EASTERN BULELENG
Buleleng Timor is known for its rustic farming villages and elaborate temples
in which every square inch is covered in curves, arabesques, spirals, flames,
and floral ornamentation hewn from volcanic rock. The Balinese have a fondness
for caricature, masterfully represented in the bas reliefs of Buleleng's
temples. Scenes include corpulent Europeans, Dutch steamers under attack
by sea monsters, and aircraft falling from the sky. Demon hands and heads
emerge from the carving, as if three-dimensional figures were imprisoned
in stone. All the main sights of east Buleleng lie fairly close to each
other, are well served by public bemo, and make excellent day trips
from either Singaraja or Lovina.
SANGSIT
Eight kilometers east of Singaraja (Rp500 by bemo from Penarukan
station) lies Sangsit's main attraction, the brilliant Pura Beji,
dedicated to the goddess of wet rice and fertility, Dewi Sri. Located about
500 meters down a cactus-lined side road to the sea; look for the small
sign on the left side of the road. This extraordinarily lavish subok
temple, one of the oldest in north Bali, was built in the 15th-century
on the site of a well. Though a bit commercialized, it presents a perfect
example of the northern rococo style of temple carving, with a strange
off-angle symmetry.
Built of easily carved soft pink sandstone,
the pura swarms with carved demons and stone vegetation. The temple's
spellbinding gateway is composed of naga-snakes, imaginary beasts,
devils, and leyak guardians overseeing tiny doors. In the temple's
spacious inner courtyard you'll see gnarly old kamboja trees, wooden
statues, and a throne of the sun-god.
Near Pura Beji, 400 meters to the northeast,
is Sangsit's pura dalem, which contains relief panels illustrating
the Balinese philosophy of karma pala. Karma means action or deed,
pala result. On the panels you'll see the punishment awaiting a
man who has committed adultery, and ghastly tortures meted out on childless
women and other miscreants.
Accommodations and Food
The large and elaborate Berdikari Cottages, Sangsit, Buleleng
81171, tel. (0362) 25195, rarely fills its rooms as few traveling the north
coast choose to stay in such a remote location. Tariff including breakfast:
Rp25,000 for economy rooms with foam mattress, shower, and dressing table;
Rp50,000-70,000 for intermediate rooms including spring bed, shower, hot
water, and cupboard; and Rp125,000 for luxury rooms containing air conditioning,
spring bed, bathtub, shower, and hot water. No room phones, guests charged
for local calls. Big parking area. The lush gardens are bird-filled and
extensive, 2.3 hectares in all, with mango, bananas, oranges, pineapples,
starfruit, and coconut. A restaurant with a skeletal staff; sometimes unable
to come up with much on the menu.
Still, Berdikari has it's advantages. It's
perfect for a meditating Buddhist or a reclusive novelist. Good security,
clean, quiet, and lots of privacy. Staff celebrates guest birthdays and
honeymoons. At the Gunung Cekar Temple, just 500 meters from the
hotel, you can catch religious festivals and the rare, once-a-year Bukaka
Ceremony. Berdikari's owner, I Made Pasek Sudarsana, will help you rent
vehicles. Dive up to 22 meters on Rongke Reef in front of the hotel.
JAGARAGA
Heading east from Singaraja turn right (south) at the end of Sangsit village
on the road to Sawan; Jagaraga is four kilometers and Sawan is two kilometers
farther. From Singaraja's Penarukan station bemo go direct to Sawan
so visit Sawan first then just walk down to Jagaraga. The villages on the
steep inland slopes of Buleleng are of ancient origin. Inscriptions dating
from the 10th century tell of pirate raids, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions.
Jagaraga was the stronghold of Gusti Ketut Jelantik and his army, who defied
two large and well-armed expeditions in 1846 and 1848 before falling to
a superior Dutch infantry and artillery force. This 16 August 1849 battle
was known as Puputan Jagaraga; nearly the entire village was wiped out.
Today Jagaraga is home to one of north Bali's best legong troupes.
Jagaraga's architecturally extravagant pura
dalem, one km north of the village, is dedicated to Durga. It features
carved comic-strip panels of cyclists, Balinese flying kites, dog fighting
airplanes, fishermen hooking a whale, a Dutch steamer, long-nosed Dutchmen
in a Model-T Ford held up by a bandit with a horse pistol, and mammoth
fish swallowing a canoe. Incredibly flamboyant statues of Rangda the witch,
and the dazed mother, Pan Brayut, buried under a pile of children. The
detail of the vintage cars is wonderful, with mudguards, lamps, carburetors,
and doors all portrayed. Stone owls, roosters, bats, tigers, and crabs
cling to the walls. Donation Rp1000.
A number of temples are found on this road,
all featuring effusive, cunning, and mischievous carvings; ask the locals.
A fantastic ride, with archaic villages surrounded by vegetation not found
anywhere else on Bali. Reach by bemo (Rp750, 13 km) from Singaraja's
Stasiun Penarukan.
SAWAN
Take a bemo (Rp1000) from Singaraja's Stasiun Penarukan to the turnoff,
then from the main road grab another bemo (Rp500) or ojek
(Rp500) via Menyali to reach this small village 16 km southeast of Singaraja.
Sawan is the proud owner of a fine bamboo gamelan angklung; visit
Sawan's pasar malam and the small hilltop temple surrounded by large
trees.
Bronze gongs are made here; say "gong" to
any local and you'll be taken down a lane where the gongsmiths (pande
gong) cast instruments and carve frames and stands. At Sida Karya 10
workers under the supervision of I Made Widandra create gender, ganggsa,
and ceng-ceng daily from 0600 to 1600. Widandra provides a very
complete explanation in rapid, intelligible English of the entire process.
Check out the photos on the poster in the display room. The slendro-scale
klintik (Rp60,000) here are of higher quality than those made in
Tenganan. Please leave a donation if you don't buy anything. Widandra's
cousin Gede is the other gongmaker of the village.
BUNGKULAN
Two km east of Sangsit and 12 km east of Singaraja (Rp500 by bemo)
is Bungkulan, with 10,000 inhabitants and 13 banjar with three temples
each. Though unaffected by tourism, there's always an event worth seeing,
with 13 odalan and one or more annual celebrations per temple. Bungkulan's
very old, worn Pura Sari Pemerajan Agung is perched on the highest
hill overlooking the village. Inside are hand-carved statuary and a fine
old kulkul with a carved human head on top. The temple's age is
uncertain; there are records of a renovation in 1778.
The village is quite active, with a market
held every day. Take an early morning swim in the river and watch children
doing washing, men and boys taking the family cow to water, and women diving
for sand which they carry up the bank in baskets on their heads.
Bungkulan is well positioned for day trips
to Les Waterfall, Banjar, Lovina, Yeh Sanih, and Gitgit, as well as the
temples of Sangsit, Jagaraga, and Kubutambahan. Or walk half an hour to
the hot black-sand beach lined with fishing boats.
KUBUTAMBAHAN
Reach this important crossroads town by bemo (Rp1000) 12 km from
Singaraja's Penarukan station. Find Kubutambahan where the north coast
road intersects the road to the main highway south; from here it is 41
km to Kintamani, five km to Air Sanih, 84 km to Amlapura, 12 km to Singaraja,
and 108 km to Denpasar. If coming from Amalapuna, about 5.5 km before the
town is Air Sanih with a number of hotels, several restaurants,
and a dive site.
The unusual Pura Meduwe Karang, the
"Temple of the Owner of the Land," is about one km beyond the Kintamani
turnoff. This important district temple is dedicated to Ibu Pertiwi "Mother
Earth," worshipped to ensure successful fertilization of crops grown on
dry, unirrigated land such as coconuts, coffee, and corn. One of northern
Bali's largest temples, its terraced entrance recalls some of Europe's
stately baroque gardens. Steps lead past 34 stone figures from the Ramayana
to a big, peaceful, nearly empty courtyard. More steps lead to an inner
section containing a huge stone pyramidlike base flanked by two bale
reserved for offerings.
The temple's carvings show ghouls, noblemen,
home scenes, soft porn, and a riot of leaves and tendrils. One pedestal
shows a horrifying rendition of Durga, another a large figure resembling
Christ at the Last Supper. The centerpiece depicts a battle scene from
the Ramayana. On the northern wall of the innermost shrine is a famous
one-meter-high relief of a Dutch official riding a floral bicycle, a reproduction
of a 1904 carving destroyed by an earthquake. The cyclist is W.O.J. Nieuwenkamp,
a famous Dutch landscape and portrait artist who rode his bike around Bali
in the early 1900s, painting as he went. During restoration the bicycle
was born anew with lotus-flower spokes; even Nieuwenkamp's sarung
and the bush in the background feature floral patterns. Between his feet
and the wheels is a rat and small dog; Nieuwenkamp's initials and moustache,
however, are gone. To view this wonderment, ask for the key, then leave
your donation in the shop opposite.
