Chani Thompson

View Original

An Easy Guide to Bali


You guys know Im obsessed with Bali right? Its my fave go to getaway destination! Its cheap, its beautiful, its full of healthy food & there are some serious hot spots popping up over there. Since coming back from my latest trip I’ve been inundated with requests for our itinerary details, so here's my step by step guide to Bali. Whether you're wanting a relaxing holiday with your babe, a healthy holiday or even a polar opposite fun trip away with the girls (or boys!), this guide will definitely help you find my favourite. Bali top spots..

Since coming back I’ve been inundated with people wanting our itinerary details, so rather than re-writing it all out for everyone, I’ve decided to just blog it! So this is The Healthy Peach guide to Bali, I’ve also included surf breaks for those who surf or for those who have their boys with them that would love to surf while over there. Whether you're wanting a relaxing holiday with your babe, a healthy retreat style holiday or even a polar opposite fun trip away with the girls (or boys!), this guide will definitely help you find my favourite Bali top spots..

Our usual trip goes a little like this: Keramas —> Lembongan —> Bingin Beach —> Seminyak ... within a 10 day - 15 day period. There are still loads of areas I would love to visit that I haven't gotten around to yet, so for now these are the towns and their surrounding locations that I’ll be talking about. 

My biggest tip, jump on Trip Advisor, check out all the places below and read the reviews to make a decision for where you want to visit yourself. Every place I have mentioned below gets a 10/10 from me if that helps, but certainly suss out the locations below to see if it will be your jam. Enjoy, have fun and remember … “Bagus” means good, “Terimah Kasi” means thank you (important one) and Bintang means… well… I’ll let you figure that one out… 

Keramas

A beautiful and secluded part of Bali to stay at is a resort called Komune (in the town called Keramas). There's literally not much to do in Keramas and there are actually no other hotels or resorts to stay at. There’s just an amazing right hand surf break in front of this particular resort owned by two fellow Gold Coasters. Komune has absolutely everything you can imagine within its doors & you literally won't need to leave the hotel. You have a huge variety of things to do here. Two restaurants to bounce back and forth from with all produce being harvested from their organic vegetable gardens that you can check out yourself whilst walking throughout the grounds, yoga, gym, pt sessions, group fitness classes, two pools with one being their famous beach front surf watch mooch posi, and the other being a child free quiet zone, night surfing for those game enough, a day spa with every single treatment imaginable and a bar with an extensive cocktail menu to get you right into the swing of holiday mode. We usually stay here for about 4 nights before we head off to our next destination. 

See this Instagram gallery in the original post

Nusa Lembongan & Nusa Ceningan

Two beautiful little islands off Bali that are totally worth jumping on a boat to cross over too for a few nights. It takes about an hour by boat if you catch the boat from a town called Sanur. Its certainly smarter to cross over to Lembongan after your stay in Keramas being so close. There are about 5 great surf breaks between both islands and a handful of insanely beautiful beach clubs to visit during the day (pool hopping is allowed on these islands too whoohoo), all with fabulous infinity pools overlooking the surf. 3 nights here is usually enough time to explore these little islands. Its super quiet and safe so get yourself a moped and go exploring the entire island, you can cross over between Lembongan and Ceningan via a small bridge (looks dodgy but totally safe, I promise). A little travel trick of mine is to upload your maps while in wifi, and then while you're driving around your map is always still available to you when offline, with your little blue dot and your location still available. This island has awesome reef to go diving in with delicious amazing sea life to swim with and if you ask your boat driver to take you to the right spots, you’ll get to see some manta rays. Google Rocky Fast Boat, they’re the best company to travel with via boat, cheapest and quickest and most reliable. You can book this boat via phone when you’re in bali a couple of days before you decide to go (best to call, I wouldn't try to email).

