Bali (day 1)

Saturday, 21 December 2013

Related posts: Bali Day 1, Day 2 and 3, Day 4, Day 5

For our end of year holiday, we decided to go for a relaxing trip to Bali. It is also our second-honeymoon after the first one we had in Italy. I have always been interested to discover more of Bali and their unique culture. For my travel prep, I bought a Bali book, did some homework on things-to-do and we were all set. We took the Malindo flight from KLIA at 9:30AM. The flight ticket was RM324 per person.

We arrived in Ngurah Rai International Airport in Denpasar around 12:30PM. I was surprised to see the Bali airport. It is new, modern, and has Balinese architecture on the outer side. We were greeted by Komang, a driver sent by our hotel, Seminyak Icon. The airport transfer is arranged free-of-charge by the hotel.

On the way to the hotel, we saw the famous Satria Gatotkaca sculpture. It’s actually quite massive.

The trip from the airport to the hotel took about 40 minutes. Below are details of our hotel booking:

• Hotel Name: Seminyak Icon
• Hotel website: http://www.seminyakicon.com
• Duration: 5 days 4 nights (21st Dec to 25th Dec 2013)
• Room Rate:  Total IDR16,245,000 (~RM4,600 or USD1,400). RM1,150 per night (~USD350)

As we arrived at the hotel, we were greeted by the friendly staff. Checking in was a breeze.

We were pleasantly surprised to see our villa. It looks just like in the online photos! (you know how some hotel websites tend to show a “polished” version of their rooms).

Prior to our arrival, I informed the staff that this is a honeymoon trip. They prepared a nice flower bath for us!

We took a nap, and later had tea at the hotel’s restaurant. The tea set is complimentary by the hotel, served between 3PM to 5PM everyday.

In the evening, we took a dip in the pool and ordered some snacks.

Around 7PM, we took the hotel shuttle to Jalan Laksmana (also known as Jalan Oberoi). FYI, the hotel shuttle service is also free. It would take you to any nearby place (I’m guessing no longer than 30-40 minutes drive). Jalan Oberoi is a well known shopping area in Seminyak. We explored the shops along the street. We noticed a lot of beach wear shops like Rip Curl and Quicksilver. At the end of the street, we saw Seminyak Square.

We had dinner at Cafe Bali, along Jalan Oberoi (Tripadvisor review here). After that, we walked along Jalan Oberoi and took a cab back. It rained for most of the evening so we couldn’t explore too much. We’ll leave that for another day.

Related posts: Bali Day 1, Day 2 and 3, Day 4, Day 5