21 Tips & Things To Know Before Visiting Bali

In this post I’ve combined the best tips we found when researching, and what I wish I knew before visiting Bali too…

Before our trip to Bali last year, I did some heavy research for how to prepare for our visit. This Indonesian island is so different to the UK in terms of culture, climate, terrain, economics… you name it! Of course, many areas of Bali have become more westernised now due to its popularity, but we still wanted to make sure we were prepared.

We also learned SO much while we were there, and I tried to keep notes of everything I thought would be helpful for someone to know before visiting Bali as well. So here are the top tips…

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1. Try and visit different areas in Bali for the best experience

For a relatively small island, there are so many different areas with their own unique characteristics to explore in Bali, so try to plan your trip so you’re not just staying in the main tourist areas of Kuta or Seminyak!

Our trip was fairly short (less than 2 weeks) and we wanted to see as much as possible, so we did the following:

• 3 nights in Canggu
  A popular, surfy town on the coast next to Seminyak (more bohemian vibes than Seminyak and Kuta).
• 5 nights in Ubud
  A jungle town that’s very central on the island, where you’re surrounded by rainforest. The town is quite busy but we stayed just outside and it was stunning.
• 2 nights in Munduk
  A mountain village in the north with a cooler climate but much less touristy! From here we visited lots of waterfalls in the north.
• 3 nights near Uluwatu
  The south side of the island known for pretty beaches and surfing (sadly we got sick during this part so we didn’t get to see much!).

I feel like this was the perfect mixture for the time that we had, but if we had longer I would have loved to explore Uluwatu more, visit Lovina in the North, and tried to visit the nearby Gili Islands too.

2. Check your vaccinations in plenty of time before you

Depending on where you’re from and your personal health needs and vaccine history, you may have different travel requirements for vaccinations before you visit Bali. We both got Hepatitis vaccines and Typhoid vaccines, but I hadn’t realised you’re supposed to get your Typhoid vaccine at least 1 month before you travel, and Alex was cutting that very close!

So make sure you do your research in plenty of time.

3. You’ll end up living in flipflops / sandals (but don’t forget rock shoes!)

I packed heels with me because we had planned a night out at Finn’s Beach Club, and I thought I might need them for nice meals out, but I never wore them.

If you’re trying to pack light I’d honestly suggest you only need one good pair of sandals that you can walk in (doubling up as beach-wear and hiking-wear if you’re planning to do that!), or trainers and basic flipflops.

However, bringing some of these rock shoes* was an absolute LIFE SAVER. I honestly would not have enjoyed our waterfall adventures as much without them, because it gets slippy and painful on your feet otherwise. Also great for when we went white water rafting as well. An absolute must!

4. Open treehouses in the jungle look amazing, but…

This is something I really had to consider when we were booking our trip. You see those gorgeous open treehouses in the jungle in Bali all over social media, but I always find myself wondering what they would be like at night…

Realistically, I am TERRIFIED of spiders and ‘creepy crawlies’… do I really want to be sharing an open plan room with those beasts? Even with mosquito netting over the bed, I just don’t think I could handle it.

I’m also quite allergic to mosquito bites, so I really need somewhere to hide from them properly in the early evenings.

So instead I booked a more enclosed ‘treehouse’ style airbnb for our Munduk stay, and we loved it! Naturally with being in the wilderness, we still did get the odd bug and a couple of lizards joining us inside, but it was manageable (and not a spider to be seen!).

5. Bring suncream, bug spray and medications with you

You don’t need me to tell you why these things are obviously important for any of your travels, BUT the main point is that these are actually very expensive to buy while you’re in Bali. There are plenty of pharmacies, but buying things like suncream, mosquito repellant and medicine there cost a lot (probably because most is imported).

Also remember to bring any prescription medications with you, and be aware that you may need a doctor’s note for some medications that are restricted in Bali.

6. Be sure to book popular beach clubs (eg. Finn’s in Canggu) weeks in advance

Every had told us how great Finn’s Beach Club is before we went to Bali, so we knew we had to do this while we were staying in Canggu! Honestly it was AMAZING and so worth it, but I’d strongly recommend you book as far in advance as possible (because it gets busy!).

We booked 2 x single VIP beds and would highly recommend this because the service was so good and you get loads of extras included. Even if you’re not a partier, going to a Bali beach club is about chilling in the sun to great music by the pool, and enjoying delicious food in Finn’s case too – it was so good.

7. Pack a sarong with you to cover up in temples (+ treat sacred spots with respect)

There are some local customs, etiquette and traditions to be aware of in Bali, especially if you plan to be visiting sacred spots and temples. To be on the safe side and ensure we’d be allowed in places (and to respect their culture), I always packed a sarong in my bag that I could use to cover my legs and/or shoulders.

