Bali Travel Diaries - Part 1
Trip Duration - 6 Nights 7 Days
Place Visited-Tibumana Waterfall , Tukad Cepung Waterfall , Ulun Danu Beratan Temple , Handara Gates , Tanah Lot Temple , Ubud Art Market , Ubud Palace , Mount Batur Sunrise Trekking , Tegallalang Rice Terraces , Kecak Dance in Uluwatu Temple , Dreamland Beach , Finns Beach Club , West Nusa Penida Tour , Potato Head Beach Club and Long Layovers on Malaysia Airport.
Month of Travel - Oct 19
Total Cost of the trip (One person) - Rs 32,000 (Thirty Two Thousand Only)
I have divided my Bali Trip in to 7 Segments-
1- Flight Tickets
2- Accommodation
3- Local Transport in Bali
4- Entrance Tickets for Sightseeing
5- Food
6- Layover on Kuala lumpur Airport
7- Miscellaneous Expenses
Flight Tickets
1 This is the main cost of every trip and its really important to book flight at minimum cost.If you will consider below points then you can book Bali Flight Tickets (including Return ) around Rs 12,500 (Ten Thousand only) approx from New Delhi.
2 Be Flexible with the dates of the travel and book your flight tickets at least 4-5 months in advance.
3 Never book Round Trip Flight Tickets rather always book Departure and Arrival Flight Tickets separately.
4 Refer "Skyscanner" to search the best date to travel when the rates of the flight tickets will be too low and also to get the best website to book the cheapest flight tickets.
5 Direct Flights are normally expensive then connecting Flights so try to be flexible with the layovers to get cheap flight tickets.
6 Avoid heavy luggage (Check in Baggage) to get the cheap Flight tickets which permits only 7 Kg Cabin Baggage.
(This is Part 1 of Bali Travel Diaries based on the travel done by Sachin Almal and another parts of Bali Travel Diaries are coming soon.)
Accommodation
If you are going to Bali then, without any doubt. I will strongly recommend that everyone should try to stay in Villa only because Balinese Villas are really very beautiful and gorgeous.
The experience in staying in Villa in Bali is really very unique and awesome and cannot be compared with the experience in staying in a Hotel in Bali.
I am telling you from my experience and with utmost surety that you won't get the same experience of staying in Villa in any other country the way you will get in Bali because the location and the ambience of the Balinese Villas will take your heart away for sure.
Normally the perception about Balinese Villas is that they are quite expensive but you can book a perfect luxury private pool Villa in Bali at a very reasonable cost equivalent to 3 Star hotel cost in Bali or even lesser if you will consider the below points-
1-There are many websites to book Villas in Bali but my recommendation to book a perfect luxury private pool Villa in Bali at a very reasonable cost is "AIRBNB".
2-Kuta/Seminyak/Legian/Canggu are the most popular areas in the South Bali and therefore they are quite expensive and crowded too and usually tourists want to stay in these areas only but I will recommend "Ubud in Central Bali" to the people who want to experience a luxurious Private Pool Villa in Bali in an economical budget and guys i can surely tell you all from my experience that Central Bali is really a serene and silent place to live in.
3-It's very important to understand that prices of accommodation in downtown (Main City Area) are always very expensive compared to the prices of accommodation in outskirts (Out of City). I strongly recommend to stay in outskirts instead of staying in downtown - not only because of cheap prices but also because the outskirts' accommodations are really very beautiful and lavishing compared to the accommodations located in the downtown.
4-AIRBNB provides great and huge referral discount directly on first booking so try to book each day's villa from separate account. For Example-If you are a group of 6 persons going to Bali for 6 days so instead of booking Villa for 6 days from single account , try to book each day's villa from different new accounts on the names of separate traveler in the group.
5-There is one hidden feature in AIRBNB that mostly people are unaware of. You can contact and negotiate with host before booking to reduce the price of accommodation on AIRBNB. Believe me guys if your convincing and negotiation skills are good then this concept actually works and host actually reduces the price of accommodation on AIRBNB for you only and the host will share with you the special link with the special price and you can book the same by applying the referral discount of AIRBNB.
6-Guys, please do proper research on different platforms by giving a reasonable amount of time before booking accommodation because you can get a good deal anywhere anytime and also never forget to read reviews on TripAdvisor before booking the accommodation.