Next to Pura Meduwe Karang is a small warung
that sells possibly the best black rice pudding (Rp500) on Bali. Fantastic
coffee, too.
On the corner of the road to Kintamani is
Pura Bale Agung; 200 meters away is the pura dalem.
In the early days it was common practice to paint temples; Kubutambahan's
beautiful Pura Maksan has been painted in just the last few years.
YEH SANIH
To reach the quiet beach resort of Yeh Sanih catch a minibus (Rp1000, 17
km) from Singaraja's Penarukan station. This shady seaside spot offers
an idyllic black-sand beach—a bit rocky, but the swimming is good. Enjoy
wooden bale for sunning.
Yeh Sanih's main attraction is an enclosed
natural swimming pool of clear, fresh, cool water welling up from an underground
spring. Known by the locals as a recreation site since the early <\#213>30s,
the water is believed to come from Lake Batur in the mountains—the temple
near the pool is thus dedicated to Lord Vishnu. Cool sea breezes, tall
trees, and the nice panorama over the Bali Strait make for a serene setting.
Changing rooms. Entrance Rp500. Open 0700-1900.
On holidays this retreat could be stampeded
by screeching schoolchildren, and it's also subject to groups of package
tourists at any time. But on weekdays the place may be virtually empty.
It's not a scene like Lovina; there are fewer sellers and hustlers. Many
tourists pass through, but few stay.
Visit the pura on the hill, Pura
Taman Manik Mas. In the mornings take a swim in the ocean—more like
a lake than a sea. Not a soul on the beach to bother you. Quite passable
snorkeling 500 meters out; another good snorkeling spot one km away. The
nearest Agen Pos & Telephone is in Kubutambahan five km west.
If you want nightlife go to Lovina, but remember the last bemo back
to Yeh Sanih from Singaraja's Penarukan terminal leaves at around 1900.
There's a small bus station, Tempak Parkir Roda Empat Air Sanih,
with drink stands and toilet.
Accommodations and Food
Within Yeh Sanih's gorgeous pool complex is two-story Puri Sanih
Bungalows I (tel. 0362-22490). The inflexible owner has recently upped
the price to Rp30,000 for units with fans, mosquito nets, fresh flowers,
and breakfast. What used to be quaint at Rp20,000 now looks run-down at
Rp30,000. The rooms on the other side of the pool are in need of repair.
The manager thinks the louder you yell, the better you manage; the employees
do what they have to, but with no heart. Their restaurant serves up European
and Indonesian food that is expensive and is barely edible. To the east,
with the freshwater pool in between, is nicer Puri Sanih Bungalows II,
tel. (0362) 22990, overlooking lily ponds and extensive gardens. Comfortable,
spotlessly clean bungalows with sliding doors and private baths facing
the ocean. Rates Rp20,000 s, Rp35,000 d in low season, Rp25,000 s, Rp40,200
d, in the high season. The row of rooms farthest away from the ocean are
Rp20,000, Rp15,000 per day if you pay one month up front. Nice breakfast
pavilion; eat lunch and dinner at one of the warung. No disturbances
in this parklike setting, just the chirping birds.
Above the pool, up 33 steep steps, is pleasant
Puri Rena Bar & Restaurant. Open 0700-2300, serving Indonesian,
Chinese, and Balinese cuisine. You pay for the view, though—gado gado
is Rp2500, while a vendor down the road charges Rp500. Puri Rena has four
small budget rooms available for around Rp10,000 s (after bargaining).
This hotel organizes excursions to local festivities, provides travel information,
and is planning a center to give guests an inside look at Balinese culture.
The Tara Beach Inn, about 500 meters east, charges Rp10,000 s, Rp15,000
d. Manager Putu Astawa can arrange for snorkeling, diving, fishing, and
sailing excursions. He rents pushbikes, motorcycles, boats, canoes, and
floats. Enjoy hot and cold drinks in the Tara Pub.
Those considering longer stays should know
that when you sit down at any of the warung here people will approach
to ask if you'd like to rent a room—could be anything from a bamboo fisherman's
hut on the beach to a space in a private home above the village. Also lots
of Rooms for Rent signs on the highway. Ask around; expect to pay about
Rp150,000 per month. Eat inexpensively at
warung across the road from the pool. Warung Seger offers
good Bali asli nasi campur (Rp1000), nasi goreng (Rp1500),
and one of the best sop ayam (Rp1500) around. Try the warung
next door for more asli food (nasi campur, Rp1500).
Vicinity of Yeh Sanih
Walk south up the mountain halfway to Kintamani. A good paved road
along the northeast coast, sentineled by old, gnarled trees, leads to Amlapura.
The road hangs over clifftops passing sandy coves sheltering fishing jukung—one
of Bali's most picturesque journeys, with uninterrupted views of the island's
highest peak. East of Yeh Sanih 1.5 km toward Amlapura is Antara Bungalows
& Refreshment; Rp9000 for room and simple breakfast. Not in good
condition; Puri Sanih Bungalows is better.
For elegant dining—real silverware, gracious
service, table linen—head two km east of Yeh Sanih to the superlative Apilan
Restaurant in Desa Bukti for wonderful French cuisine including homemade
breads and cakes. Lunch is only Rp10,000 per person; a three-course romantic
candlelight dinner is Rp15,000. Apilan rents a cottage for Rp25,000 per
night s or d. If you're a guest, meals are available any time, otherwise
the place is open Fri.-Sun. for lunch and dinner or by special request.
No tax or service charge. The whole building is made of coconut palm by
products—floor, roof, and walls. One km from Desa Bukti and three km east
of Yeh Sanih is Air Sanih Seaside Cottage; Rp5000 s for any of four
bungalows. Nice place, very quiet, close to the beach, a good-natured family
takes care of you. Price doesn't include breakfast, but coffee and tea
are available. Perfect if you want to be alone.
Seven km east of Yeh Sanih is the ancient
temple Pura Pondok Batu ("Pile of Stones") perched on a small rock face
and surrounded by hills, valleys, and twisted frangipani trees. It's said
the wandering Javanese priest Nirantha sat on one of the temple's stones
and composed poetry. Inside the temple is a well-crafted but eroded statue
of Durga. Nearby on the beach at low tide is a freshwater springs frequented
by locals, the water bubbling up from the sand and running into the sea.
SEMBIRAN
One of Bali's oldest traditional villages, Sembiran lies 30 km east of
Singaraja. Like many of Bali's asli villages, Sembiran is located
high in the hills off the main coastal road. From Terminal Penarukan take
a bemo to Desa Pacung (Rp500), then catch a ride on a motorcycle
the rest of the way (Rp1000). The winding four-km-long asphalt road to
Sembiran is surfaced but extremely steep. This lovely country road, passes
beautiful hills, valleys, and gnarly 20-meter-high sonokeling trees
(rosewood). As you approach the village, there's a giant kemit tree,
the base said to have been a place where corpses were laid out in ancient
times. From the top, look down on the Java Sea.
With a population of 6,000 people, this is
a Bali Aga village, where old traditions are not all forgotten. People
speak with a distinct intonation and use a few Balinese words differently
(for example, "rude" is considered "refined"). The caste system is not
strictly observed. There are toothfiling ceremonies, but they are not as
important or elaborate as in the south. Also, many of the typical Balinese
time-marker ceremonies are not observed here. The Sembiranese have two
Days of Silence (Nyepi) per year instead of the single day observed by
the rest of the island. Marriage is by proposal, not elopement, nor are
partners arranged by parents. There are 20 pura in Sembiran, 17
containing megalithic artifacts and carved stones.
Before 1951 Sembiran villagers wrapped their
dead in cloth and laid them out on bamboo platforms exposed to the elements.
If wild animals did not carry them away, the bodies were dumped onto the
rocks. In 1951 they tried to burn their dead like the rest of the Balinese,
but since the proper offerings were not carried out, inexplicable sicknesses
occurred and many people died. The Sembiranese returned to laying out corpses
until 1961, when they again began to burn their dead, this time observing
the proper ceremonies. Nothing untowards has happened since.
This unique village of corrugated iron roofs
gets about five or six tourists per week. From here you can take in the
whole northern shore, as well as hundreds of hectares of terraced cornfields
marching down the valley. Other crops grown include bananas, coffee, jackfruit,
and papaya. In the warung near the market share tea and snacks with
the friendly villagers, a number of whom speak Indonesian. No organized
accommodations, but you can stay in homes. No telephones, but plenty of
televisions. No curios shops.
