Calling Bali lovers please!
 

We've finally booked our trip to Bali, via Hong Kong for 3 days, for end of April '09 after many years of wanting to go but afraid of terrorist attacks...sad huh? Sadder to tell you that I'm getting a little bit worried whether or not it's safe to go, due to the recent execution of the three terrorists. I keep creating the scenario in my mind, similar to what happened in Mumbai, of fanatic and crazy terrorists rounding up any tourist with an American passport.

My 2nd concern is, would you think 2 1/2 weeks on Bali is too long? Should we do a sidetrip somewhere?

Thank you so much for your help!

Only you can determine what you are comfortable with. The whole point of terrorism is instilling fear with the element of surprise.

Personally, I'd have no hesitation to return to Bali.

Two and a half weeks on Bali isn't necessarily too long. You will want to stay in two different areas of Bali, likely somewhere near Ubud for part of the time and somewhere on a beach for part of the time. But if you'd like a side trip, consider a few days in central Java to visit Borobudor and Prambanam.

My only regret after spending 10 days in Bali is that we didn't have an extra 4 or so to go to Borobudor -- which you can schedule from Bali once you're there.

We had 5 days beach, 5 days Ubud with 4 of those travelling around/booked driver days to see other areas/countryside -- I could see spending more time on the east coast than we did and/or more time on the north -- both areas are less touristed if that appeals to you.

We were in Bali in early 06 when there were very few Americans coming back yet and it was quite quiet (rather liked it that way!) the security around the hotels was very specific (searching all cars in/out of the major complexes). I think it's normal to have second thoughts but I know I would go.

Bali is really special -- if you've been wanting to go for years, do. The extra time will allow you to slow down and let the culture seep in.

Hi
We were in Bali the week before the executions. Security was extremely tight at the airport and around the big hotels. We were very nervious about going but decided that we were comfortable with the risk. We tried to minimize the risk by staying in a villa rather than a big hotel. We were booked in big hotel but found a villa through a friend at the last minute.We stayed out of nightclubs and super touristy places. This was easy for us as they are not really what interests us.

With that much time, I would consider a second destination in Indonesia. I was in Bali & Central Java. I would've liked to see more of Central & Eastern Java, but Bali is magical. I would also go back there without hesitating.

If you're concerned about possible attacks, I would suggest avoiding the Kuta nightclubs, which are frequented mainly by western tourists, and the American chain restaurants.

we took a side trip from bali last may....we went over to lombok for a few days....its a quick flight and the small island is quite different from bali....we stayed at qunci villas which i hightly suggest you look at....kathie had mentioned them here several years ago...we loved our stay there...
ask to be as near to the water/pool as possible...its a small place and totally charming with a good restaurant...

forget even thinking about the potential terrorist threat....TN has just as much chance of a problem as does bali...

I find Bali to be magical as well, and many people have the same feeling. You have not indicated whether you intend to stay in one location or spend time in various locations; if the latter then 2.5 weeks may be just right. You also have not indicated your interests, if they include museums and big nightlife, then you may want to include larger cities elsewhere. While you will certainly find excellent shopping for art and local handicrafts, there are few high-end shops (except in larger hotels and then no brands really other than Bvlgari jewelry at the Bvlgari), and no outlets. So if your idea of a great holiday is access to the high street lined with designed shops, then you may want to include other places (I see Hong Kong is on your list; but <i>please</i> spend your time doing other things here than buying real or fake Prada bags!!)

So, think about your interests and whether you want a variety of geography, which means you would want to move around Bali a bit. You can go to the black sand beaches in the northeast, the interior rice paddies and volcano area, and/or the relatively unnourished north and west coast. If you want diving and snorkeling, I would stick to the northeast coast as well, or consider doing a live aboard for an overnight or more.

All that being said, 2.5 weeks on one rather small island could be a long time, and you can easily get to places mentioned above like Lombok to the east or Yogyakarta to the west (this is were Borobudur and Prambanan located, and Yogya is an ancient Javanese capital and is a centre for dance and shadow puppetry). Both are good add-ons and quite interesting. It is really a matter of how much you want to move around and what your interests are.

It is also quite possible to add a place like Singapore, which has good connections from Hong Kong and Bali and makes a good stop for 2-3 days. If you include Singapore, you may be able to route your flight home out of Singapore, thereby saving some backtracking to Hong Kong (where I assume your flight home is out of).

