Bali s the most famous island of Indonesia. Bali is home to vast beautiful landscapes, breathtaking waterfalls, beautiful beaches, magnificent temples & mighty mountains. Bali is not only about nature, it is also favors adventure sports like scuba diving, snorkeling & surfing.
A place with all these qualities & picture perfect sceneries on every corner is hard to be ignored. In my view, it is a complete destination for every age group. Maybe this is the reason why a large number of European families stay here for months.
I stayed for 9 days & could have easily stayed for few weeks.
So, here is Bali Solo Travel Guide.
If something is stopping you from visiting this beautiful yet inexpensive destination, just put that thought to the rest & pack your bags. I am sure you won't regret your decision. For people who like partying more than nature, Bali can still surprise you with world class party clubs & party culture. South Kuta is famous for its party spots & its music.
If something is stopping you from visiting this beautiful yet inexpensive destination, just put that thought to the rest & pack your bags. I am sure you won't regret your decision. For people who like partying more than nature, Bali can still surprise you with world class party clubs & party culture. South Kuta is famous for its party spots & its music.
How to Reach:
The best way to reach Bali from any place is through a flight. Bali is well connected with major airports of the world.
Trains are available from within the Indonesia but it takes too much time & it's very hectic, so until and unless you have time on your side it is advisable to choose flights.
(It's cheap & fast)
I boarded flight from Pattaya ,as it cost me less from there. I travelled from India to Bali under Rs 25K while hopping at Bangkok & Pattaya . Interestingly flight from India to Bali cost the same as the direct cost of flight from India to Bali. So, with a little planning, I visited two countries on the same flight cost Win Win situation for me.
I boarded flight from Pattaya ,as it cost me less from there. I travelled from India to Bali under Rs 25K while hopping at Bangkok & Pattaya . Interestingly flight from India to Bali cost the same as the direct cost of flight from India to Bali. So, with a little planning, I visited two countries on the same flight cost Win Win situation for me.
Things to do
Waterfalls: Waterfalls are the most beautiful part of the Bali.
Experience some of the best waterfalls in the world here. Sekumpul being the top on my list.
It is a must visit for everyone who is travelling to Bali.
I visited 4 waterfalls & all were breathtaking & mesmerizing. At sekumpul three parallel waterfall cutting through the jungle added an oomph factor to an already amazing view; it was quite an experience.
Bali day trips are fascinating as it allows you to spend a full day with nature.
Beaches: Bali is surrounded by beautiful beaches. All beaches have something new to offer. From Kuta to Amed, From Uluwat to Canggu you will fall in love with beaches. An evening on the beach with a drink is an ideal thing to do & of course watching sunsets on beaches is an experience to look out for. Avoid Kuta Beach if you like serene environment, Kuta beach is very crowded to one's expectation. There are many calm & silent beaches which can serve the purpose.
Ubud: Ubud is the cultural hub of Bali, this place is beautifully built & most of the time crowded with travellers. This place is also known for the famous rice fields & articrafts shopping hub. The place will take you one step closer to Bali’s culture. If you love yoga, you will definitely love this place, it offers lots of yoga centers. If bored with regular stuff visit monkey temple. In the night you can enjoy cultural dance & learn more about Bali's culture.
Gilli : If you had enough of Bali. Gilli island is an option for a perfect getaway. Gilli island consists of three small island Gill Air, Gilli Meno & Gilli Trawangan (Gilli T). Backpackers mostly prefer Gilli T because of places it offers for the party. Gilli T is like Khao San road with a motto of Sand, Party & S**. Gilli Meno is not much developed hence it can be boring. Gilli Air is much calmer & much more developed than Gilli Meno respectively. I would suggest the couples to try Gilli Air; a place to try snorkeling & scuba diving. This place also offers a diving course. This place offers some of the best sites for scuba diving & snorkeling. One can discover Gilli Air on foot. It hardly takes 2 hours to cover the place. Gilli Air is good enough for 2 days. Best way to reach Gilli is through speed boat from Sanur beach or through Padang Bai. Sit at the end to enjoy some waves.
Nusa Penida, Lambogen: Nusa Penida & Lambogen are 40 Km from Bali & can be reached by ferry or speedboat. The place is home to some of the best sunset points & hidden gems. Crystal bay & Pasih uug (Broken beach) are some of the major attractions on Nusa island. This place has crystal clear water & white sand. This place is good for 2 to 3 days. One can take the scooter to this island through ferries at a minimal rate of IDR 70,000. Speed boat costs more, I recommend to take a ferry which takes much more time but it costs less. If you are short on time & high on the money take speed boat.
