Vibrant Vacation: Highlights and lowlights of a trip to Bali

Holidaymakers go wild for a trip to Bali. But how can you ensure that you have the best personalised experience in this Indonesian province?

What are your first thoughts when you find out you’re going on a trip to Bali? Wellness lodges and yoga retreats? Surfing schools and waterfall hikes? Bali is a tourist hotspot, home to all of these holiday activities and more. You can head to the beach and enjoy the stunning sea views, or head inland to the luscious tea terraces. There are tours and excursions that you can sign up for so that you can scour the entire island in a short space of time. And when you’re not out exploring you can enjoy the vibrant nightlife and fantastic eating spots. However, the versatility of Bali as an island can make it very crowded. So before you hop on over to Indonesia, here are some highlights and lowlights of a trip to Bali.

Highlights

1. Tour days and activities
2. Eating
3. Views

Tour days and activities

Let me start by listing all the activities I managed to enjoy in a three-day stint in Bali. Day one included puppy yoga, a dip in the pool, a game of padel and a trip into town to see the nightlife. Next was a full-day tour where we went horse riding on the beach, indulged in a coffee-tasting session and tried quad biking through the jungle. The final day involved yet another tour where we visited three iconic waterfalls in the morning and headed to see the Kecak Fire Dance in the evening. Oh! I forgot to mention we also did another coffee tasting on this last day. Peppered in throughout all these activities were more chill moments in the hotel room, drinks at numerous cafes or eating in gorgeous restaurants. 

I could barely breathe just then listing everything I did. And I didn’t even touch upon potential hikes to Mount Batur or surfing practice at Kuta Beach. Therefore, a clear highlight of Bali is the range of activities it holds. It’s very easy to book full-day trips around the island with a private driver or even just short excursions using apps like Klook. Staying in Canggu also meant there were a number of things to do close by (e.g., puppy yoga!) and great nightlife in the evening. Additionally, if you want a more relaxed holiday you can head to Ubud for a healing retreat surrounded by greenery. Bali is for everyone – a place where you’ll never be bored.

Eating

Usually, I become a glutton on holiday (who are we kidding, I’m one most of the time). But somehow I felt like I was eating a little cleaner on my trip to Bali. While I gourged out on cinnamon swirls and cocktails some of the time, I was able to balance it with hearty oat bowls and avocado lattes at other points. Canggu offers a great range of food with a good selection of fancy restaurants, independent cafes and familiar takeaway chains. The price of these meals was also very manageable. This made the eating experience a real highlight on this trip to Bali.

Quirky restaurants with striking decor or unfamiliar dishes help to make a vacation extra special. Bali has no lack of these unique establishments. Penny Lane is one of the best restaurants to visit for a gorgeous and distinct interior as well as delicious burgers and drinks. Inside you’ll see comedic renditions of renowned paintings. You can also pose in front of the eye-catching fountain, which encapsulates the restaurant’s dichotomy of casual and fancy. Unfortunately, with all these amazing places to eat, it’s harder to experience Balinese cuisine. Plus, all the cafes and eating establishments you do end up visiting will expect a tip. Nonetheless, dining out is a great experience in Bali and restaurants will always make an effort to seat you.

Views

Sea, jungle, mountain and city. Bali has every terrain you can imagine, and all of it seems a little unreal. For one of the best views in the country, head to Uluwatu Temple at sunset. The sight of the setting sun across the sea from such a vantage point really is magical. Your view will also be enriched by the cheeky monkeys napping on the ornate temple wall (careful these monkeys aren’t as peaceful as they look). Bali’s colour palette seems unnaturally bold as you journey through the island. The greens of the forest seem more vivid and the clouds of the sky look a little more pink. All of these views are made even more scenic with the warm air drifting around you.

The views are stunning, but you don’t have to go far to see them. Mount Batur is a popular hike that people take to see a mesmerising sunrise. However, two firsthand accounts state that a trip up Mount Batur may not provide you with the gorgeous scenery you were hoping for. Unfortunately, this view is often misted with morning fog meaning that waking up early is slightly pointless. Therefore, Bali has a lot to offer, but you don’t necessarily need to travel the length of the island to see it. The real highlight of Bali’s views is that they’re often right on your hotel doorstep.

