12 Full Days in Bali. How would you use them?

[jcclink]

12 days sounds like a lot but it goes by pretty fast. Traveling around Bali does take awhile. Depending on the type of diving you're looking for, Menjangan is good for reefy stuff, Puri Jati for muck diving (just west of Lovina, north coast), Tulamben & Seraya for muck, small reefs & Liberty wreck. These areas would give you a good variety of subjects without spending a lot of travel time. Take a day off for an island tour. Spend some R&R time in Ubud at the end of your trip to shop, relax, shop... If you arrive at 1pm there is still time to get to your first destination. Driving yourself can definitely be an E ticket ride if you
re not used to lots of autos, more motor bikes & narrow roads. Much less stressful hiring a driver. If you book Bali with a local dive company they will be glad to provide all your transport. I've had excellent service from Aqua Marine.

 

[Wisnu]

Most people dive Lembongan and Penida from South Bali (Sanur, Candi Dasa, ect) what I did 2 years ago we stayed in Sanur. The DS will pick-you early morning for boat journey to the dive site. There's nice resort both at lembongan and penida.
We'll not include Lembongan and Nusa Penida on our next trip; I have to compromise w/ my daughters.

Airport - Menjangan journey normally 3 - 4 hours. So, I don't see any problem to straight from airport; and having good sleep at Menjangan then wake-up in the morning for your first dive. Howver, if you ask south base DS to arrnge your trip; mostlikely they will arrnge overnight at South Bali, around Sanur, Kuta, or Jimbaran. There's lot of accomodation there; not possible to mention here.
Ubud is also good choice and can be made on the way if you travel to Menjangan via highland (very scenic landscape).
If you book any Menjangan resort, they can arrange transportation directly.
To give u simple overview of Bali, just imagine big clock. Airport at 06:00, Menjangan 10:00, Tulamben 14:00, Amed 14:30, Candi Dasa 16:00 - this also reflecting max. travel time.

 

[TravelSimone]

I don't think we'll be driving if that can be avoided. I see that a lot of dive operations offer dives all over Bali, but its seems like to travel time to and from would be pretty taxing. Is it really realistic to dive Nusa Lembongan and Penida from Sanur, Pedangbai or Candi Dasa (and would you)?

Another question is, we get in at 1pm after traveling for 20 odd hours. I'm thinking we may not have it in us to head straight to Menjangan in a car from the airport. Does anyone have any ideas about where we could head within a reasonable distance from the airport on the way to Menjangan to relax for half a day and a night? I guess Ubud isn't really on the way, right? Please forgive me if I'm asking stupid questions, but it's literally on the other side of the globe for us. Thanks.

Yes, you can dive Nusa Lembongan and Penida from Padang Bai. You will just have longer boat rides. Personally, I would prefer staying on Nusa Lembongan. It isn't a huge effort to get over there. However, I have heard of a lot of people who were perfectly happy diving from Padang Bai.

I think your itinerary is more reasonable with Menjangan, Amed or Tulamben and then Nusa Lembongan. You still don't have much time, because realistically speaking, you do lose almost a day getting to and from all of these places- or at least a half a day.

Oddly enough... Ubud is on the way to Menjangan. The fastest way up to Menjangan is through the center of Bali and then cutting west near the top of the island. You will want a day or so of resting after your long flight. I think you would be insane to try to get off that plane and then head all the way up to Menjangan. Ubud is a pleasant place to do this. It shouldn't take you much more than an hour to get up to Ubud from the airport (this all depends upon traffic). If you would rather stay nearer the beach, just note that the airport is extremely centrally located right on the edge of Kuta- 5-10 minutes to Kuta, 15-20 to Seminyak (which I prefer over Kuta).

I suppose the main question to ask you is how you are getting to all of these places? I note that another poster recommended Perama, which is a perfectly respectable tourist bus/shuttle company. The only drawback there is that you are limited to their time schedule (though, they do tend to run fairly on time). One thing to consider is that some of the nicer places will actually pick you up. Mimpi up at Menjangan will pick you up from pretty much any location in Bali. It all depends upon your budget.

 

[nycdive]

I suppose the main question to ask you is how you are getting to all of these places? I note that another poster recommended Perama, which is a perfectly respectable tourist bus/shuttle company. The only drawback there is that you are limited to their time schedule (though, they do tend to run fairly on time). One thing to consider is that some of the nicer places will actually pick you up. Mimpi up at Menjangan will pick you up from pretty much any location in Bali. It all depends upon your budget.

