Experiences Using Uber in Bali
 

I noticed Uber Black has launched in Bali and was wondering if anyone had any experiences using it? Specifically:

-Can they pick me up at DPS?
-Would they be willing to wait for me if I asked them to take me to Uluwatu or Tanah Lot or somewhere at the going rate on the Uber website of 600 Rupiah per minute?
-How hard is it to get one outside of the main areas of Denpasar and Kuta?

Bali - it seems that every second male person in Bali is a transport boy!!!!

There are more Bluebird (best taxi company) taxis on the rd than you can shake a stick at, and outside every hotel is a cluster of transport boys all offering you transport.

Every time you get into a taxi, you will be asked the same questions

Where you from?

First time in Bali?

What is your program?

The first two are easy to answer, the third is designed so you will say, I want to go visit the Volcano, and I want to go see some temples, and I have to go see sunset at Tanah Lot - and then I would like to do a round the island tour.

My answer is always, sit by the pool and drink Bintang (the local beer) which confuses the hell out of the driver, as not tourist would want to do that, when the taxi driver has a great aircon veh that just needs your butt on the back seat and an open wallet throwing hundreds of thousands of rupiah at the driver.

Taxi at the airport, go to the taxi window once you leave arrivals, set price for all destinations. No taxi rank as such, the allocated driver will take you to his taxi, avoid the porter he wants some rupiah too. (note the quoted set price is just under twice what the hotel to airport will cost on the meter)

Uber - I would not bother - give the money to the local drivers who need it to keep a roof over their head, and their kids in enough rice to fill the stomach.

For a full day tour be prepared to pay between 600 000 rupiah and 1 million - thats about $100 USD - pretty cheap for what you get.

i've used uber many times in bali, they are mostly in the kuta / seminyak area. They will go anywhere you want and you can always tell them to wait for you and pay them off uber. Perfect for when you can't find a bluebird or are somewhere that cabs don't frequent.

the rates were super reasonable and since the route is tracked you know that they didn't try and rip you off.

If you feel the need to tip, go ahead but the uber way is tip is included and not required.

Bluebird also has an app where you can use to e-hail a car to you. (minimum fare is in effect if you use the app or call a bluebird)

How does the pick-up at DPS airport work? Are there designated waiting areas?

If there is wifi in the arrivals area, I'll give it a try this weekend.

There is also Uber X a cheaper alternative service makes tension among the Uber Black drivers, hopefully in Bali they arrange everything without tension.

It works well but there is no designated waiting area at the airport, free wifi is available in the arrivals area. Usually after I booked a ride the driver will call me to inform where he will pick me up, most of the time near Circle K in the pick up area.

There is no Uber X yet in Bali right now.

Anyone with more recent experiences of Uber here? Planning on using it from the airport in a week when I arrive in DPS, so as not to get ripped off or haggled much as a foreigner.

If you do not stay at well known and large hotel/resort, I'd recommend to print the google map of the area/map and the route. You can't expect that driver will know all the hotel or way to get there.

I had a very positive experience last month. Ordered an Uber Black right after immigration with the free wifi. Was a bit back and forth via text message where to meet outside international arrivals. Car was nothing like a Uber Black - a cheap Japanese car. But clean and the driver spoke basic English. I had entered the destination in the app, so no directions where needed.

I paid IDR50'000 to Seminyak. My friend who took a regular taxi a few hours earlier had negotiated down to IDR150'000 fixed price.

Would recommend without hesitation.

Last weekend I again ordered an Uber through the free WiFi in the arrivals hall. By the time I got to the pick-up zone (I texted him next to "Coco Express") he was there. IDR49'000 for the half hour ride to Seminyak. Return in a regular cab by meter we paid IDR85'000.

What happened with the Jakarta Uber? I checked at the airport, and wasn't one available for 30 minutes, then read in the Post that there were only 3 Uber Cars in Jakarta as the other 7 had been confiscated - the remaining 3 had simply ignored orders to come in and hand over their cars :D

Has there been updates on whether uber will sneak through the common complaints found SE Asia in Jakarta?

Just sayin, that's about $3.50

Yes and while the price for a regular taxi is still affordable, Uber takes away all the hassle with finding your destination - especially if you are staying at a villa rather than a major hotel as well as the "sorry, no change" issue (though to be fair, with Bluebird taxi I haven't had bad experiences either).

Can I use the same uber app as in the US? Can I use English to type destination?

Sure.

Bad news though, I just read on the Bali Discovery blog that they have outlawed Uber in Bali.

Hopefully this will be backtracked soon. They tried this in Jakarta recently, but I think the President intervened.

Any recommendations for a car service in the event that Uber doesn't return soon?

Golden Bird Innova prepaid looks like its about $13 - is that a safe and reliable approach?

Oh yes, Golden Bird is great. We've used them many times. It's what most hotels book for you if you ask for airport pickup (for 2-3x the direct price).

I'd certainly see if Uber is still doing pickups at the airport, though. Usually only $5-7 to Nusa Dua or other close in locations.

Awesome! I might just go for it on arrival since we've never been and are landing around 810pm (on the KLM flight from SIN) so rather just not have to worry about it on the night we arrive.

How long does it typically take for getting bags and going through immigration (we are two US citizens so no VoA needed)? Trying to decide what time to actually book it for (KLM 835 lands at 810pm)

It's been quite a few years since I've arrived at DPS on an intl flight. Recent reports say 10-45 minutes, it just depends on how many flights are arriving at the same time. Bags are usually pretty quick.