Temples: Bali has a decent Hindi population & it is easy to find temples all around Bali. The architect is unique & refreshing. One of the unique features of their temples is their gate whose pillars are not attached to each other. Two independent columns act as a gate for the temple.
Beaches: Bali is surrounded by beautiful beaches. All beaches have something new to offer. From Kuta to Amed, From Uluwat to Canggu you will fall in love with beaches. An evening on the beach with a drink is an ideal thing to do & of course watching sunsets on beaches is an experience to look out for. Avoid Kuta Beach if you like serene environment, Kuta beach is very crowded to one's expectation. There are many calm & silent beaches which can serve the purpose.
Ubud: Ubud is the cultural hub of Bali, this place is beautifully built & most of the time crowded with travellers. This place is also known for the famous rice fields & articrafts shopping hub. The place will take you one step closer to Bali’s culture. If you love yoga, you will definitely love this place, it offers lots of yoga centers. If bored with regular stuff visit monkey temple. In the night you can enjoy cultural dance & learn more about Bali's culture.
Gilli : If you had enough of Bali. Gilli island is an option for a perfect getaway. Gilli island consists of three small island Gill Air, Gilli Meno & Gilli Trawangan (Gilli T). Backpackers mostly prefer Gilli T because of places it offers for the party. Gilli T is like Khao San road with a motto of Sand, Party & S**. Gilli Meno is not much developed hence it can be boring. Gilli Air is much calmer & much more developed than Gilli Meno respectively. I would suggest the couples to try Gilli Air; a place to try snorkeling & scuba diving. This place also offers a diving course. This place offers some of the best sites for scuba diving & snorkeling. One can discover Gilli Air on foot. It hardly takes 2 hours to cover the place. Gilli Air is good enough for 2 days. Best way to reach Gilli is through speed boat from Sanur beach or through Padang Bai. Sit at the end to enjoy some waves.
Nusa Penida, Lambogen: Nusa Penida & Lambogen are 40 Km from Bali & can be reached by ferry or speedboat. The place is home to some of the best sunset points & hidden gems. Crystal bay & Pasih uug (Broken beach) are some of the major attractions on Nusa island. This place has crystal clear water & white sand. This place is good for 2 to 3 days. One can take the scooter to this island through ferries at a minimal rate of IDR 70,000. Speed boat costs more, I recommend to take a ferry which takes much more time but it costs less. If you are short on time & high on the money take speed boat.
Temples: Bali has a decent Hindi population & it is easy to find temples all around Bali. The architect is unique & refreshing. One of the unique features of their temples is their gate whose pillars are not attached to each other. Two independent columns act as a gate for the temple.
Cost Involved During The Journey
I spent around about INR 14,000 for a 9 day trip to Bali, Nusa Penida & Gilli which includes everything (except airfares)
Flights cost may vary from places to place. I went to Thailand first & then to Indonesia. Starting price for a flight from Thailand to Indonesia was of INR 7,000.
Accommodation: Accommodation is usually cheap in Bali starting price for a dorm is IDR 60,000. However, the amount varies from places to places. Like staying at Kuta or Seminyak will cost more compared to places in the north of Bali. Dorm rooms price starts from 60,000 IDR & it can go to high depending on which time you are travelling & where are you staying. Places like Kuta, Seminyak are costly as it is crowded with travellers. Depansar & Ubud are good variants for accommodation. To enjoy some quiet time in Bali's head towards the north. The beaches on the north are less crowded & also priced less compared to prime locations.
Food & Alcohol: If travelling on shoestring budget, street food is a good option. Stalls are easily available & one can find good food starting from IDR 12,000.
Vegetarians will find it little tough to find food of their liking but Nonvegetarians can come across lots of variants. Alcohol cost in clubs & pubs starts from IDR 25000.
But It is better to buy alcohol from the departmental store where the cost starts from IDR 17,000. As a vegetarian, I relied on street food as I was able to modify according to my requirements.
Activities: Surfing is one of the famous sports in Bali, due to high tides & great waves Bali offers an ideal place for surfing. It is easy to find surfboard on the rent at the beaches that too on affordable prices. Snorkeling is generally done by renting a snorkeling equipment’s (cost of snorkeling equipment is usually IDR 30000 for the whole day). Scuba diving requires you to take a formal training for a dive, it usually takes 3 hours for the basic course. It is recommended to try scuba diving as Bali has some of the world's best spots to dive into.
