garruda airline
 

Have you tried this airline?Is it good and reliabble? How does one get through a 16 hour wait in Bali after 20 hours in the air already (en route to australia from Canada)

Garuda is an Indonesian airline with a terrible safety record. They have lost many aircraft and had many near misses. They have had several safety incidents in the air over my home town. They even tried to land on a freeway by mistake several years ago. I would use Garuda only as a last resort. Their cabin service is supposed to be awful too!

I don't know anything about their safety record, but on my two flights on Garuda I was very satisfied with their service. We got juice before takeoff, the meal was good and there was ample space.

Flew Garuda Brisbane - Denpasar - Jakarta - Los Angeles - Denpasar - Brisbane over five weeks in December, January. Initial flight was 18 hours late in departing (technical difficulties). Otherwise flights were punctual, service good (even though two of the flights were absolutely full)- food terrible (on which airline is it not). Cabin was comfortable and aircraft appeared newish (the main factor in aircraft mishaps is age of aircraft. Most Garuda incidents have been within Indonesia itself where flying conditions are difficult (cf New Guinea)).
Cheers, Paul.

I flew Garuda in August, (Aust - Amsterdam return) and found the airline to be pretty poor in terms of service and punctuality. The same flight actually crashed a month later. It's probably a case of getting what you pay for. Regards Bali, get out of the airport and find a tour looking at the jungles there, or spend the day at the beach (Kuda). It's meant to be nice the further away from the towns you get.

I don't recommend Garuda. Cabin service is average but the food is bad and the bathrooms are filthy (as most public toilets in Indonesia are). I avoided drinking anything starting 1 hour prior to flight departure so I wouldn't have to use them. Lucky for me, they were short flights to and from Bali to Singapore or Jakarta. Try Singapore Air instead. As far as a 16 hour layover, depending on what time you arrive, I recommend taking a taxi to Ubud, the cultural capital of Bali. Many cab drivers will take you on an all day tour for a prenegotiated rate which is quite reasonable. If such a tour is not available at the airport, then take a taxi to the Bali Sahid Seaside Hotel in Kuta. In their front parking lot, there are many vans and taxi's which will provide this service. We had a great experience with a nice young man who spent 8 hours showing us many of the island's sites. Be sure to request to see the Monkey Forest!

I took a 4 month trip around the world this summer and the only light I had any trouble with was a Garuda flight. They could't seem to check in the people (go very early); couldn't see to figure out my passport, etc. no safety problems, though. Just go early and be flexible if you can't change airlines.
Bali is wonderful. I agree with the message that said get a cab and go to Ubud. In Ubud, eat at the Cafe Luna, the best in town; wonderful shopping walking up and down the main street; look at the statues in front of the Hindu temples (the Balinese dress them up). If it is at night, by all means go to the nightly dance (different every night of the week) which takes place at one of the local ancient temple. Excellent, and something Ubud is famous for. You can feel very confident with a cab driver for the day. They will do just what you want, for the price you have agreed to, and be patient and lovely the whole time. Have a great time. If you need advice, talk to Janet or Katut who own the Cafe Luna about what to do.