Bali
City Guide
The Island of Gods, also known as Bali…oh my goodness where to begin, I should first start off with saying it was always a dream of mine to go here. I feel like in the past few years all I have heard about is Bali, which in turn made me want to go even more! Bali is one of the thousand islands in Indonesia and is know to be the most “foreigner-friendly”. It is best known for its surfing (which I cannot do & did not attempt – ha), ancient temples, volcanoes, white-sand beaches in the south & black sand beaches in the north and west, rice patties, kind genuine locals, and a ton of expats.
So after a ton of planning, lost luggage, and an adventurous few days in Hong Kong we made it. We flew into into the Denpasar airport (the main international airport), which when you land and finally walk outside is not the picture perfect Bali everyone has been talking about – it’s a busy dusty city. We met out driver Nyoman, who we loved. If you visit Bali I highly recommend pre-planning a local to help drive you around. They’re affordable and so sweet – plus they have all the inside scoop! Nyoman picked us up and we headed for Ubud, which is just about a 40-minute drive but with traffic it took a bit longer. Once we made it to Ubud that Bali everyone has been talking about finally emerged.
Our trip consisted of three different locations; Ubud, Canggu, & North Bali. I’m going to break down each of these locations for you of where to eat, sleep & play. Please read through and if you have other recommendations let me know – it’s definitely on list to go back one day!
A delicious vegan plant based restaurant, you have got to try the coconut mushroom soup if you go.
Vegan and scrumptious and has a beautiful atmospheres.
International vegan cuisine, it is delish. I recommend the hula burger, it’s the best veggie burger I have ever had.
A yummy restaurant, which serves all meals of the day however I like it best for breakfast/brunch – the Bali Kiss Madu bowl is amazing.
Fresh and clean food and a great atmosphere with communal seating and a minimal rustic design.
A delicious vegetarian spot.
Is a restaurant & beer garden sitting right on Batu Bolong Beach, they have burgers and fries and once it gets dark the night life there is incredible – fun dancing!
Is delicious Mexican, I recommend the fish tacos in lettuce wraps.
Located in the middle of the jungle, it has gorgeous infinity pools and stunning comfortable rooms, and I definitely recommend it.
We stopped by this hotel to take a look at it – it was just voted the number one hotel in the world by Travel + Leisure magazine. It was amazing, I highly suggest staying here. If I ever go back this is where you’ll find me.
A beautiful chic hotel, the gorgeous rooms are a dream, and the food & atmosphere is incredible. I am dying to go back one day with Mad!
A beautiful a mix of laidback and totally upscale, even if you do not stay there it is worth swinging for lunch and to catch a glimpse of the beautiful ocean from the infinity pool.
An incredible shop located right in the center of Canguu with bespoke motorcycles, a skateboard park in the back and very cool clothing, it also has a café with delicious food – this is a do not miss.
Wanderlust has the best bathing suits as a great price (they have a handful of locations throughout Bali).
An incredible home-goods store, I found amazing pillowcases, which now live on my couch.