Visiting Bali from India-Complete Planning Guide

This post is designed to serve as one stop guide for all my posts on Bali, Indonesia. Have answered most frequently asked questions and listed all my Bali related blog posts. I have visited Bali twice so far- once on my own and once on invitation from Indonesia tourism. And I might be heading there again real soon to bring you even more updates.

Reasons to visit Bali
There're many reasons tourists from all over the world visit Bali. Main ones are

1. Dozens of pristine beaches, ideal for surfing & other water-sports
2. Free visa on arrival
3. Super cheap destination to visit
4. Strong India/Hindu connection with temples, mythology & history
5. Not too far from India- can reach in about half a day (one stop)
6. Rice terraces, mountains, culture & great tender coconut.

Bali Tourist Visa Information
Indonesia grants 15 days free visa on arrival to Indian passport holders visiting for tourism purposes. This facility is available only at select airports- Jakartha, Bali (DPS) and Surabaya. If you're entering via any other smaller airports/sea ports cross check on visa procedure.

How many days to spend in Bali?
Minimum 1 week recommended, to get a good feel of Bali. More if you have time and budget. Free visa on arrival for Indians will be usually for 30 days, so better to limit to max 4 weeks per visit, unless you wish to fly to some other nearby countries and re-enter Bali.

Bali local currency info (IDR)
Indonesia's currency is IDR or Indonesian Rupiah. 1 INR is roughly 200 IDR. So if your Bali taxi driver is asking for 1 lakh rupiah, he is asking for 500 INR.

My already published Bali blog posts
Below is a complete list of my Bali blog posts covering various attractions, tips, itinerary, reviews and more:

Planning your visit to Bali	Places to Stay
1)  Six Day offbeat itinerary for Bali  2) Exploring Bali on rented scooter  3) 11 different beaches of Bali compared 4) Which location is best to plan your stay in Bali? 5) Bali Indian Veg Food Guide 6) Bali Honeymoon Guide & Itinerary	1) Padma Ubud luxury resort 2) Budhi Beach Inn budget hotel- Kuta 3) Montigo Resort- Seminyak 4) Sthala Hotel Ubud 5) Novotel Lambok Resort & Villas 6) Mercure Bali Legian 7) Holiday Resort, North Lombok 8) Kuta Heritage Hotel
Bali Places to Visit	Restaurant Reviews
Waterfalls 1) A hidden waterfall 2) Gitgit waterfalls 3) Tegenungan Waterfalls 4) Benang Kelambu (Lombok) Rice Terraces 1) Tegalalang Rice Terrace 2) Jatiluwih Rice Terrace 3) Rice terrace and Swings Temples & history 1) Tanah Lot Temple 2) Ghatotkaja statue near Bali airport 3) Sacred Monkey temple, Ubud 4) Besakih temple 5) Uluwatu Temple 6) Taman Ujung water palace Beaches and Islands 1) Nusa Penida island 2) Surfing at Blue Point beach Experiences 1) Exploring Mount Batur 2) Bali's longest ATV track 3) I AM BALI interactive art 4) Sunset at Sundays Beach	1) Bebek Bengil, Ubud 2) Ruchira Indian Cuisine, Kuta 3) Hibiscus Seminyak 4) Indian Dhaba Nusa Dua 5) Gateway of India, Kuta 6) TIIGO, Montigo Resort 7) Dewata Cafe, Jimbaran 8) Dining Corner Restaurant, Ubud 9) Queen's Tandoor, Seminyak 10) Ancak Restaurant & Bar- Mercure Bali Legian 11) Surf Pool Bar-Kuta Heritage Hotel More coming soon 12) Sunday's Beach Club 13) Bebek Joni, Ubud 14) Bale Udang 15) D'Wika Resto 16) The Golden Saffron, Kuta 17) Sitara, Ubud 18) Beranda Restaurant, Jimbaran 19)
Traveling to Bali	Other Destination Guides
1) Malindo air- Bali from window seat 2) AirAsia vs Malindo air 3) Bali trip cancel due to airport closure (2015) Other Bali related Posts 1) Understanding Volcanoes and impact on visiting Bali  2) Bali tourist scams 3) Indonesia tourism Updates from press meet, 2018 4) Visit East Timor from Bali 5) Meeting a hitchhiker from Poland in Bali	1) Japan Travel Guide 2) Phuket Travel Guide 3) Maldives Travel Guide

Visiting Bali- Budget Estimate

• Flights from India: Cheapest- INR 12000+ return (airasia sale), normal fare is about 18000-20000 INR from most Indian cities via KUL
• Stay: Hotels from INR 700 equivalent per night onwards, factor INR 2000 for mid range and INR 5000+ for luxury resorts
• Transport: Bike rental- around INR 600-800 per day (rent+fuel+toll+insurance+ parking etc), can rental- factor 3000-4000 INR per day
• Food: INR 200 per meal for budget food- Approx INR 500 per day per person onwards 
• Entry fees: Most expensive is Tanha Lot temple at 60000 IDR (INR 300) per person, other attractions usually little less.

Thus for a family of 4, one week Bali trip can cost about 1.5-1.8 lakh rupees (20k*4=80k in flight tickets, 5k per day for 2 decent hotel rooms * 7 days= 35k for stay, Food 14000 INR (500 per day* 4 people * 7 days) 20-25k for taxi hire, entry fees etc, another 20-25k miscellaneous spending (watersports, spa, shopping etc). If done in extreme budget, with cheap flight tickets, one can possibly do the same for about 1.1-1.2 lakhs total.

How easy it is to find Indian Veg food in Bali?
Bali has strong India and Hindu connection and veg food is not very difficult to find. There're many Indian restaurants in Bali that serve Veg food. Pure Vegetarian restaurants are in short supply though.

Bali, Indonesia:  What is the best season to visit?
Bali is close to equator and has tropical weather. High summer heat, rainy season for a few months. Bali can be visited all through the year-October to March is usually popular because of optimal temperature and weather.

Visiting nearby Islands-Nusa Penida, Lombok etc

• Lombok & Gili- there're cheap flights to Lombok- less than INR 2000 one way. Boat ride option is also available. Gili islands is an ideal day trip from Lombok, overnight stay also possible.
• For Nusa Penida and other islands you can take a boat from Sanur beach

Bali alternative destinations:
If you don't want to go to Bali, Maldives, Vietnam, Philippines (Palawan) and Thailand can offer similar landscapes.

Things you should keep in mind while visiting Bali
1) No reliable public transport like bus or trains in Denpasar area- have to depend on self drive car/bike rental or taxi or tour operators. Bike taxis are available.
2) Potential Volcano, earthquake risks
3) Potential tourist scams and cheating

Extending your trip to Bali
- Australia, Philippines, Malaysia, East Timor, Brunei etc are other countries very close to Bali
- Within Indonesia you can visit Lambok, Gili, Jakarta, Jogjakarta and many other destinations