Well it's been a few weeks since we arrived back and I've just paid the deposit for next years trip so I feel ‘ready' to post a JBR without getting too upset!
The photos from our trip are online at: picasaweb.google.com/cyberbirth
This was our 9th trip to Bali - yes I'm a certified member of the 'I love Bali' club and I even have the sticker on my car to prove it! Getting to Bali from NZ isn't quick or cheap but we keep going back because we always have a great holiday there and we've yet to find a place to beat it!
This trip was to be just my hubbie and me for my 39th birthday and also as an early celebration for our 20th wedding anniversary early next year. However just a few weeks after booking a good friend of my husbands asked if he & his new girlfriend could tag along and we said yes as he has invited my husband on many of his motor bike touring adventures here in NZ. Our itinerary had already been pre-planned but as they had never been to Bali before they were happy to just go along with whatever.
We flew Pacific Blue (PB) from Auckland to Brisbane and then onto Denpasar. If you get a GO fare the PB option saves $NZ 500 per person return so for that price we are happy to forgo a few drinks and meals. Plus for this trip my husband got a free one-way flight to Bali using Velocity points we had collected over recent trips. We've never had a problem with PB - the worst part of flying PB for us is that the flight leaves Auckland at 7am which means we have to get up a 3am and of course Murphys Law being what it is I hadn't been to bed the night before as I was delivering a baby so I left for Bali having only had 5hrs sleep in the previous 43 hrs!
Now as I posted as soon as we returned that I booked a V I P VOA for the first time and it was the best $$ we spent in Bali! By the time we arrived I was just beyond exhausted and it was such a relief not to have to wait hours and hours (as we would have had to as the queues were HUGE!)
For me the amazing thing about Bali is the despite being beyond tired as soon as we were in our drivers van taking in the sights and smells once more I felt like I could stay awake for another 48hrs!
Our first stop for 2 nights was the Kusnadi Hotel. Within 10mins of arriving we were in the pool with a drink and next stop was the massage hut - ahhh bliss!! We had two superior rooms overlooking the pool and thought it great value for money. The room was a good size and the bed was nice and comfy. The only minus it got was a shower head that squirted in every direction - our friend is a Plumber and he said he wished he'd bought a few tools! The a/c was really good and cold - in fact a little too cold so for the second night I asked for a blanket (as the bed only had a sheet) and slept much better. The buffet breakfast wasn't extensive (like at say the Kumala Pantai) but it was really nice and filling. Our second day was my birthday and I was surprised by the staff knocking on the door with the most delicious chocolate cake (with fresh cream!) that read ' Happy Birthday Ms Sheryl Wright'. Its this type of attentive service that makes Bali a stand-out - where in NZ would a hotel charging only $NZ60 an night (including high season surcharge & breakfast) turn up with a birthday cake for a first time guest staying only 2 nights!
Next stop was two nights at the Tegal Sari in Ubud. We have visited Ubud on many occasions and to be honest we couldn't understand that attraction. All I can say now is that we have seen the light! Ubud was so peaceful (and so much cooler / comfortable than Kuta) and the Tegal Sari was absolutely amazing. Despite all the good comments it receives it still exceeded my expectations and was it was well worth all the hassle of having to pre-pay to secure a room! We had ‘The Wooden Room' (#16) and I could happily have stayed for a week or more! The room had a real honeymoon feel - from the lovely deep corner bath with rice field views, to the divine four poster bed, exposed straw roof, and right out onto the huge deck with day bed and views views views! Plus it was also only a quick walk through the hotel grounds out to the Monkey Forest Road or you could catch a complimentary shuttle to Ubud Central. The only thing I didn't like about Ubud was no metre taxis - this was Ok as we mainly walked but I had some donations to take to the Birth Centre and we couldn't get a driver to take us for less than Rp80,000 despite it being only a few kms away!
