Posted by Charles Keough on Friday, 23. October 1998 at 08:21 Bali Time:
Just back from Bali (Ubud and Amed) and Lombak (Sengiggi). Had a great time and some recommendations to make. First, spent two nights in Ubud staying at Puri Bukit Kembar, about 5 minutes by car outside Ubud in Mas. Puri Bukit is a beautiful converted temple with lovely, quiet grounds, great rooms. At about $50 per night for a deluxe room(roughly 50% off list), very well recommended. Only negative is that you may prefer to stay right in Ubud itself, but they do provide transport back and forth, and will pick up at the airport for $10.
Next, two nights in Amed staying at Indra Udhyana. Another beautiful place right on the ocean, just a notch below the Aman in quality, and at $80 per night (50% off list for ocean room) a great deal. Very highly recommended. Only negative here is that the hotel, and Amed itself, are a bit isolated, so not the place to stay if you want to party or mingle. Road in is also very rough. Dove the wreck at Tulamben and enjoyed it - great dive for all levels, just get there early to avoid the crowd at lunchtime. We went with a guide named Koman from the hotel, who did a nice job.
Finally, three nights at Holiday Inn Resort on Lombak, just outside Sengiggi. Very nice resort, although lacking the charm of the other two places we stayed. You may also want to stay closer to or in town. Paid $85 a night (list was $200) for an ocean bungalow w/ breakfast. Nice enough room, but somewhat boring. Dove two days in the Gilis, first with Baruna (through the hotel) then with Dream Divers (office in Sengiggi). Baruna was ok, but I highly recommend Dream Divers, run by Astrid and Gerd, a German couple. Good operation, facility is on Gili Air, good equipment. Conditions around the Gilis were only ok, as storms had kicked up the bottom, so visability wasn't great. The reef is also getting a bit beaten up, but we did see some sea turtles, morays, small shark, lionfish, etc. so it's fun.
Note: a general point of advice. (1) Even though many hotels (and dive operations) will quote in US $, they usually convert to rupiah at the end, often at an inflated rate. Make sure you know the current $/rupiah rate and insist on it in any calculation, or you'll end up paying another 5-10% in the end. (2) Diving usually costs $45-65 per person for 2 dives. Rates are a little lower these days (off-peak), and they will usually throw in the equipment free. Look for a group with experience, good equipment, and knowledge of the area and conditions, rather than the cheapest rate.