Hi,
Looking for a really nice villa for a family vacation with a 2 year old next March. Is that a good time of the year? Need to fly direct from Singapore but am open to any ideas. Only place I can think of is Phuket. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

Bali is an easy flight from Singapore and would be a great place to spend two weeks - lots to see and do, not just beaches. You'll need to hire a driver such as Putu, often mentioned on this forum. Lots of villas available to rent on the island too...

I would also go to Bali. There you could get a villa with a cook. Happy Travels!

Here is a third vote for Bali!

You can stay at a hotel, or as others have said, rent a villa (often with a staff).

Much appreciated. Any ideas on a good villa to rent? How's the food in Bali? Reason I thought of Phuket is I've heard great things about the food there!

Bali has many great restaurant options all over the island and if you have staff at your villa you will be treated well.

For villas, try balidiscovery.com and balivillas.com.

I had really great food in Bali.

As for renting a villa, maybe you should contact Roe over at Escapes Unlimited Travel...down in Orange County (south of L.A.). My best friend has used them many times in the past 15 or so years. They are Bali specialists. She swears by them.

They're usually listed, monthly, in Frommer's Budget Travel magazine. I don't know how my best friend came across them as it was so long ago. But, I was reading recently, posters on other travel forums asking about Escapes Unlimited and they also got high praise from others. Once I did call the agency and asked Roe some questions about something or the other and she was very helpful. Then, I booked things on my own as I'm just used to doing. Happy Travels!