rkov

I'm planning my honeymoon trip to Bali for the end of this year, looking to spend five days on a beach and five days in ubud. Right now I'm looking at the Royal Pita Maha in Ubud, and the Jimbaran Puri Bali for a beach location. Does anyone have any opinions about these villas/resorts? I'm looking to make this trip as special as possible.

Also, does anyone know much about the Bali beaches? Is Jimbaran a good beach? I read one listing that in the rainy season at the end of the year some of the beaches on the west side of Bali get trash washed up on them from Java. Anyone know if this is true?

rhkkmk

if you are staying at a nice place in bali, they will keep the beach nice and clean....

dec/jan are not prime times in bali----jun-aug are their prime times....but i expect you know that...

Kathie

I've been to Bali several times during Nov - Dec and enjoyed it a lot. The rain isn't constant, just cloudbursts every late afternoon or evening. I've not seen trash washed up on the beaches. As Bob says, the hotels groom the beaches in front of the property.

Just a note - the beaches in Bali are not spectacular. Nice, but not great. Lombok, just next door, actually has nicer beaches. But one doesn't go to Bali primarily for the beach. It's a magical destination.

marmot

December is the rainy season in Bali so if you're expecting 12 hours of sunshine you may be disappointed. Usually it rains for a few hours a day, but especially in December -- February storms can blow in that can mean a one or two grey days. When this happens the beaches get trashed. The individual resorts do try to keep their beach fronts tidy, but the public areas, which often abut the resorts, can be unpleasant.

I've not been to Jimbaran Puri so can't comment, but the website looks nice. I'd clarify with them how close the room they are offering actually is to the beach. (Not that it really matters as sometimes a garden settng is more serene.)

Jimbaran is a nice calm swimming beach with lovely sunsets, but some areas have been eroded recently. There aren't too many options in Jimbaran for restaurants and shops, aside from the very popular beach barbeques. For that reason, I like the Seminyak area better as you have a lot of choices for restaurants, shops, spas and, if it matters to you, nightlife.

I've stayed at the Four Seasons in Jimbaran several times and I'd have to say I liked the resort more than the area. I didn't like the airport view and I didn't like the wild dogs on the beach. The airport's still there, of course, but maybe the dogs have been relocated.

Mid-December to early January is peak season in Bali because of the holidays. Many resorts will set premiums on rates during that period. Also, many have mandatory New Year's Eve events.

rkov

Is it easy to stay in Jimbaran and go out to restaurants at night in Seminyak? We could stay a couple nights in Jimbaran and then move to Seminyak for a couple more nights, or we could just stay in Jimbaran the whole time and take taxis. I've never been to Bali, so I don't know which plan makes more sense, anyone have an opinion?

Kathie

I wouldn't divide my beach time, you are already changing hotels in Bali. Jimbaran and Seminyak are fairly close together.

marmot

Jimbaran to Seminyak is 45 minutes. Plenty of people "commute" but to me it seems like a lot of taxi-time.

Kathie

Really? It's that far? In my memory it was 20 minutes or so. I know your time estimate is more accurate than mine, marmot.

MichaelBKK

Depending on the time of day, I'd say marmot was being optimistic. I've been stuck in traffic for an hour or more from meetings in south Kuta to my hotel in Seminyak; and Jimbaran is at least another 15 minutes from south Kuta.

JohnFitz

I think the beach choice depends on what you may want to do during the day and in the evening . It is a commute to go to where smart shops / restaurants / good eating is but if that is not part of your plans then Jimbaran is nice .Waterfront / tables on the sand seafood market eateries are at Jimbaran .

If you want to eat out daily rather than at the hotel then I prefer palces like The Legian Suites at Seminyak to stay as it is an easy and pleasant walk on the beach to some like Ku de Ta or La Lucciola or a short taxi trip to them .

marmot

Traffic can be unpredictable in Bali. 45 minutes can easily morph into 90.

Just to clarify, I don't mean to imply that there are NO restaurants in the Jimbaran area. All of the resorts have one or more options and there are the beach barbeques as noted. I just noticed that Pepe Nero one of my favorite Jakarta restaurants now has a branch in Jimbaran so things may be developing faster than I'm aware.

rkov

Thanks to everyone for their advise. Concerning the Ubud area, I had a reservation at the Royal Pita Maha, but heard their service level was not the best, so I kept looking and found the Komaneka at Bisma, which has just been built. Anyone know about this place? Am I crazy to consider Komaneka at Bisma over RPM?

MichaelBKK

I haven't stated at the Bisma, but have stayed at the other 'remote' Komaneka and it was probably the best hotel stay I've had in many years. Others have raved about the Komaneka in town, so I expect the new one is up to the same standard.