Accom
-Lembongan Aqua Villas at least for one night ($$) 
-Alam Nusa Villas for full blown Balinese hut living (bathroom outside in the open - so cool)
-Le Pirate Beach Club, super cute & cheap beach club
-Batu Karang Lembongan Resort & Day Spa, for a more resort type stay
-Suka Beach Bungalow for beach front amazingness

Surf breaks
-Playgrounds (easiest to paddle to from Coconuts Beach)
-Lacerations (lives up to its name, super shallow but apparently bad ass)
-Shipwrecks, (You’ll need transportation out here)
-No Man’s
-Ceningan Point Secret Spot

Yoga
-Yoga Shack & Serenity Yoga

Restaurants / Beach Clubs
-Lembongan Beach Club Resort
-The Deck (amazing view)
-Secret Point Hut Villas
-Visit all the accom listed above,  they also have great food on offer
-When you drive around these islands on your moped, you’ll be sure to find a handful of other hidden gems
 

Bingin / Uluwatu

Bingin is about 45 mins from Seminyak, we usually get our hotel to hook us up with a hotel transfer there because locals wont let your everyday taxi’s in here. They like to keep taxis out to give their locals work, which is pretty cute! You must stay at Sal’s Secret Spot, jump online and check it out its our absolute fave spot in the whole of Bali. 

Ask for the platinum, gold, bronze or silver room. These are the only 4 on the cliff facing the ocean. Amazing! All their other rooms are about 500m away with no beach or ocean access/view. Theres heaps to do here so we usually stay here for about 5 nights… Again, super safe to ride a moped around here but I would suggest wearing a helmet… lots of bendy windy roads 

Surf breaks
-Bingin Beach, great for beginners but have also seen this break reach up to 6 ft personally, so it really just depends what time of year you go. They have lovely guys down on the beach who teach you to surf for those wanting to learn (when its smaller)
-Padang Padang Beach, super fun with a mal or mini mal
-Uluwatu
-Impossibles (lives up to its name… a super fast left hander that's consistently perfect)
-Green Ball
-Dreamland 

Yoga
-Uluwatu Surf Villas has a beautiful deck overlooking the ocean where you can go practice some delicious yoga with Morning Light Yoga
-Mu’s (nice and close at walking distance if you decide to stay at Sal’s or nearby)
-Cashew Tree

Restaurants / Bars / Beach Clubs
So many ridiculous yummy places to go crazy with here, where do I even begin!? I’ve definitely left loads out but start with this list…

-Cashew Tree is my fave healthy little cafe that turns into a cool hangout at night (loads of options for veggos and vegans too)
-El Kabron for a fabulous view of the sunset and amazing spanish tapas + paella
-Single Fin / Nalu Bowls… Again, delicious bowls of healthy goodness that turns into an epic watering hole at night to kick back and relax at
-Anantara Resort for a fine dining cliff face sunset experience. 
-Rock Bar at Ayana Resort … another dead set insane sunset spot with a great vibe. Hard to get into at times so arrive here early. 
-Lands End Cafe, a gorgeous health food cafe that is vegan friendly… great to pop in after yoga at morning light
-Karma Beach Club Resort - MUST DO
-Fins Beach Club Resort - MUST DO


Seminyak

This is the place to literally just eat amazing food, drink delicious cocktails (or healthy smoothies) & shop & then eat & then drink & then jump for a dip in the pool & then shop again. We always finish off Bali by coming to Seminyak and I would recommend visiting here last for a few different reasons. With the main strip in Seminyak filled with buzzing restaurants and decked out bar’s like you’ve never seen before, you’ll be super impressed feeling like a chunk of Sydney & Melbourne's top spots are sitting here ready for you to go ham over. Its nothing like Kuta, its a little more laid back and civilised (Kuta tends to have a terrible wrap, personally I'm not keen for the Surfers Paradise experience however if that's your thing, you will love it there)  

 Accom
The only place we stay at now in Seminyak is U Paasha. Everything else seriously just doesn't compare to this amazing hotel. Trust me its worth it! With lavish rooms and ensuites fit for a king, not to mention the insane buffet brekkie, you may not want to leave your hotel. With a gorgeous little gym overlooking the city, yoga on Saturday mornings, and a roof top lap pool, you’ll love finishing off your holiday here. It’s up there with one of the top hotels and price wise, above average for what you’d usually pay for accommodation in Bali but definitely worth it. Take my word for it, I’ve trialled a few places in Seminyak now and U Paasha by far takes the cake.

