I have read so many great JBRs that made my holiday so much better that I thought I should post my own JBR. Hope it is useful to someone.
Hubby and I travelled with out two sons aged 9 and 5. Our special challenge is the 9 year old who is highly allergic to peanuts, almonds and sesame seed. Fortunately there was no medical emergency this trip.
We left Perth on Friday 13th on Pacific Blue. No problems at all with this airline, very impressed considering we got GO fares at a bargain price. Arrived in Bali at about 10.30pm with a Japanese flight. Got through VOA etc within about 40 minutes without problem.
Went to the taxi xounter and paid for a taxi to our hotel in Sanur (95 000 rp). Arrived about midnight.
We stayed at the Sanur Paradise Plaza Suites for the second time. This place isnt flash and the location is disappointing but the kids facilities makes up for all that. There is a fantastic water slide, pool table, table tennis, playstation, basketball court. Good for two active boys.
There were no kids club activities as such, but this wasnt what we were after so it didnt matter.
We had a two bedroom suite and there is so much space, two TVs two bathrooms and kitchen facilities with crockery and a table for times when you just want to eat in. Apart from room service, we got take away from restaurants a couple of times.
On recommendation from this forum I got curtains made at Serba Antik. Its like walking into an interior decorating shop in Perth. Great quality and price. There was a hassle at the end when they didnt think that the curtains would be ready in time and they wanted me to pay to post them home. Funnily when I refused the curtains were ready. Anyway they are terrific quality and I am very happy with them. Hubby not so enthralled at having to pack them into our suitcases...
Spent a day at Waterbom. It really is fantastic for the kids (and Dad). Last year when we were there the boomerang was shut and the superbowl was being built. All up and running now. The 5 year old was too small for those two rides but did go on everything else (with Dad not me as I am a huge chicken).
Weather was lovely at the start of our holiday as not too hot, and not humid. The only rain we saw in 9 days was on the Tuesday night when it poured for hours and there was thunder and lightning but it cleared suddenly on Wednesday morning. Later in the week it got very very hot. especially on the Thursday when we went to the Safari and Marine Park That day was also a public holiday so the park was very busy, mostly locals.
We love Sanur because it has such a lovely beach that you can access without crossing a road. The week before we left I organised one night at the Sanur Beach Hotel on Wotif to check it out. The pools there were fabulous, and the breakfast much better than SPPS (I forgot to say that the brekkie there wast much). It was lovely to eat on the beach and relax. However one night there was enough because the kids needed more to do.
This was my tenth trip to Bali and we have stayed in most places, but Sanur is our favourite due to the beach, the fact that it is not manic like Kuta, but everything is accessible by a quick cab trip. We have also made some good friends here over the years. We are not nightclub types, just enjoy a relaxing meal in the evenings.
Can recommend Gateway to india (also does takeaway)and Lotus. I also had fabulous ribs at Donalds.
I celebrated a birthday while there and spent quite a few hours at the Mandurah Spa opposite the Lotus Cafe. This place is fantastic. I had a full body massage with green tea scrub, honey and yoghurt rubbed all over me and a flower bath, pedicare and foot massage, facial and hair ceme bath all for about $40. Wonderful.
Exchange rate got to 8000 on the street when we were there, had been 7600 or so earlier in the week so that was appreciated.
Bought heaps of Martha Tillaar gor myself, mum, mother and sister in law. They used this at the spa and I think its lovely. And I am fussy with skin care products.
Hubby got a suit tailored at King Tailor and they did a great job.
I bought two handbags at Tommy's in Padma Street Legian and they are just exquisite. They are real leather and they had quite a few styles to choose from. They even had a copy of the Oroton bag I had with me. Had to laugh when they asked me if mine was real.
For the allergy I had a card made up from wording I found on this forum saying (or so I believe) that my son cant eat peanuts etc because they make him very sick. We ordered carefully for him and he ate Western style food so it was not really needed. The time it was most useful was to explain why we didnt want a bowl of nuts left on the table. I carried his epipen everywhere. It didnt showup on any airports scans, but I had taken the precaustion of getting a letter from his GP explaining what it was for and why it had to be carried on board. Of course we didnt need to show the letter, but it was a good precaution.
Cant think of anything else ATM. We had a fantastic stress free time, many thanks for all the useful tips on this forum.