Night taxi airport to Tulamben?

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highdesert

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Anyone out there have any experience getting a ride to Tulamben in the evening? On previous trips to Bali, we've arrived mid-afternoon from Hong Kong. This time, we may arrive via Singapore at 7:10 PM. I'd hate to burn a couple of dives the next day by spending the night in a hotel by the airport, but wondering if there are drivers willing to start the trip to Tulamben after we get through customs. And how long a drive is that anyway? It's about 50 miles, so I'm guessing near 3 hours or so ...

Thanks!
 
You can use airport taxi. Last time I saw price to Candidasa was Rp 335,000 so Tulamben will be more (RP 400,000~450,000?). Airport to Tulamben will take about 2h30m (or less).

p.s
Did you book accommodation already? then why not ask airport pickup from them?
 

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I don't think you will have a problem arranging a taxi at that time. I have arrived around 9:00 PM and wanted to go straight to Padangbai.

I walked out towards the road from the airport, intending on finding a taxi there. There were a several taxis waiting in the parking lot, I arranged a price with a bluebird, very easy. Quite a bit cheaper than the price quoted at the taxi desk inside the airport. It shouldn't be a problem to get to Tulamben using that approach.
 
I walked out towards the road from the airport, intending on finding a taxi there. There were a several taxis waiting in the parking lot, I arranged a price with a bluebird, very easy. Quite a bit cheaper than the price quoted at the taxi desk inside the airport. It shouldn't be a problem to get to Tulamben using that approach.

Going out from airport and find taxi with many & heavy baggages?
Why not just buying airport taxi ticket? Airport taxi price is fixed & reasonable so you don't need to hassel.
 
We haven't gotten to the lodging part yet, since I'm not 100% sure we're going to Tulamben. We're actually booked on a liveaboard in north Sulawesi, but want to get to the area a few days ahead to get un-jet-lagged before we fly to Manado. We thought Tulamben might be a nice place to do it. The last two years, we've just kicked back in Ubud for a few days before diving, but we thought, "Why not get in a few dives before the dive trip?" But yes, if we do go there, I'll see if the place we book can just arrange the ride ... much easier. And if we end up walking out and cutting a deal with a driver, we travel light ... not a problem to carry our bags out.
 
Going out from airport and find taxi with many & heavy baggages?
Why not just buying airport taxi ticket? Airport taxi price is fixed & reasonable so you don't need to hassel.

To each their own. I don't mind walking 2 minutes to save a little of my hard earned money. I don't especially like haggling, but when a polite question about price can result in a discount it seems like a good thing to me. I also travel light...

Tulamben would be nice place to get in a day or two of diving. The freedom to shore dive on your own schedule if really nice. I agree it would be a good idea to arrange things in advance if you go, so the dive op is expecting your late arrival.
 
Kupu - You seem familiar with Padangbai ... I know there's plenty of diving to be done for a couple of days either there or Tulamben, but Padangbai requires the added cost of diving from a day boat, does it not? I'd love to dive Nusa Penida, but with the cost of the liveaboard on this trip, we need to do the Bali land-based diving for few $$ this time. Would Tulamben and its shore diving be a better choice in that respect?
 
True, Tulamben should be better if you want a lower price for the diving. It is where I would go in your situation, especially if you have not dove Tulamben before. Plan on diving the Liberty in the morning before the day trippers get there and do the other sites during the day, the Liberty can also be nice in the late afternoon, although the vis will be lower.

Comparing the prices between Padangbai and Tulamben depends on which sites are chosen from Padangbai, Nusa Penida is more expensive to get to than the sites closer to the harbor in Padangbai. The shop I dove with charged around $70-$75 for a two tank trip to Nusa Penida, and $40-$50 for two dives on the closer sites.
 
You might want to think about staying somewhere local on arrival night (Kuta is about 10 minutes from the airport) then travelling to Tulamben early next morning. For simple risk management reasons travelling two hours at night on unlit Bali roads is best avoided, if at all possible.
 
You might want to think about staying somewhere local on arrival night (Kuta is about 10 minutes from the airport) then travelling to Tulamben early next morning. For simple risk management reasons travelling two hours at night on unlit Bali roads is best avoided, if at all possible.

That thought also occurred to me ... there's a place we stay in Tuban that's about 5 minutes from the airport, real handy when we're about to depart Bali. That means half a day's diving gone, but I guess that beats the possibility of spending the night rolled in the ditch along the way to Tulamben.

It might all become a non-issue, though. Right now, we're looking at flying directly into Manado, and bypassing Bali on this trip. It's more convenient, but it pains me in a way, since I really love Bali (world's nicest people!), and am doing everything I can to try to spend 6 months there some time.
 
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