Hi, Just thought I would share some of my Baby In Bali tips with those who are interested. We just stayed for 3 weeks with our 20mth old son and had a great time
Don't Hire
We didn't check with Jetstar about getting our sons things to bali, we just thought that it would be charged as extra baggage, so decided that we were better off hiring things. WRONG! Jetstar flys all baby things, prams, cots etc for free! So silly us had already paid $350 to hire a pram, a cot and a bag of toys. The cot was great, but the rest not so. The toys were filthy and the batteries were flat. The pram was broken and so was the replacement that we had sent out. We returned both the toys and the prams and were given all of our money back, but was frunstrated to carry our son around for the next 3 weeks. Our $160 deposit was stuffed up too on returning the cot and the poor delivery man had to take it out of his own pocket to make up the difference ($50 short). So lesson learnt the hard way.... Take your own things.
Bottles on the plane.
We filled our bottles half way with cold water before boarding and used boiled water from the plane to fill it the rest of the way.
Formula.
We managed to find the same brand formula that we use here at Matahari Department store. I took 2 cans with me.
Nappies.
I aslo found Huggies nappies at Matahari,but of questionable quality. I mean no nappy rash or leaks, but lets just say don't pull the tabs too hard as they will rip off.
Sling.
Don't bring a sling, again learnt the hard way, it is just too hot. Take your own trusty pram to bump along the footpaths with, you and bub will be much happier.
Food.
There was a small range of baby foods etc. in the Cirle K's (on every other corner) but again Matahari has a bigger range. My son was happy to try most foods and surprised us with the things he liked. He loved a chicken soup that we found at most Balinese restaurants (Just don't put bub in anything clothing thats too precious as it can get a little messy.)
Mozzies.
We didn't really have an issue with them. We just lathered our son every night as the sun went down and he was bite free.
Miltons Tablets
We handwashed all our bottles at the end of the day then soaked them overnight in the Miltons Tablets. We didn't have the slightest hint of Bali Belly.
Heat
We always made sure to offer of son lots of refreshment, juices are great, bottled water and icy poles. He was great in the heat and loved cooling off in the pools and beach. We had him sleep in just a singlet and nappy and made sure that his room wasn't too hot or cold. We always tried to get out early in the morning if we wanted to wander before the heat of the day hit or later in the afternoon when it began to cool off.
If you need anymore info, just let me know.
We had a great family trip and we will do it again, we learnt from our mistakes and hope that other families can too.
Good luck and most importantly HAVE FUN!
Liv