To leave, take the road out the back way to
Tajun on the main north-south road. This is a windy, rocky, only partially
paved road through one of Bali's most undeveloped agricultural areas. Traverse
rolling hills, profusions of foilage, hidden valleys, poor desa—about
as wild as Bali gets.
TEJAKULA AND VICINITY
The fishing and farming village of Tejakula lies seven km east of Yeh Sanih,
(Rp1500 by bemo, and 32 km east of the Terminal Penarukan in Singaraja.
About 100 meters south of the main road, Tejakula's well-maintained bathing
place is an elaborate fortlike structure, with water gushing into separate
sections for pria and wanita. It was originally built to
wash down horses and cattle—once the largest citrus growing area in Bali,
Tejakula horses were used to pull carts filled with harvested oranges—but
is now used solely for the human animal.
Tejakula boasts one of the finest kulkul
towers on Bali. Typical of the style found in north Bali villages, it's
brilliantly carved with Panji cycle legends and wayang characters.
Also in the village is a unique gamelan called Gong Tejakula, a
kampung of gold- and silversmiths called Banjar Pande.
The highest waterfall on Bali is in Desa
Les, five km east of Tejakula (34 km east of Singaraja). There's no
road to the falls, just a path through rice fields. Ask directions from
the villagers in Desa Les; about a half-hour walk. Just one cascade, and
the water can be quite frigid. One of the few unisex communal mandi
on the island is found in Les. Also near Tejakula, at Bondalem,
is a heat-conversion plant where surface seawater is evaporated into a
vapor driving a turbine that generates 160 kilowatts of electricity. Nice
view of the seacoast farther on at Culik.
SEMBIRENTENG
East of Tejakula in the village of Geratek, on Bali's northeastern coast,
is a highly recommended dive facility, Alam Anda ("Your Nature"),
perhaps the best dive/snorkel base on Bali. Dive on a dreamy reef, stretching
along 135 meters of the coastline and lying 15-35 meters from your front
door. Beyond is even deeper—a very sharp shelf. No waves, no undercurrent,
the locale extremely safe for children and beginners.
Soft tourism at its best; the German owner,
Uwe Siegriedsen, works to conserve the natural surroundings. Everything
is built of natural materials—palm trunks, wood, bamboo. Uwe doesn't like
to bargain and he doesn't like to do business with travel agents. The village
regards hotel guests as theirs; travelers receive lots of invitations
to homes and events and are generally integrated into the daily life of
the village. Daily excursions offered to those who want to see the sights.
The nine bungalows of Alam Anda are family-style
units, each accommodating up to five people. No air conditioning or hot
water. Cost Rp60,000 d, Rp10,000 for each extra person. The veranda comes
with a double bed which can be rigged with a mosquito net. Inside are bamboo
furniture and double beds with nets. The Chinese/Indonesian food is very
good—no Western food.
The dive shop offers the finest in equipment,
very clean and well-maintained. Reasonable prices—perhaps the cheapest
diving on Bali. Lunch, soft drinks, transportation, and guide are extra,
government tax included. For dives to Amed and Menjangan a boat is included
in the price. If you bring your own tanks, you receive a 10% discount.
Most excursions require a minimum of two people. The Balinese dive master
Kadek is outstanding and speaks good English. Since the entire area is
under protection, the stock of fish has increased enormously in recent
years and the condition of the coral is pristine.
For the Alam Anda reef, 15 meters to the front,
Rp50,000 for one dive, Rp70,000 for two dives, Rp90,000 three. For the
Tulamben wreck, (25 km distant), Rp65,000 one dive, Rp85,000 for two; for
Ahmed, Rp70,000 for one dive, Rp90,000 for two. Menjangan Island, Rp85,000
for one dive, Rp110,000 for two (four people minimum). The CMAS Certificate—as
good as PADI—involves seven dives, including Tulamben for Rp540,000.
Take the northern coastal road to Tejakula,
then head east 15 km to Sembirenteng. After two more kilometers, you arrive
in Geretek, home to Alam Anda. For reservations, contact Piketravel, c/o
Nyumpene, Jl. Legian Tengah 436 N, Legian, tel./fax (0361) 752296. In Germany,
the address is Piketravel, Ostersielzug 8, 25840 Friedrichstadt, fax 0049-4881-1200.
LOVINA BEACH
This area has a lot to offer, not the least of which is its distance from
the southern honeypots. The beach is better than Candidasa's and the uphill
areas inland are some of the prettiest on Bali. To get there, flag down
a bemo (Rp500) from Singaraja anywhere on Jl. Jen. A. Yani, which
turns into Jl. Seririt heading west out of town.
Actually, Lovina Beach was the first seaside
resort to appear in the mid-<\#213>70s, taking its name from a restaurant
that operated from 1953 to 1960 where Permata Cottages is today. Anak Agung
Panji Tisna, the ruler of northern Bali, named this stretch of coast after
the English word "love" in 1953. He is buried today not far from the first
hotel he founded, Tasik Madu, "Sea of Honey." The few losmen that
existed in the sleepy early 1970s were demolished in a 1976 earthquake.
The resort began anew and during the 1980s,
new losmen and beach inns appeared. Lovina has since become the
generic term for a whole line of six small villages and palm-fringed beaches
that it has, touristically speaking, devoured. From east to west, these
include: Pemaron, Tukadmungga, Anturan, Kalibuk strip, Kaliasem, and Temukus.
The strip starts at about the six km mark west of Singaraja to about five
km past Kaliasem. Kalibukbuk has the highest concentration while the fishing
villages of Anturan and Temukus are less densely packed with restaurants
and accommodations and thus are quieter.
Generally, the restaurants, stores, and services
are on the inland side of the road, with accommodations to the north. Most
are only a short walk from the beach or main road. Services include myriad
moneychangers, convenience stores, used bookshops, bank, postal agent,
Perumtel office, and vehicle rentals.
Though not as scenic as the southern coastline,
Lovina attracts refugees fleeing the ripoffs, frenetic pace, and drunken
Aussies of Kuta. It's about as far away (100 km) and as completely opposite
Kuta and Sanur as you'll find—no flash menus, no surfies, few motorbikes,
little music, few dogs, comparatively cheap. True, there is some prostitution,
the north shore is not immune to thieves, and assertive, long-haired gigolos
prey on female travelers.
Just a few years ago, you could easily live
on about Rp12,000 a day. Today, the tourist economy makes accommodations
and food less than the super-bargains they once were. Lovina keeps growing
and changing, with prices rising and falling as demand changes.
In Lovina, enjoying beautiful sunsets involves
simply walking out on your veranda. You can dive and swim safely in glass-clear
water off the eight-kilometer-long unbroken black-sand beaches, find good
trekking paths, temples, and hot sulphur pools in the hills, and use centrally
located Lovina as a base for day trips to Tulamben Barat National Park,
Pulau Menjangan, Yeh Sanih, and the lakes and volcanoes of the central
mountain range. Bring anti-mosquito weapons (nets and repellent) as the
beasties can get pretty bad in the rainy season.
If you time your visit for Independence Day
(17 August) you can see Sapi Gerumbunjan (kerbau races) on a track
near Kaliasem. The only other place this hair-raising event is held is
in Negara in Jembrana District.
Vendor Overkill
Granted, the Lovina Beach strip is still not as overrun with tourists
as the southern beaches. But, like Kuta, it's no longer Bali. In recent
years, local entrepreneurs competing for tourist money have appeared en
masse. Vendors will run from all directions the minute you alight from
a bemo or park your car, asking if you'd like to rent a room, attend
a buffet, see the dolphins, go snorkeling. Children beg, or ask to practice
their English. On the beach, pushy hawkers offer dance tickets, massages,
fruit, sarung, cigarettes, coconuts, magic mushrooms. Lovina sellers
are more familiar and more likely to joke than Kuta's all-business vendors,
but they're just as persistent and will hassle you even when you're lying
on the beach with your eyes closed.
What to do? Deal with a limited number of
the pests. Buy a few batik from X, go snorkeling with Y, buy a pineapple
from Z—someone else approaches you, say you already have your own supplies.
Other vendors usually accept this and will leave you alone.
Women need to be especially wary of Lovina's
underhanded beach boys. There are dreadful tales of the scams used to part
Western women from massive amounts of money. Women—or anyone for that matter—who
wish to totally avoid vendors and beach boys should hang out at the lovely
pools at Angsoka Cottages. Here, sellers are not allowed on the grounds.