Surf Breaks
-Airport lefts, literally a lefty coming off the tarmac of Denpasar airport
-Airport rights, opposite of the explanation of above
-Canggu, north of Seminyak with 3 main breaks
- Tip for the ladies... these aren't exactly the type of beaches you can sit at with a book, so I would recommend hitting up a day spa if your man decides to grab a wave here.

Yoga 
Upstairs on top op Devine Earth Cafe

Restaurant's & Bar’s
Literally there are heaps of restaurants to try in Seminyak, I'm talking 5 star service + incredible food. Its one of those places where you never have enough time to try every amazing place you walk past (let alone going in twice to try EVERYTHING off the menu). Here are just a few of my all time fave’s: 

- The Bistrot - our #1 fave restaurant for dinner. Amazing food, service and venue, you'll absolutely fall in love with the detail inside this restaurant. Must go here! 

- La Favella - right next door to The Bistrot, this is an awesome bar you need to experience, you’ll feel like you've stepped into Jumanji once you walk through the doors. Think rainforest inside… so cool!

- Grocer & Grind for yummy healthy food, if you’re missing a good ol hearty salad, healthy burgers, quinoa dishes, sweet potato fries, dairy free smoothies… then this will be your jam.

- Char Char Bar & Grill - This is a new restaurant and it is absolutely insane. Food, beers, cocktails… oh my god. I had a mouth explosion in here. Tip : Sit inside, although the outside looks awesome and you get to people watch which can be very entertaining, you get hit with traffic pollution & humidity. Sit inside, enjoy the lovely air con and check out the chefs as they cook your meal through the amazing fishbowl kitchen (I watched them make my pasta from scratch - delicious!) 

- Divine Earth Cafe : yummy little healthy vegan cafe (great yoga upstairs). Their selection of smoothies is seriously so large it was too hard to choose, they also sell kombucha here. Perfect if you're tummy isn't feeling to shnazzy.  

- Boss Man Burgers… name says it all! 

- La Plancha - A cool place for afternoon beers awesome food and happy hour beers. Grab yourself an umbrella and a bean bag on the beach and relax to the awesome beach vibe for the afternoon. Get there about 430/5pm otherwise its hard to get a spot and stay until sunset. If you love sunsets, you will love this place! Make sure you also go the ‘La Plancha’ and don't get confused with places next to it that look the same. You’ll be disappointed otherwise. 

- Ryoshi - One of the BEST Japanese restaurants I’ve ever been too, I cant even compare it to anything here in Aus. You’ll need to go here for lunch or dinner, or both! You can eat there and then walk up and down the main strip after which is loaded with awesome boutiques with both high end brands and popular aussie surf brands (do it, go walk off all that food).

- Deus Cafe in Canggu- If being a little bit crazy on holiday is your thing, then this is your guy. If you're staying in Seminyak, its in the next town over in Canguu, just catch a blue bird (taxi) and go on a tuesday night. Relax to the awesome music, cool vibe, eat some delicious food and get yourself a free tattoo… only on Tuesday nights though! 

- Potato Head Beach Club - rock up at 1030 so you can get a beach bed otherwise you won't get one and will have to lay on the grass (not cool). Food & drinks are a little bit more pricey compared to what you would usually pay in Bali (still cheap compared to Aus) but its definitely a beach club you need to experience… you will seriously have big time fomo if you dont go. 

Shopping & Spa’s
There is literally loads of shopping in Seminyak all around the restaurants mentioned above. Plenty to visit! My tip would be to go for a big walk on the main streets in between meals and shop till you drop. My two favourites include Gooseberry intimates ( DIE! Hot Tip.. take the credit card… or cash and lots of it) & Shakuhachi which has 3 stores within a 3km space. 

 - Gooseberry Intimates also has a gorgeous little nail bar upstairs, and I wouldn't get my nails polished up anywhere else but here (psst.. you also get champers or wine while you sit here in the air con being treated like an absolute princess)
- Bali body Works - the best day spa in seminyak, you'll be super impressed (number one fave thing to do here is to get their hair treatment on your last day… your hair will be left feeling so silky smooth after having the beach, pool & sun rays hammering it). Boys, you can also get some great massages here, maybe even a mani pedi while you wait for her ;) 


Comment below to let me know if you decide to hit any of these spots up & let me know what you think! Happy holiday-ing...

Big love, 

Chani x