From Ubud we were collected by a shuttle and were taken to Padang Bai for our fast boart transfer to Gili Trawangan. As we had planned to go out of Padang Bai and back via Benoa we booked via Island Getaway as they offered all the different fast boat operators just as cheap as booking direct. We went over to Gili T on the 'Gili Cat'. The transfer was fast but the sea was quite rough (which doesn't bother us as we are good sailors!) but it was hard on the rear end as the seats didn't have much padding and we were right up the front taking all the bounces! It seems all the operators advertise that they go ‘direct' to Gili T but as we found this means direct via Lombok LOL. Arriving at Gili T it didn't take us long to realise we were in paradise - it's just like the pictures!! It was also very hot and walking off the dock we realised we didn't know which way our hotel was! While consulting my map the Cidimo drivers approached the others and wanted Rp80K each for two carts to take us saying it was 800metres away. Meantime I asked a stallholder and we walked maybe 80metres to left and there was Scallywags! I had chosen Scallywags because I wanted a hotel with fresh water showers and a fresh water pool. At $US108.90 per night it was more than I usually spend but it was really lovely and it was a good choice, lovely rooms & pool, central location and of the delight of all that fresh water! The only minus was that the hot water is solar heated and we couldn't get a shower of consistent temperature as it fluctuated between warm & hot as the pump kicked in & out - another job for our plumber mate if only he had his tools!
We had a really relaxing time on Gili T. One day we hired (pedal) bikes and cycled around the island. Around 3/5 of the way there is either firm sand or paving so it was easy to bike - but the remaining 2/5 was soft sand so we had to push the bikes. We made some spots on the way around and did some snorkelling off the beach and it was really nice. The following day we had planned to take an organised snorkelling trip and go and explore some of the others islands but we awoke to heavy rain which continued all day so we ended up having a nice relaxing day instead which wasn't too much of a problem! All in all Gili T was a really great spot. It was certainly more pricey than Bali (eg food, massages, shopping) but it was a tropical paradise with a lovely slow pace than equals a great holiday!
Our fast boat back was with Island Getaway. This boat was a lot more comfortable but again went via Lombok (where we spent a sweltering 40mins in the boat waiting for ‘clearance' to depart) and as it returned to Benoa we were at sea a lot longer. Travelling aback to Legian the driver supplied by the fast boat company had a lovely cold which he sneezed all over us and we got to bring home as a souvenir ;-)
Back in Legian we checked into the Hotel Grand Kumala (the ‘budget' sister hotel to the Kumala Pantai). This was a really good price and well located but we found that it seemed a little ‘soulless' compared to the Kusandi (which is a similar price). Also the two pools while a good size could have done with a drain and a good scrub on the sides as there was a greasy tide-mark which I didn't like much! The one good thing here though was the restaurant which turned out really good and well priced meals.
Of course it goes without saying that a fair bit of shopping was done this trip. We once again stocked up at Ketuts Fixed price market. I had a few pairs of shoes repaired at Merry's Collection and our friends got dress leather jackets, motorbike leathers and bags made. We got a large ‘gazebo' carry bag made at Kaka Surf as well as some gun cases. Total Cushions produced 4 large outdoor cushions for our motorhome. The usual souvenirs and some jewellery we bought at Geneva as well as curtains for my office ($NZ70 for 8 tab top curtains!) The usual hundred or so D V D's from H elgie. We also returned to Aboden Motorbike shop (in Tuban) for some motor-cross gear.
For our friends a lot of their Bali time was spent having dentistry done. They had around $NZ8k of work done for $NZ2k at Bali 911 clinic at the Bali Galeria and were very happy with the work - although there was a few mis-communications as the Dentist doing the initial consultation each time spoke good English but the Dentist performing the work didn't so they both ended up with things done they didn't actually want - but came away very happy and are talking about returning for more work in the future so are very satisfied. They also both got glasses made at Optik Melawi and were thrilled. In fact just like other people we have taken to Bali in the past have said the savings more than pay for the holiday!
Our driver was once again the wonderful Wayan Adiarsa was our driver and got us safely from A to B. We ate at a variety of places and the food ranged from Ok to yummy - but all was cheap and filling with no complaints!
Returning home leaving the airport was as busy as arriving and it was pretty chaotic! We arrived 2 ½ hrs before our flight and it took us all that time to get to the gate - only to find that there were about 3 different flights leaving from the same gate so there were more long queues and it was hot and very unorganized with lots of people not sure where they were supposed to be and worrying they had missing their flights! We flew home via Melbourne with just a quick load & unload then back to cold old New Zealand (...)
While in Bali we had checked out accommodation options for a planned trip in July 2011 with our children and my sister and her children and had options A, B and C all sorted. Returning home we discussed these with my sister and went to book only to find that all three were already fully booked !!!!!! This meant we had to extend our search area and many emails later we have booked into the Yuli Bungalows in Legian (which we have never checked out before so fingers crossed!) and so the countdown to next time has started - only 318 days to go!
Im sure I've missed lots of things but this is long enough! Feel free to ask any questions.
Sheryl (NZ)