Java Bali Info That You Never Know

Review for Bali & Lombok (Regional Guide)
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We spent three weeks in Bali using this book as a guide. For overviews of different parts of the island, we found it very helpful, and we relied on the maps to sort of get our bearings. But, I suspect we could have gotten those things from any travel guide. The Lonely Planet book in specific was recommended to us by our travel agent, and because of the witty and intelligent writing, we thought it would be well-researched and trustworthy.

Not so! We were very disappointed with a lot of places reviewed well by the authors of this book. We stayed in the hotel marked “our pick” in Seminyak and it was much more expensive, we couldn’t get hot water, and we got eaten alive by mosquitos. It recommends an “art market” in Ubud that is probably worse for rabid hawkers than Jalan Legian in Kuta. It hugely understates the presence and tenacity of hawkers and touts. The authors seem unaware of Bali Belly, traveler’s sickness, Montezuma’s Revenge, whatever you want to call it, and there’s no advice on avoiding that. It neglects to mention whatever thing that I could find about women being barred from temples all through “that time of the month” or where sarongs and sashes are required and how they’re supposed to be worn.

I don’t reckon this book works as a stand alone guide. It paints a picture of Bali as the nicest place on earth, full of charming this and breathtaking that. We followed its advice and found a translation of the island overrun by tourists, rife with scam artists, with culture and history pushed up your sheath by Bintang t-shirts and whatever thing else that could generate a quick buck. We also found incredible places and wonderful people, but only once when we place down this misleading book and started trusting our instincts.

Review for Bali & Lombok (Regional Guide)
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This is a excellent guidebook and honestly accurate. In a country like Indonesia, but, things change quickly so use this book as a reference not as a bible. Do you own research and talk to additional travellers. Since the LP Bali is the default travellers’ guide to this region, most of the restaurants and hotels covered are not the best values. Many get a steady stream of customers just because of a excellent review and never bother to maintain the facilities. The best deals require a lot of footwork and bargaining! Learning some bahasa indonesia always helps. The foreign language section is adequate but the phrasebook is much surpass. Nightlife is making a huge comeback with the reopening of Paddy’s Reloaded (did they really need the weapons terminology?) and the return of the young aussie crowd. Try out Gift for the institution age crowd, Seminyak for the posh/club crowd.You can also avoid the moneychangers altogether by going to the BCA ATMs. Look for the ones that give you bills in 100,000 Rp denominations. You get a more reasonable maximum with these machines.The activities sections are excellent, particularly the surfing one. They do a poor job of covering Lombok but, if you are plotting on heading out there for an extended stay, I would recommend the LP Indonesia. Be forewarned though, the constant soliciting outside of the Gili Islands in Lombok is extremely tiresome. For scuba, skip Gili altogether and head to Flores or Sulawesi (or even back to Bali’s Menjangen). Many of the sections are blasted out and the whole place is overfished.Finally, if you want to book a boat trip to the Komodo Islands, you have a couple options, the pricey Perama boats (surpass and more luxurious boats) or the cheapo independent boats (very basic converted fishing boats). The following option is very very basic – you sleep on dirty mats and the snorkeling equipment doesn’t work. The food is pretty excellent though and you do get to all the major sites with no hassle. If you don’t mind all this, you can book these boats pretty much somewhere on Lombok. The dragons are all worth it – we saw a couple fighting over a mate.

Review for Bali & Lombok (Regional Guide)
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I am Balinese and live in Ubud.As I am caught up in tourism, I always keep a close eye on guide books to make sure that they do not give any incorrect information, either generally in respect of Bali, or in particular, in respect of my own restaurant, shops and accommodation in Ubud.I am pleased to say that the text is remarkably accurate – as are the maps – which is not simple in the quick changing world we now live in. The sections on Balinese culture are concise and very helpful to those visiting the island for the first time. Balinese culture is intricate and the visitor will benefit momentously from the explanations in this book.There are also some nice photographs. Recommended.

Review for Bali & Lombok (Regional Guide)
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I’m just back from Bali and took three guidebooks. The Lonely Planet guide was far and away the best. It was amusing and in the best guidebook tradtion, it did a fantastic job of stearing me away from standard places like Gunung Agung and Besakih Temple – which are two of the worst tourist traps on the island. The instigator seems to have really spent time posing as a tourist in these places to uncover all the scams. The rest of the book does a excellent job of finding all the new places to go for dinner and drinks in hot places like Seminyak. Make this your only Bali guidebook.

Review for Bali & Lombok (Regional Guide)
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I bought this book when I revisited Bali with my wife. I was last there some 15 years ago using a different guide book. I bought and used this book to explore a few off the beaten track places I didn’t see the last time. I find the recommendations on food and lodging brilliant. The standard Lonely Planet layout makes it simple to find the info you need. This rewritten edition is not just informative but full of its own unique flavour as well.

Not being a trekker, my wife found the info on restaurants and shopping to be very useful too.