Travel Itinerary for Bali – 6-8 Days
Accommodations
Three key neighborhoods to you can find affordable and beautiful villas close to attractions and restaurants.
(1) Kuta – Spend your first or last nights in Kuta as it is the closets to the airport. They have lively entertainment and beautiful beaches nearby. For my first night we booked an awesome hotel with free transfer from airport at the Permata Kuta Hotel, approximately (30USD/per room). I enjoyed the complimentary transfer the most as I did not have to deal with the aggressive taxi drivers upon arrival (as well we arrived after midnight). During our last night stay, we also booked a villa via airbnb close to the airport. Prices in Kuta seemed to be a bit cheaper than Seminyak.
(2) Seminyak – After the first night we met up with our friends and since we had a group of 6, we were able to book private villas within our budget. We stayed in a large open air villa via flipkey (thank goodness for A/C in the rooms) in Seminyak. I was told by my local friend that Seminyak is the chic neighborhood in bali, you will find higher-end stores here.
(3) Ubud – The majority of our stay was in a luxurious private villa in Ubud overlooking the rice-paddy fields booked via airbnb. Ubud had a large street market and tons of tourists were walking up and down the main road. You can find vendors trying to sell you many tour packages here.
At all the private villas we stayed in, they all had private pools, cleaning staff every day and A/C in at least the bedrooms. Most of the villas will offer free breakfast or breakfast at an additional cost, definitely opt for this as their maid will come in during the morning and cook whichever dishes you’d like. One of the mornings we suggested eggs and bacon! The service in Bali is impeccable. We had one of our helpers bring back suckling pig (a Balinese delicacy) one night when we were feeling peckish too. On average we paid around $30 per night per person to stay at a private villa.
Things to Do
For the itinerary below, I quote all the expenses in USD.
Day 1
Spend your day soaking in all that Seminyak has to offer. We went straight to the Pantai Batubelig (becah) after breakfast. This beach was actually pretty quiet compared to what I was expecting. You will see a few merchants on the beach selling hats and sarongs, be sure to bargain. I believe hats were at 2 for $8 and sarongs at $7+. We stopped by Warung Cantina for a light lunch (their peanut sauce was amazing!) You can also find other places along the beach that offer food/drinks and a great ambience – Potato Head Beach Club, Woo Bar, La Lucciola, Ku De Ta.
You can do some shopping in Seminyak Square that is walking distance from the beach. A lot of cute cafes and shops around. In the food court in the square you can partake in cooking classes on selected days. There is a tent full of street vendors that sell accessories and beach clothes.
For dinner we went to a street vendor for some Mie Goreng and Nasi Goreng ($1.8). Then we headed to the entertainment district for some drinks. We began our night at Natys for drinks, shisha and bites. FYI – CoCo Seminyak Supermarket is right beside this restaurant in case you need to pick up any essentials or even to stock up your villa. We ended our night at Rumours Bar where you could get bottle service for $35/1L (local brand).
Day 2
The next day we woke up bright and early for a full day adventure and transfer to Ubud. We booked a van (7 seater) for a full 8 hours for $40. There are ample drivers holding up signs in all the popular streets, be sure to haggle for a good deal. We suggested to our driver we wanted some Balinese food for lunch and he brought us to Bebek Joni Restaurant. The views of this restaurant were pretty amazing – open air seating overlooking rice fields, a temple nearby, you could walk through the paddies for photos. However, I was pretty disappointed at the service of this restaurant and we all felt it was more of a tourist trap from the prices of the meals. My meal was around $15 for a drink, a soup and a main dish.
We decided to do the Ridge Walk, a 2km walk up a hill, at the end of the walk are a few restaurants overlooking the paddy fields. The bridge for this ridge walk was broken but we just hopped over a few rocks to get to the other side. Thank goodness there were a few cafes we could go to for a rest stop. We got fresh juices at Namo Warung. Small restaurant where we sat on the floor but it was elevated overlooking a lush forest. Juices were $1.5 and dishes were $2.8. Once we got to the end of the ridge walk, we stopped to enjoy the views at a corner table at Karsa Kafe. We did not want to walk back so we opted for a golfcart ride (cost required) to the main street near by and got our driver to pick us up from there. I was a bit disappointed that we had spent so much time walking to the destination only to find that you could drive to a nearby point as well.
Next we went to Monkey Forest. By the time we got here, the forest was already closed (national park). So be sure to check out this attraction before 6pm. However, we hung out nearby and there were quite a few monkeys around up to no good. Be wary of your belongings and be sure not to take photos too close!
For night time activities we stayed in the main street of Ubud where it was bustling with tourists. We ate at a restaurant called Budi’s Warung Guest House. I would not recommend this place as the food was super bland and came in such small portions. I had a steamed fish wrapped in banana leaves (their most popular choice) for $5.5. After dinner, we decided to get massages and finally found a place that was able to accommodate our group of 6. We were to Carla’s (a popular chain in Bali) and got full-body massages for approx. $8/hr.
Day 3
The next day we woke up bright and early to go on our first water excursion in Bali. I was going scuba diving for the first time ever! We booked our trip with Aqua Marine Diving which includes 2 dives, guided instructors, transfers from our villa, and all equipment and lunch for $135 USD. I am so glad I was able to check this off my bucket list. My private guide Jackie dived with me and helped calm me down when I felt anxious. He was excellent! Jane was our coordinator for the day and we chatted until we arrived back at our villa.
