BALI

Bali has been the favourite holiday island of Australians for many years, for many reasons.

Visitors are starting to come back again to Bali after the sadness of terrorism that shocked many Australians into going elsewhere.

Europeans have boosted Bali’s visitor numbers again, and Australians are slowly returning to joyfully rediscover the charms of this gracious and exotic island.

The Balinese people and the lush tropical vegetation make this a magic island with so many places to stay.

Kuta is brash and busy with golden beaches and plenty of tourists. Here you’ll find the hawkers plying their goods to anyone who’ll listen for a “special price for you.”

They’re always happy, even when you don’t buy anything.

And the massages from the happy Balinese women who want to mother you are tremendous, and a fraction of the price you’ll pay anywhere else.

It’s a one way beach road up to Legian nearby, not quite as busy as Kuta Beach but still with plenty to do and see. Many more hotels and shops here, and further north again is Seminyak, a little quieter again with great restaurants and plenty of good accommodation near Seminyak Beach.

Any Bali trip isn’t complete without a trip to the beachfront restaurants Kuta Ta and La Lucciola, near Seminyak. Prices here are a little higher than other places, but still cheaper than back at home.

Nusa Dua literally means Two Islands and is a great resorty place to stay. Here you’ll find all the big names from the Sheraton Laguna to the Hyatt, and even Club Med along one of the best stretches of beach in Bali.
There’s not much better than lying on your thatched Bali daybed overlooking Nusa Dua beach from your hotel, ordering a delicious club sandwich and a refreshing drink as the beach life floats by your accommodation, near Kuta Beach.

Jimbaran Bay is where they have the restaurants actually on the beach, supplying fresh seafood caught by fishermen nearby. This is possibly Bali's best beach, with fluffy white sand and clean water. Jimbaran Bay is near accommodation including resorts such as the Intercontinental Hotel and Four Seasons, which are two of Bali's best hotels.

Jimbaran Bay is a popular Bali beach, near Bali airport. It gets busiest at sunset when the basic restaurants on the road's edge put out their tables and chairs on the beach, and the tourists fill them up very quickly for that "sand between your toes" relaxing al fresco dining on the beach.

Sanur is also a popular beach near accommodation that's not as busy as other parts of Bali, yet still only 20 minutes from the hustle and bustle of Kuta. And that's exactly the way many visitors like it...a little quieter with not so many hawkers and not as pushy as they are at Kuta.

Sanur is home to the popular Bali Beach hotel and accommodation near Bali Beach hotel ranges from luxury to inexpensive. Sanur has a beachfront with more stalls with bargain-priced clothes to take home, but again, not as frenetic as at Kuta.

Accommodation near Sanur beach includes Emerald Villas, a small walled hotel with dip pools, privacy and a great little restaurant, just 400 metres from the beach.

And a little more remote and further north is the black sand beach of Candi Dasa. There's not much of a village there, but that's well and truly overcome by the dazzling presence of the stand-out accommodation near by, the Aman Kila resort hotel. You'll feel like a movie star here with spacious and luxurious day beds to stretch out on as you gaze over the ocean or down the beach from your elevated vantage point.

And the toilets in the resort pool area are out of this world. The granite floors are well and truly clean enough to eat from, always a good indicator of what the rest of a hotel is like.

The Cliff Hotel is more nice accommodation near Nusa Dua, sitting like a small castle atop a rocky outcrop that allows bird's eye views up and down the coast. The lift that goes down through rock to the beach is good fun, as you arrive on a little sheltered section of sand exclusively for guests.

Overall, Bali's beaches have that golden colour so many of Asia's beaches have, but the lush vegetation, buzz on the island and the wonderful Balinese people make it a great holiday ahead of most others in south-east Asia.

And Bali's best beach at Jimbaran Bay IS actually white, if that's what you yearn for.

It's little wonder Bali is voted the world's best beach holiday destination year after year.