I think you have been to Bangkok, but I never get tired of it and see no reason not to go again, it’s and easy flight from Hong Kong, and there are a few non-stops to Bali (connections will take a long time, but if you can get to a non-stop to Jogya, that may be a good option. The Songkran holiday is April 13-15 next year, and is a fun time to be in Thailand if your travel dates coincide with that.

As for your safety, I think rhkkmk said it perfectly above. Certainly the students at Virginia Tech would have told you on April 15, 2007 that their campus was a “safe” place. I plan on going to Bali for Chinese New Year next month. But it is a very personal decision that you must be comfortable with. If you have not done so, please take a moment to read the US State Department briefs at http://travel.state.gov/ for Indonesia. Also read the briefs put out by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the UK or Australia which may have different information, see http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/ and http://www.smartraveller.gov.au/. Please note that the US State Department warnings and those of other governments generally take a VERY CONSERVATIVE approach. They have to. Pleas also read some of the briefs for countries you have been to or know well, and see how they stack up to conditions as you know them to be on the ground; this may or may not give you comfort. I do not believe, however, that the US State Department posted <i>any</i> warnings about an expected attack by sea on hotels in Mumbai, which they allegedly knew about and which intelligence they allegedly shared with Indian security officials about 3 weeks before the attacks actually occurred, so one has to wonder how helpful their published warnings actually are to the average traveler.

I would just like to take a moment to say that I think it is very important to take a rational view of what happened in Mumbai, as it does not actually appear to have been -- despite what seems to be the way the US media has chosen to portray the events -- a case of “fanatic and crazy terrorists rounding up any tourist with an American passport”. That is just the kind of sensationalist headline that sells newspapers and gets hits on websites, but it does not appear to be accurate. If the aim was to kill Americans, then in this at least, the terrorists failed spectacularly. Of almost 200 people who died, 6 were Americans. One was the rabbi in the Jewish centre, but I don’t think anyone would rationally argue that it was his <i>nationality</i> that was the reason he was targeted. It was his religion. His wife’s nationality did not seem to have saved her. The unfortunate father and daughter who were killed in the Oberoi were eating a meal, they were not identified as American and rounded up by the gunmen; the gunmen were randomly shooting into that restaurant and did not stop to make any demands at all from reports I read. At least one of the other 3 remaining Americans who were killed (the man from Chicago) was an Indian who moved to the US in his teens, and there is again no evidence that he was “targeted”. The only “evidence” is a report from one UK citizen that some of the gunmen at the Oberoi made a statement that Americans and UK citizens should identify themselves. First of all, for an extremely well-coordinated attack that involved months of ground work, that shows a stunning lack of planning and a reliance on sheer blind luck to reach the goal of the attack– hoping that random American tourists would be in hotel lobbies and restaurants and also <i>would elect to identify themselves</i>. I also assume that this request was made in English as it was not reported that the witness spoke any other languages. I have not heard or read reports of what demands the gunmen made in <i>other</i> languages (Hindi, Marathi and Guajarati being just 3 of the many languages spoken in Mumbai) so there seems to be no information as to whether similar request were made of Indians or other nationals. I think the request was the random, last-minute idea of one or two of the gunmen, in an otherwise meticulously planned and executed operation. This seems to be evidenced by the fact that this “rounding up” never seems to have materialized, as the groups of people actually held hostage in the hotels were of <i>all</i> nationalities, and included many Indians. Finally, if the terrorists’ aim was to “target Americans”, it is inexplicable to me why they choose to attack two iconic <i>Indian</i> hotels. These hotels are known throughout the subcontinent; they are the Plaza Hotels of India, if you will, but my guess is that they are unknown to the vast majority of Americans. And they are certainly not American-owned or operated, everyone in India knows that. However, there is a great big Marriott hotel sitting right on the beach in Mumbai which could be easily approached by pontoon boats from the sea. And there is an Intercontinental hotel not half a mile down Marine Drive from the Oberoi, also facing the seafront. Why weren’t those chosen if the idea was to target Americans? As demonstrated by the recent bombing of the Marriott in Islamabad, the terrorists chose that hotel in order to “attack American interests”. Why use different targets in Mumbai? (The local public hospital is also an inexplicable target to me, there would be virtually NO chance of finding Americans there. And none were as far as I know. And the gunmen would almost certainly have known that no Americans would be found there.)

