Have you done Christmas in Bali?

[haydensydney]

My family and I are off to Bangkok (4 nights) and Bali (6 nights) which is where we will be for Christmas.

Has anyone done the whole Bali thing at Christmas before? We are hoping to score a villa (though prices are sky high and availability is limited) so we can cook up a typical Christmas lunch on the day.

Does anyone know if there are normal supermarkets in Bali where we can pick up supplies? French cheeses and pates would also be good - though I am unsure if there are deli's etc there (maybe i'm just kidding myself on that one! haha).

Also, as it isn't a Christian nation, will everything still be open and running over the Christmas break?

Cheers

Hayden

 

[koonyaflyer]

My family and I are off to Bangkok (4 nights) and Bali (6 nights) which is where we will be for Christmas.

Has anyone done the whole Bali thing at Christmas before? We are hoping to score a villa (though prices are sky high and availability is limited) so we can cook up a typical Christmas lunch on the day.

Does anyone know if there are normal supermarkets in Bali where we can pick up supplies? French cheeses and pates would also be good - though I am unsure if there are deli's etc there (maybe i'm just kidding myself on that one! haha).

Also, as it isn't a Christian nation, will everything still be open and running over the Christmas break?

Cheers

Hayden

Hayden i am sure you will find quite a bit of what you are looking for at Carrefour in Denpasar. If you are heading north towards Legian or Seminyak from the airport you will see it on you right hand side. It is really just a huge supermarket but your best chance to get cheeses etc. If you are staying in Seminyak or Canggu it is hard to go past Canggu Deli, a bit more expensive but good cheeses etc. It is a bit of an expat hangout!

 

[stomplad]

Why not try some local delicacies and cuisine? Seafood is great value too.

 

[RB]

Yes we have spent Xmas/New Year in Bali but it was in 1998 (the time in between Xmas & New Year was spent in Lombok) so maybe things have changed. At that time xmas was not a big thing for the locals. We took our own booze & music & caught a cab out to Jimbaran Bay to a basic beach seafood restaurant. We only saw another half dozen people along the beach as we ate seafood. The owner had a cotton wool Xmas tree, power cords covered by sand, and wanted to know what it was like to be up in one of the planes that he saw fly overhead all the time- good, simple times!

 

[wilco]

I personally couldnt imagine anything worse than wasting christmas in Bali, but I hope you and your family enjoy it.

 

[Pushka]

We have spent Christmas and New Years in Bali. The shops will be open - Carrefours is a good one but there are 7/11 shops on every corner. There is also a big Bintan Supermarket near Seminyak. The worst thing is that sometimes the Hotels force you to pay for their very expensive Christmas and New Years Dinners.

It will be hot, very very hot. And could be very wet.

Try Waterbom Park for the day - lovely grounds, lovely Pools and excellent water slides with very little wait.

I don't get the comment about 'wasting' Christmas in Bali though?:-|

 

[wilco]

I don't get the comment about 'wasting' Christmas in Bali though?:-|

Everything you just mentioned!!
Very very hot, very very wet, extortionate pricing, dirty beaches, annoying street vendors, corrupt police, loud and obnoxious behaviour from uncouth Aussie's and Brit's..... I dont get what exactly you don't "get"?

 

[haydensydney]

Thanks everyone for their comments/feedback!

Everything you just mentioned!!
Very very hot, very very wet, extortionate pricing, dirty beaches, annoying street vendors, corrupt police, loud and obnoxious behaviour from uncouth Aussie's and Brit's..... I dont get what exactly you don't "get"?

I'm not too sure if I will LOVE the place either, but I've got to go check it out eventually (been there done that sorta thing). Might as well do it with close family. We got great rates on a fantastic villa, so hopefully it all works out.

Have you been to Bali previously to validate your views on the place?

 

[MatF]

I haven't done Christmas in Bali, but I did spend last Christmas lying on a hotel bed in Venice, with gastro, watching Die Hard 4 in German with Italian subtitles.

I hope your Christmas is infinitely better

 

[Pushka]

Everything you just mentioned!!
Very very hot, very very wet, extortionate pricing, dirty beaches, annoying street vendors, corrupt police, loud and obnoxious behaviour from uncouth Aussie's and Brit's..... I dont get what exactly you don't "get"?

We stay at Jimbaran Bay. Police - we don't do anything to bother the police so they don't bother us. Extortionate pricing? That I don't agree with. Australian tourists, yes, we avoid them. Bali is what you make of it, you haven't travelled Bali if that is all you think of it. No-one stays in Kuta.

We have been to Bali perhaps seven times. Our preferred time is May through July.

