2 or 3 days & do we stay in Yogy or Borobudur?
We would also like to take a boat trip to Lombok and spend a few days. So, that leaves me a few more days. What do you think??
Many thanks

MichaelBKK

How long to stay in Yogya, and where to stay, may depend a lot on what you're interested in. If you're only going to see Borobodur, and you can afford it, then by all means stay at the Amanjiwo at Borobodur.

If you're interested in seeing more, such as Prambanan, Candi Suku, the palaces of Solo and Yogya, or shopping for batiks, etc. then you might consider staying in Yogya. There's a hotel called Dusun Village, which I haven't had a chance to check out personally yet, but it sounds very nice.

As for what else, well, if it were me and I had the time and money, I'd set out from Yogya and make a leisurely overland trip back to Bali, stoping in Malang, visiting Mount Bromo and then down to the southeast coast of Java.

Or, I'd take a cruise around the Komodo islands. I've seen a couple of those on offer that look quite interesting.

marmot

impacted, For Central Java, I'd do both -- stay a couple of days at Borobudur and a couple of days in Yogya. There's plenty to do in both locations.

Lombok has some nice beaches. You can get there from Bali either by ferry or airplane. I personally like the ferry, but a lot of people really don't as it's slow and the water is choppy.

impacked

Thanks for your ideas. I checked out the Dusan and it looks great. If I spent few nights in Yogy and a few in Borobudur as well as Lombok would that be too much flying and moving???

Thanks

MichaelBKK

Whether or not it's too much moving around is really up to you. I personally don't have a problem moving every 3 or 4 days, but some do.

impacked

ok,
I think I'm getting it together. Except my math is REALLY BAD. As we have 9 nights together not 11 after Ubud.
So far.
He's been to Ubud so we will skip that and I'll do it on my own.
1 night in Sanur

2 nights in Yogy

1 night in Borobudur

2 nights in Lombok

3 more nights Any suggestions?


Where else would you recommend? We love the sea and beach but are not into diving or sunning, we like being active, wandering villages and local markets.
Thank you much

marmot

impacked, For "being active, wandering villages and local markets" I'd suggest that you spend more time in Bali than in Lombok. I'm not clear on your plans for Ubud. Have you been there before and that's why you'll skip it this time?

If not, then I'd suggest that you use the Ubud area -- though not necessarily the town itself -- as a base and make day trips to the various parts of Bali.

The Eastcoast of Bali is also culturally very interesting.

Yogya is a wonderful destination for art, culture and shopping, but be aware that it is a very crowded, developed city. The traffic and polution are bad and it's not a particularly inviting place for walking.

I'd plan at least two night at Borobudur. It's a beautiful and serene area.

You should also think about how you're getting from place to place and the time involved. From Denpasar to Yogya by airplane will take up a good half day. Same for Yogya to Lombok (Mataram).

impacked

Yes, we spent 4 days in Ubud several years ago. I thought it would be fun for me to spend a few days there on my own before I met up with my husand.
I was questioning whether of not Lombok was really for us.
I do realize that Yogya is hustle bustle but I figured it was like Bangkok is to Chaing Rai.
I wondered if you meant places like Tenganan, Tirtagangga when you suggested east coast? That's what I found when I did a search and that looks good.
I appreciate all your advice and now I'm going to ask more of you. What would you design for us?
I pick up my husband at the airport in the evening of the 4th and we depart Bali in the eve of the 13th.




I wondered if you meant

kaneda

I stayed in Yogyakarta for three days and got a coach trip to Borobodour.

A coach trip to Bali is scenic. I have been to Bali a number of times and find it a bit seedy and over commercialised. You get hassled on the beaches by people trying to sell you things you don't want and night is full of mosquitos. I have heard of pickpockets on the local transport. I did have a young woman pick my pocket in a shopping area while pretending to show me something and a little old lady short change me when I changed money.

I would spend most of my time in Java which is far better than Bali.

jenskar

Hi impacked. We were just in Bali in January. We did several day trips out of Ubud while we were there. Tenganan is the Bali Aga village and probably the main reason to go would be to buy double ikat weavings -- but they are not inexpensive. The east coast is really stunning -- we did not go up to the mother temple, which is one of the popular destinations. We did go up to the volcano to the north of Ubud and one of its temples and really enjoyed that.
If you were already in Ubud, no doubt you know about all the craft villages surrounding it. I ended up buying quite a few shadow puppets and traditional dance costumes in Sukawati.

I would love to hear about your trip to Yogy when you get back as I wish we'd had time for that.

marmot

impacted, there are many sites of interest in the Northeastern part of Bali and accomodations at a range price points along the coast.

The only reason I would go to Lombok would be for the beach, which is very nice. Otherwise I think you could do better in Java and Bali for culture and nature.

I haven't been to Chiang Mai for decades so I can't compare it to Yogya. All I can say is that Yogya has a lot to recommend itself in the way of culture, but it's a hot, congested, polluted place which somewhat limits wandering.

I'm a big fan of Seminyak beach in Bali. It's definitely not pristine, but it's lively and scenic with ample access to shops, restaurants, spas. Not to mention spectacular sunsets.

So if I had 9 days to fill I do: 2 East Bali, 2 Seminyak Beach, 1 Yogya, 2 Borobudur and one for transit. (This is assuming that your 4 days in Ubud will cover that area.)

Becalm

You've gotten good advice from Michael and Marmot who were also very helpful to us before our trip to Java and Bali last year. I'll provide a few comments from my perspective.

Yogya tends to be hot, dusty and very conjested with traffic and pollution as Marmot said and is not conducive to walking tours. My preference is to stay in a hotel just outside of the city and hire a taxi for a several hours to take you to Malioboro St for shopping and to see and the Palace. Other than shopping, a few sites in the city and the Prambanan temples east of Yogya, you'll find the Borobudur area north of Yogya more suited to exploring. If you've read Erica's and my trip reports, you know that there so much to do in the Borobudur area that two full days is the absolute minimum that should be spent there. Its a wonderous place and the people are just so peaceful and amazing. We were there for 3 days and did not want to leave. Depending on whether you stay at Amanjiwo, Manohara or a combination, I'd stay two to three nights here and a maximum of one in Yogya given your time frame. Consider spending an extra day in Java as Michael's suggestion of traveling east to Solo is a good one as this is a very scenic drive and would provide more insight into the Javaense culture which is as rich and enjoyable yet so distinct from Balinese culture.

impacked

Thanks so much for all your help and good suggestions! I am leaving for a visit to England tomorrow to visit family. I have copies of this posting, along with others as well as a guide book on Indonesia and plan to do some studying with my husband to the flights and down time.

I cannot wait for Bali and Java!
Thanks Again!

JohnFitz

impacked , last time I was there I made a point of getting our driver to take us to the Bali Aga Village of Tenganan . I had bought something made there 15 + years before but had never been there .Don't bother. We were underwhelmed , the place was singularly disappointing despite Lonely Planet raving about it .Spend your time in the hills and walking along the beaches .Plan allowing for how long it takes to move from place to place , hotel to hotel etc and thus have a " calmer " itinerary . I love Lombok and have been 3 times in 30 years and Bali about 15 times so feel amply qualified to to offer these views .I have only flown to Lombok as it takes a day by boat and the ferries are pretty basic.