My friend and I will be travelling to Bali from the US. We will only have about 3 full days on the island. We are thinking about staying at the Ritz Carlton because we feel it will afford us a more central location than some of the resorts in Ubud. We would like to arrange a driver for at least one of the full days we will be there. We need at least one day to relax as we will be getting off of a very long flight.

Does anyone have any recommendations for a full day's itinerary if we hire a driver. We don't want to run around like crazy, however we would still like to hit most of the highlights. We would like to make our way out to Tanah Lot for the sunset as that looks beautiful and would like to make it into Ubud to check out the artisans, etc. However, we are not familiar with traveling time between destinations. Is this too ambitious of an itinerary??

Any help would be appreciated! Thank you!!

curious, the Ritz is a lovely resort, but I wouldn't call its location "central" by any means. It's on a cliff at the end of a long drive and although the resort itself is self-contained with several restaurant options and plenty of activities, it's somewhat isolated from any sort of neighborhood.

Travel time to Tanah Lot would be about 1.0 to 1.5 hours. From Tanah Lot to the Ubud area 1.0 to 1.5 hours. From the Ritz to Ubud 1.5 to 2.0 hours. For a more central location I'd recommend Seminyak.

You'll get the same sunset at the Ritz so you could just stay put. If you want sunset plus temple consider Ulu Watu which is much closer.

Many people on this board have used drivers whom they recommend and your resort will also be able to provide this service. Most of the drivers function as guides as well. The key is to have a fairly clear idea -- leaving some room for serendipity, of course -- of what you what to see and do. If you don't want to be dragged from silver shop to silver shop, speak up! It's a good idea to sit down with the guide before you leave and map out a plan.

Focus on the handicrafts that you're interested in, maybe do a museum, see the terraced rice paddies. There are festivals and ceremonies every day in Bali at some location or other. The guides will know where to take you.

I'd recommend trying to see a dance performance. You can do this in the town of Ubud at Ubud Palace and combine it with an early or late dinner in town. Another idea is to start your tour day with a Barong performance in Batubuleng which is just outside of Ubud. They usually start at 9:30 a.m.

Thank you for your advice. I'm having a difficult time planning this trip because we are not entirely sure where we want to stay. Ubud looks beautiful, but we can't decide whether we want to be on the beach or not. If we are on the beach, we don't want to be in the thick of the tourist areas either. Do you think the Ritz is too inconvenient of a location if we decide to venture out at night for dinner? We don't want to be confined to a resort either - we want to experience what the island has to offer too.

The Ritz is a self contained resort on a cliff. It has spacious grounds and access to the beach by a steep stairway. To get anywhere, even to the seafood restaurants on Jimbaran Bay, you have to take a taxi.

None of this is necessarily negative, but if you're imagining strolling along the beach to dinner, shopping, spas or other resorts, the Ritz isn't the place to start.

I like Seminyak because of the accessibility to restaurants, shops, etc and the long beach for walking. I'd recommend the Sofitel or the Legian.(There are two resorts by that name so you have to make sure to get the one in Seminyak.) The Anatara has just opened.

Other posters like Sanur for the same reasons.

All of South Bali is in the thick of the tourist area. Tourism is the whole point of beach resorts. The good news is that the upscale resorts -- like the Legian -- have a good deal of property so you can get away from the hoi polloi on the beach. The gardens and pool are serene and quiet and you still get the sea view.

I like the beach in Bali, but if you want to experience the magical mystery side of Bali you should head to Ubud.

PS, There are Kecak dance performances at Ulu Watu temple on certain nights. Ask about it when you are there.

For a driver I'd recommend Dean and his co-drivers at "Drivers with Distinction", www.balisbestdriver.com,
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You'll find plenty of positive recommendatios here and on Trip Advisor.

If you don't have any fixed ideas about your day's outing, email Dean your story and he'll come up with something good. If you don't want to go to a silver shop, or any shop, just let him know. The Balinese are naturally considerate people and that will be the end of it.

With only 3 days I'd stay somewhere in Ubud. The beach places are not all that special, the beaches are pretty crappy (at least to an Australian) and I'm assuming you don't want to get stuck in a soulless, you-could be-anywhere resort with a bunch of Americans and Australians, or, worse, French and Dutch yuppies.

