The greatest Bali travel report on the net!

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When is the weather the best in Bali?

You can visit Bali all the year around, but you should know there is a rainy season and a dry season. The dry season is between mid March and end of November. The rainy season is between December and half March.

This doesn't mean you can't visit Bali in the rainy season! The chance is higher to get rain in the rainy season. In the south (Nusa Dua, Kuta, Denpasar) you might get some rain showers in the late afternoon. In the worst case it will rain half a day. If you travel to the center of the island, the chance of getting rain becomes higher. In the middle of the island, it might rain all day or even a whole week!

Month	Rainfall in mm/in.	Days with rain	Sunshine (hours/day)	Relative air humidity
January	326/12.8	16	5.2	78%
February	325/12.8	15	5.1	80%
March	209/8.2	13	5.4	78%
April	84/3.3	6	6.9	78%
May	78/3.1	5	6.7	79%
June	72/2.8	5	6.6	79%
July	61/2.4	4	6.9	77%
August	34/1.3	3	7.4	75%
September	54/2.1	3	6.9	75%
October	110/4.3	5	7.1	75%
November	191/7.5	8	6.1	76%
December	293/11.5	14	5.8	79%

The temperature is all the year between 29 and 31°C (84°F and 88°F). It is a little warmer during the rainy season, and the humidity is a higher. You can get the latest weather forecast from Yahoo Weather!

What clothes should I take with me?

If you have been checking the travelogue you will have noticed we had almost all the time the same clothes. You really don't need to take a lot of clothes with you. I advise you to take fewer clothes with you, and leave all your shoes at home. Tony and I took too many clothes with us, so we were fed up with extra weight and luggage during the entire trip.

Don't take shoes with you. I advise you to buy a pair of sandals when you are in Bali. You can buy them at a very reasonable price (15.000 IDR), and you won't need more.

If you are planning to go mountain climbing, then you should foresee a couple of worn out sport shoes. You'll use them when climbing f.e. Mount Batur. I visited mount Batur with my sandals! But I did hurt myself twice!

A trouser might be useful when visiting the mountains. On top, the temperature might be around 23 °C. This might still sound warm for you, but when you get used to the warm weather near the coast, this will feel cold!

You can ask for the laundry service at your hotel. They will do your laundry at a reasonable price, so once again, another reason why not taking too many clothes with you.

T-shirts are for sale all over the island. You'll find thousands of shops, and you will get them for about 15.000 IDR.

What about the food and the drinks!

You'll find all kind of food! European, Chinese, Japanese, Indonesian, etc. But make sure that you are eating fresh food. Be suspicious, as eating bad food could ruin your holidays!

Be sure the food is cooked! Many tourists get ill after eating uncooked food. The fresh vegetable dishes might be very seductive but keep your hands off of them as there is a high potential risk the food is flushed with defiled water!

You will find lots of European and American food chains in the tourist places (McDonalds, Pizza Hut, KFC, etc.). Although I am not a fan of this junk food, the potential risk is remarkably lower than at small restaurants.

This doesn't mean you cannot eat Indonesian food. Just be sure it is well cooked, and there won't be any problem! You can even eat on the food stands on the market, but the same rule applies here!

When I came back to Belgium, I missed I missed the AQUA water a lot. In the supermarket, you can buy bottles of 600ml for about 850 IDR. In the smaller shops, these bottles are for sale for about 1.000 to 1.200 IDR. Just buy a couple of these bottles so you can drink fresh water all the time. Don't drink tap water! And in the smaller restaurants, be sure the bottles of water are still bottled. Do not accept unbottled water in any case.

I can't speak Indonesian or Balinese. Is this a problem?

English is widely spoken in Indonesia and Bali. You won t have trouble taking to the people in tourist area's. But if you are leaving the tourist places, you might have difficulties to talk with the locals. In case you should need to talk to the natives, you need a minimum of grammar. Click here to go to a list of words you might need!

What documents do I need when I arrive in Bali? What documents do I need when I leave Bali?

All visitors to Indonesia must have a passport valid for at least six months from the date of arrival. Citizens of the United Kingdom, and other European Union countries, Australia, New Zealand, the USA and Canada do not require a visa for a stay of up to two months if they are visiting as tourists and staying in hotel-type accommodation. This period cannot be extended without a visa.

Visitors must also be able to show that they have a ticket for their return home or onward passage by air or sea.

Note you will get a visitors pass at arrival. You'll need it when leaving the country. Keep this paper document very carefully as loss of this document can result in much trouble getting out of the country. In case you would lose this document, arrange for a new one a few days before leaving the country as it might take a few days to get a new one!

At departure, you will have to show the travel pass. Keep 50.000 IDR per person, as this is the airport tax you'll have to pay cash at your departure!

Are there shopping areas in Bali? Can I buy electronic goods?

