floridarob Posted February 26, 2018 Posted February 26, 2018 Going to Bali for the 1st time...any hints on where to stay , what to do would be appreciated Quote
NIrishGuy Posted February 26, 2018 Posted February 26, 2018 Thats a VERY wide question.....perhaps narrow it down a little in terms of the area you're visiting, if you're alone, are you looking for a beach break, a full on party trip, a sex trip etc etc ...... For what it's worth Seminyak is considered the "gay" area as there are a few gay bars there and plenty of gay guys happy and willing to play. After speaking with a massage guy friend there jut last night he's telling me that even Seminyak ( which is always usually fairly busy) is fairly much quiet just now and customers are thin on the ground ( not necessarily a bad thing in my book!). Re what to do again depends on your ow preferences but shopping and nice eateries abound and you can hit several nice beaches or take a trip to Ubud or to the volcano etc. Enjoy, Quote
floridarob Posted February 26, 2018 Author Posted February 26, 2018 I'll be alone, on my way home coming from BKK. Looking for massage and night time fun, I'm kind of like a vampire, don't go out much in the day. I have my flights, now looking for a place to stay...Have found a few hotels in that area for about $30usd a day that seem to have good reviews...know of anyplace good to stay? Quote
NIrishGuy Posted February 26, 2018 Posted February 26, 2018 Again very much depends on so many differing things such as budget, preferred location either close to or far away from bars etc. If you’ve located seminyak and then naluka ( the street where the gays bars are located there are a myriad of suitable hotels all around that area at every budget so I’m sure you’ll find something to fit your requirements. Last time I stayed I used the Horrison hotel ( not Harrison although that’s fine too) - neither are anything special but clean, cheap and close enough to the bars for me. But have a good look around at hotels and villas etc as you’re fairly much spoilt for choice there. floridarob 1 Quote
aussie_ Posted February 27, 2018 Posted February 27, 2018 I stayed in Seminyak in late 2017 at the Ping Hotel. Many gays stay there and the staff are used to visitors and do not care. It was a short walking distance to the gay bars and the beach. Get your hotel to arrange a pickup from the airport if you want to save the hassle of dealing with the taxi mafia who are in control of the transport at the airport.There are many massage places in Seminyak and some willing massuers although do not take it for granted that they are up for fun. The traffic is very congested near the tourist areas so if you can hire a motorcycle or find a friend to drive you around it is the ideal way to move around quickly. I had a friend from Suryabaya stay with me for three days and he took me to many sightseeing places and beaches on a motorcycle. Much better than the snail pace in a taxi. Before he arrived i met a few very good looking twinks from mainland Indonesia on Grindr etc who fly to Bali to have some fun because it is safer than their homophobic cities where it is dangerous to have gay sex. They were very enthusiastic and only asked for taxi fare, food or did not want payment. If you have time make sure you get to Ubud and do a tour through the rice fields. I did a electric bycicle tour which was very good and next time i will stay in that area for a few days and travel further north to see the waterfalls. There is also white water rafting near Ubud which i enjoyed. aussie_, floridarob and vinapu 3 Quote
DivineMadman Posted February 27, 2018 Posted February 27, 2018 Just FYI Nyepi - the day of silence - is March 17. If it's something you may like then plan for it. The lead up to it is great, at least up in Ubud and the surrounding villages. But a lot of tourists seem to try avoid the island that day. floridarob 1 Quote
NIrishGuy Posted February 27, 2018 Posted February 27, 2018 " the day of silence - is March 17. Unlike here in Ireland where March the 17th is of course the holy day of Guinness ( St Patricks day aussie_, floridarob and DivineMadman 3 Quote
floridarob Posted February 27, 2018 Author Posted February 27, 2018 Just FYI Nyepi - the day of silence - is March 17. If it's something you may like then plan for it. The lead up to it is great, at least up in Ubud and the surrounding villages. But a lot of tourists seem to try avoid the island that day. I saw that after I booked, but I get there on the 20th.....Hotel has this disclaimer: all visitors must remain within the hotel property during Seclusion Day/Hindu New Year on March 17, 2018 (from midnight March 16, 2018 to early morning March 18, 2018). Check-in and check-out will not be possible on March 17, 2018. Quote
NIrishGuy Posted February 27, 2018 Posted February 27, 2018 What so you're literally a prisoner in your hotel !? I'd never heard of that Seclusion day and on googling a bit about it is certainly seems thats the case as aside from police etc there is no traffic allowed on the roads and the locals organise rotas for "patrolling" their areas to ensure "the silence and no lights lit etc" is being adhered too. So, if on holiday and you decided you wanted to spend your quiet day just sitting alone on the beach minding your own business quietly contemplating your navel ( as my mother used to say) and not bothering anyone else you wouldn't be allowed ? Wow. By the way I'm not knocking the idea, a day of peace and quiet to zone out from the world isn't such a bad idea actually, just surprised that it "seems to be" so rigidly enforced on tourists perhaps. vinapu and floridarob 2 Quote