Unless you do want to spend your time in a resort remote from Balinese life, forget Seminyak. The only escape is your hotel's shuttle into Legian, where you'll be hassled to within an inch of your life as you walk down the main drag. Further on is Kuta, which almost certainly is even worse.

As far as Ubud accommodation is concerned - if you're a 5-star sort of person I can't help you. To me, the name Ritz Carlton sounds ominous. You can get nice accommodation right in town, but without knowing whether that's what you want there's no point discussing options.

Whatever you do, go to the magical Kecak (pronounced 'ketchak') Dance at the temple in Jungunan village, just outside Ubud. You can book at the tourist office in Jalan Raya Ubud, just around the corner from the top of Jalan Monkey Forest. The bus leaves at 18:30 and it will cost you Rp50,000 pp.

You can probably arrange for Dean's driver to pick you up at Denpasar airport and drive you to Ubud - from memory about 1.5 hours and Rp. 150,000 is the going rate. Otherwise I'm sure your hotel can organise a pickup.

Thank you very much for all of this info.

The Ulu Watu temple looks beautiful

What are your feelings about the temple at Tanah Lot? and seeing Mount Batar and Batar Lake? These sights seem like farther drives and not sure if they are worth it with our limited time.

If you stay in Ubud, you can easily visit sites in the South, North and Central Bali with ease and that is what I recommend. Although the surfing is world class, the beaches, water and swimming in Bali are not. If you want a beach vacation stick to the Caribbean.

Escape the tourist areas found in the South and soak up the remarkable Balinese culture and picturesque views in Central Bali. Those are the real attractions.

A suggested itinerary would depend on your interests. With a day and half with a guide (Putu Arnawa is my recommendation) you can take in a surprising amount. Be sure to tell him you want to visit village ceremonies and festivals and Putu will find some for you. Take a look at his website www.balifriend.net for his tour blog and photos of various locations for ideas.

As mentioned Tanah Lot is located a bit out of the way. Tanah Lot's setting on a small rock island is spectacular and is the real attraction. You can walk across the flats at low tide but tourists are not allowed inside. Given its location, unless you'll be in the area I'd be satisfied visiting Ulu Watu which I consider more spectacular a setting and is not far from the airport. Putu took us directly to Ulu Watu after picking us up at the airport on our arrival.

Whether to visit Batur or not depends on where that is on your list of priorities. If you plan to hike to the top for sunrise you need to start your trek around 4AM. http://tinyurl.com/34z89h This is a day trip from Ubud and there are other sites along the way.

I adored our driver Wayan Sueta at [email protected] orSueta @dps.global extreme.net. He found was a small temple celebration in a village near Ubud. We asked to be taken to the best bead shop, the top silver shop and he knew them all and the quality was outstanding.
I like the Legian personally, better than Sanur. I very much liked staying at Sayan village a few minutes outside of Ubud.

I second the recommendation of Putu. We have used him on two trips and he can tailor your day to whatever you like most. His particular interests are temple ceremonies and photography, but he'll take you hiking or shopping or general sightseeing if you'd prefer. Bali has so many picturesque sights that you won't be disappointed. I'd email Putu or any of the recommended drivers and get their suggestions for a day's worth of touring based on what events like temple anniversaries or cremations are happening while you'll be in Bali.

What are your feelings about the Monkey Forest? Worth the trip? On average how long would it take to tour the forest? All day or an hour or two?

I wouldn't bother. The temple is unimpressive and unless you're amused by monkeys who are often aggressive, spend your time elsewhere.

I second Becalm. Stay away from monkeys in Bali. They are territorial and aggressive and often diseased. The troupes that live in the Monkey Forest are conditioned to expect handouts from tourists and can be very nasty if they don't get immediate gratification.

There are monkeys all over Bali. If you stay along one of the river valleys in the Ubud area you will often see family groups making the rounds. That's one of the reasons that I like the Alila. Almost every morning the resident troupe troops by. They are highly photogenic and entertaining, but best observed from afar.

I third the reccomondation for Puta. We stayed at a spa in Kuta. We hired Puta for 2 days-he took us all over. My girlfriend & I wanted a shopping day without husbands and Puta was booked but he arranged for his brother to take us. Three days is kind of short-I thought a week wasn't enough. It is a beautiful Island and the people are incredably friendly. Enjoy-Sigh
Chris