7-The average price of a good 3 Star Hotel accommodation in almost every area of Bali is Rs 2000 (Two Thousand only) per day with breakfast which means Rs 1000 per day per person cost if you are a group of 2 but only if you will do proper research on discounts and will refer multiple platforms before booking.
On the other hand the average price of a good private pool luxurious Villa is Rs 3000 per day without breakfast which means Rs 1500 per person per day cost if you are a group of 2 but the per head cost can be reduced to Rs 800 per day per person in case of Villa if you are a group of 4 people or more because normally even a small villa in Bali has 2 Bedrooms which is perfectly fine for 2 couples.
(This is Part 2 of Bali Travel Diaries based on the travel done by Sachin Almal and other parts of Bali Travel Diaries are coming soon.)
Local Transport in Bali-
The roads in Bali are narrow but very well maintained.There are mostly 2-lane roads and therefore traffic jams are very common in Bali.
The cheapest and quickest mode of transportation in Bali is undoubtedly "Renting a Bike". The rent of a normal bike in Bali is around Rs 300 per day and the cost of Petrol is around Rs 50 per liter. But before renting a bike, you guys will have to consider below Pros and Cons:
Pros-
This is the cheapest and quickest mode of transportation in Bali as Bali is a popular tourist destination and traffic jams are very common and therefore only bike can help in overcoming the frequent and long traffic jams in Bali.
There will be no dependency on the driver/guide/tour operator for the liasoning of the car for the sightseeing.
Parking and toll charges are normally cheaper for bikes compared to Cars in Bali.
Exploring the beautiful and serene Bali on bike is a unique and awesome experience which is unparallel compared to exploring the Bali in Car.
Cons-
There is mandatory requirement of International Driving Permit (IDP) to drive bike in Bali..
Renting a bike is suitable only when you are a group of only 2 persons.
Exploring Bali on bike is recommended only for short duration. If you travel long distances on bike, you will feel tired because weather is also too hot in Bali and that can spoil your mood and rest of the day plans for sightseeing.
Every sightseeing place in Bali requires lots of walking and it's really really tiring and therefore, after visiting the sightseeing every tourist expects to take some rest or a power nap in car which is not possible on bike.
The another mode of transportation in Bali is "Hiring a Car with Driver" and this is of course quite comfortable but little costly compared to "Renting a Bike" .
The charges of full day car rental differs from area to area in Bali.The car rental is little high if you want to go for sightseeing in North Bali and East Bali.
On the other hand the car rental is little less if you want to go for sightseeing in South Bali and West Bali.
The Car Rental in Central Bali is less than North and East Bali but expensive than South and West Bali.
The Car rental in Bali is calculated on the basis of time only not on the basis of kilometers .Normally a full day car rental duration is 10 hours in Bali and there is no limit of kilometers because roads are narrow and full of traffic jams in Bali therefore it is not possible to visit multiple locations in Bali in same day and that's why there is no limit on kilometers in full day car rental in Bali but yes there are proper overtime charges if you will use the car after the stipulated duration of 10 hours.
I had consulted to multiple local tour operators in Bali for full day car rental and even i did referred to multiple online portals and apps but i finally booked through Klook .
Full Day Car Rental Charges in Bali offered by Klook is below as under and the best part is that Klook gives the exclusive duration of 12 hours in full day car rental and the overtime charges of Klook is Rs 200 per hour after the stipulated duration of 12 hours.Guys i can tell you with my travel experience and with utmost surety that you wont get such cheap prices in Bali anywhere.
South and West Bali Rs 1,700
Central Bali Rs 2,000
North and East Bali Rs 2,700
The above charges are for the timings strictly between the 6 am to 12 pm but if you want to hire a car before 6 am or after 12 pm then you will have to pay special night charges to the driver.
The most common car used by every tour operator in Bali is 5 seater Tata Avanza (excluding Driver Seat) but hiring a car can be more economical and useful if you are group of 4-5 people because the per head cost will get reduced in large group.
Now let's come to the another mode of transportation in Bali which is "Bike Taxi " & " Car Taxi " offered by the companies "GOJEK" & "GRAB".
This is simply like Ola & Uber in India as you can install the apps in your phone and can book bike and car in whole Bali 24X7 and rates are also quite economical. GOJEK is comparatively cheaper than GRAB in Bali.
(This is Part 3 of Bali Travel Diaries based on the travel done by Sachin Almal and other parts of Bali Travel Diaries are coming soon.) #BucketList2019