Category Archives: Bali
My Favourite Hotels Rooms for under $40 per night! (Part 2)
In part 1 of this post, I featured a hotel in Thailand (Ko Lanta) and Nepal (Pokhara) that we had found to be great finds for under $40 per night. (Link back to Part 1). I have selected hotels that are under the $40 per night level, as this is the expense level I try to keep to, when long term traveling. This amount is about where I feel I need be, to get some comfort and character, but also be sustainable for long term travel. In part 2 of this post, I am looking at a hotel in two more of my favourite long term traveler friendly countries – Vietnam and Bali (Indonesia).
Bali
Puri Bening Hayato, Toya Bungkah
We found this hotel while doing a cross island scooter trip a couple of years ago, and I have done some investigation to make sure it still exists! This was a very old hotel, and in h=need of a bit of repair at the time, but at $25 per night it was cheap, spacious, and in another wonderful location. Toya Bungkah is located on the side of Lake Batar, and both the lake and town are located in the crater of the active volcano, Mt Batar. To reach the town you travel down into the crater from the road that runs around the volcano rim at kintamani. The town is located in a fertile market garden area, and drying onions where the dominant smell when we visited. The hotel had excellent views from our 3rd floor room, both to the volcano behind us and the lake and rim wall in-front. In addition, it was an older, 70′s style complex, with big rooms, and adjoining balconies. And we were the only guests! It was cheap, retro, and located in a surprisingly non-balish corner of Bali! limited information available at http://hotelpuribeningbali.com/
Lake Batar
Overlooking the carpark!
Vietnam
Sea Star Resort, Phu Quoc Island
Vietnam is probably the ultimate for hotel rooms under $40.00 per night, in-fact I can only think of 1 hotel I have stayed in, in two visits to Vietnam that cost more than $40.00! But for comfort, friendly family run service, and amazing location, the Sea Star Resort, Phu Quoc Island rates as the best in my opinion. This resort has a series on bungalows, set in 3 or 4 rows facing the the beach and ocean. The front row is right in the sand of the beach, and the second row, where our $40 bungalow as, was a mere 5 meters or so from the beach, with access and views between the front ones, to the beach. In addition, Sea Star has an excellent restaurant located under the palm trees beachfront, that served as good a local food as any of the restaurants in town. They rented motor-scooters for only a few dollars a day, and happily suggest routes and day trips to enjoy. Absolutely recommend the Sea Star resort, and refer as many people as possible to their website for more information – www.seastarresort.com
Sea Star Resort
Restaurant at Sea Star Resort
These two posts cover 1 cheap but nice hotel in each of my favourite countries. I hope this gives either comfort, lead or food for thought if you are heading to any of these places. I think I might keep this series going for a few more posts, and see if I can share some info on a few more places I have stayed under $40. keep you posted!
Is Bali a good base for the Long Term Traveler?
Hey long term travelers,
why don’t travel bloggers choose to spend long term stints in Bali? It seam to me to be almost the perfect location for digital nomads, yet most of the travel bloggers and other long term travelers I read about, seam to choose Thailand as their base in South East Asia. In addition, Columbia in South America also seams to be one of the big locations.
But why not Bali?
Surf's Up!
I think it has so much going for it that should be absolutely perfect from Travel Bloggers, and I have chosen to act as a “Travel Blogger Recruitment Officer” and am offering the following reasons why YOU should consider BALI!
For example -
- Temperature - Bali is year round tropical paradise. Maximum temps are always around 30 degrees Celsius, (maybe up to 33 in the hottest time of year), and overnight minimums (away from the mountains) are 25 or more. This is serious “summer all year” stuff!