Commutation: The best way to commute in Bali is through renting a bike. But, lots of travellers are afraid to rent a motorbike because of insane driving practices. But, I rented a bike & haven’t found anything alarming (may be driving in India helped me in that department :P). I rented a bike for IDR 55,000 per day. Public transport is available but it is costly & limits your travelling. It is better to hire a bike & roam around the city. All tourist spots can be easily reached by motorbike. Petrol is cheap, Roads are extremely good just carry a GPS for routes & everything will be under your control.
Activities: Surfing is one of the famous sports in Bali, due to high tides & great waves Bali offers an ideal place for surfing. It is easy to find surfboard on the rent at the beaches that too on affordable prices. Snorkeling is generally done by renting a snorkeling equipment’s (cost of snorkeling equipment is usually IDR 30000 for the whole day). Scuba diving requires you to take a formal training for a dive, it usually takes 3 hours for the basic course. It is recommended to try scuba diving as Bali has some of the world's best spots to dive into.
Commutation: The best way to commute in Bali is through renting a bike. But, lots of travellers are afraid to rent a motorbike because of insane driving practices. But, I rented a bike & haven’t found anything alarming (may be driving in India helped me in that department :P). I rented a bike for IDR 55,000 per day. Public transport is available but it is costly & limits your travelling. It is better to hire a bike & roam around the city. All tourist spots can be easily reached by motorbike. Petrol is cheap, Roads are extremely good just carry a GPS for routes & everything will be under your control.
Handy Resources:
Below are the few resources you should check before making an itinerary.Agoda: Best place to book hotels of your liking. Agoda provides the best solution & great offer while booking a hotel.
Skyscanner: Skyscanner compares various sites & sort the flights based on the rates. A great way to check flight cost. Although the only drawback is that rates are flexible. Hence, the cost might change while you are making the payment.
Jetradar: Jetradar is a comparing site which is just like Skyscanner. But, is much more accurate & much more handy in use.
Booking: Best place to book hostel rooms. There are plenty of options available & with so many properties booking becomes much easier.
Couchsurfing: Best place to find free accommodation. It is as easy as filtering people & messaging. If you will get lucky you will find free accommodation in local resident house.
Travel Insurance: There are numerous options available to get one. So, you can choose anything which suits your requirement. Make sure you read the terms & conditions before buying one.
Here is the solo travel guide to Bali. Here is few more things you need to know.
My Trip To Most Beautiful Island I Visited
PS: If you like the way I mentioned things do comment or mail me at [email protected]
Extra Information on Bali :
My Trip To Most Beautiful Island I Visited
PS: If you like the way I mentioned things do comment or mail me at [email protected]
Extra Information on Bali :
Hi Anand, Thank you for writing this article! It gave me a lot more insights on planning my trip to Bali. I had a few queries, it would be great if you can help me with it.
1) Visa on Arrival process in Bali, what are the documents required? and the cost?
2) For data and gps in Bali,did you get a sim while you where at Bali ?
Hi,
1) You can refer the following link for visa on arrival. The process is free for Indians if the duration is less than 30 days.
https://www.markmyadventure.com/indonesia-visa-indians/
2) Yeah, I got the sim from Bali itself.
Regards,
Anand
i need to know below things
1)visa on arrival process
2) phone(do i need to carry international sim from india)
3)GPS:- how it will work
4)bike driving without international license is ok?
I will mail you the details
I tried to mail you. However, your id is incorrect. Regarding your queries. Below are my answers.
*) Visa on arrival: Refer this link https://www.markmyadventure.com/indonesia-visa-indians/
*) You can buy a sim card which will have GPS & net pack. Thus, this will solve your GPS issue.
*) It is ok until & unless you are caught. But, to avoid any hassle get one.
I hope this will solve your queries.
I tried to mail you but it showed some issues. Below are my answer to your queries.
*) For visa on arrival click on this link https://www.markmyadventure.com/indonesia-visa-indians/
*) You can buy a local sim card which will have net access.
*) It is ok if you are not caught which is a very rare site there. However, to avoid any hassle better to take one.
I hope this will solve your queries.
Regards,
Anand
Hi Anand,
The article is very helpful!
Can I know the visa on arrival process in Bali, what are the documents required? and the cost?
I will mail you the details.
Regards,
Anand
Hi Anand,
Thank you for writing this article! It gave me a lot more insights on planning my trip to Bali. I had a few queries, it would be great if you can help me with it.
1) Visa on Arrival process in Bali, what are the documents required? and the cost?
2) For data and gps in Bali,did you get a sim while you where at Bali ?
Thanks a bunch!
Maria Kuriakose
I will mail you with the details