1

Why Bali? Are you set on this? Just because I can think of half a dozen better places just off the top of my head.

But if you are set on Bali, then you can split your time between any one of the party beaches, spending time relaxing on the beach, snorkelling etc and then partying at night, and then the rest of the time in ubud for culture, yoga, relaxation, maybe a few inland tours, etc.

If you need any more help, please don't hesitate to ask. Unfortunately the site doesn't do PMs anymore but feel free to ask on here.

2

if you are looking for a mix (Partying, Cultural, Marine activities) you must arrange your stay not in one places.

Partying : Kuta
Beaches : Kuta, Nusa Dua, Dreamland, Lovina
Marine Activities : Nusa Dua, Nusa Lembongan, Amed, Tulamben
Cultural : Ubud, or you can looking for private driver for full day tour (in full day tour you can request your destination for cultural trip in Bali), and also if you want to see the Balinese cultural and see the hidden destination get some packages of cycling tour there are many operator at Ubud)

3

That's a long time for Bali. You might also wish to consider a week or two of that on Lombok / the Gilis.

4

Where else would you suggest? Thanks for all the advice we are a bit clueless! At the early stages of sorting things!

5

and also what the north_boy said, may be consider for another island : Lombok and Gili

6

Clairemerc, give us a little more information and we can help you out with a bit more specific advice.

First of all, have you sorted any travel plans out yet (flights etc)? Or are you initially just thinking of where to go?

Second, is your heart set on Bali for some specific reason?

Third, 5 weeks is a good amount of time to explore other places too as others have said. You could easily spend a couple of weeks on Bali (enough imo) then head onto the gilis or even spend a few weeks in Indonesia? OR alternatively Thailand will fit your criteria perfectly too if you have never been?

7

No flights yet, we wanted a rough plan before commiting. And no, no specific reason just looking into interesting places to travel. We spent last summer in Thailand so would prefer somewhere new to us. Ill look into the other suggestions!

8

Ah okay, then I would suggest Bali and Lombok for a few weeks and Indonesia for a couple of weeks then this time round, the places that have been mentioned above in Bali and Lombok fit your bill for partying, beaches, scuba/snorkelling etc. Plus there is Ubud for culture then places like Yogyakarta in Indonesia for culture too.

As for prices, it may be cheaper to get a direct return flight to Bangkok or Singapore, then cheaper budget flights through Indo, Bali and Lombok from there rather than trying to book direct. Not always, but it is worth looking into.

9

If you really want to spend your whole 4-5 week holiday in Bali then you can basically travel around the whole island. As mentioned above Kuta and Legian are the 'party' villages where you can also learn to surf which is lots of fun. From there you can also head to Uluwatu beach, Padang Padang Beach and Balangan beach. These beaches are famous for surfing too and have a very relaxing atmosphere. Great place to hang out and meet up with people.

From there you can head to Ubud. I could easily spend a whole week in Ubud. You can do yoga classes there, follow a course such as cooking class, eat lots of food (alot of healthy choices too), go on a mountain downhill bike tour, go walking in the ricefields of Campuhan near Ubud center, shopping, spa and above all just enjoy up the atmosphere.

From here you can tour around East Bali. Either do day trips from Ubud or go to the places and spend the night. Next day continue your journey. You can do trips to Batukaru, Sidemen, or Munduk. All three lovely areas with mountain landscapes and hiking possibilities.

From here you can head to the North to Lovina. Lovina is a great base to be for diving in Menjangan island. Here you can find one of the best snorkeling sites in Bali.

After this you can head back to the south, to Sanur from where you can take a speed boat to Nusa Lembongan. Go diving there again and chill at the stunning beaches.
After a day or two grab the speed boat again and then head to Gili islands. Gili Trawangan is a party island but has quiet areas too. So ideal if you want to enjoy some nightlife again.

As you can see I can easily spend a couple of week or more in Bali. This is just an idea of what I would do if I would stay in Bali the whole time. If you want to see more of Indonesia then I suggest hopping on a domestic flight and checking out other islands such as Flores or Sulawesi.

10

Why are people referring to Indonesia as a seperate entity from Bali and Lombok???? Those islands are legally the territory of Indonesia as well.

11

Jayepony, to differentiate.

12

Hi,

I'd really suggest getting some travel around Java done. Like everyone is saying, 4-5 weeks in Bali is a very long time!
I just returned from living in Java for 3 months. It's really one of the major cultural hearts of Indonesia. I felt that after spending time in Java and then spending time in Bali, well, they are very different, but I found my experiences in Java felt a lot more culturally authentic.

Try and visit Jogjakarta - not sure if you are Australian, but it's often called the Melbourne of Indonesia.

Solo is also a great place, and if you want some parties, head to the night clubs in Semarang.