- Costs – everything is ridiculously cheap in Bali. With an exchange rate at close to 10,000 Indonesian Rupiah to the US dollar, the product for your dollar is great, weather you are American, English, European, Australian or just about anywhere else (except NZ, of course!). eat for 2 -3 dollars on the cheap, or $10 in a cheaper restaurant, beer for $1 a litre, motorbike rental for a few dollars a day, etc
- Accommodation – a great rage of accommodation, both long term and short term. Many cheaper hotel offer good monthly rates, and there is plenty of quality accommodation in villas for longer term. Short term, hotel rooms are available from $20 per night and less.
- Good Internet - Free Internet is available at cafes and restaurants everywhere,and most hotels and villas have good speed wireless networks.
Bintang and Wifi - what else do you need?
- Socialisation – there is plenty of nightlife, plenty of expats, and there should be plenty of bloggers (but I don’t think there is?).
- Friendly locals – Balinese love tourists, and are natural friendly people. They enjoy long term visitors, who will usually be culturally more sensitive than yobbos in 6 day booze-fests.
- Variety – Its a small island, but it has many different facets. Kuta is busy and commercial, the other beaches are much quieter, the North is Volcanic and quite, the mountains are cool and “arty”. And then there are the other islands easily accessible from Bali, including Lombok, Java, Lembongan, and thousands more not much further away.
- Travel hub – good access to the rest of Indonesia, South east Asia and the world. Garuda, the national airline, is now flying back to Europe, and considered one of the most improved airlines in the world, and Air Asia use Bali as a hub in the region, giving access to dozens of exotic locations.
So, I would love to hear why or why not, long term travelers would choose to live here, at least for a few months. Travel Bloggers in particular. Its my plan, just not quite sure when yet!
Tipping Hotel Staff in Bali?
Tipping… oh my god, what a confusing, hard to understand concept.
Yes, you guessed it, I am AUSTRALIAN!!
And we just have no clue how, when or who we should tip when we are in countries where tipping is standard practice, considering we would virtually never tip at home.
So, I am not a complete idiot, and I realise I need to tip the porter who brings my bags to my room, as well as the waiter or waitress who serves my meal, but who else? Where do you draw the line? I don’t know!
So these are my dilemmas. I am going to list a series of scenarios I faced while in Bali last week, and weather or not I should have tipped the people involved.
- Breakfast we delivered to my villa, it was included in the cost of thew room, so I didn’t pay at the time, But should I have tipped the kitchen staff who delivered?
- We had a spa day. 3 hours, with a series of services from different staff. Should we have tipped each person?
- Our Villa complex had a small reception crew, who we regularly spoke to us, we asked them to call us taxis, confirm flights etc. Should we have tipped them, and would you have to tip all half a dozen of the staff.
Should we have tipped?
I just never know, so if in doubt, I don’t tip! I think the Balinese are probably understanding of this, as so many Australians visit, but I’m sure they would love to train us better!
Mmmm. I must be feeling guilty, because the hospitality at the Astana Kunti Villas was absolutely sensational. Consider them if you are looking at visiting Seminyak, Bali. http://www.bali-seminyak-villas.com/villas/astanakunti/index.html
Traveling costs for BALI – a guide for the 40+Traveler
Like my previous post on traveling cost in Nepal, this post is aimed at giving the prospective traveler an idea of the all-round cost associated with visiting and traveling around the countries that I have visited. As before, the assumption is that you would be traveling at the same level of comfort as I do, and, as such, is directed primarily at the 40 year +, long term traveler. This implies a moderate level of comfort but without they high daily budget of the 10 day tourist. So, on to Bali -
Costs for Bali
- Getting There - As with anywhere, giving a general idea on the cost to get to Bali depends completely on where you are coming from. As I am Australian, Bali is close, and very well serviced by discount airlines, so it is very cheap to visit. Return flights from Australia can be from as little as $250.00. And because the same network of Low Cost airlines service the other major centres in the region, flights from most major South East Asian cities are often even cheaper. I have seen Air Asia flights from Kuala Lumpur for $19. So by extension, Bali should be cheap to fly into from other destinations, as long as you are scouring the cheep airlines, and prepared to hop flights and airlines a bit. Long term travelers will usually be happy to take the slower, less direct flights, and save on expense!
