Bali - Recommendations
 

I am going to be a first timer in Bali in mid October. I will be travelling from SIN - which I have 3 nights so will hopefully be jet lag free, before taking a Jetstar flight over to Bali.

I will be spending 12 nights in Bali, can anyone suggest any decent places to stay and things to do? We fancy a mix between R&R and having some nightlife.

Ubud is a must for a couple of nights. I love the place. Take your pick from loads of great hotels there.The temple dances are spellbinding at night. Its a very interesting place and there always seems to be a festival on so its just as good during the day. If you like a lot of nightlife then Kuta might be for you- it wasn't for me but it might have been 20 years ago!
Get a driver/guide for a couple of days. There is so much to see in Bali- it really is a paradise island.

You will find tons of information on Bali in this forum and in the Luxury Hotels forum. I've posted a fair amount of info in both forums, in addition to a Trip Report on FS Sayan. The name "Bali" is long enough that it won't monkey with FT's search feature, so I'd suggest searching here and in Luxury Hotels using the word "Bali."

Thanks for the reply - I will get reading and may come back once I have narrowed the search down.

Wirelessly posted (Palm TX: Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows 98; PalmSource/Palm-D050; Blazer/4.3) 16;320x320)

The Ritz Carlton is one of my fav hotels in Bali.

if it helps, the two places I stayed in Ubud- both of which were great- were
Komaneka at Monkey Forest Road
http://www.komaneka.com/Resort/English/( there are other Komenakas in Ubud which would probably be as good)
and
Waka Namya
http://www.wakanamya.com/

We combine Ubud with Sanur, which I think might be a bit too quiet for you.

There is no Ritz Carlton on Bali any more. Ritz manages the Bvlgari as a partner hotel. That irritated the owner of the former Ritz. A legal dispute ensued. Former Ritz now operates under the name "Ayana Resort and Spa."

Mr. Megatop and I stayed there in 2005. We liked it well enough, but we've since come to like other properties in Bali much more.

I just returned from a trip that included Bali ten days ago. You're going to love it!

This would be more on the R&R side as there is almost no nightlife, but Candi Dasa is a small, laid-back place. I stayed at Aquaria hotel, which is very comfortable and looks over the sea and has a great pool and restaurant.

The village of Tenganan, which is famous for double-ikat hand-woven cloth (or gerung seng) is either a day trek or an inexpensive ride away from the western end of town. It's a great place to hunt for souvenirs --especially the cloth, which is disappearing as a craft-- that can easily fit on your bags homeward. The area also offers splendid treks around the rice fields and temples, if you want that kind of outdoor activity.

In any case, take this recommendation or not because you can hardly go wrong in Bali!

Bali is fantastic. I have had some great trips and will go back again. I would do 9 nights in or around Kuta and 3 nights in Ubud for the R&R. I stayed at two hotels I can highly recommend.

The Oberoi Seminyak

and for Ubud the Waka Di Ume

What's the intercontinantal like in Jimbaran bay? I'm planning 7 nights in Bali for my Honeymoon (after borneo) in October. I was looking at the Ritz Carlton (before it changed) and the Intercontinental as they are close to the surfing beaches but away from Kuta. Any other suggestions?

The Legian, which is actually in Seminyak not Legian, would be good for being close to the surfing beaches but not actually in Kuta. The Oberoi is practically next to the Legian. I loved the Legian.

The former RC was in Jimbaran but its beach wasn't so great, in a craggy cove.

Thanks for the tips, I haven't booked any accomodation yet as still in the planning stages.

Thinking of 2 centres as away for 12 nights, anyone got any info on Sanur?

At the moment its possible thinking of Sanur and possibly Ubud, although a few people have mentioned the Gilli Islands???

I love Sanur. Great restaurants. Nightlife is fairly low key though and it won't be for everyone. Have a look at the Griya and Puri Santrians. You might like the Hilton. The grounds are quite nice but the accomodation block is not pretty to look at.

Would the Gilli Islands include malaria risk?

I am looking for a recommendation for a place/ hotel in Bali for 4-5 nights in August. We're really looking for a relaxing beach holiday, not a party place, but not too quiet/boring either. Age: early 20s.

No, the Gillis are bone dry. You might try the Mercure in Sanur. I got a nice room there on Agoda for about $56 US a night early last December.