christym907

thanks everyone ! Since we decided not to go north on Sulawesi (this trip!!) I was looking for snorkeling/beach places and Pemuteran looked the best considering other things we want to do. yes- we are flying into the airport at Denpasar and just staying two nights to get into the time zone. I think we'll just go on a day trip to Ubud, if we are awake enough, before going to Pemuteran. I already booked a place there. and I think staying in the country outside Yogy is better than city. I looked at the Phoenix and while that is exactly the kind of hotel we love, they want $30/night for a rollaway. My travel thought process is that no plan is perfect when you have a time limit. I'm always in the position of having to choose between good places to go----but having good choices is awesome. We live in Alaska and I often have similar reactions to people's travel plans--- why are you going to do that?!! lol. Just being in a new place is such a privilege and then we are inspired to go back to see some of what we missed. Thanks SO SO much for your insights. I'll let you know how it goes!

kja

I can understand your logic. Still, FWIW, Ubud is only about an hour away and would seem to me a delightful place to adjust to the time zone. Just a thought!

marmot

Please note that although the airport is called Bali Denpasar it is not actually IN the town of Denpasar. The airport is in Jimbaran which is one of the southern beaches about 45 to 60 minutes from the town of Denpasar. Any place in Bali -- Ubud or any of the southern beaches like Sanur, Nusa Dua, Seminyak, Petitenget, Canggu, Jimbaran -- would be a better choice than the town of Denpasar.

crellston

Entirely, your choice of course but our experience of Denpasar wasn’t great. We only stayed one night in Denpasar and then only because we were travelling down from the north of the island after arriving on the ferry from Java and it was along old bus ride. The town itself has nothing of interest and I though it pretty dire. I wouldn’t want to walk far on the streets at night in search of restaurants. I really wished we had pressed on to Ubud even though it meant a change of bus or a taxi from Denpasar.

if you are going to Permuteran just for the snorkelling, 8 would do a bit of research. We did some diving there which was nice enough but not good enough to warrant a long trip there. There are some decent sites around Menajaghan island and there is an artificial reef off of Permuteran but if they are shallow enough for snorkelling, I am not sure. Do make sure you choose a reputable operator. We went with one who left us floating in the ocean for ages whilst he went off fishing and forgot about us! We were even less impressed when the boats engine packed up on the way back. When we jumped out of the boat into a pool of diesel, we realised why - the fuel line had split. We spent the rest of the afternoon trying to shower off teh fuel!

On the upside, we did stay at a wonderful bungalow hotel, the Taman Sari. Not sure what else there is to do in the interior around there but that is an option worth exploring.

Sorry if this sounds unduly negative, but there are many palces I have come away from thinking "I wish I had known that"

christym907

We aren't staying IN Denpasar, but near the beach in one of the places you mentioned. I think we will take a day trip to Ubud, so thanks for that suggestion. We're all in for Pemuteran and it was a concession to go there since we weren't going north on Sulawesi. I had read about the island off the coast there. We have already made hotel arrangements so there's that. I found a place on the edge of Yogyakarta that will meet our needs as far as 3 to a room, etc. So, I'm happy about that. No trip is perfect and my experience is to try to do the best I can with the time and money I have! It's also a little different trip than I would have planned just for my husband and I. Since our son is coming with us, I had to take him into consideration. I also just like "being" in a place and not especially have to be on the go all the time. I think it will be great whatever it is and I"m really looking forward to going to this part of the world for the first time.

christym907

I'm just re-reading all these posts from before Covid. Lots has happened in these two years and so our trip plans reflect that. thanks for all the info on Bali and Java. I'm planning that part of the trip now. Our former exchange student--who's wedding we were supposed to attend in apr. of 2020 is now married and has an almost year old son! So, quite a different trip but it will be so lovely to spend time with her family and baby!