The simple answer to this question is to not ask “how much”, but rather just to ask the taxi driver to put the meter on — that’s what it is there for. But, if you prefer to do it “off the meter” here are the “official” prices from Bali’s Ngurah Rai Airport to various spots … read the full post

If I ever had a little wooden seaside cottage, I’d be asking Cafe Bali who did their decorating and getting their number. I love this place: it’s cute but not sickly sweet, a breezy blend of sophisticated and serene right bang in the middle of the disaster-construction zone that is Jalan Laksmana in Seminyak. Think … read the full post

Street-level massage joints are a dime-a-dozen in Bali, and so too are the high-end US-dollar priced ones. The market in between, where you pay just a little more and get something a little different is where there’s a bit of a gap, but that’s where Cozy, just near Simpang Siur (ten minutes from Kuta on … read the full post

With its dream-coloured glass louvre windows sitting pretty on Jalan Oberoi Sea Circus looks scrumptious from the outside alone. Inside, the white interior with vibrant turquoise accents and touches such as flowers in old bicarb of soda cans lends a carefree, beachfront feel, though the spot is off the beach and doesn’t have any ocean … read the full post

On holiday in Bali and want to get a dental or eye check up? Even if you don’t, it’s good to have contact details on hand for a good dentist and optometrist while travelling just in case something goes wrong – and the prices are great! Dr Retno has a neat, nondescript office that’s easy … read the full post

Sometimes there is nothing worse than getting stranded on a tropical island — the boss is never going to believe your concoction about some volcano on Java blowing its top … he knows what really happened. Anyway, if you’ve found your Jetstar flight from Bali to Australia to be cancelled or delayed, here are a … read the full post

Rio Helmi is one of Indonesia’s best photographers – his work was mentioned in this month’s Bali travel piece in the New York Times – and he currently has a sale on his prints at his gallery on Jalan Suweta in Ubud. His sumptuous prints chronicle lives around Asia in places as diverse as Bali, … read the full post

We arrive in Ubud after dark with a sleeping Mr 2 and overtired Ms 4 in tow, and the long walk down a narrow footpath between mossy high walls doesn’t inspire confidence in the place we have booked to stay at for the weekend. As we enter Ubud Lestari, Mr Travelfish, who poked his head … read the full post

The Ubud Botanical Gardens had its “soft opening” in mid 2006 and from the look of their website and the pics on the wall at the main reception area, it must have been quite a place through the next year or so… Fast forward to early 2011 and the gardens are, well, a bit the … read the full post

Visit pretty much any beach on east or north Bali and you’ll see dozens upon dozens of jukungs pulled up onto the sand. The jukung is the Indonesian fisherman’s staple vessel for getting around and you’ll see them all over the archipelago: some use nets, others trolling and others still long-line fishing. One afternoon while … read the full post