Bali & Lombok Tuttle Travel Pack. Paul Greenway
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Tuttle Travel Pack Bali & Lombok
HOW TO USE THIS BOOK
Full of up-to-date, thoroughly researched information by people who have lived, studied, and worked in the country, the Tuttle series of Travel Packs are indispensable companions on your global travels. The portable size and straightforward format always makes them easy to use, no matter if you’re a regular or first-time visitor.
At the front of this book we provide an overview, including the geography, climate, and people of Bali and Lombok and, importantly, the unique culture, crafts, and architecture of both islands.
Chapter 1 lists the 21 Best Sights across Bali and Lombok, including the most alluring beaches, the most resplendent temples, and the greatest outdoor activities like cycling and snorkeling, as well as other highlights, popular or lesser-known. To help you plan your stay, the Making the Most of Your Visit section offers advice about where to base yourself and how to make those “tough” decisions about what to see and do among the myriad of attractions based on your preferred interests and level of comfort.
In Chapter 2, we detail a number of daily excursions across Bali, from the hedonistic southern beaches to the northern and eastern coasts, and the cultural and volcanic heartlands in between. We focus on places that are well-known and popular, such as Ubud, Sanur, and Lovina, but also lakeside temples, traditional villages, and undeveloped beaches that tourists rarely visit or even know about. We also include Bali’s sister island, Lombok, which is similar in some ways but vastly different in others, and doesn’t have the obvious trappings of mass tourism: pollution, urban sprawl, and high prices.
A vital part of this book is Chapter 3 in which the author offers many personal recommendations. From his vast experience of traveling, working, and studying in Bali and Lombok, he provides a list of the best of the best for both islands, including the grandest and most unique hotels, from budget to luxury and in between, and premium places to dine, whether it’s on a beach or among the chaos of Kuta. Kids, night-clubbers, shopaholics, and outdoor enthusiasts are certainly not forgotten either, with special sections dedicated to the very best of what Bali and Lombok have to offer.
Lastly, the Travel Facts section provides everything you need to be aware of, including must-knows like visas and money, explanations about health and events, some basic Indonesian to help you make the most of your visit, and details about how to get there and travel around.
No guidebook is complete without detailed maps, however, so we provide dozens of maps, as well as a large double-sided, pull-out map of Bali and Lombok based on an updated version of Periplus’ renowned series of maps.
While information was correct at the time of printing, places on both islands do sometimes close, change owners, or fall in quality. The publisher cannot accept responsibility for any errors that may be contained in this Travel Pack, but we also encourage readers to contact us with corrections and recommendations.
CHAPTER 1
BALI & LOMBOK'S
Best Sights
Some rarely venture outside the confines of their chosen resort area, but Bali and Lombok offer almost every conceivable attraction from temples on volcanic slopes in Bali’s central highlands to hot springs among tropical forests to the north, as well as quaint villages clinging to Indonesia’s second-highest peak, Mount Rinjani, on Lombok. Online research, or a visit to any travel agency, will quickly confirm the overwhelming number of things to do and places to go and see, which is why we’ve done the hard work for you and compiled a list of 21 Best Sights across both islands. Including sunset dinners at beachside cafés, hypnotic dances at cliff-top temples, and cycling around a care-free (and car-free) island, make sure you cross as many as possible off this list.
1 Tanah Lot Temple
2 Lake Bratan, Bedugul Highlands
3 Jimbaran Beach Seafood Dinner
4 Padangbai Village, East Bali
5 Ulu Watu Temple, South Bali
6 Pasir Putih Beach, East Bali
7 Tirtagangga Water Palace
8 Cycling on Nusa Lembongan Island
9 Ubud’s Taman Saraswati Dances
10 Rice Terraces at Jatiluwih
11 Ubud’s Monkey Forest
12 Gunung Kawi Rock Temples
13 Banjar Village, North Bali
14 Mount Batur Natural Hot Springs
15 From Ujung to Amed, East Bali
16 Snorkeling Lombok’s Gili Islands
17 Southern Lombok’s Kuta Beach
18 Lombok’s Senaru Village
19 Pura Lingsar Temple in Lombok
20 Lombok’s Senggigi Beach
21 Taman Narmada Gardens, Lombok
Making the Most of Your Visit
You obviously know the limits of your time and budget, but we can help you choose a base. Bali and Lombok are compact, so while it is possible to day trip from one place to another, traffic, poor roads, and mountainous terrain will seriously affect traveling times. While finding a quiet, remote base with few tourists sounds tempting, hotels will have cold water and, maybe, squat toilets; menus may be limited to only rice and noodles; and you’ll probably need to rely on jam-packed public transport. Buses and mini-vans called bemo cater exclusively for locals, so they travel to non-tourist hubs like Denpasar and Gianyar, while services are, for example, poor in Ubud and non-existent for Kuta. So, base yourself in locations that have the wide range of facilities you want, the sort of transport you need, and the type of places you wish to visit.
Bali: The overwhelming majority of people base themselves near the southern beaches or Ubud, which means that vast areas, including tourist centers along the east and north coast and the smaller islands, are comparatively quiet; even more so during the low season. If you’re mostly interested in shopping, surfing and clubbing, Kuta is popular, although its claustrophobic lanes and traffic-clogged roads may not appeal to kids and mature-aged visitors. For what Kuta has to offer, but with more space and fewer people, head to the adjacent beaches of Tuban (also known as South Kuta) and Legian, or to Seminyak for a little more sophistication.
Sanur has no waves–and, therefore, no surfers–and limited nightlife, but certainly has more than enough tourist facilities to satisfy most, and it is the departure point for the charming island of Nusa Lembongan. Further around the southern peninsula is Nusa Dua, a gated zone of four- and five-star resorts where guests rarely want (or need) to venture far from their vast hotel complexes. To the north, Tanjung Benoa is a more affordable version of Nusa Dua and the center for water sports.
Ubud is the undoubted cultural and spiritual heartland of Bali and also geographically convenient for day trips to the beaches in the south and east, and the numerous temples, villages, lakes, and volcanoes of central Bali. Also, Ubud is cooler and cheaper than the southern resorts. The east coast, which is increasingly popular as it becomes more accessible, offers quiet beaches, un-touristy villages, and revered temples. The major east coast bases are Padangbai, a jumping off point for speedboats to the Gili Islands and ferries to Lombok, but also a charming village in itself; and Candidasa, which is a beach resort without much beach. Further along the east coast, Amed is an extended collection of laidback fishing villages with rocky, gray beaches unsuitable for swimming, but excellent for underwater exploration. Similarly, along the northern coast, Lovina is spread over many kilometers, and