There’s everything you need to know before going to Bali. It’s a beautiful island and 100% worth traveling to, but it does get over glamorized. To hear my tips after spending a few days there.
Number one, it is not going to be a budget trip. The prices are overall great compared to many countries, but it’s not as cheap as some people make it out to be. The nice accommodations you see on TikTok, like resorts and Villas, are usually at least $400 per night. And everything you do on the island cost money. Every scenic Instagrammable photo spot will have a worker. They’re charging money. Even hikes and waterfalls will all have an entrance fee anywhere from one to ten dollars per person each time. To give an example, when I visited the tagline Rice Fields, the interview was a few dollars per person. The swing was another $10 per person. And paying the photographer was another $5 per person.
These are all small costs, but they do add up. Number two, speaking of money, almost everything requires cash. Very few places there accept credit cards. We just use the ATM at our resort, which is super convenient. Avoid going to money exchangers. They usually charge super high fees. So just go to Atms instead.
No. 3, where should you stay? The options are endless. And I did a lot of research on this before going. Location wise, it depends on how many days you’re going for. We only went for five nights, so it made more sense to just stay in one place than to move around the island. I recommend staying in a boot if you’re only going to be staying in one place because it is in the center of Bali. So it will be the easiest to drive to the other areas of the island from here.
If we went for longer, I would have spent a few days in seminar or uluwatu and then a few days in a boot or even more north. We stayed in Padma Resort Abood and absolutely loved it. We never experienced service like theirs before. They made our whole vacation so luxurious and it was the best decision number for how to get around.
The island is bigger than it seems. It can actually take four hours to get from one end to the other. And some of the areas can also have pretty heavy traffic. We hired a private driver, and this made things so convenient, especially because we were only there for few days and wanted to see as much as we could. We paid the driver about 50 to 60 dollars per day and he spent like 10 hours with us daily driving very far distances.
Alternatively, you could use Gogic or grab for rides as needed, which are also pretty cheap. That’s basically their version of Uber. There’s no actual Uber app. There’s basically no public transport system in Bali. And I do not recommend renting your own car because driving is pretty crazy over there.
No. 5, Bali is popular for these pictures at gates such as the Handara Gate and the Lempoyang Temple Gate. Just know that you will have to wait around two hours at each of these gates in line for a picture. They will charge an entry fee per person and an add you to the queue and then you wait for your number to get called. And also the reflection on water that you see in everyone’s picture is unfortunately fake. It’s just a camera effect. They place a mirror under your phone camera when taking the picture for you. So it looks like there’s this water under your reflection.
No.6, Nusa Panita, which is a nearby island that is another popular tourist destination. I wish someone told me how bumpy the roads there are with lots of potholes. The roads are very narrow. So the cars to rate frequently too. If you have motion sickness, just beware, especially combined with the speedboat that takes you to the island.
I do think the view at Kellin King Beach makes this island worth visiting. Its breathtaking. However, if I could go back in time, I would skip Diamond and ATA Beach on East News Appanita, as they are very similar to the Kellenking beach, but much further away. The hike down is also very steep. I was not brave enough to do it. But I have heard that they’re installing a glass elevator to access the beach without needing to hike down No. 7.
When you arrive to the Denpasar airport, you can actually skip the long customs lines by filling out your visa on arrival form online as soon as I landed, there was a sign with a link to the visa website that I followed. That saves so much time because we were able to go through the automated gates. After that, the visa cost about $40 per person.
FYI No. 8, if your Muslim, Bali is a very convenient place in many ways. There were Muslim showers in all washrooms. The snacks and convenience stores were all halal, like even the gummy bears and so on. Babali is predominantly Hindu and mostly to slaughtered on the island, so it is not always halal. In our experience, meat was usually halal, but you just need to confirm as it is not the default over there.
No.9, how to avoid Bali Belly. We successfully survived our trip without Bali Belly, which we were so happy about, to be honest. The main precaution we took was that we mainly just ate at our resort as we felt safest eating there. When we did eat outside, I made sure to read the Google reviews for each place. No. 10, lastly, have the best time. If you’re willing to spend some money, you can get the type of luxurious experience that would be difficult to afford in other countries, which is what makes Bali so amazing. I will post an itinerary video for everything we did during our five days in Bali very soon.