Bali has been my home for 3 years, and every day I fall more in love with the island.
I have decided to create the most complete guide possible so that you can discover the best of Bali, clearly and concisely. Ready?
This complete guide to Bali will be useful whether you visit as a tourist, for work, or if you are ready to take the leap and come to live here. You will discover that it has unique corners, that life here is very good, and that it is a very affordable destination.
In this guide to Bali you will learn:
✅ the best tips for travelling to Bali,
✅10 must-visit places in Bali,
✅the best area of the island to stay in depending on what you are looking for,
✅the best recommendations from foreigners who live on the island and from locals
✅the best time to travel to Bali (the weather in Bali)
✅and much more!
Tips for travelling to Bali
Essential recommendations to bear in mind before travelling to paradise.
Passport and visa
To travel to Bali your passport must be valid for a minimum of 6 months.
On the plane, before you arrive, you will be given the customs forms, which you must fill in and hand over once you pass immigration control. They may also ask for your outbound flight ticket and your accommodation booking, and ask why you are coming to Bali (although this last one is less likely).
Very important. How long are we going to travel to Bali?
30-DAY INDONESIA (BALI) VISA
If our stay in Indonesia-Bali is 30 days or less, the entry permit is free (that is, we do not need to get a visa). We go straight to immigration, show our passport, and we are in.
It is important to know that if you later want to extend your stay in Indonesia, this entry permit does not allow you to extend it. You would have to leave for another country and then come back in.
60-DAY INDONESIA (BALI) VISA
If our stay in Indonesia-Bali is longer than 30 days and up to 60 days, then we do need a visa, and there are 2 ways to get one.
VISA ON ARRIVAL (VOA)
- The simplest, the one I recommend and the one I always do. We go to the Visa on Arrival area, and they arrange a 30-day visa for us for 35$. We can pay in euros, dollars or Indonesian rupiah. After that, they stamp it and we go to the immigration area. Sometimes they send us through a faster queue with no wait, ask us how long we are coming for and why, and put the stamp on the visa. Remember, so far this only gives us 30 days. To extend it by 30 extra days (and have a maximum of 60), we can either do it ourselves, which is a hassle I do not recommend, or through one of the companies that specialise in extensions. I recommend doing it with the company Visa4Bali.
It is very simple: we message them on WhatsApp and tell them we want to extend our stay in Bali. They come to wherever we are, a guy from the company comes by scooter to pick up our passport, and we pay him 40€ for the service, plus 30€ for the renewal (in Indonesian rupiah). After that they process it, and after about 10 days they call us to go to an immigration office in the south of the island. We always take advantage of the renewal day to stay in the area and enjoy the beaches of the south, which are the best beaches in Bali. Important: we must message the company's WhatsApp number to extend it in good time, 15 days after arriving. A week after visiting the immigration office in Bali, the company will message us to hand back our passport with the visa already extended.
We always do this visa, then head out for a few days to play the tourist a bit in Thailand or Malaysia and come back again.
Careful! Make sure you do not leave the island with an expired passport, as you will pay around 30€ for each extra day.
This rude woman overstayed, had to pay a big fine, refused, and ended up hitting a police officer at Bali airport because she wanted to catch her flight and did not want to pay the fine. What happened? Karma and jail.
Here is the video:
INDONESIAN VISA FROM THE SPANISH EMBASSY
If you want to stay between 31 and 60 days on the island and want to arrange it from Spain, you can do that too. In my case, I have never chosen this option because I am never in Spain.
There are 2 ways to do it:
- In person:
1. We fill in the following form.
2. We bring the passport (original, not a copy) with a minimum validity of 6 months from arrival in Indonesia.
3. We have to bring a photocopy of the main page of the passport.
4. Two recent passport-size photos with a white background.
5. We bring a photocopy of the ticket and itinerary of the flights (outbound and return) or (outbound and onward to another destination).
6. And a photocopy of the accommodation booking (first 3 nights).
7. The price is 45€.
- Indonesian visa application by post:
1. We fill in this form.
2. We send the passport (original, not a copy) with a minimum validity of 6 months from arrival in Indonesia.
3. We send a photocopy of the main page of the passport.
4. We put two recent passport-size photos with a white background in the envelope.
5. A copy of the ticket and itinerary of the flights (arrival and departure)
6. A copy of the accommodation booking confirmation (first 3 nights).
7. We pay 45 euros
8. We pay for shipping, both outbound and return, approx. 13€ for standard shipping.
**We must send all these documents by MRW or Nacex with a return service to the following address:
Embassy of Indonesia
Calle de Agastia, 65
28043 Madrid
On average this procedure takes 1 week, from when we send it until we receive it. If you have any questions you can call the embassy on +34914130294.