Entertainment
Kuta-like nightlife spots on the north coast include the Malibu
Bar, Restaurant & Disco in Kalibukbuk next to the New Srikandi,
a meeting place for singles and travelers. Eat dinner while watching a
big-screen movie (starts at 1910), followed by live singers or Balinese
reggae music—the same tunes night after night. The disco serves every kind
of drink imaginable, and the menu consists of Western tourist dishes. Malibu
will pick you up if you call (tel. 0362-41671); stays open til the wee
hours. The other "downtown" nightclub, the open-air Wina Restaurant
on the northwest corner of Jl. Seririt and the road to Nirwana, also features
big screen movies, bar, pool table, and live music until midnight, but
has really expensive, lousy Chinese-style food. Made's Warung is
a favorite gathering spot with an interesting but slightly expensive menu.
Toto Pub in Lovina, run by Jro Sriasih, is another popular hangout
so close to the water it's in danger of being swallowed by the sea.
Recreation
Laze on the beach and watch the sky turn red, yellow, and orange as
the sun sinks behind the towering volcanoes of Java, which appear on the
horizon rising purple from the ocean. At night fishing fleets head out
in their jukung, luring fish into nets with kerosene pressure lanterns
swaying and glowing yellow all along the water front. For Rp5000 you can
join them for a two- or three-hour late afternoon trip. Or hire a freelancer
and go out on a sailing excursion, with sailor, for Rp15,000.
The bay is great for swimming: Lovina's warm
sea laps lazily at the gray-sand shore during the dry season, quite tame
compared to the volatile southern coasts. Although a little dirty, the
wide expanses of sand are good for sunning (especially at Kalibukbuk),
and beach masseurs are available for Rp5000.
For a reef so close to the beach, the snorkeling,
diving, and boat fishing are above average. The docile sea and the shallow
lagoon make this coast ideal for beginners and young divers to safely explore
the specialized marine communities of plant and animals which live in the
intertidal zone. The Palmas Hotel has a nice pool where nonguests may swim
for Rp5000.
You don't need to venture far for good snorkeling,
but the best spots are two to three km from shore where the sea is shallow.
The best dive sites lie closer to Singaraja, where the reef juts farther
out from the beach. Rent a motorless outrigger (Rp5000 low season, Rp8000
high season) to take you out; you can see fascinating reef life right from
the boat just by sticking your head underwater.
When snorkeling you'll feel as if you're swimming
inside an aquarium with moray eels, tropical fish, and pastel corals. As
the offshore water is over your head, use the boat as your island. Wear
sneakers, and watch out for the sharp coral, sea urchins, and catfishlike
fish with poisonous spines. Get used to wearing your mask in shallow water
before venturing out deeper waters. Start early before the water gets cloudy:
the sand is so dark it can be difficult to see the bottom. In Feburary
or March no snorkeling or dolphin trips are offered due to heavy rain and
dirty water.
The skippers wait on the beach for customers;
they may provide snorkeling gear. Count on Rp15,000 for a two-hour snorkeling
trip. You can rent prahu from the hotels, or simply swim out to
the reef. Snorkeling gear rents for Rp5000 for two or three hours.
An experience with mixed reviews is "Breakfast
with the Dolphins." It's easy to buy a ticket the day before from boys
on the beach; the average price is Rp10,000 per person, the length of the
tour varying from 2.5 to three hours, depending on season, boat, captain,
and luck. Determine in advance how many hours you're going to spend snorkeling
versus hours spent dolphin-chasing. If you don't, you may end up having
to bargain on the boat, paying an additional Rp5000 to see dolphins. When
you buy your ticket, give the vendor your room number and someone will
wake you with a knock on your door 15 minutes before the predawn departure
for the 30- to 60-minute trip to dolphin territory (one to two km).
Dolphin-watching is very competitive, with
dozens of boats going out at dawn. Most of the motorized boats can fit
four to six people; big wooden outriggers can carry up to seven people
and are less likely to pitch and roll than smaller craft. If you're lucky
(about 75% of the time) for a few miraculous moments your boat will be
surrounded by hundreds of leaping, flipping, blowing dolphins. Sometimes
you find yourself in the midst of 500 or even 1000 dolphins. Watch for
different species, particularly the large, slow swimmers that can weigh
up to a ton. In any event you'll get a boat ride, tea and pisang goreng
breakfast, and snorkeling on the return trip. Don't let the boatman go
in before the agreed upon time.
A good place to obtain diving information
and arrange trips is Spice Dive (tel./fax 0362-23305) which has
an office in Arya's restaurant in Kalibukbuk. Staff is conscientious, honest,
experienced, and properly qualified. See the photo albums of various dive
locations (Lovina reef, Tulamben, Menjangan). Scuba (PADI) certification
courses, at all levels, are also offered. Baruna (tel. 0362-23775),
on the main road in Kalibukbuk, rents snorkeling gear by the hour (Rp1500),
offers surf canoes (Rp2500), and sponsors cruises to see dolphins (Rp8000
per person), snorkeling trips (Rp5000 per person), and Sunset Cruises (Rp4000
per person), but no courses. Make reservations at your hotel. Perama
Tourist Service, tel. (0362) 21161, in Anturan, also organizes marine
excursions.
Permai Dive Sports, tel. (0362) 23471,
Permai Hotel, Tukadmungga, offers a dive trip to Pulau Menjangan to the
west, one of the best dive and snorkeling spots in Indonesia. In the off-season
Permai may offer a dive to Menjangan for Rp125,000 per person plus one
night's free accommodation. The beginner's course includes two dives, all
equipment, guide, transport, food, and drink, for Rp160,000. Also check
out Barrakuda (tel. 0362-22385) in the Bali Lovina Beach Cottages
for CMAS courses.
Made Utama Jaya of Khi Khi's, tel.
(0362) 21548, offers high-priced, quality half-day snorkeling and dolphin-viewing
tours (includes transport, equipment, breakfast, lunch) for Rp30,000 per
person. Using big jukung with outboard motors and sails, he sets
out at 0530 from Banjar. Usually around 0900 you sight pods of dolphin,
and by noon Pak Made is cooking the day's catch on the beach. After a native-style
nap under a tree, caressed by sea breezes, you return to Lovina at 1300.
The Cadillac of dolphin-watching outings. Khi Khi's also offers deep sea
fishing tours (Rp40,000) and tuna fishing tours (Rp100,000).
Shopping and Services
Women, with stacks of sarung and blankets on their heads, sell
their wares cheaper than in Lovina's shops, but you have to work on them.
The Air Brush T-Shirt Shop sells some really unique garments and
some funny postcards. Beach people offer magic mushrooms (Rp5000) but you
hear of a lot of bad trips.
A little east of Arya's, across the road,
is the Tip Top Shop, selling bus and shuttle bus tickets at good
prices, snack foods, drinks, sundries, English newspapers, guidebooks,
maps, medicine, waterproof cameras, cheap water, and clothes. Best prices
in Lovina; it also has a telephone and a postal service (stamps, postcards).
Open until 2300. Another useful retailer is the Penny Shop, opposite
the street to Angsoka cottages. Extensive used book library, Fujichrome
at Rp11,000 per roll, and one-day film processing. Also a cheap laundry
service including ironing. A concentration of used bookstores is along
J1. Ketapang in Kalibukbuk. The best and cheapest supermarket is Tiara
Dewata, Jl. Jen. A. Yani 192 A, Singaraja, tel. (0362) 23492. One km
from the center of Singaraja and five km from Kalibukbuk (if heading into
Singaraja). Extremely well-stocked groceries and dry goods. Open 0900-2200.
There's a very helpful tourist office
on the beach side of the main Singaraja-Seririt road in Kalibukbuk; open
Mon.-Thurs. 0700-1730, Friday 0700-1300, Saturday 0700-1730. A clinic
lies south of the Lovina Beach Hotel in Kaliasem. The tourist office can
recomment doctors. The police share the same builidng as the tourist office.
Make international credit card telephone calls from the front desk
of the big ritzy Palmas Hotel. Lovina has its share of moneychangers,
several right on the main road. There's fax service and postal agents where
you can send letters and parcels for the same prices charged by the post
office. The postal agent (tel. 0362-41392) on the main drag is open
0800-1800. The only poste restante office is at the Perama office in Anturan
(c/o Kantor Pos, Perama, Anturan, Lovina 81151, Singaraja, Bali. The Wartel
(daily 0900-2300) is west of J1. Bina Ria in Kalibukbuk. The moneychanger
at the Wartel is open 0800-1700; The moneychangers here offer rates about
10-15 rupiah lower than Denpasar's or Kuta's. The Perumtel office (tel.
0362-41101) on the beach side of the road in Temukus is open 0900-2300.
Lovina's telephone code is 0362.
Accommodations
From the road, it appears Lovina hasn't changed much over the years.
