Bali, the famed Island of the Gods, with its varied landscape of hills and mountains, rugged coastlines and sandy beaches, lush rice terraces and barren volcanic hillsides all providing a picturesque backdrop to its colourful, deeply spiritual and unique culture, stakes a serious claim to be paradise on earth. With world-class surfing and diving, a large number of cultural, historical and archaeological attractions, and an enormous range of accommodations, this is one of the world's most popular island destinations and one which consistently wins travel awards.
Bali has something to offer a very broad market of visitors from young back-packers right through to the super-rich. Kuta is the best known tourist resort area on the island of Bali in IndonesiaWith a long, broad Indian Ocean beach-front, Kuta was originally discovered by tourists as a surfing mecca. It has long been a stop on the classic backpacking route in Asia. Back in the 1980s they used to talk about the three Ks: Katmandu in Nepal, Khao San road in Bangkok and Kuta.
Modern day Kuta still atracts some hardcore back-packers but far less so than previously and is more of a playground for young visitors from Australia and Europe. Due to the ever increasingly popularity of Bali, Kuta has developed rapidly and is not short of large and rather unsightly concrete structures. It can at times be chaotic, overcrowded, congestion and the infrastrucure does not cope well. However, amongst all the chaos this place somehow works and hundreds of thousands of visitors enjoy their time in Kuta every year.
The 5 km long white sand stretch of Kuta is still arguably the best beach front in Bali. The beach is safe, partially clean, well-maintained, although the vendors remain annoying. The long stretch of sand is often full of sunbathers and although most of the serious surfers have moved on to newer pastures, there are still plenty of surfer dudes around. As you move north along the beach to first Legian and then Seminyak and Petitenget it becomes progressively quieter and less frenetic. The area of south Kuta closest to the airport is more correctly known as Tuban, but this name is rarely used.
Once the sun goes down, Kuta is the rough and ready party zone of Bali, even ater the tragic events of 2002. Even the most hardened of party animal will find something to please them on Jalan Legian at night.Tourism Information OfficesJI Bakungsari, Tel: +62 361 751660 ext 145 Ground Floor, Century Plaza Building, JI Benesari No7, Tel: +62 361 754090 By planeDenpasar Airport (DPS) is in fact directly south of Kuta, about 15 minutes away by taxi. The prepaid fare from the airport to Kuta is Rp 50,000.
If you don't have too much luggage you can save some money by walking 200 metres to the right out of the airport area and take a metred taxi from a company that does not pay service fees to the airport authority and is therefore not allowed to enter the airport to pick up customers. For example, a metered Taxi from Bali Taksi (Tel. +62-361-701111) will run to about Rp 20,000 for the same trip.
Before putting yourself through all that though you might wish to ask yourself whether it is worth it to save just $3. You can also catch a bemo from outside the airport to Kuta for Rp 5,000 to 10,000. By carKuta is reached by the main Jalan Ngurah Rai bypass from points north (Denpasar, Sanur and Ubud) and south (Jimbaran, Nusa Dua and Uluwatu. If you are coming in from Seminyak be sure to take the Jalan Sunset bypass and not the beach route along Jalan Seminyak and Jalan Raya Legian. By busKuta is connected by bus routes from all areas of Bali. There are various scheduled shuttle services including Perama.
Kuta is served from Denpasar's Tegal bemo terminal. By boatBenoa Harbor — not to be confused with Tanjung Benoa — is around 20 min northeast of Kuta and speedboats and cruises from the Gili Islands, Lombok and Nusa Lembongan arrive here. Most companies operating from Benoa offer free pick-up and drop-off in and around Kuta. Get aroundKuta Beach frontKuta stretches along the beachfront and small lanes lead into the densely populated hotel zone.
The infrastructure is totally insufficient for the amount of people staying in Kuta and the best option is a combination of walking (in small lanes) and metred taxis or a rented motorbike for longer excursions. By carTraffic jams are a constant problem here and especially so when raining. It is often best to park your car before you reach Kuta and walk in.
