Resort and Spa Bali, this innovative open-top bar is perched. 14 meters above Jimbaran Bay on a rocky outcrop at the bas
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BALI Destination Guide
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BALI FAST TRACK IMMIGRATION balivipservice.com is essential. They eliminate you having to queue up for your VOA (Visa on Arrival) and immigration clearance . After greeting you off the flight, they provide a fast track route through Immigration, Customs and personal assistance with visa-on-arrival. You do not have to stand in the normal immigration line, and are escorted quickly and easily through the immigration process. They use VIP facilities; fast track channels; and crew, diplomatic, or first class lines. Our contact’s name is Hadi. The price is USD25 per person for the visa (any age) and AUD 30 per person for the service. For further information send an email to
[email protected]
DAY TOURS AND TRAVEL AROUND BALI INDI-GO Tours We have a company who’s office is located in our hotel that we use for transfers and getting around Bali. The drivers are safe and speak English and we have never had any problems. We would recommend hiring them to do any tours for you on a private basis, then you can travel at your own pace. The manager’s name is Ayub. EMAIL:
[email protected] PH: +62 8124684279 The price for Car Charter with English Speaking Driver is approximately: Half Day (5 Hours)
Rp 300.000 (Approx US$ 30)
Full Day (8 Hours
Rp 450.000 (Approx US$ 45)
Extra Hour
Rp 50.000/Hour (Approx : US$ 5)
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BALI RESTAURANTS AND BARS KU DE TA
TRATTORIA
One of our favourites, beachfront, right next to the Oberoi Hotel. The modern architecture and interior design of the bar and dining areas go well with the “fusion cuisine” of the chef. The interesting wine list features many wines from Australia, California, Chile, France, Italy, New Zealand and South Africa and, like the meals, are pricey. There is a bar and comfortable deck chairs right on the beach to watch Bali’s famous sunsets and is THE place to go for ex pats on a Sunday afternoon.
Located in Jalan Laksmana and is the ultimate in cheap and cheerful Italian cuisine. Great for families or a quick meal. Pasta is made fresh daily under the supervision of the Italian owner. Pizzas are served on a thin crispy crust. We always manage to eat here once during a stay in Bali and are always amazed at how cheap it is!
LA LUCCIOLA Another special place – breakfast, lunch or dinner. The restaurant’s beachfront location (right next to The Legian) affords great ocean views, afternoon sea breezes and a great casual atmosphere. Reservations for dinner are a must and should be done in advance. There are no reservations for lunch or breakfast. There is a nice bar for Pre-Dinner drinks too! BREEZE Beachside restaurant looking over Seminyak Beach offers an exotic international and local dishes for breakfast, lunch, and romantic sunset dinner. The beach front setting, great sunset views and the sound of the waves make this one of Bali’s most romantic places to dine. The menu here, that Chef Michael Shaheen has put together, is an interpretation of Euro-American hints of the Tex Mex (sounds strange but well worth a visit). SARONG Bali’s newest uber cool restaurant in Seminyak. Chef Will Meyrick’s amazing menu crosses over the Flavours of China, Thailand, Malaysia and India. The starters and salads were amazing. JL PETITENGET NO.19X, KEROBOKAN, KUTA. PH: (361) 737 809
MADE’S WARUNG Seminyak and in central Kuta near the Bemo Corner has been an institution in Kuta since the early 70’s. This has been THE place to see and be seen for nearly 30 years. In the early days, MADE’S was the only ‘after-hours’ place in Kuta. Great Indonesian food. The owners Peter and Made opened in August 1996 a new, quite similar but larger and more comfortable MADE’S WARUNG in Basangkasa, Seminyak. MÉTIS Is the latest creation from Chef Nicolas ‘Doudou’ Tourneville. Formerly of Kafe Warisan, brings his legendary talent and culinary artistry to the table with a masterful combination of French Mediterranean cuisine. Flawless service in one of Bali’s most elegantly sophisticated settings is just the beginning of this seduction into the depths of the five senses. JL PETITENGET NO.6 KEROBOKAN KELOD. PH: +62 361 4737 888 POTATO HEAD BEACH CLUB The newest and sharpest place to hang out in Bali. Opened in December 2010, the building is an art installation in itself, with walls made of industrial concrete and adorned with hundreds of rustic, mismatched window shutters. Once inside the almost bunker-like exterior, the vibe is warm and funky, with vintage furniture, cool retro lighting, and staff who go completely out of their way to make sure you’re fed and watered. By day, Potato Head is super family-friendly, with a beachside infinity pool, great bar menu and vast grassy area. And you can only imagine the chaotic parties that kick off after dark, thanks to an expansive bar, resident DJs and whopping sound system.