A great number of new accommodations, however, have crept in on lanes out
of sight of the roadside hotels. In the low season, expect to pay Rp15,000
d for basic beachfront accommodations and around Rp80,000 for four-star
luxury. You'll also be offered rooms for Rp6000-9000 including breakfast,
but these will be rather old digs without a nice view of the sea or garden,
usually facing the wall of the next bungalow.
There are two types of resort accommodations:
the upstart, splash "beach inns" or resort hotels, which have sprouted
up along the eastern beaches, and the venerable resorts of Kalibukbuk and
Kaliasem that've been around for a while. Well-established, older places
like the Rambutan and the Banyualit are more picturesque, offer more shade,
and have more character than the newer hotels. Since these hotels are small,
with but 10-15 rooms, they're able to provide friendly, personal service.
A basic breakfast of toast, butter, jam, fruit salad, and coffee or tea
is almost always included in the room rate.
The small street leading to the Banyualit
is lined with seafood restaurants, garment and convenience shops, and different
classes of hotels. It's less congested than most of Lovina, yet all you
really need can be found on this street. If you stay in a hotel too near
the main highway, mornings and at nights could be noisy. Closer to the
beach is quieter; some units of the Kalibukbuk Beach Inn nearly touch the
water. Mid-range accommodations—upscale but not four-star international—offer
the most value for the dollar. For Rp45,000-90,000, they offer relative
security, beautiful bungalows, nice gardens, full services (laundry, postal,
safe-deposit boxes, free storage), phones and faxes, rooms cleaned daily,
attractive restaurants with decent sound systems, free breakfast, stone
and tile pools, cheap marine tours and snorkel gear rental—they even take
plastic.
Reservations for the most popular accommodations
are critical during the high season (July and August) and over the Christmas
holidays, when rates rise Rp5000-10,000. Ask for a discount in the off-season,
or if you're staying more than three days.
Food
In Lovina most social events involve food--which leans heavily to the
mediocre side--and many accommodations woo the traveler with on-site, low-price
restaurants, snack bars, cafes, or pubs. It's easy to find restaurants
serving whole grilled tuna steak for around Rp4000. Magic mushrooms are
served everywhere. Lovina's least expensive eateries are the beachside
warung where the menu is limited but you can enjoy lontong
with sate for Rp1000, fruit juices for Rp600, omelettes for Rp750-1000,
soda for Rp700, and pancakes for Rp750-1000. In the high season you'll
want to start out for dinner early, as the best restaurants are swamped
and orders can take a while.
Competing restaurants try to outdo each other
with huge buffets. Tables groan with curries, grilled meats, salads, noodle
dishes, fruit. After dinner most eateries sweeten the deal with rather
amateurish regog or legong. These buffets can be good deals,
but pay attention to the menus—soy sauce and krupuk do not constitute
an entree. Both the food and the performance cost Rp5000-9000, which must
be one of the all-time bargains of Asia. The open-air Rambutan Restaurant
in Kalibukbuk presents a legong and Balinese Banquet at 1930 every
Sunday and Wednesday night featuring professional dancers performing traditional
dances for only Rp6000. Also look for fliers advertising all-you-can-eats
at the Puri Garden in Temukus and the Semina in Kalibukbuk. For more details
on the eating scene, see the "Food" sections under the name of the villages
below.
Getting There
On arriving from Kuta, the shuttle bus lets passengers off at Perama
Tourist Service in Anturan, where passengers are taken to their hotels
free of charge. The Perama shuttle leaves Kuta for Lovina at 0830 and 1600)
(Rp13,500, 4.5 hours via Ubud). Public bemo from Denpasar's Ubung
Terminal arrive at the Banyuasri station; from there hop on a bemo
(Rp500) to Lovina. Tell the driver where you're staying and he'll drop
you off as close as possible to it. If coming from Amlapura, the Isuzu
bus arrives at Terminal Penarukan to the east of Singaraja; from there
get a bemo through Singaraja (Rp500) to Banyuasri Station on the
western edge of the city. From dawn to dusk bemo travel regularly
from this station to Lovina (Rp800) on a road lined with huge trees and
emerald-green rice paddies. If coming from Surabaya on a long-distance
bus, ask the driver to let you off along the highway at either Lovina or
Kalibubuk.
Shuttles and Rentals
Shuttles run to Ubud, Denpasar's Ubung Station, Sanur, Kuta, or the
airport for Rp12,000-15,000. Shuttles leave for Kuta at 0700 and 1300 (2.5
hours). For four or five passengers, drivers offer service direct to Candidasa
or Padangbai via the east coast for Rp20,000 per person. Or catch the shuttle
to Kuta where you transfer to another shuttle heading for Candidasa for
another Rp20,000 per person. Kuta is the transit point for shuttles to
Senggigi or Mataram, Rp30,000 per person. Most hotels and homestays can
arrange tickets and provide pickup service. Ask about Perama's "Stopover
Service" offering southbound travelers up to two nights in scenic Bedugul
at no charge. For guests, most Lovina hotels organize minibus tours of
culture-rich Gianyar Regency; some rent cars. Jeeps rent for Rp35,000-40,000
per day, not including insurance; car rental is Rp60,000-190,000 per day.
Motorcycles cost Rp12,000-15,000 for 12 hours, though good machines are
hard to find. Scooters with automatic clutch cost around Rp10,000 per day,
bicycles about Rp5000 for 12 hours, and mountain bikes Rp10,000 and up
for 12 hours. Rent from virtually any homestay, hotel, or travel/tour agency.
Getting Away
Buses to Singaraja (Rp800) stop in front of Arya's. To Gilimanuk or
Bedugul take a bemo; there's no shuttle service. If you're heading
to western Bali or East Java, you don't have to go into Singaraja to catch
a bus—buy tickets at Arya's or wherever buses to Surabaya stop to pick
up passengers. Three travel services can be found in Anturan on the Singaraja
side of the bridge. Perama, tel. (0362) 21161, sells direct bus
tickets to Jakarta for Rp48,000. A dangerous ride of pure hell broken only
by three meal stops. The bus leaves at 0630, arriving 28 hours later at
1000. The air conditioning usually doesn't work. Fares to: Probolinggo
or Surabaya, Rp20,000; Yogyakarta, Rp38,000. Night buses leave for Java
at 1900; you get into Probolinggo around 0300 and Surabaya about an hour
later. Order air tickets from Perama, too, brought back within 48 hours
by shuttle from Denpasar. To reach Mt. Bromo in East Java take the public
van-bus to Gilimanuk (Rp1750), a great scenic ride, then pay Rp300 for
a bemo to the ferry, and Rp600 for the ferry to Java. From Ketapang
it's only Rp3000 to to the Bromo turnoff, then Rp2500 to Cemoro Lawang
on the outer crater rim.
PEMARON
Heading west from Singaraja, at about the 6.5 km mark, the first village
you reach is Pemaron. This is a quiet section of coast with no shops or
amenities but you can walk one kilometer down the beach to Anturan. Kalibukbuk
is about two kilometers away by road. For sheer comfort, rest, and relaxation,
the Baruna Beach Cottages, Box 149, Lovina Beach, Pemaron, tel.
(0362) 23745 or 23746, fax 22252, set amidst landscaped gardens, can't
be beat. Rooms in a two-story building or bungalows with Western toilets
run from Rp40,000 to Rp110,000. Add 15.5% government tax and service. Try
to make a reservation at least two weeks in advance. No phones or room
service; wake-up calls come with a knock on the door—a nice touch, strictly
person to person. Try to make a reservation at least two weeks in advance.
Bats in the room, no extra charge. Ask to sleep in Mick Jagger's room.
Few peddlers; American, Indonesian, or continental breakfast, lunch, or
dinner Rp8800-23,000
To reach Baruna, take a bemo (Rp500)
from Singaraja. A self-contained resort right on the beach, Baruna offers
parking, a pool very near the beach, bar, boutique, cultural shows, sauna
and massage services, sailing, windsurfing (Rp12,000/hour), diving, snorkeling
(Rp3000), sunrise dolphin trips (Rp7000 per person), motorbike rental (Rp10,000
per day), and bicycle rental. Negotiate your return trip to Sanur for Rp55,000
plus driver's lunch and many stops.
TUKADMUNGGA
Accommodations offered in Tukadmungga are resortish, quiet, and attract
fewer hawkers than the more congested beaches farther west. Though rooms
may be spare, they're set back from the road and often surrounded by rice
paddies. Upon entering Tukadmungga, the village just west of Pemaron about
eight km west of Singaraja, head toward the sea and you'll come to Permai
Beach Cottages on Happy Beach, tel. (0362) 23471, catering to water
sport and dolphin enthusiasts. Rooms are Rp15,000 s, Rp35,000 d with air
conditioning, fan, hot water, good ventilation, and shower. Also rooms
for Rp50,000, breakfast included. The dive service to Lovina, Pulau Menjangan,
Tulamben may include one night's free accommodation. Friendly people.