Downtown Kuta is only about one and a half kilometres in length and half a kilometre wide but when stuck in traffic you might easily spend 30 minutes or more to travel these short distances. There are some designated parking areas in the middle of Kuta (usually Rp 5,000 for an unlimited stay) including a large one on Jalan Legian near the top of Poppies II. There are also public parking bays on Jl Pantai Kuta right beside the beach but these get very busy indeed. Finding a rental car company is easy, especially in Poppies I and Poppies II.
Be advised that there is usually no insurance included or the little cover that is provided is totally inadequate. Medical injuries or damage to any third party are rarely covered, so be very careful when driving!
By taxi
Metred taxis are ubiquitous on the streets of Kuta and are a relatively cheap and reliable way to get around, especially at night. Avoid any taxi where the driver refuses to put the meter on. The largest and most reputable and reliable taxi operator is Bluebird. You tend not see Bluebird taxis parked at night near the discos and bars as other smaller companies have exclusive contracts with these businesses. However, they can be found easily by walking a little up the street. Taxi drivers usually have only limited small change so it is best to have small notes available to avoid issues.
By motorbike
Those with a sense of adventure should try hopping on the back of a local scooter. They are always looking for a passenger, making negotiation easier and more successful. This type of informal transport is called an ojek and is fast and cheap. You can choose to rent a scooter for your stay. These can cost as little as Rp 20,000 per day if you rent in large groups and are a lot of fun. However, as a single renter, Rp 50,000 is a more accurate figure to expect. Insist on a helmet for the motorcycle, for both your own safety and because wearing a helmet is a legal requirement in Indonesia; you will be stopped by the police and fined for riding without a helmet.
It should be understood that the streets can be chaotic and dangerous for inexperienced riders so think carefully about whether you wish to rent a motorcycle. If you intend to surf, there are plently of specially modified motorbikes with surfboard hangers. Bali Bomb Memorial on Jalan Legian, KutaSurfing, shopping & parties are the three main events in Kuta and interesting sites are a bit thin on the ground. Bali Bomb Memorial at Jl Legian opposite the corner of Poppies II.
This is at the former site of the old Paddy's Bar and opposite the former site of the Sari Club (still an empty space next to the Billabong shop). A memorial to the 202 murdered people by the bombs on 12th October 2002. Every year on this date there is a ceremony for the mourning of wounded and dead people. Whilst viewing the memorial please be calm and silent out of respect. Beach offerings In the morning you regularly see Balinese people throwing offerings (especially when Nyepi is coming close) into the sea.
The best spot is the temple right next to the beach about 200-250m to the north of the Hard Rock Hotel. Hard Rock Hotel & Restaurant is definitely a nice place for a photo stop. Do SurfingKuta is a well known destination amongst surfing enthusiasts. A long sandy beach with a lack of dangerous rocks or coral makes the area attractive for beginners. A 3-day surfing course in an accredited school costs approximately US$100.
Bali learn to surf is Bali's first professional surf school. Offers equipment in good condition and premises for a surfing introduction in calm water at the swimming-pool of the Hard Rock Hotel. The lesson lasts 2.5 hours and the students are offered hotel transfers and fresh water. Five courses also include a "surfari" to other surfing spots. It is also possible to rent equipment from locals on the beach for between Rp 20,000 and Rp 80,000 per half day. If you rent from the same guys for a few consecutive days you will almost certainly get a better price. The equipment quality is lower than in surfing-schools.
The surfers on the beach can also give you some basic lessons and look after your stuff while you are in the water but if this is your first experience of surfing it is safer to use a surf school before heading out on your own. There are SPA's by the dozen and as Kuta is the most competitive place in Bali, prices are the lowest (as is the quality of experience). Shop around and ask for package discounts. Take a look at the place first and do not allow yourself be talked into something by touts. A well known spa is Villa de Daun on Jalan Legian.
