P1040318.JPG

Indonesia

Bali and Gili Islands, July 2016

Bali


Accommodations

  • Maison At C Boutique Hotel: 4-star boutique hotel in Seminyak. The best part about this hotel is the pool and swim up bar. In the Bali heat, this is a great way to cool down mid afternoon if you need a break from the beach. The rooms have a french decor and are basic. I would prefer that they have mosquito nets over the beds as they sneak in when housekeeping is cleaning the rooms as the door to the room is open to the outside while cleaning. The hotel noted they put coils in but those really don't work as well in my opinion. Check out my TripAdvisor review.
  • Puri Sebali Resort: 4.5-star resort in the Ubud area. The property is beautiful and has great views overlooking rice fields. The resort is a 15 minute drive from the center of Ubud and you can take a shuttle. Rooms are Balinese decor and very spacious with mosquito nets over the bed. I had a booking issue with this hotel but would be open to staying with them again. Check out my TripAdvisor review.
  • Puri Gangga Resort: 4.5-star resort in the Ubud area. This was the first property I experienced in Ubud and was wowed. It's a partner hotel of Puri Sebali but located further away from Ubud with a 25 minute drive. I was booked here for one night by Puri Sebali due to their booking issue. Accommodations are Balinese decor, large and spacious. It's only a five minute walk to a neighboring temple you can visit and the hotel can provide sarong to wear. The staff at Puri Gangga did everything they could to give me a fantastic experience and even gave me a couple parting gifts. A great resort, just wish they were a bit closer to Ubud center.
  • Sankara Resort: 4-star resort in the Ubud area. I only had the opportunity to stay one night here but had been in email communication with the property prior about other availability. This resort was amazing in communication and worked with me on budget, which was incredible. I received a room upgrade while they were finishing a new hotel extension and my room upgrade was a villa with its own pool, just for lil ol' me. It was incredible. It's about a 15 minute drive to center of Ubud but the hotel provides shuttles. I would definitely recommend this resort. Check out my TripAdvisor review.

Sites/Tours

  • Seminyak: I chose Seminyak for my coastal experience vs Kuta. All my reasarch pointed to Kuta as more spring break vibe and I was looking for more relaxing, less Jell-O shots.
    • The beach: Obviously, nothing more needs to be said.
    • Massages and Spas: When in Bali, gotta get your spa groove on! I went to Prana Spa in Seminyak which has a mix of Indian and Morrocan flavour to it. The property is quite large with exceptional service. I made an afternoon of it and got a message, body scrub and pedicure. My technician was the same for all the services and so incredibly nice.
    • La Laguna: You need to take a cab here but it's worth it. This bar on the beach is much more than a bar. The property is huge and has these color wagon wheel carts lining up to the bar that gives you a Oregon Trail meets Willy Wonka feel. There's a variety of different areas to sit from bean bags to pillows to actual tables, all overlooking the ocean.
    • Potato Head Beach Club: Interesting architecture and design, walking up it's a massive building of colorful window shutters. Inside there are multiple bars, a restaurant and pool. This is definitely a trendy "it" spot. Come here and plop a spot at the bar for a drink, the bartenders are super friendly!
    • Westin Seminyak: You don't need to stay here but I do recommend coming here for a drink and coming in through the front/street side entrance (vs coming up from the beach). This has one of the most beautiful entrances of any hotel I've seen with the trees overhanging and lining all the way up the drive. At night, without any car, the path of trees looks never-ending.
  • Ubud
    • Monkey Forest: From the city center, walkable to get to. This place is filled with tourists and monkeys and it's definitely worth seeing once. There are no gates, you are on monkey territory and they are everywhere. I had a monkey jump on my back, unzip my backpack and rip out my Kleenex. He (or she) hopped off me but when he realized it wasn't food, he looked to jump back on and go searching for more. 
    • Balinese Dance Shows: There are a variety of different dances, dance troops and temples in Ubud to catch a show in the evening. Most start around 7:30pm. One of the most popular is at the Ubud Palace. You need to get here early to get a decent seat to see, as tourists come in droves. I thought the show was interesting but long winded. I much preferred and would recommend the Kecak Fire dance show I saw at a temple about 10 minutes walking from the palace.
  • Day Tours: I did a couple of these to get out and see other temples and rice fields in the broader Bali countryside:
    • Day tour with Dewa Alit Tours: Sites included; Tegalalang rice terraces, Holly spring water temple, Batur volcano views, coffee plantation, Gunung kawi temple and Tegenungan water falls. This was a private tour I scheduled via email and worked out perfectly. The guide, Wayan, was very knowledgeable but also gave me plenty of space to enjoy on my own and made sure we took things at my pace.
    • Day tour with private driver arranged from my hotel: Sites included Ulun Danu Beratan Temple and Taman Ayun Temple. I also wanted to see the Tanah Lot temple which is on a cliffside but it was too far for the amount of time I had before having to get back and get to the airport. Something for next time!

Bali Food

  • Spice by Chris Salans: The original storefront is the Ubud location. The concept is using all locally grown food and Indonesian ingredients to Western cafe style dishes.

Gili Trawangan

Accommodations

  • PinkCoco Gili Trawangan: 3-star hotel on the Gili T island. This property was only a few months old when I arrived, and it is definitely very Pink! The hotel has both a great pool and beachfront area. You can take your pick or bounce between both (which is what I did) as the pool area has some shade. The beachfront area is also fantastic at sunset. The rooms are basic but you have everything you need. The hotel also rents out bikes which come in very handy for getting around the island as there are no cars on the island. To get here can be tricky as the boats to Gili T all disembark in the same location and it's a 20 minute walk to the hotel. This means it's really quiet, but dragging your bags in the baking sun in over 100 degrees Fahrenheit heat sucks, and that's to put it mildly. You can request a horse taxi, which is the easiest, but, I really didn't want to use one. I was unsure about the treatment of the horses. Check out my TripAdvisor review.

Boat Transportation

  • Wahana Gili Ocean: This boat service was awful in every possible way. From the pickup and check in, to being packed in like sardines to an exhaust and bug infested boat ride, you couldn't pay me to take this boat again on the return trip. I had actually already paid for the roundtrip ticket and spent more money to buy a one way ticket back with another boat company. Check out my TripAdvisor review.
  • Gili Getaway: I had gotten a recommendation about this boat company from a couple at my hotel on Gili and quickly snatched up a one way ticket back with them after the crappy experience with Wahana. Gili Getaway was the complete opposite of Wahana in every wonderful way. I would definitely use Gili Getaway again, it's more expensive than Wahana but for good reason. Check out my TripAdvisor review.

Sites/Tours

  • Snorkeling: The Gili Islands have some of the best snorkeling in the world. There are large/sketchy looking boat tours you can join but I wanted someone to take me out privately as I'm not a super swimmer in ocean currents and have a slight fear of fish. Yes, that may sound odd on why I would go snorkeling if I'm afraid of fish but I still think they are beautiful, and as long as they aren't swarming me, I'm good. I did some research online and found a private guide, Eko, and he was able to pick me up in his boat and we headed out to all three Gili Islands for a day of snorkeling. Definitely recommend!
  • Paradise Sunset Bar: Found near the southern point of the island, hence the name, another great area to gawk over the most beautiful sunsets and sometimes has fire shows.
  • Outdoor Cinema near Villa Ombak Hotel beach property.

Food