Having been to Bali twice before, this time we opted to go to the town of Ubud, which was more activity based than the likes of our trips to Seminyak and Nusa Dua. We had received raging reviews about the place and went with dozens of recommendations and quite a tightly packed and planned itinerary.
Travel
We took the 10.10am Air Asia flight, due to arrive in Denpasar for 12.45pm, however unsurprisingly our arrival was delayed and we got in around 13.30pm. We were pretty hungry so decided to grab a snack at the airport, before determining how best to get to our hotel in Ubud, which was a minimum 90 minute drive away.
There are official taxis at the airport, which give you an indication of how much you should be paying to get to your desired destination. You can walk around the airport and be approached several times by local taxi drivers who are also offering to take you to your destination at a negotiated rate. The official price was IDR 400,000 to get to Ubud, but we were able to negotiate with a guy to IDR 300,000. He walked us all the way out to his car (which was pretty much broken in every desired way), loaded our bags in the back, had us sat and then decided to tell us the air conditioning wasn’t working – which for a 90 minute journey, we just weren’t ok with. He then said, if we were willing to pay a little more, it would magically be fixed. This rubbed us the wrong way completely, as he had clearly agreed a price and then tried to scam more money from us. At this point, we decided to walk away. There are an abundance of taxis available and it didn’t take us long to find someone else, who was willing to take us to the hotel for the same price and with air conditioning.
Uber and Grab Taxi are available in Bali, but there is an action plan from the government to stamp them out, which can make it difficult to find a suitable place for the taxi to stop. On the occasion you are able to a) actually find an uber/grab in the location b) agree a suitable meeting point, it is definitely much much cheaper, you’re looking at roughly half the price.
Hotel
Any who, we got into the local taxi, and made it to our hotel, The Royal Tulip Visesa, safe and sound. The hotel itself was gorgeous – we were driven around the resort in a buggy, as there was so much land where they grow a lot of the crops they use to make food in the hotel restaurants and stay self-sustainable. Then we were taken to our room, which is probably as big if not bigger than our apartment in Singapore! We had opted for a room with a Jacuzzi over a swimming pool (yes these are real options), which was out on the balcony, along with a lovely view and a seating area alongside.
There is a counter in the hotel, that offers taxi services, but again this is run by locals and therefore the prices can sometimes be steep, they are open to negotiation but they really do try their luck. We only used this service once to go to the Kubu at the Ritz Carlton and they charged us IDR 250,000 for a 10 minute drive, which was almost as much as we paid from the airport.
The hotel do offer a free shuttle service to Ubud town which is an excellent service. They have various drop off and pick up times, which is super useful for when you want to pop down to the monkey forest or to grab some lunch or dinner! This was definitely one of the highlights, as to be frank, getting taxis was becoming a nuisance and ruining our peaceful trip!
Our Highlights
Kubu at the Mandara
In advance of our travel we had booked dinner at Kubu Mandara at The Ritz Carlton. It has been voted number 1 on Tripadvisor within Ubud and you can definitely tell why. The service was beyond incredible, from the moment we arrived at the hotel, to the scenic buggy ride all the way down to the restaurant, the service, together with the general awareness and attentiveness of everyone we crossed paths with, made this super special. We both opted for the set menu, which consisted of 7 courses, all beautifully presented and with unique flavors and tastes. Neil also went for the wine pairing option (I’ve given up alcohol for the month, so this was a real test for me, especially given the surroundings!) which meant he got 4 glasses of wine to accompany across his 7 courses – someone was feeling a little light headed by the end of that meal! At the end of it, the waiter kindly ordered a taxi for us (which was probably the only hassle free taxi we experienced) and we head back to our hotel!
Monkey Forest
The Monkey Forest was the one place, every single person advised we go to, when we mentioned Ubud. IDR 100,000 to get in, was pretty reasonable, and it’s a nice little walk around a park, with monkeys loitering EVERYWHERE. When they tell you to watch your stuff, they aren’t joking! Those cheeky fellas will grab anything lose on your body, tear it to pieces and then likely throw it back at you! But it was rather entertaining, dodging and ducking the monkeys, whilst actively avoiding eye contact.
Karsa Spa (+ Campuhan Ridge)
Another recommendation was the Karsa Spa – we pre-booked this before arriving in Ubud and luckily we did as it was fully booked! We’d hired a moto for the day, but to get to Karsa, you have to park up and walk the Campuhan Ridge to reach the spa. Now, neither of us were aware of this, or appropriately dressed. In addition it was raining pretty heavily. We knew that if we didn’t keep our appointment, we’d have no hope of rescheduling it, so we opened up the umbrellas and began on our 2km walk, with no water and inappropriate footwear. 40 minutes later, grumpy and covered in mud, I began my 60 minute Balinese massage, which fluttered away all my moodiness. Followed by a Chakra rebalancing and a hair treatment, this was the perfect treatment package, and just what the doctor ordered as the rain lashed onto the roof.
Tegagalang Rice Terrace
We had rented a moto for a couple of days, so head up to Tegagalang, which took us around 30 minutes from the hotel. From the very top of the road, the panoramic view was stunning. This place is a huge tourist attraction, so the earlier you reach the better really, and if you can be along in the rice terraces, you know you’re onto something special.
There is an entrance fee of IDR 10,000 per person and then some additional donation spots along the way. There are a lot of points along the pathway that are clearly made for tourists, with cheesy LOVE signs to pose with, and actor/workers who are there predominantly to have photos taken with. There are also a lot of stalls, with people trying to sell you different niknaks, which can at times be a little too much, but it is key to remember this is how they make their money, and if you’re not interested politely say no, and turn away. I mean manners don’t cost us anything!
It was raining pretty heavily when we went, so we probably only lasted a little over an hour, but I imagine on a better day, you could easily spend half your day there. Unfortunately, due to the fear of getting our camera wet, we took few photos, but thankfully memories last forever!
Bali Swing
One other thing I had wanted to do, but couldn’t due to the rain was the Bali Jungle Swing. Now I can’t tell you how great it was, but I can say the pictures look phenomenal. For more information, follow this link.
Closing Thoughts
Bali is a nice place, particularly when you’re not on a budget and willing to take things at face value. However given our previous travels, we are prone to haggling and ensuring we are getting the best deal, which sometimes made the taxi negotiations quite tedious. The island as a whole depends on tourism, and therefore can seem a little too capitalistic in some senses, which does then ruin the beauty of it. The way it has been marketed and sold outside of Asia is incredible, as every time we have visitors, Bali is always at the top of their list. Maybe we are too spoilt for our own good, but now I feel like there are better beaches, better scenery and better activities to do in other parts of Asia.
