Flower Bathes and Floating Breakfast- WHERE AM I?
When Millennials are asked the question, “Name one place you would love to travel to?” The top 3 places I hear are: Bali, Thailand and Dubai. And guess what I have your Travel Tea on all three. But for this article we will focus on -you guessed it -
B A L I
Air Tea:
I went to Bali during peak season which is July, August and December. I stayed for about 7 nights/8 days. The total cost of my airline ticket including flight, seats and baggage was $880. The airline we flew was China Southern. I will give you the tea on all international airlines I have flown later. Needless to say, I would never fly China Southern again so I wouldn’t recommend flying them. I had a layover coming and going in Guangzhou, China(this was prior the coronavirus breakout in China, so I am safe).
Accommodations Tea:
Bali has several different cities you can visit depending on what type of traveler you are and what you type of trip you want this to be. Here are a list of the popular cities and what type of traveler aligns to each:
Ubud – Cultural Traveler
Nusa Dua- Relaxed Traveler and Family Traveler
Seminyak- The Party(Turn Up) Traveler
Jimbaran – Honeymoon Travelers
Initially, I chose Nusa Dua and booked accommodations there, but after doing hours and hours of research, I cancelled my stay in Nusa Dua and settled on splitting my time between Ubud and Seminyak and I am very happy that was my final decision. Oh you ask why I split my time? I’ll get to that below.
I spent 4 nights in Ubud and 3 nights in Seminyak. I stayed at hotels in both cities.
In Ubud, I stayed at the Sthala, a Tribute Portfolio Hotel, Ubud. This hotel was not your average huge hotel. There were only about 5 floors and less than 100 rooms. It was a little further out from the main part of Ubud, but that worked for me as the views of the forest and the river were breathtaking. Like I mentioned above, Ubud is for the Cultural Traveler so finding a hotel or villa with great views of nature was a plus. The staff at this hotel were super friendly. Even though the hotel is on the smaller side, it has 2 pools, one infinity pool that overlooks the greenery and another smaller pool that is near the bar. The infinity pool is where I had the floating breakfast. This hotel also had breakfast buffet that was reasonably priced (less than $20) that served Balinese food, Western food and other Asian cuisines. Also, they had a really cool Rooftop Bar with Swinging Chairs which was definitely unique.
In Seminyak, I stayed at the W Seminyak. This was the BEST hotel I have stayed in internationally. It was nothing short of amazing. This hotel was located right in the middle of the action in Seminyak while also being on the beach. I could eat, drink, party and be super close to getting back to the hotel within a 10 min walk and about a 15 min drive. They had everything you could think of for a great vacation hotel: a huge pool with lounge chairs and cabanas, 4 restaurants which includes Starfish Bloo, one of the hottest Sunday brunch spots(you know us Millennials love to brunch), WooBar which is mix between a club and a pool party, a 24 hour Spa, 24 hour in-room dining, shuttles to take you back and forth to the entrance of the hotel(it’s a long walk to the street), a recording studio, and last but not least, the best customer service one can ask for. If you are willing to splurge on anything in Bali, it would be for this hotel. I highly recommend it.
Transportation Tea:
The best advice I can give is to GET A DRIVER. Our driver’s name was Putu. Fun fact I learned: The eldest of the family is named Putu so you will meet several people named Putu. If you can, schedule pick up times and drop of times every day with your driver. Putu picked me up from the hotel and dropped me off at the hotel every day in Ubud. Also, if you travel during high season, traffic is insane in both Ubud and Seminyak. Ubud does not have traffic lights or stop signs and cars don’t follow the same rules we have in the United States so it can get congested really quickly. Make sure you give yourself some cushion time when traveling by car.
In Seminyak, taxis are a ripe off. You will pay one price leaving the hotel and the price will be doubled or tripled going back to the hotel. I had a couple of taxis ripe me off and paid an outrageous fee as I needed to get back to the hotel. Traffic is also congested in Seminyak even at night as this is a party town especially during peak season. Honestly, if you aren’t traveling alone and your hotel/villa is walkable, you will probably get back sooner if you walked. After the taxi rip off, I walked to late night dinners and parties.
In both Ubud and Seminyak, Ubers are not allowed in many places. Even though you can request an Uber on the app, there are signs that don’t allow the car to come pass a certain mark. According to Putu, this is to keep the local drivers of each village employed. You can rent a motorbike, but unless you are super confident in your driving skills when there aren’t any driving guidelines, I wouldn’t suggest it. I actually rode on the back of a motorbike to get a secluded dinner in a rice terrace where only motorbikes were allowed. It was a dope experience, but again, I would never attempt to drive one myself(LOL)
Enjoyable Tea:
If you plan to only be in Bali a short 7 nights(Yes, 7 nights is short for Bali) and you are splitting your time between 2 cities, make sure you jam pack you days to get the most out of this amazing country. Here are some of the places I went in Ubud and Seminyak and there are still so many other places I wanted to visit.
Ubud
Udaya Spa
Sang Spa
Bale Udang Mang Engking
Laughing Buda
Ubud Traditional Art Market
The Grill at Luxe
All day Ubud Tour which included Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary, Tegalalang Rice Terrace and swing, Tirta Empul, Tirta Ganggg and Tegenungan waterfall
Omina Beach Club
CP Lounge
Seminyak
Potato Head Beach Club
FINN’s Beach Club
La Favela
Markets in Seminyak
Starfish Blow Brunch at the W
Woobar at the W
To check out pictures and videos from these places, subscribe to my YouTube channel, Travel Tea and follow me on Instagram @Lala_Gilly
All the Tea You Need:
- As for most international trips, WhatsApp will be your BFF when it comes to getting in contact with your driver and most establishments you will visit especially if you have to make reservations prior to arriving.
- Food is fairly cheap in Bali so your biggest cost will be your accommodations. I highly recommend the W Seminyak even if it is for only two nights.
- During peak season, get to Potato Head and FINN’s Beach Club EARLY as the beds fill up fast. Also, traffic is awful in Ubud and Seminyak so make sure you account for traffic when traveling to places where you have a reservation.
- Negotiate taxis in Seminyak, if you can.
- Only exchange money in legit establishments that say “No Commission”. Don’t go to ones that are in small huts or stands in Seminyak. If they advertise that they will gave you an crazy high amount of IDRs(Indonesian Rupiah) for a $1 USD, don’t believe them.
- Prices are in thousands so if you see a price that says 100.00 IDR or 100K IDR that means 100,000 IDR which is equivalent to $7 USD.
- Souvenirs are cheaper in Ubud than they are in Seminyak so buy them in Ubud.
- The flower baths and the floating breakfast are apart of the cultural. Make sure you do both. Most hotels/villas have the floating breakfast for a small fee. I paid $25. Most of the spas and some hotels have the flower baths. Get creative with flower bath design.
- Massages are less than $10 many places so get one every day. I even got one at the W at 2am and it was only $22.
- Omina Beach Club is like a Vegas Pool Party, but 10 times better because they views are like no other. If you go, make a reservation ahead of time. The price includes entry, food and drinks.
- Spend a full day or two visiting the cultural sites in Ubud.
Well, that’s your Travel Tea on Bali.
If you have any questions, feel free to DM on Instagram @Lala_Gilly or comment below. And don't forgot to subscribe to my YouTube channel, Travel Tea.
