Hello! As stated, we were in Bali from 14 March to 2 April. The party was two couples (40ish) with one child (5ish) each.
Accommodation: stayed at the Patra (Tuban), Tegal Sari (Ubud) and Ayodya (Nusa Dua).
The Patra was great. I would recommend it and we will definitely stay there again. The staff are wonderful. We're regular walkers and didn't mind the stroll along the beach into town. And taxis were cheap (R20K into Kuta) and plentiful too. The airport noise was surprisingly minimal and the beach reclamation work wasn't an issue. What a fantastic project the reclamation is, though. My jaw dropped looking at the plans (posted at the Patra and on the beach near Green Garden). The reclamation will make an amazing difference to Kuta and, in my opinion, is worth any inconvenience in the medium term.
The Tegal Sari was fantastic, provided you don't mind being woken at 7.30am by ducks (they waddle down, in flocks of 50+, to the rice paddies around the hotel at that time). Our 5 year old absolutely loved this. The Tegal Sari is a beautiful hotel with friendly staff and magnificent rice paddy ambience. A must stay, for Bali, in my opinion. Advice to young fellas: the Tegal Sari is marketed for families but take the girlfriend there. It's actually a very romantic setting, the girl is guaranteed to love it and you will shag yourself silly.
The Ayodya was big, classy, expensive and impersonal. I can't fault the service and the food was pricey but good quality. We won't be staying there again simply because it is not our sort of place. You couldn't shoot an arrow from one end of the foyer to the other. If you like the sound of that, it's your sort of place.
We went to Waterbom (good as ever), Bali Safari Park (fantastic - a must do) and up to Lovina to (wait for it) swim with dolphins. Gasp! Enough said. Awaiting return fire.
We had clothes made (trousers, skirts, sandals, jacket) at Merry's Collection (Legian). Aristo is back and the quality and value were as good as ever. Our pick for tailoring in Bali.
Had a 3/4 length cow's leather coat made at Dolphin Leather (Legian). The quality was as good as ever but the price ($A190) has gone up significantly (more than 50% over the past 3 years). Also, very good quality male dress shoes ($A60) and female sandals ($A25) but price also up. They said that the Australian drought has forced up the price of leather (seems reasonable) but it might be worth shopping around.
Our pick for restauarant of the trip was Goshas (Legian). The best chili mud crab and it was only R90.000 per kilo. About 1/3 the price we paid for lower quality chili mud crab on Kartika Plaza.
The highlight of the trip was our driver, Made Dera. We engaged Made full time for 15 days and got a very good price. When you spend 15 days with the one driver, you really get to know the guy. And what a guy he is - quiet, courteous, punctual and an absolute gentleman. Our kids just thought he was the best (there were tears when we departed) and so did we. Made drives a recent model Suzuki seven seater with great airconditioning. I'll emphasise that we were not just impressed by the quality of his service but also with the content of his character. Everyone has their favourite but we will now use Made every time we're in Bali. If you want more information (contact details, pricing etc) please feel free to email me or post a request.
We had a great trip and will return in 2009. Yes, Bali is changing but I think the change is, overall, for the better. We keep going back.
Regards
Luke.