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BALI RESTAURANTS AND BARS (CONT)
MASSAGE
THE ROCK BAR
MARTHA TILAAR SALON & SPA
Often credited as being Bali’s best bar. Located at the AYANA Resort and Spa Bali, this innovative open-top bar is perched 14 meters above Jimbaran Bay on a rocky outcrop at the base of towering cliffs. Great cocktail and Tapas menu. Sunset is the busiest time, from 5.30pm but after-dark is just as magical with twinkling stars above and the spot-lit ocean in front, and the cooler night air. Smart attire is required - no singlets, boardshorts or alcohol-branded attire.
There are so many options for massage and body treatments in Bali. Most hotels have beautiful spas but prices are high, accordingly. Without going down on the beach, we’ve found this one has the most pleasant surroundings and is great value. They will pick up and drop off at hotel if requested.
BALI DELI
BEACH HAWKERS – IN FRONT OF THE LEGIAN
Where you go when looking for those things you’ve forgotten. You can get anything here from Aerogard to Vegemite and Coon cheese! Don’t make a bad coffee and have some nice pastries. Most ex pats shop here as do a lot of people staying in Villas. GROCER AND GRIND Our latest discovery in Seminyak, serving great breakfasts and casual lunches and very nice coffee (a hard thing to find in Bali). Run by an Australian lady, it has a delicatessen as well and is certainly worth a visit. Located in Jl Jati no3X Petitenget Beach, Seminyak, we found it a good breakfast alternative to the hotel and a ¼ of the price! NOTE ABOUT ALCOHOL Wine is very expensive at most restaurants. It is not unusual to see Jacobs Creek for about $80 AUD. There are bottle shops in Bali now – one next to Bintang Supermarket, Seiminyak. They didn’t have a bad selection of Australian wines, starting from about A$40 per bottle. Many restaurants will allow you to BYO but do keep in mind that corkage can be anywhere from nothing to US$25 per bottle.
JL RAYA BASANGKASA 30A, SEMINYAK PH: 731 463 OR 731 464
Massage – RPH 50,000 Tina Pedicure (including painting) – RPH 50,000 Cilla is fast, efficient and quite safe.
LEATHER I wouldn’t say that any of the leather in Bali is fantastic quality, but the value for money is certainly there. The guys we recommend here have done work for many of our friends. They speak good English and prices are good. We recommend taking a sample of the garment you want copied or at least a photo. The last jacket I had recently copied was A$120. Make sure you ask for details such as type of zips, pockets etc. I go to ALFIN LEATHER in Jalan Melasti (opposite the Art Market and near Wida Hotel). I have anything made from jackets, to bags to satchels for work and even leather pants a few years back! When ordering anything, tell them that they have to have it ready 24 hours before you really need to as there is usually some additional alterations required.