Many hotels have their own in-house spas or partner with a local operator. Enjoy the sunset. In the evenings plenty of people head down to the beach or seaside cafes to watch the wonderful sunset. Waterbom Park is one of the biggest water theme parks in Asia. Located on Jalan Kartika Plaza in Tuban right opposite the Discovery Shopping Mall and easy walking distance from Kuta beach. Your children will love you for spending some time here.
Kuta, Bali Travel Guide
Lombok travel guide
Located just east of Bali, Lombok in many ways lives up to or exceeds the promotional term, "an unspoiled Bali". With beautiful beaches, enchanting waterfalls, the large, looming volcano of Mount Rinjani combined with relatively few tourists, Lombok is indeed the paradisaical tropical island that many people still mistakenly imagine Bali to be now.
Lombok and Bali are separated by the Lombok Strait. It is also part of the biogeographical boundary between the fauna of Indo-Malaysia and the distinctly different fauna of Australasia. The boundary is known as the Wallacean Line, after Alfred Russel Wallace who first remarked upon the striking difference between animals of Indo-Malaysia and those of Australasia and how abrupt the boundary was between the two biomes. Calling Lombok paradise does not mean it is all things for all people.
With a few exceptions, the natural landscape and the traditional way of life have remained unchanged for hundreds of years. Virtually all small to medium size businesses are run by local families. Many of these businesses sell a wide variety of merchandise, where villagers can find food, hardware, and toys all in a single small store. While it is possible to find five-star hotels run by global corporations this is the exception not the rule. The ubiquitous global fast food franchises are restricted to two outlets in the precincts of Mataram Mall in the main City of Lombok and are well sign-posted.
History of TourismThe dominant Sasak culture in Lombok and the very restrained and quiet nature its people may help explain why Lombok is less popular in terms of shopping, cuisine, and nightlife than Bali. Lombok is however becoming increasingly popular with tourists and honeymooners who want to relax in an inexpensive, tropical, uncrowded atmosphere, with many natural treasures and majestic scenery. Nothing happens quickly in Lombok and visitors who are stressed from their daily lives find Lombok a delightful getaway. The anticipated tourism boom has been halted on several occasions.
In 2000, mobs of the ethnic Sasak people, ostensibly provoked by fundamentalist Muslim agitators from Maluku, looted and burned churches as well as homes and businesses owned by Hindus and ethnic Chinese. The bombing of nightclubs in Bali in 2002 and the further explosions in 2005 further exacerbated the fears held by foreign tourists. For many years many Embassies issued advisory travel warnings against travel to Indonesia. The ensuing years have been peaceful, but tourists have yet to regain confidence that travel to Lombok is safe. Currently a large tourism project sited in Tanjung Aan (Aan Bay), Southern Lombok is in the planning and development stages. A new international airport (Bandara Udara Internasional Lombok Baru) and associated infrastructure is currently being built in central southern Lombok.
The new airport is planned to be in operation 2010. CultureLombok's people are 85% Sasak: around 2.6 million of a total population 2.95 million in 2005. They are culturally and linguistically closely related to the Balinese, but unlike the Hindu Balinese, the majority are Muslim. The Islamic religion first arrived in Lombok in the early half of the 16th century. A notable non-orthodox Islamic group found only on Lombok are the Wektu Telu ("Three Prayers"), who as the name suggests pray only three times daily, instead of the five times stipulated in the Quran. Many of the Waktu Telu beliefs are entwined with animism. Waktu Telu has influences not only of Islam, but also Hinduism and pantheistic beliefs. There are also remnants of Boda (people without a religion) who maintain Pagan Sasak beliefs.
