Bali

The minute we landed in Bali, we wondered why we hadn't been back in 8 years. Things have changed a lot but mostly in a way that suits us. The new airport is modern and efficient. No more visa on arrival.

We decided to spend 3 nights in Seminyak. Disini Villas are an oasis right in the middle of the action.

Traffic is terrible around Seminyak, so it's good that we could walk everywhere. Nirvana has live music and sports on TVs. Corner House has very good coffee and breakfast.

The beaches are grotty but the sunsets are amazing. We chose La Lucciola for sunset and dinner. Try Potatohead or Ku De Ta if you're trendier than us!

We stayed in Ubud for 6 nights and loved it. It's grown and changed so much since we were last here but mostly in a good way. It's managed to retain it's sense of calm and tranquility.

There are a lot more tourists ( mostly day trippers ) but the restaurant, bar and live music scene is great now.

We stayed at Yulia Villas within walking distance of all the evening hot spots.

We hired a scooter to zip around during the day.

We had multiple massages every day and visited Venezia Spa twice.

We ate an amazing lunch at Locovore, one of Asia's top 50 restaurants; a pretty unique dining experience.

Naughty Nuri's ( the original ) still serves up the best ribs in Asia from a roadside shack and try Murni's Warung for good Balinese food.

There's live music nightly at about 20 places but we liked LOL, Laughing Buddah and No Mas. Every place does cocktails and happy hours but No Mas has a truly world class cocktail bar.

We journeyed out on different countryside roads most days.

On Friday we joined Su of Bali Bird Walks for a great morning spotting birds in the rice paddies around Ubud.

We now find ourselves in Sanur for 3 nights at Sanur House, a quirky guesthouse with a wonderful pool and very good coffee.

This is the first time we've stayed in Sanur and we are pleasantly surprised. Whilst Bali's beaches are no where near as good as Thailand's, Sanur has a 5 km boardwalk dotted all along with  bars and beach clubs, where you can lounge all day, dine with your feet in the sand and enjoy cocktails and live music in the evenings.

Jimmy's Sports Bar has Super Rugby and you can party to live bands at Casablanca till the early hours. But the best find in all of Sanur is Massimo's. Possibly the best Italian food outside Italy and the gelato counter out on the street has a constant queue. We loved it so much we went back 2 nights in a row. Sanur is also noticebly cheaper than Ubud or Seminyak.

Next trip to Bali we're going to skip the Seminyak/Kuta area and rather do Sanur for a few days and Ubud for a few days more, before heading to the far West and North. 

If you're a first time visitor and especially if you dive, you should add the Gili Islands too.