There has been some issues in the past with (particularly westerners) disrespecting sacred areas and nature spots, which meant the government has added restrictions on visiting certain places. It shouldn’t need to be said that we need to be respectful, but this is why it’s important to do research beforehand!

8. 20k and 50k IDR notes are really useful for tipping

At the time of writing this, 20k IDR is around £1GBP and 50k IDR is around £2.50GBP, making these notes super handy for giving tips in Bali.

It generally felt like tipping was expected, and while I know it’s not in our nature to do this as Brits 🙈, realistically most Balinese workers (especially in hospitality or taxi drivers) do not get paid much at all in comparison to our western wages, so please tip local people if you can!

9. You will need cash to pay for waterfall entry too

In the more touristy areas, most restaurants accept payment by card, but I definitely think carrying cash is a must in Bali. Not only for tipping (as mentioned above), but also for smaller warungs and paying for entry to many of the waterfalls and nature spots too.

And yes, be prepared that most named waterfalls across the island do typically have a hut with someone collecting an ‘entry fee’. This is normal and it’s usually not very much (the equivalent of a few pence usually!), but another reason why cash is important.

10. Getting a local driver is a great way to get around

The traffic in Bali is… interesting 🤣

Particularly in Canggu (which has grown in popularity relatively quickly and therefore doesn’t really have the infrastructure set up to accommodate all the traffic yet), it’s a nightmare.

SO I can totally understand the appeal of hiring a moped/scooter to get around, IF you’re already an experience scooter driver and/or you’re staying in Bali for a longer period of time.

BUT if you have never driven one before or aren’t that experienced, hiring a scooter is NOT a good plan. The roads are manic and the number of people getting into accidents on and because of scooters in Bali is shocking. It’s not worth it – and legally you’re supposed to have a UK motorcycle license to ride and hire one in Bali anyway nowadays.

So taxis are your other option, but if you want to explore lots, hiring a dedicated driver for half a day or a day is likely to be a more cost effective option! You can book these easily on GetYourGuide* or Klook*!

11. Save money with a local SIM card

Rather than dealing with expensive data roaming charges, it’s much more cost effective to buy a local SIM card in Bali if you’re staying longer than a few days! It also means you’ll be connected to local data companies which means your internet coverage and speed will be better too,

Installing a local SIM in your phone will give you a temporary different phone number (so people won’t be able to text or call your normal number), but means you’ll be able to use data all over the island (so you can still use WhatsApp to contact people), and because you’ll have a local number you’ll be able to use local apps like GoJek (see below).

You can buy a local SIM card at the airport as you exit arrivals, but it’s even cheaper if you buy one in a town. We got ours from this Telkomsel stall in Canggu, and the lady helped us get it all set up and installed correctly too.

12. Download the GoJek app for takeaways, shopping and WATER (cheaper than hotel water!)

Once you have a local SIM card and local phone number, you’ll be able to download and use the GoJek app – which is essentially like Bali’s version of Uber! You can order taxis, drivers, groceries and restaurant takeaways all from this app, and it works great in all the popular towns.

This was a LIFESAVER because we realised quickly that buying bottled water at our hotels in Canggu and Uluwatu was SUCH a rip off (like £2.50 for a small 500ml bottle). Obviously (hopefully you’re already aware!) the tap water in Bali is absolutely NOT okay to drink, and the climate is so humid there that you really need bottled water to stay hydrated.

Meanwhile local supermarkets were selling 6 litre packs for less than £3, but if you’re staying too far away to carry all that, you can order a GoJek delivery instead!

It’s important to note that the GoJek drivers get paid barely anything per trip (and GoJek takes a cut, like Uber), so PLEASE tip them well, with cash. Even when tipping a lot, it still worked out way cheaper than the hotels so we were more than happy to do this.

13. BUT be aware GoJek taxis aren’t allowed in main tourist areas

A lot of websites online suggest using GoJek to order taxis when you’re in Bali, but we were told that GoJek (for taxis, not deliveries) is banned in the main towns like Canggu and Ubud.

We found that because we were our booking trips and excursions with local companies, most of them included pick ups and transfers from where you were staying, so we didn’t need to source taxis for generally travelling around. But if you do, it may be easier (as I mentioned above) to look at planning your adventures so you can hire a driver for a half or full day instead of individual taxi trips.

14. Walking around in Canggu is… interesting

I actually had read about this before we went, but you don’t quite appreciate what people mean until you’re there!

Canggu doesn’t have much infrastructure at all, as it has been generally unprepared for its recent surge in popularity over the last 10 years. The roads need a lot of TLC and are filled with a chaotic amount of traffic and traffic jams, including 100s of moped/scooters all trying to squeeze through gaps that aren’t there and zipping around the edges of the roads.

This, combined with the fact there are no proper pavements, means walking is just a bit tricky. We managed fine walking around the town, because we had mentally prepared for it and kept our wits about us (narrowly avoiding being run over by random scooters several times), but just be aware!