There are indeed a lot of shopping areas in Bali. You'll find lots of typical local products. Ubud is the place for art shopping. But art is available all over the island. Swarms of traders will try to sell you goods on street. Be careful as most of these products are from lower quality and fake. Ask the trader if he is from Bali. If he is not, do not buy from them, as they do harm to the Balinese traders who get a lot of competition of Javanese traders. Most of the shops are art/food/souvenir shops. You won't find electronic shops in Bali. Most of the electronic goods are obsolete and expensive!

I was surprised to see also lots of VCD and CD (rental) shops. VCD is a real hipe in Bali and in the rest of Asia. A VCD was between 50.000 and 75.000 IDR.

When is the tourist high/low season?

The highest season is between June and August. The lowest season is between December and March with the exception of the new years period. If you visit Bali in the highest season, it is recommended to book a reservation for the first 2 or 3 days. You might have difficulties to find a good hotel during this period of the year.

During low season, you can find hundreds of hotels and you can even bargain about the price. There is no need to make a reservation as the prices will be lower if you book when you are in Bali. Everything depends if you are an adventurer or not ;-)

I want to take electronic appliances with me (shaver, etc.). What is the voltage?

Most of the hotels do have electricity plugs available. The plugs are like the ones in Europe (different from those from the US.).

Electricity on Bali is normally 220 volts 50 cycles, though in some outlying districts it may be 110 volts.

Can I do some camping in Bali?

There are no official camping sites on Bali or Lombok. Backpackers are not now welcomed on Bali, and although "random" camping in open country is not officially prohibited it is frowned on. There is however, plenty of cheap accommodations available outside the tourist areas, for example in homestay, losmens and penginapans.

What about malaria and other tropical diseases?

It is recommended to be vaccinated against hepatitis A and B.. Contact your local doctor for more information.

There is no need to take drugs or injections against Malaria in Bali. The pollution is high, so the malaria fly cannot survive. If you are traveling to other parts of Indonesia however, anti malaria drugs or injections are recommended. Most of the visitors travel to Lombok. If you didn't take any precautions, it is recommended not to stay longer than 3 days as malaria infections are possible in Lombok.

Be careful with diarrhoea! This is the most common illness among tourists. It doesn't matter what destination you are heading, diarrhoea infections are also common in Bali. Avoid using tap water and fresh washed vegetables! Try to avoid flushing your teeth's while brushing with tap water! Also be careful when swimming in the sea. Swallowing seawater is a common reason of diarrhoea!

What can I do against mosquito bites?

Best thing to do is take a mosquito net with you. As they mostly bite at night, just set up that mosquito net and you will get rid of them! I had a small anti-mosquito evaporator with me, but in certain areas like Lovina, it didn't help a lot.

Some people try to take B-vitamins. When sweating the vitamins will make you smell like hell for these insects. Humans cannot smell the unpleasant scent... You might also take some anti-mosquito milk, but try to find the strongest ones as the mosquitos in the tropics are getting used to them!

Once the night is falling, you might think of wearing long clothes like light pants and a very light trouser. This is the most effective way of getting rid of these bites!

Which cards are accepted? Can I withdraw money?

Visa and Mastercard are accepted in most of the hotels. However, in the smaller less tourist areas you might take cash money with you. If you are planning an adventurous trip, you'll need cash. Some people will even tell you, cash-cash-cash is the solution.

If you are an Australian or American citizen, Australian dollars as well as American dollars are accepted. Other currencies widely accepted are New Zealand dollars and Dutch Guilders. I case you have other currencies, it is best to take USD with you. But note you'll get a better currency rate if you have big notes. I took USD with me in notes of 100 USD. Other currencies are also difficult to trade, and you'll probably be sent to the bigger banks.

European visitors might think of changing their currency in USD notes before leaving their home country. In the tourist places, you'll be able to withdraw money with Visa, Mastercard, Cirrus and even Eurocheque!

Where can I get the best exchange rates?

You can get good exchange rates almost everywhere? Even shops offer good rates, but BE CAREFUL! Some of the money exchangers might have better rates but they charge supplemental costs for no reason. Discuss this on forehand.

Another issue is the value of the notes. Some of the exchangers will try to exchange in small notes of 5.000, 10.000 or 20.000 IDR. Do not accept the small notes, as you'll be fed up with a big wallet and no value. Using small notes is also a way of trying to rip the tourists off! They discourage the tourists to (re)count the money.

How much money should I exchange?

Don't exchange too much money at once. If you exchange 500 USD you won't be able to fit your notes in your wallet! If you checked out the report, you have probably seen the pictures of the money. I would recommend exchanging 200 USD each time you are running out of cash!

Questions and answers.

When is the weather the best in Bali?

What clothes should I take with me?

What about the food and the drinks!

I can't speak Indonesian or Balinese. Is this a problem?

What documents do I need when I arrive in Bali? What documents do I need when I leave Bali?

Are there shopping areas in Bali? Can I buy electronic goods?