For eating at Jimbaran, I used to recommend Lia Cafe, which we have frequented many many times
but I wouldn't recommend them anymore this time round

Arrived by Grab just before sunset, didn't book any table, so the guy at the store front just ask us to pick any empty table on the beach, saw an empty table at the 2nd row, and sat down. Since there are 4 of us, and the table only has 2 chairs, saw another empty table with 4 chairs, but instead of taking the chairs myself, I asked a waiter at the next table attending to a group for permission, he wasn't talking to the guests, but just waiting for order while the guest are still flipping thru the menu, I politely asked him, "pak, bisa ambil kerusi dari meja sana?" Instead of entertain me, he just show me the hand, telling me rudely that he's still serving that table then ignore me

Fine, I went back to my table and waited, few mins later he came over, asking again if I have booking or not, I answered no, then his face immediately change and asked us to change table to the row further back, claiming that table is already booked. I argued with him that inside told me to grab any empty table, and this table doesn't have any reserved sign, then his face changed even more busuk, showing an even more annoyed face, raised his voice again telling that table is booked without showing us to the next available table.

Fine again, I doesn't want to confront him in front my kids & spoil my family trip with a good sunset view, I went inside, look for another waiter, which is 1000% more friendly, and show us a table, we ordered a set for 2, extra clams & squids. We realized the price has increased a lot more since our last visit few years back, it's no longer worth the price & the trip anymore.

The grilled fish (sea bass) on our set wasn't fresh, which is very mushy, complaint to the waiter, and they push the blame to the supplier claiming it's beyond their control
We used to love their grilled clams, but it wasn't the case this time round, the food quality this time round was substandard, higher priced, and with a very rude waiter that spoilt our overall experience.

I've heard about some local Balinese have different treatment against Indonesian, which discriminate them, and I've encountered that treatment directly at Lia Cafe, as most of the locals mistaken me for Indon when I speak to them in Bahasa (even I'm an Malaysian Chinese, but a bit tanned with some facial hair ) but the other local that thought I'm also a local tourist gave me better service, even local cheaper price, easier to haggle for price at local market as well, But this Lia Cafe waiter is the only one that left us with an unpleasant experience.

This will be the last time we visit them.

For airport transport, sim card/wifi, and some activities, I'll recommend to book from Klook

our Klook airport transfer shows up on time, and their fare are very reasonable as well.

Indo has change their sim card policy not so long ago, used to be able to buy any sim card cheaply almost anywhere, but that's not the case anymore, as all new sim card requires registration to activate.
The one at the airport at arrival is super expensive, wouldn't recommend them as well, you can ask your driver to help you get one, or hunt for a mobile phone shop, which the price is more reasonable and they can help to register as well, just make sure you have your passport with you.
Avoid those selling at roadside stalls, most are selling at cut throat price, as mostly are pre-registered, anything wrong with that card mean it's as good as wasted, as it wasn't registered under your name. I saw Klook also have some sim/wifi package for pick-up at KLIA/Bali airport

We book a Ayung River white water rafting via Klook as well, definitely cheaper than going to those road side "tourist information center", much cheaper than the package offered by our driver/Galung as well.

PS: I don't work for Klook, neither do I get any commission from them

traffic in Bali, it's getting crazier, a lot more bikes & cars on the road compared to my last few visits years back, and the bikers are getting more crazier. Had a chance to try their Grabbike in Ubud to tapao dinner, that short 3km ride already almost gave me a heart attack as a pillion rider! somemore it's 9pm in Ubud! can't imagine if it's during peak hours in Kuta or more populated area.

If you have limited experience in riding a motorbike, and you're planning to rent a bike? please don't! I've personally witness a few motorbike accidents involving both locals & tourists. If you drop by local hospital's A&E, you'll see most of the patients are road accident victims.

And most motorbike rental, they don't care if you have your license with you or not, just don't pretend you're local Indonesian, you'll get rejected for rental if they thought you're Indonesian.

yes, now it's already included in your airfare

checking in at the new airport also a lot more easier & stress free compared to the old airport last time, lesser security checks now

This post has been edited by greyshadow: Jun 26 2018, 05:26 PM

Number of days will depends on your area of interest, if you like the hustles & bustles of Kuta or the quiet & serenity of Ubud, and wanna just explore that one place, then 3 or 4 days is just enough.
But if you planning to visit a few places, put in a least a week to explore more. Bear in mind you already lost one day at the airport.

For transport, easiest way is to hire a driver, they aren't that expensive either, max around IDR500k per day, that's around RM150 per day according to the current exchange rate. But driver's quality aren't consistent, I used Ketut Galung's service before, I'm lucky to get a ok driver, while some others didn't. But I won't recommend Ketut Galung's service to anyone else, cause I'm suspecting he's exploiting his fleet of drivers.

If you're adventurous, rent a self drive car is another option, 7 seaters Daihatsu Xenia is about RM80 per day, and you don't need international license to rent one, just your malaysian license is good enough, but most renter won't bother also. But the traffic in Bali is very chaotic, it's getting worse each year, IMO might be worse than Bangkok, for many drivers traffic lights at small junctions are just for reference only, you can see many run the red light without bothering to stop, and you'll need to have the guts to make a U-turn at a super busy dual carriageway with 2 lanes. Renting a bike is not recommended, unless you're a very seasoned biker.