Flights to Bali
There are only direct flights from Europe to Bali with Garuda Indonesia from London (curiously, one way only, the return does have a stopover).
The usual way is to travel with a stopover in Dubai or Qatar, flying with Emirates or Qatar Airways with a single stopover.
There are other airlines such as China Southern, Cathay Pacific, etc… that may work out cheaper, although with 2 or more stopovers.
In the end we will have to decide whether we want to travel to Bali comfortably and expensively, or cheaply but with more stopovers.
One trick is to look at flights to Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur or Singapore. Sometimes they are much cheaper, and then you can connect from these cities to Bali, from as little as 50€.
The price of flights to Bali varies a lot depending on how far in advance we buy them, as well as on the date you travel. In summer, more than 700€ return from Europe, while the rest of the year there are deals from 400€ return. We always recommend comparing deals with Skyscanner.
Accommodation.
This part is very important. Why are we coming to Bali?
If you are coming as a tourist, you should stay in Canggu or Ubud(for tours we recommend the company www.baliandyou.com ). Ubud is closer to the rice paddies (the most beautiful thing in Bali), while Canggu is perfect if you want to take trips to the centre and south of the island, since it sits in between.
If you are coming to surf, your area is the south of the island, Uluwatu.
Looking for partying? Kuta or Seminyak is your area.
If you are an entrepreneur, you have an online project or business, and you want to be surrounded by coworkings, colivings, event spaces, etc… your area is without doubt Canggu, which is where I stay too.
Accommodation prices.
It depends on the quality you want and how long you are going to rent for.
You can find rooms from 80€ a month in Ubud (the centre of the island, calm, but far from the beaches) or in Canggu, near the beach, for about 100€ a month.
If you want a whole house or a studio with air conditioning, in Ubud you can find one from 200€/month, and in Canggu from 300€/month.
If you are looking for a modern, nice 2-bedroom villa with a pool, in Ubud you can find one for 500€/month, in Canggu from 800€/month.
The closer to the beach, the more expensive, and logically, and importantly, renting a place for 1 month, which is more expensive, is not the same as renting for 12 months, at almost half the price of the first option.
For accommodation I recommend Booking for short stays, if you are looking for hotels, or Airbnb for long stays. If you are going to make your first booking with Airbnb, here you have a discount 😉
The weather. Best time to travel to Bali.
Bali has a tropical climate, and the rainy season runs from October to April. The dry season is from May to September. Although everything is relative, in the rainy season you can have 7 days of glorious sunshine, or in August you can be unlucky enough to get 3 days of rain in a row. In the south of the island it barely rains, while in Ubud and the centre of the island, near the mountains, it rains much more. Bear in mind too that July and August are the months when flights from Europe to the island are most expensive. All year round it is between 20 and 32 degrees, always warm by day, and perfect at night, about 22 degrees. In Ubud it gets cooler at night.
How long do you need to visit Bali?
I would say a minimum of 7 days, although the ideal is 10 as a tourist, so you can get to know the island well and also rest. Bear in mind that there are several islands 1 hour by boat from Bali that are also worth getting to know, such as Nusa Lembongan, Nusa Penida… so if you want to get to know Bali well, relax at stunning beach clubs, and also spend a night on another island, 10-14 days is highly advisable.
Internet in Indonesia
How are we going to upload those photos to Instagram without internet? Or how are we going to get around the island by scooter if we cannot use Google Maps?
Internet is always advisable in Bali. Even if you are not into social media, bear in mind that if you rent a scooter, you may be unlucky enough to get a flat tyre on one of your outings. If you call the person who rented it to you, for about 20€ they will come and sort out your problem quickly 😉
We can buy a SIM card at the airport (a bad option), or we can do it in one of the thousands of little shops everywhere. There are many operators on the island, so it is important that you know this:
If you are going to be in many different places, XL has the best coverage.
If you are going to be mainly in one particular area, ask the person in the shop which provider works best there.
At the airport they may sell you 3 GB for 25€, while in one of the little shops you can get 45 GB for 8€. What a difference!
Internet is quite fast, sometimes much better than in Europe, since they do not cap (limit) the speed.
If you are in the Canggu area, a very cheap shop I recommend is Happy Cell, where they set up the SIM in under 2 minutes 😉 It is here:
Bear in mind that practically all hotels and restaurants have wifi, and it is very common to find lots of digital nomads sitting with a coffee in a restaurant while they make money online (or try to).
Currency. Exchanging money.
Lots of people worry and think: oh! I have to change money at the airport, otherwise… I am going to die!
Don´t worry, be happy! Bali has hundreds of currency exchange offices, and so far I have never been scammed.
You can change money at the airport, although I recommend only the minimum for the first taxi, as it will be much more expensive.