I think you can prebook the Golden Bird transfer, so they'd be waiting for you. I've never waited more than 5 minutes, even if I book in the terminal. They had a sizable discount for JCB cardholders, but doubt many Americans would have that. In the domestic terminal they have an office before you exit the secured area, but don't know about the intl terminal.

I think you do need a VOA, but it's free, at least that's my understanding. I don't use any type of VOA's anymore, thankfully.

Recently we landed in the 7PM slot (SQ)....we were outside with bags, etc in 12 minutes or so. It was a breeze!
The only thing we waited for was the bags....immigration took 2 minutes.

Awesome thanks to both of you for the very useful insight! I think I'll put down 8:45pm pickup time (it's a 773 and we're towards the back so presumably it'll take at least 10-15 minutes just to deplane depending on loads). They also ask for flight number so presumably they'll be able to adjust as necessary too

Yes, Dont worry. They will wait for you. They really want your business!

Uber promo from Feb 8-14, free rides to/from Denpasar.

One last question re: Golden Bird Innova and just general taxi usage (if Uber isn't available). Are tips expected? If so is there an ATM to get money at the airport? I'll be coming from SIN and before that the US so won't have any IDR on me and don't want to get unless I need it for tips, etc.

Small rounding up for taxi's is the norm. So, if you bill is 76k, I'd round up to 80k, unless they've done something special.

If it's a metered taxi outside of the airport, they should use their meter. If they refuse to use a meter, I'd get out. That's one reason why uber is so popular, people are so tired of playing games.

There should be ATMs. Many only dispense low amounts (1.5 juta, $115 or so). If the machine dispenses the 100k bills, you can get up to 3 juta (million) IDR depending on the bank. You may be able to take multiple withdrawals up to your limit.

Cabs are notorious for not having small change, so stop at one of the airport Circle K's and buy some water, or something small so you have change.

Many of the airport exchange booths can be bad. As of today, 13500-13600 rupiah to one dollar is a decent rate. They prefer brand new currency, and $100 bills the best. No folding, no tears, no writing on the bills.

This is 3 days to early for me; however, this confirms that UBER is back in DPS?

Awesome thank you! I have a no forex fee ATM card so as long as there is an ATM I should be golden ^

Careful with ATMs in Bali and in Ubud - there were number of reports of skimming with stand-alone ATMs, especially those at stores/7-11. If you want to be safe, take money only from ATMs located inside banks' branches.

Thanks for the heads up. Would you think the standalone at the airport / hotel (GH Bali) is safe or strictly bank branch ATMs?

I think airport ATM is safer than hotel's. Especially if the hotel's ATM is outside of premises.

The GH Bali has an ATM inside the premises (BRI bank If I remember right).
It gave us only about 89$ USD worth of Rupiah's in one shot. I then tried to use it twice..and the machine rejected us...(probably thinking it was a fraud).
Some people seemed to have luck withdrawing twice on the same calendar date.

That location also has a money changer (of course, you will pay more if you change money there).

Avoid the ATM's on the street along the Seminyak / Kuta stretch....

Every ATM in Indonesia that I've ever used has a 30 bill limit that they will dispense. Some banks have smaller withdrawal limits, too.

So, generally you can withdraw 1.5 million if it dispenses 50k notes, or if 100k notes, 3 million. This is usually noted on the ATM.

Citibank, HSBC and other western affiliated banks usually allow 3 million. Most Indonesian banks don't charge ATM fees, but ANZ does.

NEW UBER and LYFT $30
 

NJZEBZA733SEFN5q: LYFT

UBER: 6tidg

30 bucks on each

I got back from another Bali trip yesterday.

After arrival we were able to book an Uber via the airport's free WiFi. The app indicates that pick-up is on departures. The driver called me via WhatsApp right away and confirmed. On the way to departures, a few taxi drivers followed us for a while until I told them we are going upstairs for a connecting flight. It worked smoothly and we paid $6 (IDR79k) for the 1hr trip to Uluwatu (we tipped generously).

Friends had a different experienced. They met their Uber driver on arrivals level and upon loading the bags, a mob of taxi drivers approached them and the Uber left without them. The taxi drivers continued to follow them angrily until they almost got into a fight. Eventually they took another Uber on departures.

Also in Uluwatu we saw some banners prohibiting Uber, Grab and Go-Jek from picking up passengers.

Uber drivers have been attacked quite a few times. That's why it's very important to have a phone number to contact you by.

Often they will ask to meet nearby, so as not to attract attention. It's a shame to have to do this, but the taxi drivers aren't too happy, and you don't want to be responsible for an Uber driver getting injured.

For the guy posting an Uber sign up promo code, I wouldn't bet that it will work in Indonesia. I have a bunch of free rides in Indonesia, but they don't work in the US.

For anyone wanting a new signup for Indonesia specifically, which gives you a free upto 75k IDR ride as well as the same to the referrer, you can use my wife's code:

retnos26ue

Any recent experience with Uber in Bali?

Not in Bali, but plenty of rides in Jakarta.

Referral code now only worth 50k IDR (Less than $4). Lots of surge pricing in Jakarta.

I've used Uber in Bali without any problem. There are plenty of cars around the airport and large resort areas. You can take Uber to Ubud but you won't find one in Ubud to go the reverse direction. You'll need international roaming active on your phone to get a signal and place you correctly on the Uber map for pickup and contact with the driver.

In Sanur, there were signs all over the place indicating services such as grabtaxi, Uber and Lyft weren't allowed to pick up people. Did not use Uber myself but checked availability a couple of times. It was almost always available in Sanur, Jimbaran, Benoa and I think even Ubud.

I had no problem finding Ubers in Ubud, when I was last there in December.