Looking for a non-Bogan Bali experience

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It gets to me when people class Bali as 'bogan'. Being Balinese, it's quite confronting how tourists treat our island, and it is those drunken few who give us a bad name.

These suggestions such as 'getting away to Canggu' (which, incidentally, is actually in the area of Kuta North, therefore not out of Kuta), or The Nusa Dua, don't really solve the problem. The Nusa Dua is actually out-of-bounds to anyone not staying there, meaning they have restricted locals from entering, and even enjoying the beaches there. It's awful how they were allowed to do this.

There are hundreds of villages, away from the tacky tourist hotspots of Kuta, Sanur, Nusa Dua, Jimbaran, Uluwatu, Ubud and Canggu, where we love having tourists, and you will receive a genuinely authentic experience. You can still get transport to all the main tourist hotspots if you need it.

My suggestion would be to go near Ubud not in it), and be open to experiencing accommodation that isn't five-star resorts (which leads to us, in the smallest villages, running out of water and electricity in peak periods because it's been drawn by the major massive hotels and chains).

And don't fall into the tourist trap of paying for things like yoga and traditional events that are actually organised by foreigners! In a Balinese village you will experience them, and much more, free. It is quite wrong, in fact, to pay for them, and all too often expats and their companies try to make a profit off unsuspecting tourists who pay exorbitant prices for a 'traditional' experience.

Learn a bit of Bahasa Indonesia (the national language) and Balinese (the native language) - which are both distinct languages and quite different from each other. People will love you for it. But most of all, be open, friendly, and enjoy our island, which is absolutely not bogan! :)

I think everyone here would agree that it isn’t the Balinese people (or Bali itself) who are the bogan. This is our own export to Bali ! We just need to avoid them when we’re there
 
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I went to Bali for the firs time last year and had the same concern regarding rowdy tourists. We ended up staying in Seminyak, Ubud and Nusa Dua and had no problems whatsoever so I would recommend staying in those areas. However, I didn't really enjoy Nusa Dua - it was a bit too secluded for my liking although good if you just want to be locked away in a resort. Ubud was nice, laid-back and makes a good base for sightseeing (waterfalls, rice terraces etc.). Seminyak was great and I would stay there the whole time if I was to go back. Beautiful beach, good mix of shops and restaurants, busy but not hustle bustle like Kuta.
 
No matter if you pay ~$2K for ret J flts / US$400nt for accom / A$100-$200pp dinner after dinner - you still will not avoid bogans in Bali - best to just not go me tinks!!!

Bogan 1.jpg
 
Pearl of Trawangan - Gili Trawangan, Lombok, Indonesia Was recommended to me by a QF Flightie as authentic island experience

This might be an unpopular opinion but I didn't enjoy Gili T at all.

It felt like 70% of the people on the island were tourists or locals who are directly related to tourism. No different to visiting Phi Phi island.

I found it difficult to find places where locals eat or just hang out. At least in places like HKT, DPS... etc, you can hop in and out of tourist areas.
 
This might be an unpopular opinion but I didn't enjoy Gili T at all.

It felt like 70% of the people on the island were tourists or locals who are directly related to tourism. No different to visiting Phi Phi island.

I found it difficult to find places where locals eat or just hang out. At least in places like HKT, DPS... etc, you can hop in and out of tourist areas.
Yep, Gili T has become more and more crowded with tour boats each time we have visited. Our last 2 trips to Lombok we didn’t even bother going to the Gili’s
 
Not sure if anyone mentioned it earlier but the only time I've been there I went to Candidasa and really enjoyed it. Helps that the scuba diving was really good and being a small town minimised the bogans.

Had a night either side in Kuta and was that ever bogan central.
 
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