CasaContenta

We've booked to stay at the Four Seasons Jimboran Bay and the Amandari in Ubud. If anyone has stayed at either of these two hotels and can give us some tips like a good room location, restaurants etc, we would appreciate it. Thanks a lot

jenskar

Casa -- looks like this got buried. We stayed at the 4Seasons in January. The villas are laid out in tiers moving up from the beach. Ask for something with an ocean view (they vary based on vegetation, how high the tier is on the hill from the one below it). Far to the right is the beach/bar restaurant, far to the left is the main restaurant -- you probably want to be somewhere in the middle.
There are local fish restaurants down the beach for dinner alternatives (I heard reports these were razed and rebuilt since I was there, so not sure where they are with this) but not too many other dining options unless you take a taxi or have a driver.
Seminyak is up the coast about a half hour and has some good dinner spots, also good shopping (although you'll be in Ubud which has plenty of shopping options). A cab to Seminyak and back is not expensive.
There are several special dinner "evenings" at the 4S -- Friday or Saturday is a beach bbq with a whole pig and seafood, bonfires, dancers, they also do a traditional Dutch dinner with a great many courses ande the most amazing tapioca soup for dessert, but prices are what you would expect from a resort like this.
We adored Bali -- if you want any other suggestions let me know. Our driver was Dean -- about $45 a day which allowed us to cover alot of ground, go to temples, the volcano, etc.

CasaContenta

Thank you so much, Jenskar!
You gave great info and I'm dying for more!!
Did you, by chance, get the room numbers we should ask for or at least in that middle area? We booked an oceanfront one-bedroom villa so hoping that is where we'll land.

How was the weather in January? That is when we are going!

Do you have Dean's contact information? I heard he was great and I'd like to reserve with him.

What kind of shopping is there? I heard also that in Kuta the venders are very pushy. So should we go to Seminyak for shopping? Also can you give me the names of some of your favorite restaurants anywhere you went?

Did you stay in Ubud? How long were you in Bali? Where do you live? We are in Calif. so we go on Japan Airlines to Tokyo and have about a 24 hour layover-have to spend the night there.

Did you take an elephant trek? or go white water rafting? What did you do mainly during the day? How is the beach? Is the water clean enough to swim in?

I would love to hear back from you. And again, thank you so much.
Dianne
Casa!

jenskar

Hi Dianne
I didn't get room numbers, sorry. I would write to the hotel and ask them about being in the middle, though ocean front on the left shouldn't be bad either. By next year, they may have all the renovations done on the far left side of the resort and that would definitely change things. Once you get past the official responses from the Canadian head office and get an email from Bali, they'll be very helpful.

January is supposed to be the rainy season but we had very little rain, in fact most days were sunny. Rain tends to come in short torrential bursts when it does, so it's not going to ruin your whole day.

Dean's contact email is [email protected]

I'm sure marmot will have some good ideas for shopping -- also BrigidE on tripadvisor lives in Bali and has great shopping information. We did not shop in Kuta, and only went to one shop in Seminyak though there seemed to be alot of nice shops there. We did almost all our shopping in/near Ubud. It really depends on what you want to buy. My web log has a blog on it with alot of the shopping I did -- I posted the link in my trip report. The concierge also has a good shopping list. Ubud's market has alot of inexpensive crafts, Monkey Forest Road in Ubud has tons of shops.

We stayed at the 4S in Ubud (my hsb works for them so we get employee days)or I might have tried Amandari -- I think marmot has a few others in Ubud she likes. We spent ten days in Bali and flew from NYC - so we went the other way around.

We didn't do elephants are whitewater rafting -- the rafting looked fun/tame along the Ayung River in Ubud. We took several day trips with Dean around the island -- did many of the main tourist stops like Uluwatu, Tanah Lot, up to the north shore (that's a bit less tourist trodden now) over one of the mountains where there is a nice lake temple. We also went east to a Bali Aga village, saw some of the archaelogical temples. Also up to the volcano which I would recommend as it's incredibly scenic. Went to Agung Rai museum in Ubud as they have a good collection of all styles of Balinese painting -- Nekka is supposed to be good too.

There are very interesting dances at the Ubud Palace at night -- also a tourist office right in town with trips to cremations, weddings, special ceremonies. It seems something is always happening ceremonially in Bali so you don't have to plan, you can really fall into what happens.

Jimbaran Bay is very calm -- water is not crystal clear as it's sandy a long way out. The surf north is rougher though. It was fine for a dunk.

