where to stay in Bali
Jul 12th, 2016, 05:52 AM
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where to stay in Bali
Hi, my fiancé & I are planning our honeymoon in Southeast Asia. We will be leaving just after Christmas & staying through New Years. Not sure exactly how long we will stay. Neither of us have been before. We are planning to do a 5 day cruise from Singapore to a couple of ports in Malaysia and Thailand before catching a flight to Bali.
My first question is regarding the travel. We are planning on leaving Dec 26th. The cruise leaves port around 5:30 or so on the evening of the 28th. Is it reasonable to expect we could make the trip from NC to Singapore in that timeframe, while allowing a buffer for possible delays? I've been to Europe & South America but never over to Asia so I don't really know what to expect.
My 2nd question is where to stay in Bali. We are an active couple, in our late 20s. We like a little bit of everything on our vacations: some time to relax on the beach, some fun active endeavors and some local culture. We would want access to good restaurants/places to grab drinks. No need for wild nightlight. And we would probably want to avoid any excessively tourist area.
From what little research I've done, I think we would want to stay in one of the beach areas (maybe Seminyak??) but we definitely want to make a trip to Ubud. We are probably in the middle budget range. Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!
Amber
My first question is regarding the travel. We are planning on leaving Dec 26th. The cruise leaves port around 5:30 or so on the evening of the 28th. Is it reasonable to expect we could make the trip from NC to Singapore in that timeframe, while allowing a buffer for possible delays? I've been to Europe & South America but never over to Asia so I don't really know what to expect.
My 2nd question is where to stay in Bali. We are an active couple, in our late 20s. We like a little bit of everything on our vacations: some time to relax on the beach, some fun active endeavors and some local culture. We would want access to good restaurants/places to grab drinks. No need for wild nightlight. And we would probably want to avoid any excessively tourist area.
From what little research I've done, I think we would want to stay in one of the beach areas (maybe Seminyak??) but we definitely want to make a trip to Ubud. We are probably in the middle budget range. Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!
Amber
Jul 12th, 2016, 07:21 AM
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Leaving from NC, your arrival in Singapore will be +2 days. So if you leave on the 26th, you'll arrive in Singapore on the 28th. I don't know what your routing will be, but I expect you'll have two stops before you get to Singapore; somewhere in the US, then Narita (Japan). So if the cruise is a must, I'd suggest you leave a day earlier. Or, you could decide to skip the cruise, spend a few days in Singapore, then fly to Bali.
In Bali, I recommend you stay at a beach (Seminyak is good) and stay inland near Ubud, perhaps at one of the many lovely places that have views over the rice fields or the river gorge.
There are just two areas that I recommend people avoid: Kuta beach, full of drunk adolescents, and Nusa Dua, a sterile tourist enclave. Another beach area I like is Sanur.
If you want more specific recommendations, you'll have to give us more information:
What is your flight routing?
How many nights on the ground will you have in Asia?
What do you mean by middle budget range? Give us a dollar amount per night.
Let me say that ocean cruises are not a great way to get a flavor for SE Asia, IMO. But I expect you're taking the cruise for the cruise experience rather than for the ports. Think about whether a cruise is the best use of your time and money. You could take a Caribbean cruise for the cruise experience.
In Bali, I recommend you stay at a beach (Seminyak is good) and stay inland near Ubud, perhaps at one of the many lovely places that have views over the rice fields or the river gorge.
There are just two areas that I recommend people avoid: Kuta beach, full of drunk adolescents, and Nusa Dua, a sterile tourist enclave. Another beach area I like is Sanur.
If you want more specific recommendations, you'll have to give us more information:
What is your flight routing?
How many nights on the ground will you have in Asia?
What do you mean by middle budget range? Give us a dollar amount per night.
Let me say that ocean cruises are not a great way to get a flavor for SE Asia, IMO. But I expect you're taking the cruise for the cruise experience rather than for the ports. Think about whether a cruise is the best use of your time and money. You could take a Caribbean cruise for the cruise experience.
Jul 12th, 2016, 06:44 PM
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The 2 to 3 weeks following Christmas are VERY busy times for flights and resorts in Bali, so firm up your reservations as soon as you can. New Year's is a zoo in Bali (and other parts of Asia). Fun if you like crowds, but very busy and exorbitantly priced.If you can delay a week and leave on January 01 or 02, you'll miss most of the holiday crush.
