Archive 'Travel Tips'
by Putra - 06 Apr 2007 @ 5:45 am · Category Travel Tips
Women should take a few long-sleeved blouses and longish skirts. Skimpy clothing, backless dresses, and shorts can be offensive in Bali’s small back-road villages, on formal occasions, and particularly if worn in the island’s temples or to religious festivals. Your bikini is acceptable provided it’s worn only at the swimming pool or to the beach.
Take one wrinkle-proof dress that is easy to wash and dress up or down with. Dresses of double-knit cotton T-shirt material are excellent. If you prefer to complete your travel wardrobe on arrival, the clothes shops and boutiques of Kuta and Legian have a wide selection of contemporary and economically priced dresses, jackets, skirts, blouses, pants, and beachwear. Always closely scrutinize the quality of the fabric and workmanship.
As an alternative to possibly poorly sewn ready-made clothes, commission one of Bali’s hundreds of seamstresses to sew a dress (Rp15,000-30,000) or skirt (Rp7500-10,000). Your hotel or a clothes shop can recommend a dressmaker. Just give them one of your best-fitting garments or a photograph from which they will make a paper pattern.
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by Putra - 03 Apr 2007 @ 9:37 am · Category Travel Tips
Take only clothes that are lightweight, easily rinsed, brushed, and renovated. In a tropical climate, cotton is very comfortable (nylon doesn’t breathe in the heat) and dries quickly in the humidity. However, 100% cotton needs ironing, so bring along a few half-cotton, half-synthetic (rayon is good), wrinkle-free garments for special occasions and visits to bureaucratic offices.
Denim is too hot for Indonesia and takes too long to dry; perhaps bring one pair if you’re going to do high-altitude trekking or cycling. Looser corduroys or light summer trousers are better suited for this climate. It’s generally considered inappropriate for men to wear short shorts for anything except the roughest manual work, long-distance cycling, hash runs, or for going to and from the bathroom or beach.
Bali is too hot for Western-style sport-coats. Buy a light batik sport-coat or an attractive long-sleeved batik shirt for dressing up quite acceptable and very chic in Indonesia. Choose patterned or dark-colored fabrics that won’t show wear or soil as quickly. Take along a light sweater or sweatshirt for the cool of the evenings or for higher elevations such as Kintamani and Bedugul.
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by Putra - 22 Dec 2006 @ 7:35 am · Category Accommodation, Travel Tips
Finding a Good Place
Other travelers are the best sources of information. The same person who tells you that a hotel, cottage, or home-stay in this book no longer exists will also be able to tell you where another good one is.
The local policies set the price of accommodations and are also charged with collecting the tax. With the intensity of competition, particularly among the budget class of accommodations, prices are very reasonable. But no matter what class place you’re staying in, bargain. Tell the manager or front desk clerk that the hotel is out of your budget (”Taripnya terlalu mahal untuk saya.”).
The manager might be amenable to giving you a discount “if you promise not to tell the other guests.”
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by Putra - 16 Dec 2006 @ 7:21 am · Category Accommodation, Travel Tips
Bali - which has more than half the hotels in all of Indonesia - offers the best and widest range of accommodation of any region of Indonesia catering to the international tourist. They are ranging from international five-star hotels with extravagant suites costing US$600 per day to simple, homey, family-run inns with a thin mattress for a bed and a single hanging light bulb for less than five dollars per night.
All these hotels have convention facilities, swimming pools, sports grounds and a selection of restaurants, bars, nightclubs, or discotheques and beachfronts. There are also smaller cottage style hotels with modern amenities. Most unique is the long established. Above hotels and those with two stars have air conditioning, attached baths, telephones and TV.
Elsewhere in Indonesia, someone is always inviting you home to meet his or her family. But this is not the case on Bali where accommodations are so cheap and plentiful. Families are not permitted to put you up as long as there’s a hotel or home-stay in the same village. At the low end of the price scale, Bali offers some of the best value accommodations in all of Asia.
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by Putra - 13 Dec 2006 @ 6:34 am · Category Travel Tips
Accommodations
As you can imagine there is an enormous variety of accommodation available in Bali. It varies from magnificent five star resorts to simple jungle cabins, depending on the location and your holiday budget.
Clothing
Light, airy, casual clothes are the most practical and you’ll find natural fibers like cotton or linen are the most comfortable in Bali’s often humid conditions. Waist sashes should be worn when visiting temples.
When packing, keep in mind that you will be in the tropics, but that it can get cold in the mountains. Generally, you will want to dress light and wear natural feathers that absorb perspiration. A heavy sweater is also a must, as is a sturdy pair of shoes. Suits and ties are almost never worn.
Currency
Indonesian currency is Rupiah. Rupiah notes currently in circulation are Rp.500, Rp.1,000, Rp.5,000, Rp.10,000, Rp.20,000, Rp.50,000 and Rp. 100,000
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