There are three restaurants and four accommodations
at the end of the road to Happy Beach. From here, Lovina is four km. Happy
Beach Inn is reasonably priced at Rp8000 s, Rp10,000 d for rooms with
fans; cheaper rooms are Rp5000. Open-air mandi. The two bamboo rooms
in the back of Happy's are the best, only Rp10,000. Ibu Ayu is a great
cook; try her fish wrapped in banana leaves. She also serves black rice
pudding with ginger and offers a big suckling pig and nasi campur
with calamari (Rp2000)—real cheap, native cooking. This small cluster of
accommodations makes a good base for snorkeling tours, and there's an amazing
reef just off shore. Close by is the Jati Reef Bungalows, tel. (0362)
21952, with large four-room cottages among the rice paddies on the beach,
smaller rooms in a two-story building, and a basic restaurant. Room prices
are average, around Rp15,000. Facilities include private baths, safety
deposit boxes, fans, laundry service, bar, motorbikes and bicycles for
rent, and airport transfers. The owner of Suci Jati also owns Yuda,
Box 151, tel. (0362) 41183, to the west. For Rp33,000-44,000, Yuda's rents
12 small, clean, raised cottages with thick mattresses, no hot water, no
breakfast, hole-in-the-floor toilet, bamboo walls, and tiled roofs. Rooms
are grouped around a restaurant pavilion with the waves only five meters
away. Pay extra for private mandi. To the rear of Yuda's palm-filled
compound is a view over kerbau working rice fields. Although the
staff is friendly and the service good, beware of bugs, noisy children,
loud TV, and conditions of general disrepair.
Farther west and close to the highway is the
Bali Taman Beach Hotel, offering double rooms with air-conditioning,
ceiling fan, bath in private garden, shower, TV, fridge, pool, and a Rp110,000-135,000
price tag. Nice restaurant overlooking the sea; good food; little shade.
Between Jati Reef and Yuda, down a narrow
lane through rice fields, is basic 14-room Sri Homestay. Reservations
are advised in July and August. Rates Rp13,000 for standard rooms, Rp20,000
for bungalows; breakfast included. No taxes or additional charges, though
in August the rates may rise. Sri offers tours and vehicle, motorbike,
or bicycle rental.
A very useful service is offered by Perama
Tourist Service and Agen Pos, tel. (0362) 21161. The manager,
Made Suartana, sells bus tickets and stamps. Toward Singaraja is a health
center.
ANTURAN
In Anturan is Homestay Agung, a popular place for tired and hungry
travelers. With bamboo-decorated rooms for only Rp8000 s, Rp15,000 d, Agung's
is nearly always booked. Ask for the old mute Indonesian masseuse who gives
unforgettable 45-minute massages for Rp5000. Walk down the beach at night
for dinner.
Right on the water is Lila Cita Beach Inn,
with plain second-floor rooms for Rp15,000 s, Rp20,000 d. Rooms with private
outdoor mandi and flush toilets run Rp20,000 s, Rp25,000 d. Breakfast
consists of any kind of pancake, toast, and fruit salad. Helpful staff,
friendly atmosphere, quiet, superb snorkeling, and always the sound of
the sea. In the evenings dine in the wide, second-story balcony which serves
as the hotel lounge. In this area are several other homestays with basic
bungalows but excellent locations: check out Gede's and Mari's.
On the same road as the Lila Cita and the
Mandhara is peaceful, good value Celuk Agung, Box 191, Singaraja
81101, tel. (0362) 23039, fax 23379. Here are 16 comfortable Bali-style
bungalows in three different classes, most with private bath, shower, hot
water, IDD, satellite TV, and fridges. Prices range from Rp45,000 s, Rp57,000
d for standard (no air-conditioning), to Rp80,000 s, Rp90,000 d for medium
and Rp110,000 s, Rp120,000 d for the five suites. Add 15% tax and service.
Most of the hotel's grounds are devoted to gardens. Facilities include
bar, reasonably priced restaurant, pool, tennis and badminton courts, laundry,
safe-deposit boxes, and transport service. Nice views of rice fields and
the sea.
BANYUALIT
If heading toward Singaraja, after the RRI Tower and Siwa Bungalows turn
left on the small road leading to the beach. At the beach end of the road,
on the right, is well-known Janur's Dive Inn, tel. (0362) 41056,
offering nice double rooms for Rp8000 s, Rp10,000 d. Extravagant bathrooms,
cheap good restaurant—pretty good value. The quiet Banyualit Beach Inn,
Box 116, Singaraja 81101, tel. (0362) 41789, fax 41563, just up from Janur
Dive Inn gets high marks for its concrete and traditional bungalows with
clean and tidy rooms, mandi with plants, Western toilets, and bedside
phones. One of the great bargains of Bali, room rates are Rp15,000 s, Rp55,000
d in three different classes, air-conditioned cottages also available.
Extra bed: Rp15,000. Nice surroundings for strolling; an immaculate 1.24
hectare garden is filled with orchids and bougainvillea. Also a top-rated
restaurant dispensing excellent food and chilled glasses of Bintang. Good
security, accommodating staff; the receptionists are very efficient in
organizing tours, transport, snorkeling, scuba, fishing, sailing, and dolphin
watching. The beach is only a few meters away. All rates include service
charge and government tax. Recently introduced is a cooking class, "Learn
the Secrets of Balinese Cooking."
Down the same lane on the right toward the
Banyualit is the family-oriented Rambutan Beach Cottages, Box 195,
Kalibukbuk, tel. (0362) 23388, run by an English husband and Balinese wife
team. Rates are Rp25,000 for budget rooms, Rp35,000 for rooms with ceiling
fan, Rp40,000 for upstairs rooms with ceiling fan, and Rp50,000 for hot-water
upstairs rooms with ceiling fan. Breakfast not included. Well-furnished
upstairs rooms are spacious (five meters by five meters), cool, and soundproof,
with veranda, balcony, decent lightbulbs, and electric mosquito coils.
All rooms feature private bath with towels, soap, and toilet paper. English
language newspapers delivered daily, many table and board games, children's
playground. Big restaurant (open 0700-2000) and chlorinated free-form freshwater
pool. Near all the main restaurants and the beach and surrounded by a very
large tropical garden of rambutan, coconut, and banana trees, this is an
excellent place to stay. Try the Sanary Chinese and seafood restaurant
across from the Rambutan. The swankiest hotel in this area is the Padula
Beach, tel. (0362) 23775, fax 23659, with all the amenities you'd expect
in this price range (Rp110,000-215,000)
KALIBUKBUK
Accommodations
The highest density of hotels and restaurants is found down Kalibukbuk's
two roads to the sea, J1. Bina Ric and the smaller J1. Ketapang (starts
opposite Khi-Khi Restaurant). The beach is widest along this strip. Look
around before deciding on a place. The places close to the road are cheap
but noisy. One of the cheapest (Rp8000 s, Rp10,000 d with breakfast) is
the Indra Pura Inn, tel. (0362) 61560, near the Banyualit Beach
Inn on J1. Ketapang. Another very reasonable losmen, down a small
lane just before the Nirvana, is Susila—only Rp6000 s, Rp8000 d
including breakfast. On the main road right in the main thicket of Lovina,
only five minutes to the beach, is the remarkable Chono's, tel.
(0362) 23569, which rents clean, spacious rooms with good beds, large baths
for Rp15,000-20,000. Fan rooms with shower and private toilet, Rp25,000
if towels provided. Simple breakfast included in price. Transport, car
rental, sightseeing and snorkeling tours, and laundry and baggage storage
service. See the helpful manager, Mrs. Peni Darmadi, the one with the big
smile. Located just five minutes from beach. Can be a bit noisy because
it's next door to Malibu Bar & Restaurant. Nice restaurant upstairs
with buffets and dances.
Just south of Angsoka Cottages is popular
Padang Lovina Seaside Cottages (tel. 0362-23302) on Jl. Binaria,
only two minutes walk from the beach. Thirteen clean double rooms for Rp20,000
s, Rp30,000 d, all with tile floors, private baths, showers, ceiling fans,
mosquito netting, and breakfast. Second-story rooms are cooler and breezier.
One air-conditioned suite room for Rp25,000 s, Rp35,000 d. Large parking
area and beautiful gardens. Also recommended is secure, quiet, well-kept
Rini Hotel & Restaurant, tel. (0362) 23386, in the center of
Kalibukbuk. Rates Rp20,000-25,000 for economy rooms, Rp30,000 for standard,
Rp50,000 for superior (add five percent tax). Room number two in the highest
demand. Bungalows are fully equipped with big beds, fan, mosquito net,
shower, and veranda. Friendly service, good food, large garden. Located
one minute from the beach, three minutes from the main road.
