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RECOMMENDED ROUTE

In Bali you can really take any route you want. It is such a small island that it doesn't take long to get anywhere. If you want a route to follow I would say:

Seminyak - Canggu - Ubud - Gili Islands -Lombok - Nusa Islands - Uluwatu

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MONEY

Approximate Conversion Rate - 1 GBP = 18,000 IDR

Average Costs Per Day:

Accommodation - 5 GBP

Food - 3 GBP for Indonesian food, up tp 15 GBP for Western

Transport -varies - In Bali you'll mainly get around by car, the longest journey we had cost us around 12GBP

One month budget - 1000 GBP

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Visa

If you're from the UK you can stay in the country for 30 days without a visa which is what we opted for.

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Useful Apps and Websites

GoJek - This is the main taxi app in Bali but be careful because the locals hate the online taxi companies and they are banned in a lot of areas. 

Grab

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Gili T

• Accommodation - My Mates Place - 3 person rooms - great social atmosphere - the disadvantages are that there isn't a pool (but the beach is 5 minutes walk away) and it isn't particularly well sign posted

• To Do - Sunset on other side of island, films on the beach at pearl resort, cycle around the island, snorkel at turtle point

• To eat - Sampan Cafe (taco salad is unreal), Persona indian, Pasar Malam (cheap local street food)

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Gili T is a little island off the east coast of Bali (it's actually part of Lombok but let's ignore that for now). This was my second time here (I came here in 2017) and I had a really bad boat experience the last time, so didn't want that again. We paid a little extra for Gili Getaways which also let us book online and provided a free pickup to Sanur Port. It was worth it, there was no chaos and they even woke us up with ice cold flannels! We stayed at the same hostel I did last time which has a great atmosphere. The island itself is really small and you can get around it in 2 hours, there are no cars so the only forms of transport are bicycles and horse and carriage (but please don't use them because they are really mistreated).  For sunset, cycle or walk to the other side of the island and get a photo on the iconic swings. If you're after cheap food check out Pasar Malam which is full of local street food, but you won't be short on places to eat. Gili T is lovely but I preferred it the last time I visited, it just felt very built up and too much like the strip. I would say 2 or 3 days would be enough and then explore Gili Air and Gili Meno which are a little quieter but just see what you think when you get there!

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Boat to Nusa Lembongan 

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Nusa Lembongan

• Accommodation- Walet’s Paradise

• Other Recommendations - Dream Beach Hostel 

• To do - Devils Tear (sunset), nusa penida day trip

• To eat - Classico (on way back from devils tear), lgood bar & grill (live music), soka warung (really good and cheap local food) 

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The Nusa Islands are also off the east coast of the mainland, most people stay on Nusa Penida but after recommendations we opted to stay on Nusa Lembongan. Nusa Penida is a fairly big island that requires you to hire a bike to get around and the the driving is very dangerous. Nusa Lembongan is smaller which means getting around on foot a lot easier and the roads are safer. You can still see the main highlights of Nusa Penida by booking a day tour where you get a driver for the day, we booked through nusa paradise adventure on mushroom beach and paid 400,000 IDR each but you'll find different options all over the island. We stayed with friends in a beautiful little place near mushroom beach and has a lot of places that are just walking distance. Whilst we were there we walked to Devil's Tear for sunset which was absolutely beautiful.

 

Boat to Sanur port and taxi to Ubud 

 

Ubud

• Accommodation -Gypsy Lust - nice pool - good location - very small hostel - not much of a social scene

• Other Recommendations - AirBnB, In Da Lodge, Arya Hostel, Puri Garden (they have puppies therapy and massages included in the price)

• To do - Monkey forest, Mount Batur sunrise hike (getyourgide or hostel), Rice Terraces, Jungle Fish (infinity pool), tegunun waterfall (dkuta river club for drinks), coffee plantation, Kanto lampo waterfall, rice terraces

• To Eat - Umah Pizza, Roti Daal (SO GOOD)

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Back to mainland Bali and our first stop was Ubud. We stayed at Gypsy Lust which was a nice accommodation but there wasn't much of a social scene. Ubud has very quiet nightlife in comparison to the rest of Bali so if you can afford it spend a little extra on a bed and breakfast and enjoy some relaxation. Spend one of your days renting a driver and see all the sights of Ubud. Check the weather for a clear day and book the Mount Batur Sunrise hike, I haven't done it get but it's on my bucket list! Whilst we were there we found a little gem on the main road called Roti Daal, it's basically a casual dining restaurant with vegetarian Indian food, but trust me you don't miss the meat. We ate here both nights we were in Ubud plus another one of the nights at their Canggu site!

 

Taxi to Canggu 

 

Canggu

• Accommodation - The Farm - good sociable atmosphere, really nice pool and facilities but not sure if it's worth the price if you're on a budget

• Other Recommendations -  Layday surf hostel, Kos One hostel, Elements BnB

• To do - La Brisa Beach Club, Finns Beach Club, The Lawn, Tanah Lot temple 

• To eat - Luigis pizza, crate cafe (MUST GO) , Lola's mexican (go for happy hour on a Thursday because it's right next to pretty poison)

• Nightlife - pinky poison skate park, black cat (mini mart with fridge to get in the bar), old mans, sandbar 

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Canggu is a great place with an amazing vibe. You're spoilt for choice with all the cafe's restaurants and beach spots. Things are are a little spread out but gojek bikes are really cheap. Take advantage of the beach clubs happy hours, at Finns we go 2 bottles of vodka for the price of one! Then when you're hungover make sure you go to Crate Cafe and get the best 2 pound breakfast ever, we went most days we were in Canggu.

 

Seminyak 

• Accommodation - M Boutique - good comfy pod beds, great wifi, no social atmosphere though but Socialista hostel is perfect for that, we had a night there but didn't have the best nights sleep.

• To do - Finns beach club, Potato Head, Mexicola (nice bar, book a table before 9), La Plancha (sunset) 

• Nightlife - Motel Mexicola, La Favela (unreal but expensive), Tropicola  

• To eat - spice mantraa, coffee cartel, strawberry fields, Lantern (soo good) 

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Seminyak is the most expensive but we found a couple of good hostels here and a great group of people so we used to just get taxis to Canggu whenever we wanted because they're so close to each other.

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• Nightlife

• Monday - Luigis (Canggu) 

• Tuesday - Club Tropicola (beach club, go during the day - seminyak) 

• Wednesday - Old Mans (Canggu, then go to sand bar after which is the beach next to it) 

• Thursday - Pretty Poison (Canggu - do black cats before for chilled bar) 

• Friday - The Lawn (Canggu) 

• Saturday - Finns (Canggu during the day), La Favela (you have to go at least once most days are good, strict with dress code) 

• Sunday - Single Fin (Uluwatu) 

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Recommendations for places we didn't get chance to go to:

Gili Meno

• Accommodation - The rabbit tree

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Kuta

• Accommodation - Beach Hut Hostel, Central Park Hotel (stay in seminyak), Bali Caps (close to airport) 

 

Uluwatu

• To do - Sunday’s beach club, suluban beach, Padang Padang beach, uluwatu beach, uluwatu temple (sunset), bale bigin beach 

• Nightlife - Rock Bar, omnia, single fin 

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Nusa Penida 

• Accommodation - Nusa Penida Hostel 

• To do - diamond beach, broken beach, kingkling beach

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