The best human being (and driver/guide) in BALI

[Mrs f.]

On 11/29/2023 at 1:42 PM, jmfdr said:

I want to give one more recommendation for Dewa (contact above) as a wonderful tour guide on Bali.  We spent a day with him (Nov. 19, 2023) off the Viking Orion.  Our experiences were similar to the activities and photos posted on this thread so I won't repeat.  We learned so much about Balinese culture and saw many beautiful sites with Dewa.  He is a delightful man, full of humor, considerate, thoughtful, and  knowledgeable.  We thoroughly enjoyed our day with Dewa.

Jan and Fred

So glad you liked Dewa.  He really is wonderful!

[dedemills]

We also followed your suggestion and hired Dewa last week. He is amazing!!! We had such a fabulous time!

Edited February 12 by dedemills

[cashmeremypuppydog]

I am delighted you had a great time with “our son”. He is truly a special man, full of passion. This is why we can not keep him to ourselves!
 

When you are ready to discover Tanzania (Great Migration- safari), let me know. I will let you know about our “2nd son”, Jeff.

We also have a good recommendation for Uganda (trekking for gorillas in mountain).

 

Thank you for the update.

[Magster1]

We have booked Dewar (and a member of his team) in April for 2 days. For those of you who had an overnight, did you go back to the ship after your day with Dewar or did you spend the night in Ubud?  If you went back to the ship, where did you go in the evening?  Thanks for any suggestions. 

[IWantToLiveOverTheSea]

I can't really answer your question about overnighting on the ship, as we used Dewa for the days we spent in Bali before the cruise. However, my thoughts on what I might have done/experienced are as follows: 

I absolutely loved waking up (very, very early, I'm afraid, due to 12 hour time difference) and walking around several very quiet Ubud streets.  I felt very adventuresome, and felt safe, and I think I'll remember those feelings for a long time. 

 

We stayed in a small Ubud hotel, nothing fancy, but located in a great location in which we could easily walk around. 

 

In the evenings after touring with Dewa, I was pretty hot and tired and usually my spouse and I didn't really feel like doing much for dinner and beyond.  (We were in our late 60s at the time; I'm finding that these days the lesser activity after a day of touring is pretty typical for us. But you may be different.)  I had, however, looked at a couple restaurants right outside Ubud that we could apparently have a nice several-course meal out in the rice fields that sounded pretty nice. And I suppose we could have enlisted Dewa or other driver/guide to provide transportation. Or we perhaps could have attended a night time dance/acting performance in Ubud.  I believe there is at least one every night somewhere in the Ubud area. 

 

But we ended up not doing anything special at night, and for dinner chose local places we could walk to.  We stayed at a small, modest hotel off one of the main streets in Ubud.  (I'd say center of Ubud might be considered by the Saraswati temple, which you can probably google.)  My cousin had recommended  the Ibah Hotel on the western side of Ubud.  It was a little pricier than I wanted, however, but probably a decent price for most cruisers, and looked wonderful.  Of course you can go crazy looking for hotels in Ubud.  They are everywhere. 

 

Then again, going back to the port (assuming you're going to Benoa; I hear some cruises now stop at a second port) is not a long drive from the Ubud area.  And you may find some things you'd like to visit down that way that could be visited before being dropped at the port.  Uluwatu temple comes to mind, although of course it's kind of touristy. But there are other things down towards the southern part of the island near the port and airport.  I'd probably stay away from the beaches over there, however, unless you're a lot younger than me, or just really like relaxing at a beach.  We did spend one night after flying in at Sanur Beach, which I enjoyed.  It's a little less known for partying, which was fine for us. But as for doing anything on the ship at night, there isn't anything around or in Benoa port, so you'd likely be just enjoying dinner and a show or drinks or casino or whatever you normally do on a cruise ship.  Going back out is probably possible, but you would need transportation.  And while the port would likely be open all night, I'd suggest checking to make sure that's true before you go!

 

I probably mentioned this before, but if not: I'd suggest preparing for for hot and VERY humid weather in Bali.  I found I could do less sightseeing than I anticipated wanting to do.  Dress modestly but lightly, and take a hat, even if you don't like them. Many of the things I wanted to do were outside. But there are also waterfalls, swings for photo opps, museums, and other things to explore that may cool you off. Enjoy it all.

 

 

Edited March 3 by IWantToLiveOverTheSea