Kuta Beach
- Getting Around - Once you arrive in Bali, transport certainly doesn’t get any more expensive! It is one of the cheapest places to get around, as always, depending on your mode of transport. Taxis, for example, cost around 50,000 IDR (around $6) from the airport to Kuta hotels. Once in Kuta, taxi around town (witch can often be very busy and frustratingly slow) will cost somewhere under the 50,000. A quick trip could be from 10,000 IDR ( $1.20 ish) An alternative to Taxis (cos they add up??really!) is a scooter. These cost around $5 a day, with a better rate often available if you want longer rentals. The advantage of the scooter is that you can get in and around traffic jams in the Kuta area easily, but also, you can explore the whole island from the back of a scooter!
- Accommodation – Kuta, Seminyak, Sanur and Nusa Dua, on the Southern Beaches, are where the bulk of the tourists visit, and these areas have the biggest range of hotels. Villa’s and Resorts at $500 a night are a plenty, but cheaper options are definitely available, often only a street or 2 back from the beach. I have always been able to find comfortable hotel accommodation, with own bathroom, air-con, bar fridge, TV and Pool, for around $40 per night in all of the above areas. Once you get out of these centres, to Ubud, the Northern and Eastern beaches and the inland parts of the island, even $25.00 rooms appear to be quite reasonable. Shop around n the net for Kuta, and on foot when you are visiting the other areas.
- Eating and Drinking – The Southern beaches are awash with bars and restaurants, so getting a feed is never a problem. Standard local/Asian/ simple western meals cost from 50,000 to 150,000 IDR ( $6 -$18), with 750ml beer bottles at about 30,000 each. Beer is around 1/2 that if you by from a supermarket, by the dozen (not a mini mart). Street food and local eats are available on the outskirts of the major areas, as well as in the capital, Denpasar. Also, away from the Southern Beaches, food becomes simpler, and cheaper, and the difference between tourist food and local eatery diminishes.
Ubud Hotel
- Attractions – Attractions can be more expensive, and many are charges in USD. Visit to the water-park at Waterbon is reasonable, and if you hunt around you can get Diving and Rafting adventures at reasonable prices. Like everything else, these are usually very negotiable, and I have found diving trips at 1/2 price when business is not good.
Bali is a wonderful place to visit, and very well suited to the long term traveler. The Balinese people are very welcoming, and, apart form the shopping areas, not completely focused on relieving you of your US$. A lot of visitors decide to stay, and there is a large Ex-pat Australian community. Living costs come down the closer you get to local living, such as self catering. I will post more later on Bali and specific destinations to visit as against this overview.
The next TRAVELING COSTS episode will be Vietnam, so stay “posted”
Oldpackers Tours of Bali for 2011 -An Adventure for the 40+ year old Traveler
I have been keen for a while to run a program of small group tours of some of my favourite South East Asian countries. I recon it would be a great way for me to get a free trip back to some of the places I love!
But seriously, in addition, I also think so many visitors to places like Bali, Thailand, Malaysia, Borneo & Vietnam just don’t get to see and do some of the things that make these places so memorable!
I have always been disappointed by the lack of adventure travel options for the 40+ YEAR OLD Travelers. The 40 Plus year old traveler doesn’t want to Bungee Jump, and we recognise that. We do believe, however, that they do want lower impact adventure, such as trekking, riding and diving and, in addition, also want to get some genuine experiences from an interaction with the culture and people of these beautiful countries.
Surfscool?
This is why first up , we are picking Bali to run our first
” Adventure Tours for 40Plus Travelers”
group tour.
Bali is an ideal starter as it is the most poorly appreciated country for 40plus travelers. My understanding is 90% of all the middle age visitors to Bali, DONT leave their comfortable Kuta, Nusa Dua or Sanur Hotel for any more than a day trip!! And,as there are only a couple of popular day trips, they are so overrun with other visitors, and the sights so unnatural and setup, they never appreciate them as beneficial anyway. They retire to the 5 star, multistory hotel, and spend the next 5 days getting a suntan! But, these people are genuinely missing out!