In my opinion the best way to get to Singapore from the east coast is through Europe on Singapore Airlines. For example Singapore Airlines (which I would recommend) leaves several east coast airports (Miami, Dulles, Newark or JFK) in the evening of December 26, stops in London or Frankfurt, and arrives Singapore early morning December 28.
In Bali it sounds like you'd like Seminyak, though it depends on how you'd define "excessively tourist". All of Bali's southeast beach communities (Nusa Dua and Sanur on the east coast and Jimbaran, Kuta and Seminyak on the westcoast) are tourism focused.
Seminyak, especially Petitenget at the northern end, has some wonderful restaurants, lots of shops and spas and quite a few resorts in different price ranges. Petitenget is one of the best wide, sandy big wave beaches, though all of the west coast beaches can be rough when the surf's up. Unfortunately, January is the middle of the rainy season and when storms blow in you can get several days of rain and gloom plus a lot of trash on the beach. The resorts keep their beaches clean, but they can't control the weather. They will however have beautiful pools.
If you want to stay right on the beach, you'll pay a premium the first week of January. I'd recommend the Alila (big but stylish), the Samaya and if you want to splurge, the Legian. The Colony is inland, but just a few minutes walk from the beach. It's charming and a great value. Also the brand new Katamana Hotel, which is beautiful and very hip.
There are dozens (hundreds?) of rental villas in Bali, especially in Seminyak, but also in Ubud. You won't be on the beach, but you'll have a private pool and a staff to wait on you. In addition to Petitenget, the Batu Belig area which is just north of Petitenget is a good place to start looking at villas.
Further north, the areas around Brawa and Batu Bolong are also full of a young, hip international crowd. There aren't too many resorts in the area but there are lots of villas and very good restaurtants and lively clubs.
Try to spend a couple of night in Ubud, rather than commuting from the beach. There are plenty of romantic and beautiful places to stay, both in the town itself and in the surrounding countryside overlooking the river valleys. Look at Uma Ubud and any of the resorts in the Komaneka group. Ubud is the nature and culture center of Bali and you'll find plenty of activities to keep you occupied for a few days.
In my opinion the best way to get to Singapore from the east coast is through Europe on Singapore Airlines. For example Singapore Airlines (which I would recommend) leaves several east coast airports (Miami, Dulles, Newark or JFK) in the evening of December 26, stops in London or Frankfurt, and arrives Singapore early morning December 28.
In Bali it sounds like you'd like Seminyak, though it depends on how you'd define "excessively tourist". All of Bali's southeast beach communities (Nusa Dua and Sanur on the east coast and Jimbaran, Kuta and Seminyak on the westcoast) are tourism focused.
Seminyak, especially Petitenget at the northern end, has some wonderful restaurants, lots of shops and spas and quite a few resorts in different price ranges. Petitenget is one of the best wide, sandy big wave beaches, though all of the west coast beaches can be rough when the surf's up. Unfortunately, January is the middle of the rainy season and when storms blow in you can get several days of rain and gloom plus a lot of trash on the beach. The resorts keep their beaches clean, but they can't control the weather. They will however have beautiful pools.
If you want to stay right on the beach, you'll pay a premium the first week of January. I'd recommend the Alila (big but stylish), the Samaya and if you want to splurge, the Legian. The Colony is inland, but just a few minutes walk from the beach. It's charming and a great value. Also the brand new Katamana Hotel, which is beautiful and very hip.
There are dozens (hundreds?) of rental villas in Bali, especially in Seminyak, but also in Ubud. You won't be on the beach, but you'll have a private pool and a staff to wait on you. In addition to Petitenget, the Batu Belig area which is just north of Petitenget is a good place to start looking at villas.
Further north, the areas around Brawa and Batu Bolong are also full of a young, hip international crowd. There aren't too many resorts in the area but there are lots of villas and very good restaurtants and lively clubs.
Try to spend a couple of night in Ubud, rather than commuting from the beach. There are plenty of romantic and beautiful places to stay, both in the town itself and in the surrounding countryside overlooking the river valleys. Look at Uma Ubud and any of the resorts in the Komaneka group. Ubud is the nature and culture center of Bali and you'll find plenty of activities to keep you occupied for a few days.
Jul 29th, 2016, 12:56 PM
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I second the Colony... Marmot recommended it to me a couple of years ago.. It's a lovely little place, perfectly placed in Seminyak, wakling distance to lots of great restaurants and bars (about 10 minutes walk from Potato Head) great little Mexican next door and round the corner from an awesome Italian 5 minutes away on the beach.... I have been to Bali 4 times and will definitely go back there next time....
