Escape: People: Honeymoon in Bali

Honeymoon in Bali

From A.W.W., New York

When my then fiancé and I started to brainstorm about honeymoon destinations, we set some parameters: it should be far away since we each could take off two weeks from work, it shouldn’t be in Europe or Latin America since we have both lived and spent time throughout both regions, it should have an interesting culture that is unfamiliar to us; it should be a place where we will feel safe; it should have a romantic feeling with elements of luxury; it should have beautiful beaches, it should be a place where we couldn’t possibly get bored; and of course, it should have delicious food. Ultimately, we wanted a honeymoon that would be just perfect! After a little bit of research and polling our well-traveled friends, we concluded that our honeymoon destination could only be Bali, the island of the gods…

After some creative finagling using frequent flyer miles, we managed to secure two first class seats on Singapore Airlines. We flew five hours from New York to L.A., then ten hours to Tokyo, seven hours to Singapore where we spent the night at the Intercontinental Hotel and then two hours from Singapore to Bali.

We divided our trip into three parts. First, we went to Ubud and stayed in the Four Seasons Sayan for four nights. The hotel is beautiful and very unusual, unlike any other Four Seasons Hotel. It is sent against a powerful backdrop of tall palm trees and all kinds of exotic plants and flowers in the jungle. The hotel is situated on a river. We stayed in a villa with our own plunge pool, outdoor shower and beautiful bed equipped with a fabulous mosquito net. We loved Ubud because there are so many things to do there. We ate at a bunch of fun restaurants, but hands down, the most incredible one was Mozaic. It was the best meal we had in all of Bali. A bar that we enjoyed was Ary’s Warung. We went for an afternoon to the Kirana Spa which was one of our best experiences of the whole honeymoon, an activity not to be missed! We never expected to find such a beautiful spa—bring your camera! Also, the prices were very reasonable given the level of luxury and service of the spa.

Given that Ubud is well known for art, while there, we visited many art galleries and ended up buying some wonderful pieces of art there. Our favorite artists were Mohammed, G. Wira and Soki. We also enjoyed exploring the shops on Monkey Forest Road. I particularly liked Uluwatu, the shop known for Balinese lace both for the home as well as women’s clothing. We spent a day at the John Hardy factory which was fun and interesting.

After Ubud, our next part of the trip was at the Bulgari Hotel in the southernmost tip of Bali where we spent two nights. It was no doubt the most luxurious hotel we have ever seen—making the Four Seasons Hotel Sayan pale in comparison in terms of luxuriousness! Again, we had our own villa with a plunge pool and an outdoor shower. We also had two butlers at our beck and call whenever we needed them. The bathroom was absolutely enormous with a huge tub as well as a shower. The best part of the bathroom was that it was filled with fabulous Bulgari green tea products. The bedroom was heavenly and the Bang and Olufsen TV and sound system were so high tech we needed a lesson on how to use them. The hotel has two restaurants, one Italian (Il Ristorante) as well as one that is more fusion. Both restaurants were fabulous, although they were certainly pricey! The ESPA spa was very nice, but its natural beauty was no match for the Kirana Spa in Ubud. The views at the Bulgari Hotel are spectacular because it is set high on a cliff with waves that crash below. A surprise at the hotel was that it has monkeys everywhere! Not to worry though, the monkeys are friendly and even climb up to people’s villas.

Our final phase of the honeymoon was four nights at the Legian Hotel. We had a great time there as well. It was definitely the trendiest hotel of the lot and probably what most tourists would expect of Bali. It is set right on the beach and the crashing of the waves lulls one to sleep at night. Next door was the fabulous restaurant, beachside trendy hangout called Ku de Ta. To get the picture, think of the Parisian Buddha Bar set on the beach in a casual yet chic way reminiscent of Ibiza. No trip to Bali would be complete without a visit there! Seminyak was filled with great shopping, especially teak furniture. We bought a lot of custom teak furniture at a place called Lawas which we highly recommend. The quality was top notch and the owner was very helpful. For great, cheap and cheerful Indonesian food in Seminyak, we loved Made’s Warung! For a fine meal, Kafe Warisan is the place to go. La Lucciola was also special, set in a surreal setting (filled with lights, hence the name) with yummy Italian food.

Bali was a magical place to visit and I would highly recommend it as a place to go for a special occasion. If traveling there from the U.S., I would reserve it as a place to go on a honeymoon or anniversary. The level of service everywhere you go is top notch and the natural beauty of the island is unique. I like how we organized our trip- visiting three different places and staying in three very different hotels. I cannot wait to return. Perhaps for our ten year anniversary in 2017!