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BALI HOTELS THE LEGIAN, SEMINYAK JALAN KAYU AYA, SEMINYAK BEACH, 80361 PH: (62361)730622 WWW.GHMLUXURYHOTELS.COM/LEGIANBALI This is our favourite place to stay in Bali. Right on the beach, good restaurants are 5 minutes away and close to all the shopping. The rooms are spacious and they have a range of hotel suites and 1 and 2 bedroom apartments, which is great for families. To us it is like “coming home”!. BULGARI HOTELS & RESORTS BALI JALAN GOA LEMPEH BANJAR DINAS KANGIN, ULUWATU PH: (62361) 8471000 WWW.BULGARIHOTELS.COM This hotel is amazingly beautiful and in an amazing location on the cliff top at Uluwatu – This area is rapidly growing. It is a famous surfing area but a lot of the wealthy expats and now hotels and villas are being developed. WIDA HOTEL JALAN MELASTI 36 LEGIAN 80361 PH: +62 361 759 866 This is our little hotel in Jalan Melasti, right in the centre of Legian. It is a budget hotel but at A$60 per night, including breakfast, you can’t beat it for value. The architects involved in the refurbish are the same architects that did the Four Seasons in Bali and whilst obviously no comparison, what they did with the budget was amazing. The Manager is Steve. For cheap Bali clothes, you can’t beat the markets in Melasti. Here you will get little cotton dresses for kids for about A$2 and Ladies $6. Cheap knock-off boardies and surf shirts are about $5. Often you have to ask for the brand names (Billabong etc), which they’ll have out the back. Also some good cheapie stores in Jalan Padma.
SHOPPING In Jalan Melasti there is a good kid’s clothing stores called Indigo Kids – they have some nicer Bali dresses and some cute kid’s board shorts and bikinis. Down this way there are a few nicer stores on Legian (turn right at Jalan Legian). These can be a bit hit and miss but last time I got some nice fine cotton voile dresses at IO& CO. There was also another store on Jalan Legian on the opposite side of the road called Ming, which had some pretty “out there” more formal type dresses for next to nothing! The designer from Ming was awarded the Indonesian designer of the year. For the nicer stores, head further up Jalan Legian to Seminyak (I normally ask the taxi to let me off at Bintang Supermarket and keep heading up from there). There is a lot of same, same stores but you usually find some nice pieces. Biasa has some lovely things - owned by a European lady - Beautiful cool cotton fabrics. You’ll find not only clothes but some nice little home ware stores with placemats, napkin rings, bowls etc up this way too. Jalan Laksmana has some nicr stores too. There is a great little children store called Kids-a-GoGo that you offer better quality. They now export to Australia and I have seen the label in some Sydney and Noosa stores. Sizes are limited. For copy handbags and wallets, head to Discovery Department stores. They have copies of everything. I wouldn’t say the best copies and certainly not cheap, cheap. You can barter a little with these guys. It’s hard to say what you should pay for anything in Bali as it is all subjective and depends how much you want it but as rule, when they give you a price, cut it to a third and work up from there. I usually try to get for about 50% of the initial asking price but often pay more if I think the situation warrants it.
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BALI MONEY CHANGING On arrival, best to get some money changed and the money changers which are just through customs. Rates aren’t bad but just get enough to get you by. After years of searching for the best exchange rates on the street and having numerous arguments about additional commission rates (after you’ve been there for 10 minutes in a hot little room in a back lane somewhere) and “creative money exchanging” via other methods, I only go to official money changers or banks now. Depending where I am, I go to either one on Jalan Melasti (on the right hand side, through the main intersection of Legian and Melasti, heading away from the beach) or another one diagonally opposite Bintang Supermarket in Seminyak (on opposite side of the road – heading down Jalan Legian).
MEDICAL ASSISTANCE BIMC – BALI INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL CENTRE JL BYPASS NGURAH RAI 100X, KUTA PH: 761 263 – 24 HOURS With Australian staff, this is the medical centre that most travel insurance companies will refer you to. It is most important to contact your travel insurance company before visiting a doctor for their medical staff’s recommendation
BABY SITTER Made Rusniati PH: +6281 55798913 I obtained this lady on a stay at The Legian. Her and her sister were very reliable and the kids loved them.