To give you an idea, 1€ is about 15,000 Indonesian rupiah. What a mess it seems! Not at all, you will get used to it in the first few days. Look on the bright side! In Indonesia we are millionaires 😉 Last month I paid 6 million in rent 😉
We will go over the table of 15 and that is it. You will know that if a Mie Goreng costs you 30k, that is 2€.
At the more local, cheaper restaurants you can only pay in cash, and you can always ask before sitting down to eat. If you visit a temple, too, only paper money.
At the more “posh” restaurants and beach clubs, we can always pay by card. In some shops they will tell us that paying by card costs 3% more. It will be up to us how we want to pay.
Withdrawing money from an ATM.
Recommendation: withdraw money from ATMs that are inside a bank or a business, as foreign gangs sometimes come to “rig” the ATM and we do not want a nasty surprise.
If you want to withdraw money from an ATM without being charged any fee, I recommend that before travelling to Bali you get the card Number26. You get it in 7 minutes, online, and it arrives at your home in less than 1 week. And it costs us zero € to keep. Good, nice and cheap.
Vaccines for travelling to Bali, Indonesia.
I have been living in Bali for 3 years and so far nothing has happened to me. I have not had any vaccines, and there is no compulsory vaccine. For those who are more hypochondriac, you can always check with the vaccination centre in your city.
If you want to travel with medical insurance for Bali, I do recommend getting one before travelling, as nothing ever happens, until it does 😉 I always get the one from Iati where, with this link, they always give us a 5% discount.
Transport.
Here I would ask you the following question: can you ride a scooter?
If you can ride a scooter and you rent one, you will like Bali 9,5/10; if not, you will like Bali 8/10. I am sorry if two wheels are not your thing, but riding through the rice paddies with the volcano ahead of you and stopping at the best beaches and waterfalls whenever you want is priceless.
Riding a scooter in Bali
If you can ride a scooter, and you rent one, it will be your best decision. You can rent one from as little as 1€ a day, depending on how long you want it for. Remember that you must get your international driving licence before coming to Bali. It costs about 12€ and you can get it at the traffic office. You will have to show your driving licence, 1 passport-size photo and the cash. They hand it over to you on the spot and you take it away, but remember you have to book an appointment, sometimes a month in advance, so do not leave it until the last minute.
If you did not have time to get your international driving licence, you can still rent one, although if the police stop you at a checkpoint, you will have to give them a tip. For this, I always recommend carrying your money in two parts: the large amount in one pocket, and 100k (6€) in another. If they stop you, you give them the 100k and tell them you have no more on you. After arguing a little so that it does not look easy, they will let you go. I have the licence, I have been stopped and I showed it and that was it, but it is quite normal and not so bad to “bribe” the police officer, and in fact locals defend that it is fine, since it is better for the money to go to the policeman's family than to fines, which in the end only go to the big boss.
Remember, if you ride a scooter, always wear a helmet, because a scooter is a coffin on wheels!
If you want a cheap contact for renting a scooter, contact me on Instagram and I will send it to you.
When you rent a scooter in Bali, always remember to take photos and videos of it before taking it, and send them by WhatsApp to the owner of the scooter, so there is a record of how scratched it is or whatever before you rented it. Some ask for your passport as a deposit. Never give it to them, and never give a deposit. It is not necessary. There are thousands of “scooter renters” in Bali.
How to get around Bali without a scooter.
Do not panic! You can also enjoy the island if you do not ride a scooter.
There are 2 apps, one called Grab and another Gojek, similar to Uber, where you can order everything from massages to food, petrol, noodles and of course, transport from point A to point B. The average price is 6€/hour of travel. If your trip is 10 minutes, you know it will cost you around 1€. Being taken as a passenger on a scooter is logically cheaper than going by car. You can take trips with the company www.baliandyou.com Local guides, born in Bali, who will show you the best of the island. We have tried them and they are lovely.
Car rental in Bali
I do not recommend it. If you want to go by car, it is better to be driven, rather than driving yourself. It is easy to get around the island by scooter, but not by car.
Where to shop in Bali.
If you want to buy souvenirs, clothes, etc… Ubud is your place. There is a great market you can visit, where prices are 50% cheaper than in more touristy areas such as Kuta or Seminyak.
Supermarkets in Bali.
If you live in Bali for a while, you will realise that eating at home works out more expensive than eating out at restaurants, and I am not joking. Bear in mind that, being an island, everything comes from outside, and locals do not buy in supermarkets but in local markets. The supermarkets are then mainly made for “guiris” (foreigners). A Barilla pesto costs 2,90€ at El Corte Inglés in Seville, and 4€ in Bali. Then making spaghetti at home costs you about 4€ a plate, and in a restaurant it can cost you 2,50€. Of course, every now and then we want to treat ourselves to eating at home 😉
In that case, depending on the area you are in, I recommend visiting more than 1 and comparing prices.