Also I had seen on TikTok that a few people had their phones stolen out of their hands by scooter riders while walking around Canggu, so I bought a phone case with a strap like this one* and was careful about waving my stuff around (unlike when I went to Fuerteventura and had my bag and 2 phones stolen out of my hands… but that’s another story for another day 🙃).

15. It’s HUMID. Bring a handheld fan in your bag and don’t bother with much makeup!

I don’t really need to explain this but Bali is really humid… even in ‘dry season’. I didn’t bother wearing much makeup during our whole trip as it just melted off, same with bothering too much about your hair! Embrace the natural frizz 😅

Also a lifesaver was carrying a handheld fan in my bag – literally just a basic wooden fan like this* (pick one up from a local market!), or a little battery operated one* would be amazing too if you have space in your bag.

16. The monkeys can unzip bags 😳

We visited the Sacred Monkey Forest while we were in Ubud, and YES, I had read online that they are pretty cocky little creatures. We deliberately brought no food in with us, wore no accessories/jewellery, took a zipped up rucksack and stuck to the paths giving the monkeys a wide berth.

And Alex STILL ended up with a monkey climbing on him, unzipping his rucksack (yes, apparently they can undo zips?? 🥲) and stealing our bottle of suncream.

So just be prepared for that… and my tips would be:

• Go as early as you can because it does get hectic busy there (we went as soon as it opens)
• DO NOT STOP in the path just keep walking (Alex paused for 3 seconds laughing at something and they took this as a sign!)
• Maybe put a mini padlock on your zip bag?? I think that might just be the only way to keep them out of your stuff…

17. Be careful of tides and waves when walking along the beach (especially at night in Canggu!)

This might sounds random, but as a Cornish gal I am all about beach safety and I still didn’t expect this!

Because the tide was low when we arrived in Canggu, and we were walking along the beach in the day time between our hotel and the town, we assumed we’d be able to do the same later that day. But when we reached the beach, we saw the tide was much higher than it had been earlier (DUH, we get tides here in England too!), but it still looked like there was enough sand for us to walk along back to the hotel.

But as we started walking, we saw a huge wave surge all the way up to the edge of the beach and drag two women back down the beach towards to the ocean and they only just managed to make it out. It was genuinely scary because this was at night, the beach wasn’t well lit, and nobody could really help them without getting dragged out too (and lucky there were any people around there anyway!).

Anyway, it’s basic beach safety but something your brain might forget about when you’re in another country… just be aware of freak waves, tides and going near the ocean (especially at night).

18. If you’re staying longer than a few weeks, consider a shower filter

We didn’t need this but I definitely noticed my hair was feeling dry towards the end of our trip. Bali is known for its hard water which can cause issues with your skin and hair, so you could look to buy a shower filter if you’re staying there longterm.

I mainly know about this because I follow a girl on social media called travelwithhol whose hair fell out when she moved to Bali! Her content is generally amazing so you should check her out if you’re visiting, but she also sells shower filters specifically for this too.

19. You can take all the precautions and still get sick…

I was terrified of getting ‘Bali belly’ (aka travellers diarrhea) thanks to warnings from friends and things online, so I took EVERY PRECAUTION under the sun and bought all the things to try and prevent it:

• Bottle water for drinking & brushing teeth
• Avoiding washed uncooked veg and out-of-the-way local eateries
• Charcoal tablets and Travelan
• Hand sanitiser before every meal etc.

… and we still got sick on our last 2 days. Mine lasted around 24 hours, but Alex was really bad and while we managed to get back to the UK okay he still felt awful for over a week after. His doctor tested him and it turned out he’d contracted campylobacteriosis and a parasite known as giardia.

I know that’s not what people want to hear, but that’s the reality of it. You just need to mentally prepare for it and make sure you have travel insurance so that you can see a doctor in Bali to get antibiotics as soon as possible.

But even with getting sick, we still had an amazing time and it was worth it over all for the amazing experiences we had. I would still recommend going to Bali for sure because it really is such a unique place!

20. Don’t leave without experiencing a real Balinese home

One of the best experiences we did while in Bali was a cooking class at Lobong Cooking school (just outside of Ubud). Sang Made has been running these cooking experiences from his traditional Balinese home for 10 years, and we spent the afternoon with him learning about his way of life living together with his family in a compound style setting, and creating our own delicious local dishes.

We learned so much about Balinese culture, religion (and of course, food!) and I can’t recommend this highly enough.

21. Oh, and a Balinese massage is FIRM… you might want to ask for gentle/soft 🤣

LOL this is kind of a joke, but also not. I don’t know if it’s just the massage place that we went to, but our Balinese massages were extremely hardcore! I asked for mine softer and it was just about bearable, but Alex suffered through it and came out feeling like he’d taken a beating… maybe just us, but you have been warned!!

 

Will you be planning a trip to Bali soon?