Spiffy and relaxing Angsoka Cottages,
(tel. 0362-22841, fax 23023), but two minutes from the beach, offers a
variety of rooms, ranging from cozy rice-barn units from Rp15,000 d to
detached bungalows with a/c, inside mandi, hot water, and nice veranda
for Rp60,000. Restaurant and bar, discreet and helpful staff, laundry service,
IDD telephones, pleasant gardens, ample parking. Centrally located in the
heart of Kalibukbuk. Appeals to the younger set; guests seem to particularly
enjoy the attractive pool (open 0730-2000) with sunken bar surrounded by
bamboo and angsoka flowers. The front desk books for shuttle service,
marine excursions, and dolphin watching tours. Luxury accommodations at
a budget price. Next to Angsoka's, just around the corner from the bus
stop, is Ray Beach Inn; Rp10,000 for a double with clean mandi.
Though meager breakast and leaky showers, it is a good value.
An established, friendly place 300 meters
from the water is Ayodya Accommodations (tel. 0362-23803), within
its own enclosed, restful, flower-filled compound. Rp8000 s, Rp10,000 d
for traditional, clean nipa and bamboo huts. Rate includes breakfast.
Each room is cool and spacious with a private reading-cum-dining area.
Efficient food service, ample laundry facilities, good security. About
500 meters north of Ayodya is Astina's, Box 42, Singaraja 81151.
Although the rooms tend to be a bit dark, the charge is only Rp7000 s,
Rp8000 d for rooms with outside mandi, Rp12,000 s, Rp15,000 d for
larger Bali-style bungalows with inside mandi, sink, shower, carved
furniture, fan, and breakfast. Rates even cheaper in the off-season. Quiet,
peaceful location with lush gardens under coconut palms—away from everything
but only a short walk to anything.
Expect little English at the Kalibukbuk
Hotel. Right on the beach, very clean and lovely; Rp12,500 d with private
bath and breakfast. The food is overpriced and you receive teeny portions;
just walk into town and eat well for Rp3000-4000.
The latest high-end Lovina accommodation is
Mas Lovina Beach Cottages, a charming seaside resort of 10 maisonette
type cottages (Rp230,000 and up), each with two twin upper floor air conditioned
bedrooms and private bathrooms with hot and cold running water. On the
ground floor find a living room with audio visual equipment and a dining
room complete with fully equipped kitchen, refrigerator, and tableware.
Tennis court and putting green, snorkeling, diving, and dolphin watching
trips. Contact the manager, Mas Lovina Beach Cottages, Jl. Raya Kalibukbuk,
Singaraja, Bali 81151, tel. (0362) 23237, fax 23236.
Food
Warung on the beach serve good food. As for restaurants, one
of the best deals going is friendly Superman. You can frequent the
place every night, trying different dishes each time, and all will be fantastic
and abundant. Also provides useful information for travelers—how to reach
destinations, bemo prices, and the like. Record your own experiences
and recommendations, and review the comments of others. A little more expensive,
but definitely worth it, is Rumah Rumah Tamah (tel. 0362-41149);
very well-prepared vegetarian food with traditional Balinese dishes.
Surya Bar & Restaurant is cozy
and attractive, with inexpensive, delicious food, particularly the fresh
charcoal-grilled fish and chicken sate. Probably the best value
in Lovina, with the finest gado-gado. The Grace Restaurant,
across from Arya's, serves excellent Javanese-Indonesian style food and
the view of the sunset from their open upstairs attracts many. Fresh seafood
is their specialty. Khi Khi's, tel. (0362) 21548, serves fresh lobster
or crab with choice of seven sauces, grilled fish steak (Rp7500), sweet-and-sour
snapper (Rp4000), and special Thai soup (Rp4000). Most main dishes run
around Rp6000. Ask first if the fish is frozen; it will take over an hour
to cook if it is. Otherwise, fast service. A 30-minute dance in the evening
is free and includes a complimentary dessert of rice cakes. The owner,
Made, is quite a character. Try his home-brewed arak flavored with
vanilla—it'll blow your mind. Open 0800. Made rents some Rp12,500-15,000
rooms in the back.
Open-air Banyualit Restaurant specializes
in seafood, Indonesian dishes with a Chinese accent, and curries. One of
the best restaurants in Lovina—even the bupati eats here. Complete
menu, Western prices; eat beautifully for around Rp15,000 per person. Quieter
than Khi Khi's, with no dust, no traffic. For excellent Balinese fish,
head for Spunky's Cafe in Banyualit.
KALIASEM (LOVINA BEACH)
Accommodations
Susila Beach Inn has opened a branch on the beach next to the
Angsoka called—you guessed it—Susila Beach Inn II; offering cozy
bungalows with verandas, showers, toilets, and a fruit salad breakfast.
Rates Rp9000 s, Rp10,000 d. Lovina's largest and oldest accommodation,
Nirwana Cottages, tel. (0362) 22288, fax 21090, is 500 meters past
the 11 km marker. The brick, bamboo, and thatch structures feature flush
toilets, showers, and enclosed outdoor patios, but are not very well cared
for. Five classes ranging from Rp15,000 for fan rooms to Rp50,000 d for
two-story bungalows nos. 34-39. The best are back from the beach so no
peddlers bother you, facing the hotel's spacious grounds, long walkways,
and attractive lawns and gardens. Also cheaper double rooms for Rp20,000.
Meager breakfast of fruit salad, and tea or coffee; restaurant service
painfully slow; staff doesn't speak English; no swimming pool. No room
phones, though there's a phone in the front office. Credit cards not accepted.
On the beach, very central, good restaurants
within walking distance. Family-run, no-frills Arjuna Homestay is
a good, small, budget hotel. Tucked away only 50 meters from the beach,
the rooms cost Rp8000 d, including breakfast. Though very central (the
Bali Ayu is north and Tasik Madu west), it is little known. A former homestay,
the Manggala Holiday Inn, tel. (0362) 41371, just west of the Purnama,
is the oldest losmen in town. Room prices only Rp10,000-20,000.
Nearby "John's House," is only Rp12,500 for a double room with mandi
right on the beach. Be warned the breakfast here is horrible.
Thirty-room Bali Lovina Beach Cottages,
tel./fax (0362) 41385, between Arjuna and Lovina Beach Hotel is pure luxury
living: immaculate Bali-style cottages with bath, shower, and hot water
for Rp100,000 s, Rp110,000 d superior rooms, Rp90,000 s, Rp100,00 d standard
rooms, Rp70,000 s, Rp80,000 d fan rooms. All rates subject to 15.5% tax
and service. Includes hearty breakfast. Restaurant, beautiful pool, poolside
bar, beach access, very few beach hawkers. Water sports offered include
sailing, snorkeling, fishing, canoeing, windsurfing, and dolphin-watching
tours. Plastic accepted. Outside peak season bargain for half the rate.
Lovina's most imposing, largest, and most expensive hotel is the Palma
Beach Hotel, Jl. Raya Lovina, tel. (0362) 62362, 61775, or 61658, fax
61659, a quiet, luxury marine resort catering primarily to Swiss and German
package tourists. Nineteen standard rooms go for Rp135,000 d; superior
class rooms are more spacious, with open-air bathrooms, fridge, TV, and
garden for Rp170,000 d. Live music (karaoke) weekly, coffee shop, restaurant
serving Indian dishes, pizza and pasta. All prices subject to 15.5% tax
and service fee. Recreation facilities include tennis court, large pool,
open-air fitness center. Make reservations at the Denpasar office, Jl.
Raya Puputan 17 X, tel. (0362) 25256, fax 25231. Watch for Palma business
cards offering a 20% discount.
Quiet, family-run Lovina Beach Hotel,
tel. (0362) 23473, was built on the site of Lovina's original hotel, founded
by the late raja in 1953. Owner Anak Agung Ngurah Sentanu is the raja's
grandson. The Lovina Beach offers convenience, friendly 24-hour service,
good security, laundry and mailing service, and safe-deposit boxes. Rates
for the three different classes of rooms are Rp60,000 for spacious a/c
beachfront cottages, with large bathrooms, hot water, and verandas; Rp35,000
for beachfront cottages with ceiling fan; and Rp23,000 for rooms with garden
view, shower, and fan. All prices include breakfast, tax, service. An excellent
place for children; the restaurant right on the sea is a nice touch. Motorcycles
rent for Rp12,000 per day, bicycles for Rp4000 per day. At Hotel Puri
Tasik Madu ("Sea of Honey"), tel. (0362) 23376, prices start at Rp15,000;
three a/c beachfront bungalows with inside mandi Rp35,000. The best
value are the cheapest rooms. Good location on the beach side of the main
road. Quiet and friendly staff; some of them are dynamite chess players.
