We have just returned from 17 days in beautiful Bali, Here is a rundown of how everything went (sorry a bit long winded but I've broken it into sections). Now it's back into working so we can pay for our next trip.
Flights:
We flew with Jetstar, departed Melbourne at 1pm with a 3hr stopover in Darwin, arrived in Bali on time at 9pm. We had pre booked the VIP VOA for $38AUD and highly recommend everyone do this, we were escorted to an air conditioned room where they gave us drinks and food, they went and got our bags, paid our VOA & did all the customs things, all up we were off the plane and into a taxi within 25min!
The return flight was delayed by about 45min (typical Jetstar) however with a very strong tail wind the flight was only 4 1/2 hrs so we were happy.
Accommodation:
Six of us stayed at the Bounty in Kuta for 1 night as we arrived earlier than everyone else, I personally hated it but can see why it appeals to young, single people. Our sheets had what appeared to be blood spots, the bathroom was simply disgusting and the constant noise from drunk people coming and going was too much.
We got picked up at about 2pm and taken to our private 5BR villa in Seminyak. What can I say, it was absolutely stunning. Included in the rate was our own driver, butler, chef, pool boy, 2 x house boys & security guard. A huge breakfast was prepared every morning and served at our chosen time, lunch and dinner cooked when wanted and the food we had was some of the best for the whole holiday.
Four of us stayed on for a further 5 nights, we decided just to book something in Legian while we were there so 4 days prior to our Villa departure we got our diver to drive us around all the hotels, after 2 ½ hrs of going everywhere and anywhere everything was booked!!! We were about to give up and go do the internet search when we past the Courtyard Apartments in Legian, thankfully they had a 2BR apartment available for all 5 nights, we all loved this place, it was small with only 18 apartments & 5 hotel rooms.
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Dining:
As previously mentioned our chef prepared some of the most amazing things in our villa, however we did venture out quite a bit as well.
Mades Warung - Excellent Indonesian food. We ate at both their Kuta and Seminyak restaurants, we found the seminyak one was better but was also cost a little bit more.
La Lucciola - Great Italian food, a little expensive but the service and quality were well worth it.
Mykanos -Nice Greek food. You must get the dips with bread & fetta!
Kuni's - Japanese restaurant in the Oberoi area, the food here was better than our favourite Japanese restaurant at home and prices were quite reasonable
Lunai - we ate here twice whilst staying in Legian, a bit of everything overlooking the beach at a great price
Ultimo - The food here was really good but the service was terrible, we waited 10 min before we got a menu then a further 15min before a drink order was taken (we had to get waitress' attention each time), The place was very busy which is why we chose it but I wouldn't eat there again.
Ku De Ta - we didn't eat here as I had been told the food was terrible and the price was way too expensive so we all headed there for cocktails and sunset. The Sangria Jug was sooo tasty and big enough to share with 4 people. I recommend you arrive around 4:30 - 5pm so you can get a seat.
Poco Loco - My husband and have eaten here many times on previous Bali trips, however this time it was not so good, it was really lacking in atmosphere and the food was not very nice.
Blue Ocean: Again another place my husband & I visited regularly on prior trips. We made a booking as there was 8 of us but they sat people on the table we requested so there was some drama trying to have them move as there was no other spots to put 8 people. the food was packed with garlic, most of us ordered fish which was bland and overcooked.
Activities:
Waterbom Park: We all absolutely loved this! The ages of our group ranged from 27 - 35 and everyone had an absolute blast, if you have kids you simply must take them here. You can hire a locker to put all your valuables in and if you can't take your own towel you can them also
Nusa Dua - water sports: Our driver took us to a company owned by his best friend, we bartered the price on the activities we wanted and saved lots of money. We did parasailing, snorkelling, turtle island & flying fish, all great fun
White Water Rafting - I didn't do this but 5 of our group did and said it was excellent, the boys thought it could have been wilder but the girls said it was perfect.
Massages:
By far the best massage we had was on our last day at Body Works in Seminyak. Both the girls and boys had 4 hrs of treatments inc, massage, manicure, pedicure & hair cream bath, so we were all nice and clean before our flight. Highly recommend!