Before the arrival of Islam Lombok experienced a long period of Hindu and Buddhist influence that reached the island through Java. To this day a minority Balinese Hindu culture remains strong in Lombok. "The Nagarakertagama, the 14th century palm leaf poem that was found on Lombok, places the island as one of the vassals of the Majapahit empire". The Hindu minority religion is also practised in Lombok alongside the majority Muslim religion. Hinduism is followed by the many ethnic Balinese who have travelled across the Lombok Straight from Bali as well as some people of indigenous Sasak origin. All the main Hindu religious ceremonies are celebrated in Lombok and there are many villages throughout Lombok that have a Hindu majority population.
Lombok experienced a period of Balinese occupation until the Dutch colonial government reinstated the Sasak rulers in the early 1890's following a direct appeal from the deposed Sasak rulers to the Dutch colonialists asking them to assist in driving out the Balinese occupiers. After a protracted, costly and destructive military campaign the Dutch eventually overwhelmed the Balinese with a bloody battle fought around Ampernan and Mataram. The people of Lombok however remained under Dutch colonial control of the Netherlands East Indies until the Japanese occupied Lombok in the 1940s.
The Christian minority religion is actively practised in Lombok by some of Chinese ethnicity and other Indonesians especially those from East Nusa Tenggara. There is also a small Arab community in Lombok whose history dates back to early settlement by traders from Yemen. The small community is still evident mainly in Ampenan, the old port of Mataram and retain many of their own traditions.
Due to the siting of an UNHCR refugee centre in Lombok some refugees from middle eastern countries have intermarried with Lombok people adding a further subtle middle eastern cultural influence to Lombok. Recently people of Iraqi origin have arrived in Lombok and many remain in Lombok in a state of limbo for an extended time whilst trying to seek immigration to nearby Australia or elsewhere.
There is also a small number of people predominantly from Europe, Australia and New Zealand who are resident or semi permanent residents of Lombok. Some are retirees. Some have business activities in Lombok or nearby or work in the mining industries of Nusa Tenggara Barat. Most are living in the coastal areas of West Lombok.
Lombok has individual settlers and small communities of Indonesian people from other areas including Bali, Jawa Sumbaya, Bima and Timor as well as other areas of Indonesia but the prevailing culture remains that of the Sasak people. Many influences of animist belief still prevail within the Sasak community.
Traditional magic is widely practised to ward off evil and illness, to seek good fortune or to assist with the resolution of disputations and personal antipathy. There are a range of outcomes sought ranging from love spells to death. Thieves will often have magic used upon them so that their bodies will become 'hot' leading to a confession, a frequent trespasser may become disoriented and become 'lost' or a boy may fall under a girls spell of desire and fall in love with her. Magic may be practised by an individual alone but normally a person experienced in such things is sought out to render a service.
Normally money or gifts are made to this person and the most powerful practitioners are treated with considerable respect. ClimateWhile tropical, hot and humid, Lombok is drier than neighboring Bali, which makes it a particularly attractive option during the October-December rainy season (it rains on Lombok too, but rarely for more than an hour). The peak of the tourist season, though, is May through August.
TalkThe main local language is Bahasa Sasak - the language of the Sasak people of Lombok. Bahasa Sasak is spoken throughout Lombok and has dialectal variations across the island. Bahasa Indonesia is also spoken or at least understood by many local people and will normally used in government offices, larger shops and businesses. In the more remote and undeveloped areas of Lombok however, Bahasa Indonesia is not frequently used and often cannot be understood by the local people, especially the elderly and those who have missed out on formal schooling. English is common in the resort areas and occasionally some other European languages are spoken by people involved in the tourism sector.
Great care must be exercised at all times when riding a bike anywhere in Lombok as the roads are sometimes in very bad repair and large potholes, loose sand, gravel and other road damage can cause serious accidents and injury. The greater majority of drivers in Lombok have either no knowledge or no regard for common road rules, are normally seriously undisciplined and engage in highly dangerous and erratic road behaviour. Riding a bicycle after dusk should most certainly be avoided throughout Lombok due to the hazardous road conditions.
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