Hubby (15th trip), 10 year old son (5th trip) and I (20th trip) flew out of Perth with Airasia on 27th December. Flight was delayed about 10 - 15 minutes as we were waiting for one lady whose hubby was already on the plane. She walked on like nothing was going on - very frustrating as we just wanted to be gone.
Arrived in Bali almost on time. We were last off the plane but still only took us about 30 minutes to get out of the airport. We stayed at Masa Inn in Kuta. We had booked the family room overlooking Poppies many months ago; we love this room and especially the balcony and this is our 4th time in that particular room.
We were so glad to have the balcony during New Year's Eve which was an absolute spectacle - the fireworks went on for hours and were all around us.
Breakfast at Masa has changed and is very yummy now. You have a choice of a cereal, including porridge, coco pops or corn flakes, a hot dish and juice, all served with toast and a croissant. They also have a buffet two days per week. Very nice surprise.
The rates have just gone up at Masa but as we booked early we only had to pay the old rates. There is no wifi at Masa and even though we paid for wifi from n-codes we really struggled to pick up a signal.
Hubby had terrible facebook withdrawal!!
Some of the things we did:
Kintamani - Spent a day going to Kintamani. We paid a driver 500 000rp and had a lovely trip up and back. Ate at one of the touristy restaurants overlooking the lake and volcano - it was quite yummy and none of us got sick. The view was spectacular and son was impressed.
Waterbom - paid with Visa card and got a 10% discount. Hired a gazebo near the lazy river. There are different prices for these - I think ours was 225 000rp and we got 75 000rp back for the deposit. New ride, the Climax, was 'totally awesome' according to my thrill-seeking husband.
Rafting - bargained with Mr Smile (tour guy opposite Masa) and we paid 270 000rp each including lunch. I'm sure people have paid less, but we were very happy with the price and the service. Rafted down the Telaga Waja River. No steps at all at the start just walked along a short path. Steps at the end were seriously slippery, very, very narrow and a straight drop to the river below down one side. About 150 up to the restaurant, then 100 more to the top.
Lunch was a buffet - very tasty - drinks were charged separately. My 10 year old said this was one of the best days of his life - he absolutely loved it. Felt very safe all of the time in the hands of the guide. We were all in bare feet, but would suggest footwear (not thongs) as the bottom of the river really hurt our feet when we got out for a drink and to have our photo taken under the waterfall.
Bali Safari and Marine Park - bargained with Mr Smile again and paid 270 000rp each ($30Aus) for the basic package that included the Safari journey (1 trip around was enough for us), 1 animal encounter (you could pay for more if you wished quite cheaply), 1 fun ride (we went on the log flume - you could pay for more rides very cheaply) and entry into the water park.
We booked the shuttle through Mr Smile - this is really important to make sure you get a seat. We walked to Inna Kuta and were picked up at 9.30am. When we arrived at Bali Safari we had to line up to get out wristbands - took about 10 minutes. You need to book the return shuttle before you enter the main park area. We booked to return at 5.30pm, but decided to leave early - no problems, they just fitted us onto the earlier shuttle. Return shuttles leave at 2.00pm, 3.15pm, 4.30pm & 5.30pm.
Good fun - we were glad we only booked the basic package and the shuttle - probably saved us around 350 000rp and was a nice air-conditioned ride there and back.
Shopping - didn't do too much as I had only been to Bali in October but these were some of the prices we paid:
t-shirts 45 000rp
singlets 25 - 35 000rp
dresses (smock style) 40 000rp
sunglasses 25 000rp
Bali thongs 15 000rp
sequin thongs 25 - 30 000rp
sarongs 20 000rp
belts 40 000rp
boys elastic waist shorts 30 000rp
sandstone candle holders 50 - 75 000rp
We moved to Sanur on 5th January - the first time any of us had stayed anywhere besides Kuta. I had booked a deluxe seaview room at Respati Hotel. Room was lovely, more like a suite, right next to the pool and about 50m from the beach. We swam in the ocean each day and even had a morning cuppa on the beach our last day. The location of this hotel is perfect, near the Sindhu Beach markets and some great restaurants.
Cannot speak highly enough of Jenny at No29 Sindhu Beach markets - she is just so lovely and helpful and we loved that at the end of our holiday we didn't need to bargain - we did our last bit of shopping there - great quality, nice variety, excellent prices.
Husband bought 2 larger sized outdoor Bali garden lanterns, black coconut husk roof, from a small shop near Hardys - 135 000rp each. They were boxed up for us for 10 000rp each. Very easy and a great price. Unfortunately one had small bore holes when they were checked at Perth on our return. They both had to be fumigated at a cost of $30.
Sanur was extremely peaceful and relaxing - but for us, we certainly prefer the hustle and bustle and the busyness of Kuta. It was a nice way to end our holiday but I am glad we were only there for a couple of days.
Flight home was delayed on departure as we had to be bused out to the plane, but we landed on time. Took us nearly 2 hours to get through customs and immigration as about 5 planes had landed at the same time.
I only used ATMs and calculated that I was getting about 9090rp exchange rate. I have recently got a NAB visa debit card - costs $10per month, but there are no fees at all for any overseas transactions. Probably saved me about $120 in overseas ATM and transaction fees.
A wonderful time was had by all!!