2024 5-day travel record of Bali, Indonesia, visa, money exchange, food, hotel, insurance guide
I went to Bali in early March. I wrote this article because I thought this experience could serve as a reminder for friends who don’t have much experience going abroad but like to go out on their own. Regardless of the country's regional development level, as long as you go out, there are actually many issues that need to be considered. But don’t worry too much. As long as you are prepared before traveling, the risk can be reduced to very low (I never thought I would say these words before going to Bali.Visa
In Bali, you can choose VOA (visa on arrival) or electronic visa. However, electronic signatures can only be paid with visa cards. The advantage of electronic signature is that you don’t need to queue after landing.
There is a festival in Bali called Nyepi Nyepi Day, which is celebrated according to Bali’s own calendar, so Nyepi Day is different every year. This day was a complete absence of anything. I don’t know how the airport works, but hotels and restaurants, for example, are not open. And the signal will be cut off, and you can't turn on the lights, make a fire for cooking, etc. This is related to local customs. So every year when you go to Bali, you should avoid this day, or arrive before it. There is a big carnival the day before Nyepi Day, which will be fun.
Anyway, I arrived after Nyepi Day, and I didn’t expect that it was only one day and it was packed with European and American tourists. I spent an hour queuing for a visa on arrival. Not only because there are so many people, but also because the staff are slow and there are few windows.
Money changer
There was no Indonesian rupiah to exchange for in my city, so I brought US dollars (frugality depends on people, local prices are cheaper, and hotels can be booked in advance, so it doesn’t cost much if it’s just Mandarin phone calls).After arriving, you can exchange it at the airport (you can exchange a little to survive until you find a bank, everyone knows that the exchange rate at the airport is not good!).
My original intention was to change money at a bank. There are money changers everywhere in the center of Bali, but they were so random and everywhere that I felt uneasy. However, after a few days, I didn’t see any nearby banks open even on working days. If I didn’t have money, I could only go to the money changer, which was okay. The exchange rate was a little uneconomical, but the money was real money. A word of caution, don’t go to MCs that randomly solicit customers and open in places that are most crowded with tourists. If it doesn’t feel right, don’t go. Also, I don’t know why, the locals don’t accept old US dollars. I have an ancestral US dollar bill that passed through Malaysia in Bali, but no one accepted it from the 1990s.
Weather
I remember that March until the summer vacation is the local rainy season. But in fact, I feel that the rainy season has little impact. I stayed in Bali for six days and five nights, and it rained only one night. The rest of the time, the sun was still bright, bright, and hot.
Food
Before I left, I read that many people had bad stomachs after eating and drinking. There is a disease called "Bali Dirty Water Disease". Basically, they are 1. Eating from roadside stalls; 2. Water quality problems in hotels. Regarding food, I only go to serious restaurants/eats in hotels or imported fast food restaurants in America, and when the weather is hot and I have a bad appetite, I have no desire to eat at roadside stalls...
I think the water problem varies depending on the region. I stayed in a villa in the village for the first two nights and encountered no problems. And because I bought a large bottle of bottled water for drinking, I didn't feel that the local water quality was bad. In the next few days at Kuta, I obviously felt that my hair quality was getting worse. My suggestion is that everyone should buy drinking water as much as possible, even for brushing teeth and washing face (because I have seen examples of people feeling uncomfortable because of it). If you are really worried, you can also buy a spray refill.
Generally speaking, I didn't have any major problems with eating and drinking, and the gastrointestinal medicine I prepared was not used. (Indonesian instant noodles are so delicious...the taste is not available in orange software. I am still hoarding it and don’t want to finish it.
Hotel
There are so many choices for accommodation in Bali. For a pure vacation, you must choose the best resort hotel with coastal beaches, and you don’t have to rush to the attractions. Other than that, I think there is a wide range of choices, and there is no need to rush to internet celebrity hotels. The main reason is that Bali is a large island with inconvenient transportation, so accommodation depends on your own convenience.
I personally think it is better to stay in a crowded place, especially if you are traveling alone or as a couple and need to visit different attractions and return to the hotel late at night. The scenery of the villa I stayed in the first two nights was not too good, it was quiet and cheap. However, it is very, very inconvenient
Transportation
very bad! This is the key point I want to mention. Before I went there, my lover told me that the traffic here was unsafe and it was best not to ride a motorcycle and to be careful on the road. I didn’t take it too seriously at the time, because I saw people posting on the Internet riding around on motorcycles in Bali.
Except for the prosperous places in Bali, which have roads, there are no roads in other remote areas or even around scenic spots and itself: you can drive them, but they are not called roads. There are no standardized traffic lights, and there is a lack of street lights (purely black) at night, which means that most people have no awareness of traffic rules. When driving, I usually use: grab and gojek. I basically relied on taxis, except for the two nights I stayed in the villa, where I paid more money to be driven by the hotel owner because taxis were not available in the village. Bali is a big province and island, and the scenic spots are far away from each other.
Insurance
A basic awareness when traveling abroad is to buy overseas travel insurance. I personally feel it is necessary after returning from Bali. I spent dozens of yuan before traveling to buy a seven-day overseas travel insurance from start to finish. I still recommend it to everyone! It’s just a small amount of money, and of course, I hope I’ll never need it.
Next, share the happiness and beautiful scenery of Bali
Finally, I show off my Polaroid with zero mistakes and my large collection of toys for eating various happy meals (´▽｀). I wish everyone a happy trip!
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