In Reply to: How busy is Bali really? posted by mitch0z on Monday, 29. December 2008 at 06:01 Bali Time:
August has always been peak, I mean the Kuta/Legian beaches are at their best in August and their worst in December yet all of a sudden everyone is commenting. I live here but when I was coming as a tourist 15 years ago I never went to Kuta beach at this time of year, it was black sand and dirty water and everyone kept away apart from some Javanese. I hear more and more every year from tourists that this time they are not going to stay in Kuta etc, they want to get out and see Bali, places such as Ubud, Bedugal, Munduk, Lovina, Amhed, Candidasa, Lake Batur, maybe if we can hear from any people that are staying in those areas regularly as I don't feel that Kuta/Legian/Seminyak can be a gauge for judging how busy Bali is. And I agree, there are a lot more tourists coming from the Mainland and maybe the other poster is right, they don't get hair braided etc. Shopping has changed over the years as well, it used to be Poppies 1 & 11 and Jalan Legian but now you can see AC shops everywhere, I cannot believe the change Ubud has had in 15 years, I can look at pictures of Bali 15 years ago and the changes in that time are incredible. Also, everyone talks of rice increases, why can't the Balinese put up their prices, their expenses are going up just like they are in every country. You can still eat out cheaply and buy things cheaply, if the major hotels are putting their prices up, maybe now they will pay their staff better, have better security and actually have 4-5 star accommodation instead of the 3 star that you often got when you booked a 4 star in Bali, how many times did you arrive in Bali to find your hotel really needed a bit of a makeover, like most buildings in Bali they don't last very long.