In Reply to: Help: hiring a driver vs. renting a car posted by jerdeg on Wednesday, 10. August 2005 at 02:12 Bali Time:
Hi there, you know it is hard to get advise from people who have never experienced both. Ask about hotels and you'll get a lot of messages from people who have never been there but their uncle's, brother's friends, wife said that she knew someone who had taken a look at it.....(lol, I'm just being funny).
But I go to Bali every year with a girl-friend (late 30's) and we have driven and ridden motorbikes around Kuta and the rest of Bali and we wouldn't do it any other way. It is a lot easier than looking at it from inside a taxi. They travel very slow and contrary to popular belief, they do have road rules that they all abide by, they aren't necessarily the same as ours but they do all go by them. We've had no problems. We have been picked up twice (only on the motorbike and on the same day) by a routine check of all bikes, we had helmets, international drivers licence and the motorbikes licence papers and everything was hunky dory, no money exchanged, told that we were doing the right thing (as far as the law was concerned) and enjoy Bali! We've bought a street map, but really, they are very well sign posted and we have rarely needed it.
It's great, go where you want, when you want, we have seen things that we wouldn't have been able to see with a driver, and we go to the shops that we want to go to, not them. You see a whole lot more Bali, and once you've done it and how cheap it is, you'll never go back to drivers again.
The Prices that Shaz gave you are about right. It depends a little on how many days/weeks you want it for.
Any other questions, just ask.
I'm not a rev head, I wouldn't go on a back of a bike here, with either my brother or husband who are both really experienced riders. My husband has bad scarring to prove it, but over there I feel really safe. You'll always get those that disagree with you and tell you to go to the hospital and see, but ask, have they actually experienced it themselves? The BIMC medical centre is great. Have travel insurance and check what it covers. Ours covers motorbike accidents and you don't even have to have a licence, Bali is the only place that they do it with!!
hope this helps,
Gabrielle