Public transport is another story here, if grabbing taxi, make sure it's Bluebird and Bluebird only, they are the only few that uses meter with reasonable fare, there are some fake bluebird taxis out there, bluebiro is one of it, looks the same, same color, similar logo as well, but they don't use meter and will slaughter you kau-kau. Grab is available, cheapest alternative to taxi, but not welcome by the local taxi driver there, they will harass any grab driver/passenger is they found one, there are few cases of assaults previously. If you wanna call Grab, just make sure you get the car far away from any Taxi stand, or without any taxi touts in sight. There are few places you can't get the service, or very hard to, Ubud is hard to get, and some drivers I've encountered are a real assholes compared to our local one, screen showing 10 minutes to arrive, they can take their own sweet sweet time to get to you, even a big detour to get to you, half an hour later still haven't arrive, I've cancelled many just for waited too long. But Grab have a cheap ride if you're travelling alone & light, call their Grabbike, cheaper & faster, but just ready your heart for a scary ride of your lifetime

it's unpredictable, no one can tell, could be cleared tomorrow, could be last for months

but Bali is still safe even you're on the island now, it's just the ash disrupting the air traffic, just stay away from the Mt Agung area and you should be fine

I was diving in Tulamben 3 weeks ago when Mt Agung "released steam" again, but that was for a day only and has no impact at all, but I doubt the area like Amed, Tulamben will be accessible since the warning has escalated to Orange.

change enough rupiah locally to bring over, avoid the money changer there
if you have cimb or maybank, use the atm card withdrawal there as secondary backup
and bring MYR as last backup, they accept MYR, but lots of conmen changer

get a private pool villa at Uluwatu cliff, plenty to choose from accordingly to your budget

ultimate sunset from the cliff, and you can skinny dip in your private pool anytime

plenty of private villas that fits into your budget

the price you pay will depends on your priority, ease of access, privacy, ultimate view or serenity

for serenity, go for Ubud, you can get a quiet pool villa among the paddy field

Ultimate view will be Uluwatu area, some with access to the beach (short walk/shuttle)

Ease of access will be Seminyak area, near to the beach & night life, but can be noisy

If you just want a beach front hotel room, plenty to choose from, if budget allows, Nusa Dua area for nice beach
Sanur for more budgeted rooms but ease of access

I won't recommended Kuta for a romantic getaway, too chaotic and noisy, traffic is a nightmare there as well

not much activities around sukawati beside the market

you can try airbnb also, you might be able to land some good deal there

take your time, plenty of choices there

since you're looking for a romantic getaway, sure you'll be spending most of the time staying in, right
so access to surrounding area shouldn't be a priority for you
most hotel/villa provides shuttle service to PoI nearby anyway
or just hire a driver like most of us do, usual rate is around RM150 per day

you can fit in lake bratan + Ulu danu in the same trip to Kintamani
it's in the same direction after kintamani
avoid lunch at kintamani or tegal lalang, most of expensive and awful

your 11 trip half day can kautim
you'll need to decide where you wanna see the sunset, either at Uluwatu or at Jimbaran while you dine on the beach

your itinerary is not "smooth"
you don't need whole morning at Kintamani, nothing much to see there actually
mostly it's just a photo stop
you can go to Ubud area in the morning first, and kintamani, bratan in the afternoon
anyway, if you gotten Arief for your trip already, he'll help you to arrange your itinerary, just tell him where you wanna go, and he'll arrange
Makan in Ubud, try the famous Ibu Oka Babi Guling in Ubud, it's our must eat beside Naughty Nuri

if the highlight is the view, why bother having a crappy & expensive lunch there

there are much better lunch option elsewhere

His service is the cheapest, but I won't recommend him
there's a very good reason why he's the cheapest, it's by exploiting his fleet of drivers
read here
https://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?act=ST&f...post&p=89299178

yup, Waterbom is the best fun our family ever had in Bali

facilities are well maintained & safe, water & park is super clean, staffs are super friendly as well
food sold inside also not bad, but of course la, standard park price which is more expensive compared to outside food.

we played from opening till closing time, would highly recommend you guys to book a bale early on,
it came with a small safe, where you can safe keep your valuables like wallets & phones, also it's shaded & cooling place to rest or take a short nap especially for little ones when they are tired from playing
and if you ordered food, they can deliver to your bale also

No wonder it's voted as the best water park in Asia by tripadvisor, and among the top 5 in the world

definitely beats all of the water parks we've been to, and will re-visit again if we are in Bali again

depends on the purpose of travelling

for me it's Ubud among the three option, for peace, quiet and serenity

Seminyak will be more happening for those party goers looking for more fun

I've rented their car and self drive there twice, no you don't need an international license to drive there, most car rental companies will accept our Malaysia driving license
some doesn't even check your license

anyway, depending on your driving skills and drive there at your own risk, some of the roads can be pretty narrow especially at the rural area, and some of their drivers attitude is worse than ours, you'll be using the honk a lot just like the locals
traffic rules are generally the same like ours, but watch out for traffic light junctions, some will just run the red lights without any care at all, some of the traffic designs also doesn't make sense to us, like you can make a U-turn on a busy fast moving 6 lanes highway

I no longer self drive after they increase their petrol prices which is a lot more expensive than ours, not to mention most rentals are manual, you'll need to pay extra for auto which are not that common as well

for a peace of mind especially if you're travelling with family, better hire a supir there

if you're still young and have confidence in your driving skills, can try driving there

you can go Bali anytime of the year
December weather it's the same with December in Malaysia, just best avoid water activities due to choppier sea
it's consider peak tourist season also, as it will be flooded with lots of mat sallehs are it's their year end holiday seasons, most hotels are more expensive than usual

depends on your taste, imo I'll just skip besakih as it's overrated and expensive
there are plenty of smaller and beautiful temples around in Bali

lempuyang is too far isolated from the rest of the attractions, and drivers will charge you extras just to go there, IMO aint worth it to spend all those travelling time to go there just to see the gate, unless you're into photography, on a nice day you can take killer shots there, but on a cloudy days its just meh