Over the coming 4 weeks , we will release dates and details of the 5 tour dates scheduled for 2011. All will be pickup from South Bali hotels, and run for 5 days (and nights, of course). Subscribe to my RSS feed NOW, to get the full details soon.
Lunchbreak in the Mountains
As a little teaser, the tour will include -
Round Bali travel, by small bus and/or motor-scooter
Escorted by tour leader and local expert
Comfortable accommodation that encompasses Balinese lifestyle and design
Many meals
daily adventure activity including White water rafting, Dawn Volcano accent, amazing Shipwreck Scuba Dive (beginner), Spectacular Rice Terraces mountain-bike ride & Surf school, and more
Cultural experiences including Monkey forest visit, spectacular temples (only a couple!) and local village home-stay.
Contact me by email - contactus “AT”40plustraveler.com, or subscribe to the RSS feed, for more information.
Nusa Lembongan – Tropical Island Gem #3
This it the third in the series of posts I am doing on some of the lesser known, but still easily accessible tropical islands that I have visited. In previous posts i have covered Ko Ngai in the Andaman Sea, Thailand, and Phu Quok in the Gulf of Thailand, Vietnam.
Where is Nusa Lembongan?
Nusa Lembongan is the third of the islands I would like to share. Nusa Lembongan is located 18km east of the South Bali beach town of Sanur. It is a well known within the surfer community, as it offers a couple of world class breaks at certain times of the year. I think one of the great appeals of this little island, is that is more like the Bali that travellers imagine, than Bali is! As Bali has become busy and very touristy, Nusa Lembongan has remained quite.
Getting to Nusa Lembongan is easiest from the beach at Sanur, and there are a couple of options in different ferries. The standard, public ferry costs about 50,000 Indonesian Rph (approx $5), and takes approximately 1 1/2 to 2 hrs. The deep channel between the two can make the crossing quite rough, and the boats are only semi enclosed. If it is a bit rough, you can expect to get wet! You can also travel by the more expense “Scout” fast ferry, cost about 4 time as much, butting only taking half the time. In both cases, you need to wade to the boat at Sanur beach, with any luggage lifted overhead, and also at Jungutbatu, at the Nusa Lembongan end.
Ferry to Nusa Lembongan
There are only two towns on Nusa Lembongan, Jungutbata, where most of the low and mid range accommodation is located, and Lembongan, inland and without tourist accommodation. There are no cars on the island, at least not when we were there, but there is not a major reason to need to get around to much anyhow. Jungutbata has a sea wall along the coast were the town meets the sea, but beach to the north of town. Accommodation is split between this beach area, and the hill to the south of town. There is also more upmarket accommodation further around the coast at Mushroom Bay.
The island gets a bit busy (particularly Mushroom Bay) during the middle of the day, as boast tours from Bali come hear for day trips, but either side of these visits, the island is almost your own. There are a couple of little restaurants in town, as well as some at a the resorts at Mushroom Bay. Motors bikes are available to rent by the hour, but at a hourly rate similar to the day rate on Bali. This is useful for a couple of hours sightseeing, including visiting Lembongan town, dream beach, the mangroves, and the bridge across to Nusa Ceningan.
Villa's overlooking Jungutbatu
Apart from surfing, the other activity worth exploring is snorkeling. Local boats can take you to nice, shallow reef area to the north, that provides easy drifting over a some interesting coral fields. In addition, the other appeal is just relaxing!
To have a look at some opf the accomodation options here at Nusa Lembongan, follow the attached link to Hotels Combined. Be aware, many of the cheeper options are not bookable in advance though. As long as things are not too busy, you should also be able to get accomodation when you get there!
Hotels Combined – Nusa Lembongan.
Im not sure which island I will feature next. watch, wait and see!