We took an hour or so of rest time in our villa. During this time, I saw a group of locals flying their kites. I went over and talked with them for a bit and learned more about the art of kite flying. Its so popular in Bali, you will always see some kites in the sky (even when it looks like its about to rain!).
For dinner we walked to a nearby restaurant called Ibu Mangu, There really only have 2 things on the menu – Nasi Ayum Campur or Nasi Ayum Pisah. The only difference we found was the Campur was all mixed together vs the Pisah has the rice separate (apparently it was a bigger portion too). The best part of this meal was our table where we sat inside a temple and next to the fountain with the Koi fish. The meal was super affordable too at $2.5.
Day 4
We rented scooters for the day from a nearby shop (Scooter Café) for $6. The gas to fill up only cost us $2 and we only used 1/3 tank for the day. First stop we went to Tegenungan Waterfall. We were able to see the Blansinga Waterfall up close from the bottom, the middle and the top. (extra $1 to access the middle and top). We saw a few guides taking their guests through the way from the top to get to the bottom to avoid the extra fee. The GPS coordinates to get to this free spot is -8.575270, 115.291621 just off of Jl. Raya Blangsinga Road. There is a large parking lot there.
Next we went to Goa Gajah by scooter to see the temple and elephant cave. We had to wear sarongs that were provided for free if you were showing your knees. (even for guys).
For dinner we went to the best meal we had in Bali – Bale Udang Mang Engking Ubud. It was highly rated on tripadvisor and I think it is a bit touristy. However, the food was superb and the views were so amazing. Rice paddies all around and the tables were on floating islands with hundreds of koi fish around. We (admittedly) fed the fish our leftovers and they went crazy for the food. After looking at a billboard, I found out that you can dip your feet into the water and have the fish eat the dead skin! To be honest, the fish there was so aggressive and hungry, I would be a little afraid to do that. Nonetheless the meal and service was great, we opted for a family sharing meal for 6-7 people which included all the fixings like skewers, different kinds of fish, prawns, veggies, and more.
Day 5
We started our day at 2 AM, in preparation of the epic hike up Mt.Batur. We arrived at the bottom of the mountain at around 3 AM and we started our race against the sun. Our guide gave us flashlights and water bottles. Our group of 6 had a guide in the front and a guide at the back. I was glad we started early compared to the other groups as I took my time and took a few more rest breaks than the rest of my group. During your hike remember to take some time to turn off all the lights and just look up! We were so lucky to get a clear sky and my friend pointed out the bright Jupiter. Once we reached the top our guides were fast at work in the shed to get breakfast going and the hot beverages. The hot chocolate that I got was so divine. They charge $3 for the hot beverages if you were not part of the tour. It was so cold up there, be sure to bring a change(you will sweat in your current clothes) or layers for clothing. I’d bring a down jacket but the only downside is I would have to carry it up and down the mountain too. The sun started to come up around 6AM and the sky lit up with so many beautiful colors. By the time we started taking group photos the sun was already up fully and it began to feel warm. With our guide we started to descend the mountain, he showed us different parts of the mountain, the steam vents they boiled our eggs in, and we visited some monkeys residing on the mountain. At 1717 above sea level, we conquered Mt. Batur.
Once we reached our driver, as part of the tour, he also brought us to the Luwak Coffee Plantation (OKA Agriculture Bali) where we taste-tested more than a dozen different kinds of Balinese coffees and teas compliementary. You can see a few of these caged cats who eat the beans and then poo it out to make the luwak coffee bean. I found this place to be too touristy and the prices were significantly higher than at the local supermarket. Our driver recommended us to go to Warung Makan Teges for lunch on the way. They had good dishes and only 1 item on the menu which was a Campur with the meat skewer. It was authentically local which we all enjoyed. The Mt.Batur adventure with the Coffee Plantation trip and transfers were approx $50 USD each person. Although, I have read other blogs and you can haggle them to $35.
Once we reached our villa, we spent some time taking underwater photos and playing games. Have you guys ever played underwater Charades using underwater cameras?! It was ridiculously fun. After some time we headed to dinner at a nearby Asian Eatery called Bo & Bun. They had lovely viet food and I really enjoyed the Vietnamese style bun.
Day 6
For lunch we headed to Fat Gajah nearby our villa in Seminyak. They had some good squid ink noodles. However, it is a little bit pricey compared to the Warungs of Bali. We ordered Grabb to go to Kuta Beach for some surfing lessons and fun in the sun. There were so many vendors that offer surfing lessons, be sure to haggle. We got our lessons for $10 pp but I am sure you can get a much better deal.
By 4 o clock we headed to the Kuta Sea Turtle Society. Follow them on facebook to find out the dates they release sea turtles. I was lucky enough to witness 2 sea turtle releasings during my stay in Bali. A donation is encouraged and you get to personally release 1 sea turtle into the ocean. Amazing experience and really hope my lil guy makes it.
We went to the Kuta market after to bargain for some souvenirs and clothes. The stalls are all pretty much the same so you can always go to the next store to see if they can offer you a better deal.
For dinner we went to Warung Ladhu for some Nasi Goreng, Rendang, and the favorites. We went across the street for massages and some pampering for the night! Oh and also throughout the days here, we went to Bintang Supermarket to pick up snacks, alcohol and souvenirs.
Others
8 days was surely not enough time to explore Bali. Other things on my list are: eating at the Jimbarans (seafood). Checking out the famous Bali Swings. Tanah Lot (the temple on the water) and staying at a local Yoga Retreat.
Until next time!