Restaurant-wise we liked Ku de Tah alot. Liked the tasting menu at Ary's Warung in Ubud. Places like the Lotus Pond are pretty for the view while food is decent/nothing special and there are other really good restaurants we did not try. Had lunch one day at Amankila which was scrumptious so I'd think Amandari would have good food too. I'm sure other people will chime in with ideas here. Off any big hotel property food will be less expensive in a lot of small places. Do try the deep friend banana filled with hazelnut cream.

I'm sure you'll have a great time in Bali - how nice to have so much time to plan. The DK guides have great pictures and can help you figure out some day trips too. That's what I used to put together our plans before we left.

CasaContenta

Hi again,
I REALLY loved reading everything you wrote and it is sooo helpful. When you mentioned the DK guides, who are they? Part of Dean's group? And thank you for his info. About how far in advance should be book with him?

Who is Marmot?
I'll probably return for more info!
Many thanks again,
Dianne

Hanuman

I took my daughter and her teen friends water rafting in Ubud and it was fun, clean and well organise. The finishing point of the rafting trip was right next to the Aman and the starting point was near the Begawan Giri.

For French food in Ubud try the Moziac restaurant and for a taste of local food try Bebek Bengal(spl?) aka Dirty Duck restaurant.

jenskar

DK guides are books -- available through amazon. What I like is they give you little 3d blueprints of temple complexes, etc so you get a sense of the layout of places. Good photos, and decent recommendations.

I'd book Dean as far ahead as possible. He now has a team but if you want him allow plenty of time, as he has repeat customers who come back every year.

So glad I could help. Get's me through the grinding Noeaster clean up horror stories, wet basements, sump pumps. It's time to light some frangipani incense and chill out

Mozaic is highly rated (former French Laundry Chef) and gets very mixed reviews. For Bali, it's pricey, can be a bit attitudinal and it's not so much about "eating" as tasting foods. If you like to eat out that way at home, you might quite like it. I've also heard good things about CasCades which is also in Ubud at the Viceroy - French chef, supposed to be a lovely setting.

marmot is the knickname of a woman who posts here and who knows so much more about all things Balinese than I could ever hope to, and she has exquisite taste. Hoped she'd see the tread and chime in.

ferlui

Casa, we were in Bali last january and we also hired Dean. He is a great guy, good person, good english, he was perfect.
I would like to invite you to visit my page at virtualtourist and you wil see many tips about Bali including, restaurants , hotel, shoping, tours.
http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/ba5ec/66f/
Good luck and good travel !!!
Fernando - Brasil

StanKase

I really think the Four SeasonsiSayan in Ubad is much more enjoyable than Anam if you have ime to change having stayed at both. Jimboran Bay is well above average (we spent 4 nights there) but I think others are classier at the shore for the same price.

Becalm

Some recommendations for you:

For restaurants outside of the resorts in Jimbaran in scenic settings take a 20 min. cab ride to the Seminyak area. Reservations are recommended.

Kafe Warisan- French/Mediterranean cuisine with a view of rice fields.
The Breeze Restaurant- American and European with some Indonesian food. Romantic beachfront location.
La Lucciola- Italian food with a great beachfront setting and views (near Breeze).

Ubud:
Lamak Restaurant- International and Asian menus with fabulous food and funky atmosphere.
Indus- (best for lunch) Varied menu . Nice views of river valley make up for the somewhat small portions.
Warung Enak- Indonesian specialties with hip Indonesian decor (sister restaurant of Lamak).

For a Bali Restaurant guide: www.baliguide.com/restaurants_intro.html

Tour Guide & Driver: The most popular on this forum is Putu Arnawa, a friendly guy and a total pro who takes very good care of his customers. He also offers personalized hiking and photo taking tours. [email protected] www.balifriend.net

For a description and schedule of traditional dances in/around Ubud: www.baliforyou.com/bali/bali_dances.htm
The Kecak & Fire Dance at the ARMA Open Stage is particularly dramatic (held every full and new moon). The mosquitos are quite aggressive at all the evening dance performances so bring an effective repellent.

In addition to shopping in the Kuta/Seminyak area, there are nice shops also in Ubud and of course many more shops in the Crafts Villages outside of Ubud. If your looking for upscale jewelry with a Balinese flavor, make an appointment to visit John Hardy's beautiful complex outside Ubud www.johnhardy.com.

triciafromoz

For restaurants also try Gado Gado, and the Living Room in Seminyak. Seminyak is good for fabrics and furnishing but for leather jackets I found Kuta to be better. Ubud is best for silver but be careful in the market place.
I have been five times, before, during and after the bombings and the vendors in the markets are more pushy now but you need to understand why.

And yes, in Ubud you must try the Dirty Duck restaurant.