I apologize for the foregoing digression from the OP’s topic, but I keep seeing references to “Americans being targeted” in Mumbai and IMO there are just no facts to support it.

Do not misunderstand me, I believe that there will continue to be terrorist attacks. I just don’t think anyone can predict where they will occur. And I don’t think that they are necessarily aimed at Americans: the overwhelming majority of casualties in the 2002 Bali bombings were Australians, and their government has been very vocal with regard to the trial of the bombers. I actually believe that Mumbai may have been a red herring and the next big one is actually still to come. But to live one’s life in fear of the next one, well, to me that is not to live a life.

paige, I'm an American who has lived in Indonesia for many years. I travel to Bali as often as possible.

Indonesia -- Bali included -- has experienced some terrible terrorist attacks. Touch wood, things have been fairly calm in the past two years and, most importantly, the Indonesian government has demonstrated a serious intent in arresting and prosecuting terrorists. This is the reason that the American government lifted their travel warnings for Indonesia.

Extremist Islamic groups with the violent tendencies do still exist in Indonesia. This is a miniscule percentage of the population, but obviously they can cause a lot of heartache. They are not supported by the general population.

For the most part the execution of the Bali bombers was a non-event. Most Indonesians were glad that the whole event was finally brought to closure. By far the vast majority of Indonesians LIKE Americans -- even moreso now that we've elected almost native-son &quot;Barry&quot; Obama!

Would I ever say that the chance of a terrorist attack taking place here again is zero? No, of course not. I would say, however, that the chance of your being inconvenienced -- or heaven forbid injured -- in a terrorist attack is minute.

Bali is not very big, but the different locations feel very distinct. You could hop over to another island for 4 or 5 days. If not, you should spend yime in three different Bali sites. Ubud, a southern beach (defintely not Nusa Dua. This beach is completely sterile.) and either North Bali or east Bali.

Thank you everyone for taking your time to provide your input! I feel very touched that you took the time to explain and reassure. All your thoughts and opinions are correct, that a terrorist attack, or killing of innocent people can happen anywhere in the world, that we can't live life in fear because we won't enjoy life at all that way, and someone had told me &quot;When it's our time, it's our time, there's no way to avoid it.&quot; Though I still have a little bit of anxiety, I will remember everything that was said on this forum and will go on my Bali vacation and enjoy it and not think any bad thoughs! :)

We will be in HK for 3 days, and I do have a long list of places to see, thanks to this wonderful forum and Frommers' forum. Things we enjoy on travel: cultural activies, outdoor activities e.g. river-rafting or light hiking, renting bicycles whereever we can to explore on our own, read since our vacation is the only time we get to do any reading, lots of sight-seeing, and just relax. I do like to do some shopping, usually for local crafts and products.

We'll book a guide/driver in Bali for possibly half of the time(is this a good idea?), and rest of the time on our own. I've read that Sanur and Ubud are the perfect places to ride bicycles. I deal with the 405 freeway every day due to my job so when we go on vacation, we just love the leisurely pace of the bicycles :).

For Bali, since we created our trip itinerary based on the availability of the ever-popular Tegal Sari in Ubud, there are 9 days right after HK that I don't know what to do with right now! We'll have a total of 17 days in Bali. We're using Escapes Unlimited, our flights and 2 hotels are already booked. The hotels are small enough, though popular, to not be with the tourist crowd so much. This is our current itinerary.

HK - 3 nights
9 days -- where to stay?
Tegal Sari/Ubud - 5 nights
Griya Santrian - 3 nights
Fly home

I was thinking of staying in Sanur right after HK for a few days, since currently we'll only have 3 nights there at the end of the trip, then another destination before Ubud. What do you think? Any suggestions for great little boutique hotels are much appreciated.

Thank you everyone for being so helpful, and kind.

my comment about the bike riding is this: roads are narrow and bali drivers are not the best...i would not do it...you chances of a problem on a bike are far worse than any terriorist...

There is a very nice little Island just off the coast of Bali called Nusa Labongan.. Very quiet, safe and cheap. There are a 6 or so small guesthouse style resorts on the main beach. I paid 7 USD per night , with a nice balcony overlooking the ocean. It was called Lucky 7

Treasure your momenents at Tegal Sari. Looking out at those rice paddies at sunset with someone you love is the essence of life!

Hi,
Don't miss few days at the Gili island. I love Trawangan.
Bali is a very very safe place.
Have a nice trip
Enrico