I was thinking of arranging for a driver at each of the places (through the hotel maybe?) to take us to our next location. Is that realistic? If it is, do you have any recommendations? Thanks.

 

[nwflyboy]

Well this is timely....I just booked our flights this morning, and we'll be in Bali for 14 full days. I'm just getting started now with my research, but will have questions to post shortly.

Oh, BTW, we'll be there the last 2 weeks of August. If possible, I'd love to dive with the mola mola. I believe this is more or less the right time of year, right?

Thanks in advance - the questions will come soon.

 

[Wisnu]

You can ask the hotel to arrange the transfer. As option Mimpi offered me transfer from Airport - Menjangan - Tulamben - Airport total for approx. $140 per car (2 adult + 2 childrens); more less similar with others. However, I'll rent a car for $25/day - more flexibility; family can use it anytime for land activity.

 

[TravelSimone]

You can ask the hotel to arrange the transfer. As option Mimpi offered me transfer from Airport - Menjangan - Tulamben - Airport total for approx. $140 per car (2 adult + 2 childrens); more less similar with others. However, I'll rent a car for $25/day - more flexibility; family can use it anytime for land activity.

I think Wisnu has some experience driving in Bali, but I don't recommend it if you are coming from the USA. Indonesia drives on the left side of the road, and driving around Bali is a nerve wracking experience for the uninitiated. My husband- an Aussie who is a left side of the road driver- hates to drive around the island. We usually drive ourselves, because it gives us great flexibility. An example of just how much he hates to drive... we are planning a trip up to Menjangan in 6 weeks, and have decided that we are staying and diving with Mimpi on a package. They include pick-up service in their package price, and even though my husband has been working in Bali for 2.5 years... we are going to have them pick us up. It is horrible to be in an accident in Bali.

$140 is criminal for driving around Bali. I understand that is what the nicer resorts charge and it is often the only option the tourist to Bali has. It is also cheaper than a rental car in the USA would cost for 3 days. But... this price just gets me. If you had some time to spend in Bali you can find drivers a lot cheaper than the resorts charge you. However, with only 12 days... you are probably better off going the route Wisnu suggests. The only other suggestion I have here is for you to post a question in more travel related forums asking for recommendations for drivers. People post this question all the time on Trip Advisor, and I have also seen it asked on Virtual Tourist.

One other thing... I said that the drive to Menjangan goes right past Ubud... that isn't actually the case, you change roads to go a little west before you get to Ubud. Still... Ubud isn't that far off of the path if you want to stay there.

 

[Wisnu]

Yes, as per my previous post I do not recommend driving there if you are not familiar with Bali or if you cannot enjoy driving in Jakarta, Bangkok or Hanoi; driving can be more dangerous than diving.
The transportation cost US$ 140 as mentioned indeed on high side but actually not too bad since this cost is for sending one car with driver from Menjangan – Airport – Menjangan; then Menjangan – Tulamben (the car must return to Menjangan) then Tulamben – Airport (the car must return to Menjangan) with total travelling distance more than 500 km, travelling/waiting time more 15 hours + the fuel cost in Indonesia is no longer cheap now.

 

[TravelSimone]

The transportation cost US$ 140 as mentioned indeed on high side but actually not too bad since this cost is for sending one car with driver from Menjangan – Airport – Menjangan; then Menjangan – Tulamben (the car must return to Menjangan) then Tulamben – Airport (the car must return to Menjangan) with total travelling distance more than 500 km, travelling/waiting time more 15 hours + the fuel cost in Indonesia is no longer cheap now.

You are right, and for someone coming from a country (like the USA) where a private car trip like that would be astronomical in price, it is a good deal. My only complaint is that I think the resorts charge a high price just because they can. Still... I would do the same thing if I was going to Bali for a short trip.

 

[nycdive]

I would be alright with $140 for that many destinations and less of a headache. I really wish I could pare this down to two stops that were a good base for these places, but the likely contenders don't seem as appealing to me. Lovina sounds like it would be a reasonable place to get to Menjangan and Tulamben from, but I keep hearing that the hawkers there are near unbearable. Also, how realistic is it really to dive Tulamben from Lovina? Should any of these locations I've mentioned be given more or less time in your opinion in terms of the dives being worth it? Again, thank you for all the help.