 

[Limewood]

I personally couldnt imagine anything worse than wasting christmas in Bali, but I hope you and your family enjoy it.

You got that right, full of Aussie Yobo's in thongs and singlets, at night in town well the latter is the same, then touts during the day driving you mad with: you buy my... , head for the hills or stay in your hotel grounds if its a holiday you want!. Wait until you see the thong brigade at the airport on the way out, its a sight too see, real ambassadors for OZ, Bali not for me or most I know, once was enough.

 

[haydensydney]

Well i'm sure everyone on this board will find out eventually how it goes for me.

I have a big mouth when I don't like something. And six days of not liking something is likely to produce endless rants on these forums :mrgreen:

But I think I will be fine. I don't really have to leave the Villa, and if I do, it will be to the Bintang thing just up the road to get supplies.

 

[Pushka]

The restaurants and boutiques at Seminyak are classy. La Lucciola has great ambience but needs a booking. Just stay away from the areas of Kuta and Legian and you will be fine. Take a cab to Jimbaran Bay before sunset for the Barbeque on the beach but don't take the cafe the taxi takes you to. Walk along the beach until you find one you like. There are hundreds selling BBQ prawns, lobster, crabs, snapper chicken etc. Watch the planes fly in and out and the lasers which are everywhere.

Ubud will be pretty humid at that time of the year.

But you will observe a few tragics along the way. Best just observe and enjoy. And escape to your enclave.

I have some excellent,"fit like a glove" leather jackets from Bali. They are made to measure in the softest leather and lined with English damask fabric. For about $100. I have a red cropped one that even gets commented on when I go into dress stores.

Just go with an open mind, ignore the loud tourists, and enjoy the Balinese people themselves. The hawkers are a pain but just ignore them and walk on. Say Jalan Jalan and they will let you pass.

 

[wilco]

Police - we don't do anything to bother the police so they don't bother us.

Nor do I, but it is my greatest fear whilst travelling abroad that im going to get "done" for something, dealt with in a foreign language by a corrupt system that is only interested in supplementing their meagre income with western cash.

This happened to me in Mexico, where we were not advised that we could not drive our hire care from the US to Mexico and back. On the last day, on our way back to the US, i was pulled over by the police for allegedly crossing a solid road line that was so badly eroded it barely existed. He asked if i owned the car and asked to see the papers, despite knowing full well it was a rental. Long story short, I was threatened that the car would be impounded and I would be imprisoned for months until the matter got to court. The issue at play was a bribe, not only for the 2 "officers" but their boss back at the station who was expecting a cashed up gringo! As a good will gesture, he "escorted" me back to the border so that I didnt have any more "trouble" on my way back to the US. How nice of him, given that hed extorted from me, his monthly salary in a little more than 15 minutes!

Back on topic, Indonesian police are IMO, no different!

 

[Simo]

Wot ever happens just go with...

Go and do what the locals do...

I would ask the concierge at the hotel and ask them where the locals go for seafood and do that.

 

[wilco]

Wot ever happens just go with...

Go and do what the locals do...

I would ask the concierge at the hotel and ask them where the locals go for seafood and do that.

great idea!! he'll then be directed to the most expensive place in town or to a place that the concierge gets a financial kickback from for each customer he refers!

 

[Simo]

great idea!! he'll then be directed to the most expensive place in town or to a place that the concierge gets a financial kickback from for each customer he refers!

Your view is a very general view and you are looking at in the most negative light.

The Concierge can tell where to go...

If you think it is too expensive don't walk in... It's that simple(If the restaurant is going to send a limo it probably too expensive)

I generally only have good experiences from Concierges referring me to places...

When I was in Philippines the concierge told me about a great steak house and it was cheaper than the one at the hotel.

There was no kick back as I actually knew the owner of steak house.

 

[wilco]

There was no kick back as I actually knew the owner of steak house.

If you knew the owner, why did you need the concierge's recommendation?

And im only looking at things in a negative light, because in my experience, they are!

Horses for courses I suppose.

 

[Simo]

If you knew the owner, why did you need the concierge's recommendation?

And im only looking at things in a negative light, because in my experience, they are!

Horses for courses I suppose.

I actually didn't know that the person i knew had a steak house.

I had meet him at a function and we had a chat about the training that we had done that day.

I went back for another meal after the first meal it was that good.

 

[Pushka]

I have been to Bali many many times and if you act sensibly and don't put yourself out there, you wont have any problems with the Police. You really think they are going to target well behaved people?

The best source of advice for Bali is Balitravelforum.com

If you listen to all the fear stories and worst case scenarios then you shouldn't leave the house.