Living in Bali. Canggu.
This is the part I like best. The other day I read someone on Twitter who said: Indonesia is the first country I have ever come across where what they offer me and the treatment I get is much better than the price I pay. And it is totally true. They all usually have a big smile, are very friendly, willing to help, and the food, in general, is excellent.
Most of the 3 years I have lived in Bali have been in Canggu. Why?
✅Close to the beach
✅More than 300 restaurants and cafés with very tasty food at good prices
✅Close to the Finns club (I talk about it below).
✅Close to coworkings where very interesting events are held every day on marketing, programming, design and a thousand other things,
✅Lots of partying, good, nice and cheap.
✅Peace and quiet when you want it
✅Close to the people I know. We all live in Canggu.
✅Between Ubud and the south of the island, perfect for trips anywhere
I really like being at home, relaxed, but I force myself, and then I love it, to go down to the beach, go for a stroll, enjoy a sunset, etc… and if you live in Ubud, you are 1 hour from the beach, whereas Canggu has a beach, not the prettiest, but it has one.
As for the food, it deserves a super-post that I will write soon. It is amazing. In my life I have never seen so many such beautiful restaurants, with such good food, at such good prices in 20 square km. You can eat from 1€ for the most basic, to 3€ like a king. This burger costs 3€ and is one of the best I have ever tried.
What I am going to talk about now sounds like I am on commission, but I am not. If you become members, you will agree with me.
There is a club in Canggu called Finns, which has two parts, Finns Recreation Club and Finns Beach Club(it used to be called Canggu Club). Well, this club is wonderful, and one of the reasons I like Bali so much is being a member of this club. There are many types of membership; I have one of the best, called Lifestyle, which gives me access to:
?6 pools (2 at the Recreation Club, 4 at the Beach Club)
?access to the VIParea, the most “important” part, where every day they give me “super-comfortable” sun loungers (no minimum spend) with a parasol, free unlimited mineral water, free daily coffee and tea, a free alcohol-free cocktail every day, free fruit, unlimited sun cream, towels, etc…
?gym (one of the best in Bali) with classes every day
?coworking (ultra-fast wifi for working, comfortable chairs, a quiet atmosphere and close to home)
?aquapark (yes, it has an aquapark inside that I can go to every day of the year)
?tennis court (14 free hours a week)
?bowling alley, football pitch, basketball court,
?special prices on food and drink within the 2 venues
And you will be thinking, how much does all this cost? Well, there is a trick that I will only tell you privately on Instagram, with which it costs me just 70€/month. The normal price of all this for a month would be 240€. If you sign up for 1 year it is cheaper, and with my trick, even more so 😉
It is considered the best beach club in the world. I spend almost every afternoon here, during sunset.
This is just one of the club's 6 pools, 3 of them facing the sea. While in Ibiza they charge you 12€ at a beach club for something as simple as a beer, here they charge me 2€ and it is much better, with no minimum spend. I go every day, to my sun lounger, to have a beer and a healthy salad (to compensate) and they charge me 10€ for everything.
I find it curious because there are entrepreneurs paying 200€/month for just a coworking! They are very good, but they only have the coworking! No pool, no gym, etc… And you will say, but the coworking lets you meet people, etc. I agree, but at the Finns coworking you also meet great people, and you can also go to the events of the other coworkings and meet the other entrepreneurs just the same.
There are more than 10 beach clubs in the Canggu and Seminyak area. The good thing is that if you are not a member, the entry fee is quite cheap. About 15€ that you can spend on drinks and food, that is, free entry, and 15€ that you spend on eating or a few beers.
If you want a list of what it costs to live in Bali, depending on your standard of living, here is a guide.
If you want to enjoy the island of the gods while learning English, I will “slip in an ad” here. One of my companies, Groupifly, has become the cheapest school in the world. Deals from 30 days in Bali, accommodation with English classes 497€.
(I will keep updating this guide)
I help you save on your trip to Bali:
✈️ The best deals on flights to Bali here.
🏨 The best hotels at the best prices in Bali: here.
🏠 Get a 25€ discount on your booking with Airbnb here.
💗 Book your travel insurance here.
🚁 Book the best tours and excursions in Bali in Spanish here
💳 The best travel card, with no fees, here.
🚗 Rent a car for your trip at the best price here.
🚀 Book your airport transfer ⇆ Bali here.
📖 The best guides to Bali here.
Do you like Bali? Sumba is an hour away by plane.
I am building Eco Beach Citythere: a seaside village with a coworking, padel and beachfront houses. If you happen to be passing, come and see it.
