Just wanted to thank everyone for their insights to my previous postings. The suggestions have been immensely helpful!

Still planning our 2 week stay. We are an active couple and will be moving around a bit... looking forward to getting to know Bali. We will be using a driver in between our places of stay and look forward to the sights.

Any thoughts on the itinerary?

Seminyak: 3 nights at Raja Gardens (relax, tour South, etc.)

Pemuteran: 3 nights (hotel undecided)(Menjangan, Taman Nasional)

Munduk: 1 night at Puri Lumbung(treks,coffee plantations etc.)

Ubud: 3-4 nights (white water rafting, cooking class,...)

Gili Islands: 3 nights (hotel undecided); (we will fly to save time)

So what do you think?

For me, I'd eliminate at least one stop so you could stay longer at each place, especially Puri Lumbung. It takes a good bit of time to travel from place to place in Bali. Although the roads are much improved from when we first were there 11 years ago, they are still narrow and winding and require slower driving than you'd expect. There are also lots of places where you might want to stop along the way for sightseeing or photos. Expect a change of location to take at least half a day, often more.

If you want to get to know Bali, you need to not move around so much. There is much to see and experience, but you need to be in one place for long enough to have time for experiences to happen.

Our first trip to Bali, we had 2 1/2 weeks and went to 4 places. We saw a lot and experienced little. AT that time, we came away from Bali with the feeling that it was a nice enough island, but we wondered where all the culture was that we had heard about...all we had seen was shops, workshops for tourists to see, temples, beaches...we had "seen" but we hadn't done or experienced anything.

We finally made it back to Balli 2 years ago, and had a completely different experience. We spend 19 days, in 2 locations. 10 days were outside of Ubud, and we experienced much, and made Balinese friends who we are still in touch with. We not only saw dancing, we learned how to dance. We saw batik, and we made our own. We saw wood carving, and gave that a good go as well. Met painters, and studied painting alongside the village children who were learning. Our only disappointment was the cooking class at Casa Luna...not an experience, but a whirlwind market tour and a cooking demonstration with over 25 participants crowded into the area with only 2 cooking burners and a table for chopping...the food was also less than special, and both my husband and I were sick afterwards (our daughter, who otherwise ate what we did, was not sick).

The last week or so of our trip, we were in Lovina for a relaxing time, and we found that once again, we were back in the seeing but not experiencing mode....I think it really makes a huge difference where you stay and for how long you stay.

So, based on our experiences there, I would encourage you to think about what you want to get out of the trip. Do you want to see a lot, take a lot of photos, cover a lot of ground? Or do you want a more in depth experience, to learn a bit about the people and culture, to meet and talk with people and learn from them and experience things with them? Both types of experiences are very possible, but the second type you need to slow way down and choose carefully a place to stay that will get you started by arranging experiences for you that are not typical offerings like Casa Luna or rafting or Taro elephant park or shopping.

Kim has written you a thoughtful reply.

I would say that you are changing lodging locations way too much. In two weeks, I'd choose not more than 3 places. Many things in Bali are an easy drive away, no reason to uproot yourselves completely. I'd choose an inland place near Ubud, a beach location, and the third location would be the Gili Islands.

I'll take the dissenting opinion. I don't see any problem with hopping around from place to place if your intension is experience different parts of Bali. I do that sometimes when I want to get an overview -- kind of a reconnaissance trip for a more in depth visit next time.

I've never stayed at any of the places that you mention so I don't have any comment on them, but except for the Gilis, I think the locations are good.

I have to admit that I haven't been to the Gilis for several years. My experience there was so roundly negative that I'd caution you to probe carefully before commiting yourself to 3 nights. I would think that Lombok itself would be a better option if you want a nice beach.

take a look at quinci village in lombok...i think we will stay there based on kathie's suggestion and the web look of the place...

We just got back from 2 weeks in Bali and I think 3 locations is enough. We spent 4 days in Sanur, 8 in Ubud and the last 2 in Seminyak, staying in mid-price hotels. On 3 days (one ex Sanur, 2 ex Ubud) we used a guide service recommended by several people on this forum, "Drivers with Distinction", and we covered a lot of ground on those days.

We'd planned only 7 days in Ubud and the last 3 in Seminyak, but deferred our Ubud departure because of torrential rain. As it happened we decided that 2 days in Seminyak was adequate; short of engaging a driver to get us out of the area, there were two choices: veg out around the pool while waiting for Happy Hour, or take the shuttle into Legian, there to be fresh meat for an army of aggressive shopkeepers. In retrospect, getting a driver for half a day to check out a few places nearby might have been a good idea.

Of the (mid-priced) hotels we used, we were very happy with La Taverna in Sanur and the Ubud Village Hotel, and the Resor Seminyak was fine once I negotiated an upgrade. I'd booked by phone from Ubud and was offered a "special price" (US$85) for a cottage-style room in a garden setting, only to find that we'd been assigned to a pokey room in a subsidiary location over the road, so basic that we immediately christened it "Bill and Muriel's Highway Motel". A few words with their charming and efficient guest relations manager sorted that out, though, and for an extra $10 we got a nice room in the main complex.

I stress that we did not make it as far as Lovina on the north coast, nor did we essay a side trip to Lombok. Ubud we particularly enjoyed - the cultural centre of Bali with a nice vibe and with nary a McDonalds, KFC, Starbucks or even a gas station in sight.