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Honeymoon Diaries: 10 Days in Beautiful Bali!

One destination that seems to be getting more and more love from honeymooners from India is Bali. We’ve had two lovely couples sharing their wonderful experiences in Bali. Now, we have this lovely newly wed couple Varun Sharma and Sakshi Batra giving us a detailed itinerary and some useful tips for couples planning their honeymoon in Bali.  

Honeymoon in Bali

Why Bali:

Weather condition was one of the major reasons. We had to travel in December when more half the world is experiencing peak of winters. So, a place where we would be all covered up and shivering was a clear no-no for us! We wanted a vacation where we could spend quality time with each other rather than the place and yet be able to enjoy the place at the same time.

Bali honeymoon blog
Click here to read about Chandni and Maan’s Bali trip

After searching for a lot of places, we zeroed down on Bali, a perfect location for people who like to just chill around in their personal villas. There are plenty of options to choose from depending on your budget. It has things that a lazy person (like Varun) who loves to relax and relax some more in the private villa pool, go for spa therapies, get pampered & just stroll around the resort and beaches!

Also it is a shopper’s paradise. So it is a fantastic, balanced combination of both. Since we wanted a long holiday, Bali was ideal as it offers a lot to see and explore as well.

Our Itinerary:

Ours was a little long one as we were in Bali for good 9-10 days.

We took a flight from Mumbai to Singapore were we had a stopover of 3 hours. Singapore airport has a lot of things to do, shopaholics can begin splurging right here as it has every big brand here. We spent our time at the airport by relaxing on the massage chairs and strolling around. Another thing to do at the airport is to visit the Butterfly Garden with a small waterfall, hundreds of butterflies swirling around…a beautiful experience for nature lovers.

Bali as honeymoon destination
Also read about Akriti and Ashish’s trip to Bali

Connecting flight was via Garuda Indonesia, a 2-hour journey to Bali.

Our first leg of the stay in Bali was in Nusa Dua for 4 nights/5 days.

We opted for Nusa Dua as it’s not far away from all the major places yet it’s away from the crowded streets of Kuta.

We planned one activity for one day so we don’t exhaust ourselves or get bored either.

Day 1 after reaching our villa, we relaxed and planned for an evening trip to the Uluwattu Temple as it is very famous for its sunset and Ketcha Dance. This was a fun experience as we saw Balinese people perform a version of Ramayana in their own dance-drama style.

Day 2 first half we went for a dolphin interaction/ swim program, were they let you swim along the dolphins, let them touch and play around with them. This is a must try. In the second half, to relax we went for fire massage at our own resort spa. Very relaxing and refreshing!

Day 3 We began the day by visiting the local mall for strolling and food experience. During the night we had booked a Night Jungle safari. Before the safari there was dinner at this very amazing restaurant with very high ceiling, wooden decor and top to floor length glass overlooking the jungle or should I say the lioness’ den! So you eat your food while the lioness on your left or right across the glass jumps around. One rare experience for which I even forgive them for the food they served!

Up next was the fire dance. We were lucky because in case of rains the fire dance usually gets cancelled. Peppy beats, mostly Indian music and a lively performance with masks, props and fire stunts. Then one proceeds for the jungle safari where they take you around in caged bus and as you go around in the forest you are greeted by wild cows, zebras, elephants, lions and even tigers. These tigers come and sit on top of your bus and you can actually touch the tiger on the belly if you dare. It’s a short and sweet safari. At the end it left us smiling.

Day 4 was for water sports on the beach, where we did the deep sea walking & parasailing, both experiences are highly recommended. Deep sea walking can let you feel little weird but initial seconds or minutes of pain will lead to an exquisite experience.

In the night we went to Hard Rock Cafe where we had a local live band performing. Good food and ambience.

Day 5 After breakfast we left for our second leg of travel towards Gilli Islands.

Gilli Islands is a 2-hour journey from Bali via speed boat.

We stayed in Gilli Tranwangen Island for 2 night/3 days

Best thing about Gilli Island is that it’s an eco friendly island. Bicycles or horse carts are the only vehicles allowed.

There are a lot of eating joints on the island, we stayed at Ombak Sunset Resorts.

It’s a 15-min ride from the port via horse cart.

The island is a place to just relax, enjoy beaches and food and company. That’s what we did both the days as the resort we stayed at has its own private beach and restaurants were on the beach only were you can enjoy your dinners on the sand overlooking the high tides.

Day 6 early morning we went to see the sunrise, though it was little cloudy but it was nice.

Rest of the day we spend at the pool and in resort. During the afternoon we went out for a walk

towards the cafes and the main market which is 30-min walking distance. We ate at Pearl Ocean – a highly recommended place, they also have a bakery where ice creams are a must try.

Day 7: We woke up early morning for our photo shoot. Photographers are available at the point as our resort had a very famous sunset point, Ombak Sunset

After check-out we left for our final leg of the journey back in Bali at Semniyak.

Day 7 We reached our private pool villa in Semniyak, which is walking distance from the main shopping street.

For people who love to shop Semniyak is the place, here they have a hell lot of stores for everything.

Day 8 we went to the beach and had lunch at Ku Te Da and for later snack we went to Potato head. Both the places provide beautiful view of the ocean; food wise Potato Head was better.

Day 9 we just went out for shopping and souvenir collection.

Recommended Hotels in Bali:

Nusa Dua: TANADEWA REORTS (Highly recommended): Villas here are huge and spacious. Amazing Hospitality, food is decent as we only had breakfast in the resort.

Gilli Island: Hotel Ombak Sunset resorts (Definitely recommend) Good food, amazing locations, We stayed in a one room bunglow here and an open bathroom. Best part ombak sunset view point and the huge pool.

Semniyak: Samaja Kunti Villas (Recommended) we got a complimentary spa, and a honeymoon special candle light dinner. Walking distance from the market.

Our Food Experience:

good restaurants in Bali
Bali is a foodies heaven for non-vegetarians

Our problem was one of us is pure vegetarian and so while ordering u have to tell them vegetarian without egg. For non-vegetarians, it is a paradise as you have hell lot of variety to choose from.

For people who feel home sick for food there are proper Indian restaurants as well which serve chole bhature, even gol gappas as well. Indian dhaba in Nusa Dua near our resort was good. Potato Head, as mentioned earlier, has good options. At most restaurants we got a complementary desert as a treat for being on our honeymoon!

Tips for couples planning their honeymoon in Bali:

  • First thing you should do after reaching Bali is to get a sim card which is available at the exit counter by showing your passport. I recommend taking a local number instead of Matrix. Take the data plan as calling can be done via Whatsapp calling or Facebook as well so no point in taking a talk time recharge. Plus every place, every shop, every restaurant in Bali has Wifi.
  • Carry less clothes
  • Don’t carry currency as you can swipe your cards at any place except the local shopping and taxi. ATMs are available across Bali and your Indian card will work with very minimal fee of Rs 100 per transaction for cash withdraw. There are pickups and drop available for all the activities you will do so you don’t have to worry about it.
  • Bargain for the activities as they will tell you higher price, both for clothes, shopping and water sports.

Things to buy from Bali: Soaps, Coffee, Spa oil, clothes, wooden artifacts.

Approx total cost: 3-3.5 lakh

 

Purva is the co-founder of Blue Sky Dreamers. A journalist with 11 years of experience, she also freelances as a content writer & editor.

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