DivineMadman Posted February 28, 2018 Posted February 28, 2018 What so you're literally a prisoner in your hotel !? I'd never heard of that Seclusion day and on googling a bit about it is certainly seems thats the case as aside from police etc there is no traffic allowed on the roads and the locals organise rotas for "patrolling" their areas to ensure "the silence and no lights lit etc" is being adhered too. So, if on holiday and you decided you wanted to spend your quiet day just sitting alone on the beach minding your own business quietly contemplating your navel ( as my mother used to say) and not bothering anyone else you wouldn't be allowed ? Wow. By the way I'm not knocking the idea, a day of peace and quiet to zone out from the world isn't such a bad idea actually, just surprised that it "seems to be" so rigidly enforced on tourists perhaps. I spent last year in Ubud and will be going back again this year. The descriptions of Nyepi are accurate, although I wasn't really aware of the roving enforcement gangs. I have even read that some hotels turn off the TV systems, but I don't think that is the norm. That might have been a guesthouse. Nevertheless, probably download some movies ahead of time. No entertainment and no "pleasure" are two of the prohibitions. Fortunately not really enforced in hotels. In my experience you do have to stay in your hotel and get all your meals there. The hotels in my experience set out the rules when you check so you can stock up ahead of time. I can't specifically speak to the beaches, but I think they mean it when they say you have to stay in your hotel. The afternoon and evening before is a very festive special event where each village has parades with colorful demon effigies and purifies the village for the coming year, etc. That's the reason to go. It's a photographer's dream party. The days leading up to it all are very active as the villages prepare. Traffic is really a nightmare all over the island, even more than usual. But still it's all very raucous and fun. On the day itself everything shuts down except the hotels. Certainly in Ubud there was a noticeable decline in tourists in the couple of days leading up to Nyepi, when I think a lot of tourists start fleeing the island, but I'm not sure that's really necessary if you can just face a day of doing absolutely nothing around your hotel. I don't remember if the hotel spa closes or not - I assume it does. If you want companionship for those 24 hours you probably need to bring it with you on the trip or scramble to arrange it with a local guy ahead of time once you get there. I don't know how amenable a local guy might be. A least for the Bali natives it's an important holiday, with reduced staff usually working at the hotels. (Ubud makes Luang Prabang look like Bangkok as far as the gay scene is concerned - as I recall there was about 1 cute guy on Hornet close by, and he was the Thai guy I brought with me. (Only a slight exaggeration.) The scene is closer to the beach.) I think guys from Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Myanmar (among other countries) can go to Bali without a visa so it's a favored trip for them. vinapu, aussie_, floridarob and 1 other 4 Quote
fedssocr Posted March 2, 2018 Posted March 2, 2018 I preferred Ubud for sure. Not for the gay nightlife, but for the general atmosphere, good food, etc. In Seminyak I stayed at the Bali Ginger Suites - it's a very small place. Room was comfortable enough. open air bathroom which is not my favorite thing. It is right around the corner from all of the gay bars. It's kind of hidden down a little alley. It's a few years since I was there so I might not be the most up to date. On my visit lots of Grindr activity. Met with one guy who ended up being a moneyboy and was frankly a waste of time. After that I was a little sour on meeting anyone. I did do a massage at a place called something like Banana. It was a bit tough to find on foot. It's a shame what is happening in Indonesia in general. You might also try the blued app. Tons of Indonesian guys on there. floridarob 1 Quote
worldatlarge Posted March 6, 2018 Posted March 6, 2018 Blue Karma Resort is a good choice as it is gay-rated by Gay Travel Asia and I can confirm it is gay frienfly, having stayed there in December 2016. So not too out of date. Details at: http://www.gaythaila...ort-bali/page-2 floridarob 1 Quote
GPAPA Posted March 21, 2019 Posted March 21, 2019 On 2/26/2018 at 12:59 AM, floridarob said: Going to Bali for the 1st time...any hints on where to stay , what to do would be appreciated Is Bali expensive? Do you have other thoughts on the living(travelling) quality there? Quote
pong Posted April 16, 2019 Posted April 16, 2019 No, no ikspinsip in OZ, expensive in /en/. Slightly cheaper as TH for same-same things (except booze). Bali however is a lot more expensive as rest of local Indon, its the main tourist drag. Everyday life-quality is frankly also a bit lower as in TH (pollution, traffic!) but not as bad as f.e. Phillpp. or Myanmar. On Bali /en/ widely spoken with that Indo twist. All types of INTernational food widely available. For many Indo's its also a kind of refuge as its Hindu and not muslim and hence much more free as the current wave on the other islands. I have visited with some breaks ev. few yrs since 1990 and its remarkable how much more domestik turist there are now as 20 yrs ago. Also loads of Koreans and sadly also the mainland Chinese now. Untill some 10 yrs ago it was very easy and even advised to make contact on/along the beach just after sunset......... Quote