Lowlights

1. Tourist traps
2. Swimmable sea
3. Traffic

Tourist traps

Bali is beautiful and much of it can be enjoyed with little to no cost. But you have to be savvy with your spending and the activities you sign up for. With so many people vying to take you on daily excursions and so many holiday-makers to please, there are some nearly unavoidable tourist traps that you might fall into. For example, I booked two full-day tours over my short holiday, both with a private driver. Although the main activities were drastically different between the trips, both excursions took us to a coffee-tasting experience. Therefore, this event is evidently a tourist favourite, and while it was fun once, being presented exactly the same tasting set for a second time didn’t evoke much wonder. Therefore, be careful when booking tours and experiences, and don’t be afraid to warn your guide if you think that you’re about to head to the same popular destination twice.

Apart from visiting the same spot multiple times, you’ll also find that you’ll have to pay a lot for ‘iconic experiences’. For example, to try the famous Bali swing, you’ll be expected to pay for the ride, plus any clothes and professional photos. While the price was wholly justified by the sheer amount of energy spent by the men pushing the swing, it did burn a hole in my pocket. Additionally, queues of like-minded holiday-makers looking for their turn stand behind the camera. Therefore, although my friend and I created highly Instagrammable photos, we weren’t always comfortable taking them in front of swarms of tourists. If you want to get away from the crowds of holidaying groups, don’t plan a trip to Bali.

Swimmable sea

I can’t believe I visited this island and didn’t once go for a dip in the sea. I even headed to the beach dressed ready for a splash around in the waves. However, after looking out at the sea, the idea of swimming became a lot less appealing. Surfers inundate this coastline. If you can avoid being hit in the head by one of these tough surfboards, you’ll have to also escape being dashed on the rocks lining the shore. Unfortunately, this makes the beaches, especially in Canggu, less than opportune for swimming. For this reason, I’d recommend booking a hotel with a pool so you can get your dose of swimming time with less risk. 

Although a dip in the sea wasn’t possible in Canggu, Bali does have some excellent beaches open for swimming. Nusa Dua, for instance, is a great location for beaches where you can enjoy lying in the sun and pootling in the water. Crystal Bay is another example of a popular swimming spot that’s also hot with snorkelers. To reach this beach, you will have to take a boat from the mainland. Nonetheless, if it’s the clear and calm waters that you’re looking for, it’s worth the journey. Therefore, although a drawback of Canggu is its lack of swimmable beaches, heading to another part of the island will turn this lowlight into a highlight. 

Traffic

The 9 km drive from the airport to a hotel in Canggu should not have taken over an hour to complete. But this is very much the case in Bali. You’ll soon discover that most people travel by motorbike. If you’re confident enough to hop on one of these (either driving yourself or taking a motorcycle taxi), you’ll be able to slither through the traffic. If you take a car, you’ll often find yourself creeping along at an agonisingly slow pace. Therefore, although the island is fairly small, it can take hours to journey through. This means you need to be careful with where you choose to stay.

Luckily, it’s easier to find tour guides or drivers to transport you for the day. Either book an excursion or use apps like Grab or Gojek to get a taxi. This saves some hassle and keeps you safer as they know the roads better. Nonetheless, you’ll have to spend a fair bit of money on paying for transport, and then you’ll find yourself sitting waiting in traffic. There’s no option for public transport like buses or trains so traffic is a reality you’ll just have to live with. Either resign yourself to getting stuck on a road or choose to only stay in one area of the island. Sadly, these are often your only choices on a trip to Bali.

Bountiful trip to Bali

If you think of Indonesia, you’ll undoubtedly imagine Bali. Travellers love this island for a reason. There are countless highlights, like the plethora of activities to do, the great places to eat and the stunning views to behold. Plus, the people in Bali are the best. Every tour guide only added to the experience with their fun conversation and kindness. Nonetheless, Bali’s popularity also provides it with its biggest lowlights. Many key sites are expensive and busy, and the traffic on the roads makes it harder to explore the whole island. Getting to swimmable beaches is only made harder by blocked streets. However, on the whole, Bali is well worth the hype. This is particularly true if you love an adventure holiday packed full of activities. For surfers, Bali is a prime location (especially if you’ve already explored the great spots in the Philippines). You’ll never be at a loss for what to do on a trip to Bali, whether you’re a solo traveller or on a journey with friends.