In Reply to: Lesliey--Yes it's me again,I have a?? posted by rayofsunshine on Monday, 31. January 2005 at 13:14 Bali Time:
I wouldn't be booking in advance at the price you've been quoted. There are plenty of good rooms at the Tjampuhan. River 3 is just my personal preference, with River 2 and River 3 next best in that order. But that's just me. I haven't stayed in every room and others would have favourites different to me.
I've always booked as part of a well-priced package from Australia, but I've contacted them well in advance along the lines of "Remember me?. I'll soon be there again and I would like River 3 and don't forget the fridge etc etc". Maybe you'll be doing that next time.
You'll have plenty of time whilst you're in Tuban to pop up to Ubud, do your wheeling and dealing and give them advance notice of the room you'd like. My approach goes like this: I MAY be in Ubud in a week or two and if I am, I MAY be interested in staying here. After I've got a reasonable room rate, with breakfast, I say, Well, what if I stay 3 nights, see what happens then, Well, what if I stay 5 nights etc. To many of us, this sort of thing sounds horrifying until we've experienced it, but to the Balinese it's normal. In fact, bargaining is the national sport and taken in good part, as long as you keep it happy and polite and keep it reasonable, rather than trying to screw them.
Stick out for breakfast included. Endless buffet style, eaten in a delightful setting. You'll probably eat so much that you'll need to walk up and down the endless steps a couple of times and then walk into Ubud over the suspension bridge and up and over on the right hand side path to make room for lunch halfway through the afternoon.
Can't you just tell I'm getting homesick?