I told you in my practical guide that you need to leave Denpasar very, very quickly. You can make the most of it at the end of your trip (a night in Denpasar is always recommended to avoid any risk of missing your flight – there’s always a lot of traffic in Bali). We stayed in Denpasar mainly to drop off our stuff, just in time for a day trip to Nusa Penida island (see our travel diary) nearby. Our hotel is right next to the port, but JB still picked a really nice hotel (huge but quiet): Prime Plaza Hotel Sanur – Bali (Booking link, Agoda link, €75). Right…

If I took a long time to write this article, it’s because I really didn’t like Ubud. It had nothing to do with the town, its landscapes, the locals… it’s just a purely personal feeling, linked to my intuition, my anxiety. Looking back, I realize that on the contrary, Ubud is a highly spiritual place, and if I didn’t feel well, it’s because something there was signaling thatwe were in danger. Every day, I felt like we were in mortal danger. At first, I thought it was related to the narrow roads in Ubud, that we might have a traffic accident. That’s why we left Ubud and Bali earlier. In…

A bit let down by the “mass tourism” side of Bali, we decide to give it one more chance by heading to the small island next door: Nusa Penida, whose photos had us dreaming. Part 1: Travel JournalPart 2: Practical Tips Part 1: Travel Journal From Bukti near Lovinawe take a taxi to Denpasar. We could have hopped on a boat straight away for Nusa Penida but since we have bulky luggage, we’d rather leave it at the hotel in Denpasar and do the round trip to Nusa Penida in a day, hands-free. Good call—you’ll see later why it’s better to go without luggage. This kind of tour is offered…

Accommodation in Bali has become so expensive that it’s better to avoid tourist spots. As we got closer to Lovina (to see the dolphins), we discovered a small village, Bukti, 30 minutes from Lovina and 20 minutes from a shopping town. There are 2 restaurants with local prices (that’s a relief). Here, the dogs are docile; no dog attacks us when we ride our scooter as can happen in Ubud. You can tell the road is mainly used by trucks, not tourists. On the scooter, we’re alone in the world. And at our hotel too. There are rarely other tourists. We opt for a private villa within a family-run hotel,…

When I learned that you could not only see dolphins but also swim with them, I could barely contain my excitement. We quickly packed our bags and hired a private car to take us to Bukti, near Lovina, in northern Bali. Along the way, we stopped to visit (see our travel diary here). Having a private driver is reassuring because he keeps our bags during our visits, and we can plan as many stops as we want. Part 1: Travel JournalPart 2: Practical Tips Part 1: Travel Journal Since we work, we decide to stay in a small hotel in a small village called Bukti, 30 minutes from Lovina. But…

We take advantage of our Ubud – Lovina drive to make a few stops along the way. We’re going with the driver who took us to Mount Batur, but 20 minutes before departure, he calls to say another driver will replace him. The reason: a member of the community has passed away. In Asia, you don’t lie about deaths because it brings bad luck, so we take his word for it, but he could have let us know the day before instead of dropping it on us at the last minute. Luckily, the new driver is friendly and drives carefully. Part 1: Travel JournalPart 2: Practical Tips Part 1: Travel…

After resting well for several weeks following my long period of stress, I finally decided to do some sightseeing. But by going through an agency, because I no longer feel like organizing anything. Unfortunately, tourists have been absent for a long time, so no one knows the new prices, what time you need to leave, etc. We end up making a deal with a taxi driver, who seems to know the points of interest and rates better than anyone we’ve asked. We set a meeting for 4 AM. Part 1: Travel JournalPart 2: Practical Tips Part 1: Travel Journal The early wake-up was tough for everyone, including our driver, who…