West of the Tasik Madu is friendly 52-room
Aditya Bungalows, Box 134, Singaraja 81101, tel. (0362) 41059, literally
seven meters from the beach. Rp90,000 for very nice air conditioned deluxe
rooms with hot water, private terrace, color TV, fridge, and sea view;
Rp70,000 for air conditioned rooms with garden view; Rp50,000 for fan rooms
with hot water; Rp40,000 for fan rooms with mandi. Rates include
continental breakfast, add 15% government tax and service. The Aditya also
runs a very efficient travel service. Older but well-kept (the sweeping
never stops!) Parma Beach Hotel, tel. (0362) 23955, offers nice
rooms looking out on gardens running down to the black-sand beach. Rates
Rp15,000-25,000 in the low season, Rp18,000 s, Rp30,000 d in the high.
Four different classes of rooms. Fine, reasonably priced kitchen, friendly
staff. Breakfast of juice, banana pancake, fruit salad, toast, and coffee
or tea included. Good security: bars on the windows and two penjaga
posted beachside to keep out the riffraff.
The quiet Bayu Kartika Beach Bungalows,
tel. (0362) 41055, is right on the beach, with comfortable beds, large
ceiling fans, functional plumbing, and a decent place to eat. All rooms
are clean with lovely garden bathrooms, hot water, and garden views. In
the off-season try to negotiate a Rp20,000 per person rate. Billibo
Beach Cottages, tel. (0362) 23498, the last place west in Lovina, has
six clean cottages (Rp25,000) with screens on the windows, and reading
lamps by the bed and on the veranda. Large, outdoor fenced-in area where
people can't harass you. Great views of the ocean; not even a wall separates
you from the private beach. People wait days for a cottage at Billibo's.
Food
The Lovina Beach Hotel's Permata Restaurant, serving Balinese,
Indonesian, Chinese, and Western dishes, is right on the beach, flanked
by a garden and fishpond. Specialties include betutu bebek (stuffed
steamed duck), babi guling, sate ayam, nasi goreng spesial, and
gado-gado. The pride of Permata is nasi tumpeng, true Balinese
cuisine served on a duleng table, consisting of a mountain of rice
encircled by sate, vegetables, curries, and betutu. Sit in
the beachfront gazebo and watch the sunset.
Made's Warung, on the north side of
the main road, offers a set menu with choice of starter, main meal, and
great dessert for Rp10,000. No other restaurant serves salads as good.
Prices are very competitive, live music every night and a happy hour. Made's
does have its off-days, when the guacamole has no flavor, the chocolate
mousse is flat, the music lousy, and the salads lack dressing.
Of the four restaurants on the south side
of the main road, the hands-down favorite is Arya's, tel. (0362)
23797, where you'll find imaginative pasta dishes, grilled tuna fish dinner
(Rp4000), a selection of vegetarian meals, and the best homemade desserts
in Lovina including lemon meringue pie. Bills itself as the health food
restaurant of Lovina. The service is so-so; the awful mixed green salad
(Rp1500) comes with but one piece of lettuce, a slice of tomato, and tons
of oil; and the avocado/shrimp cocktail is at best ordinary. Arya's strength
is its breakfast with multigrain bread baked on the premises, homemade
jams, muesli, and porridge. Free transport offered within a 10-km
radius of Lovina.
Next to Aryas is the Flower Garden Restaurant
offering items from a set menu for Rp7500-9500 in intimate surroundings.
Some dishes are good, but portions are sometimes skimpy. If Made is cooking,
count on a superb meal—dishes like guacamole and potato skins, cream of
prawn soup, tuna wrapped in bamboo leaf. Try Made's Bali wine at your peril—not
exactly vintage bordeaux. Balinese dancing starts at around 2000.
Three nights a week Chono's hosts an
extravagant rijstaffel buffet. The meal—15 tasty dishes including
rice wine, chocolate milk, peanuts, and fried tempe—is followed
by Balinese dancing—all for Rp6000. Chono's also serves fresh seafood at
very reasonable prices: fried calamari with garlic butter (Rp3000), grilled
tuna (Rp3000), or snapper with choice of sauce (Rp3500). Relax in the comfortable,
leafy restaurant and play chess, backgammon, scrabble, cards.
Manggala Holiday Inn, tel. (0362) 41371,
serves a better than average fish in ginger and oyster sauce for Rp3000.
The best breakfast buffet is put on by Bali Apik hidden away off
J1. Bina Ria; open 0700-1100.
TEMUKUS
Temukus is the last village to the west, on the wings of Lovina. A convenient
base for touring the Banjar area—just a short ride down the road. Pondok
Wisata Ayu's Restaurant, tel. (0362) 21338, has five rather exposed,
shadeless rooms for Rp15,000 s/d plus 10% tax and service. Not worth it—too
hot. Across the road is Agus Homestay, nice rooms with fans, close
to the sea for Rp10,000 s, Rp15,000 d (a drawback: close to the highway).
Ten-room Samudra Beach Cottages & Restaurant, in an out-of-the-way
setting one-half km west of Aditya on the road to Gilimanuk, charges Rp25,000-30,000
for a/c rooms with hot water just 10 meters from the beach. Continental
breakfast in the breezy restaurant included in the price. A certain dreariness
about the place, however. On the Kalibukbuk border is Purnama, a
homestay on the beach side of the road. Rents rooms with partially outside
bath for Rp10,000 s or d; less in the off-season. Breakfast included; only
100 meters from the beach.
Best of the lot is Krisna Beach Inn,
tel. (0362) 24941, on Jl. Seririt about 13 km west of Singaraja. Eight
plain but clean rooms for Rp10,000 s, Rp18,000 d in a U-shaped compound
facing the ocean. The upper rooms receive breezes. Price includes simple
breakfast; the open-air restaurant serves fresh seafood 0700-2200. Laundry
service, swimming out front on a nice private beach, few sellers. Offshore
there's a splendid coral reef. Quiet; just fishermen along here.
VICINITY OF LOVINA BEACH
From Lovina, walk to Singaraja along the beach in a couple of hours, crossing
about six small rivers. A number of outstanding walks lead into the high
country behind Lovina. From Kalibukbuk take the sealed road opposite Ayodya's
Kayuputih, from here you can take the road west back down to the coast.
Another loop starts at Banjar—take the steep road to Banyuseri, on a high
plateau, five km from the coast. Continue five km through rice paddies
east (left) along the ridge, to Banjar Tega, where you can get a
lift on the back of a motorcycle to Banjar. You can also make this loop
from the other direction.
From Seririt to Mayong (seven km) are many
scenic rice fields and fields of cultivated grapevines. From Mayong, head
east toward Kayuputih, Gobleg, and Munduk (known all over Bali for its
durians and its mangosteens). The small, paved road from Mayong to the
lakes climbs high into the mountains through a number of small villages.
From Kayuputih walk to Banjar or continue on to Munduk; from there a track
skirts the crater rim with superb views over lakes Tamblingan, Buyan, and
Bratan. On a clear day you can see the Batukau range and sometimes all
the way to the coast. This road gets a lot worse before it finally joins
the Singaraja-Denpasar route north of the Bali Handara Country Club approximately
10 km north of Lake Bratan.
Waterfalls
From Lovina take a bemo (Rp500, one km) west to Temukus, or
walk in 30 minutes from the bridge in Kaliasem. At the 14.5 km mark turn
up the dirt road and you'll see a sign for Air Terjun Singsing ("Daybreak
Waterfalls"). It's about a 500-meter walk with good eating stalls along
the way. Boys will show you the way to the 12-meter-high falls, but will
want Rp1000 once there. At the falls, swim in the pool below while cool,
fresh water cascades over you. The falls only run in the wet; at other
times farmers may block them off because they need the water. There's a
bigger, better, more isolated waterfall known as Singsing Dua on a path
to the east; swim here too.
To reach a third waterfall go back on the
road to Singaraja to Anturan, then turn right up a steep side road. Ojek
drivers sit at the start of the road and ask Rp1000 to deliver you to the
falls. If driving yourself, park and follow the trail down to the river,
then boulder-hop along the riverbed for about one kilometer. A beautiful
falls and a nice place to swim.
Banjar
The starting point for sightseeing in the area. In the Banjar area
are two villages, one a Muslim community called Banjar, the other is an
authentic fishing village called Dencarik on the sea eight km to the west
of Lovina; turn north at the intersection of Jl. Seririt and the road to
Dencarik. No tourists, no hotels, no sellers—like Malaysia's Batu Ferringhi
20 years ago. Ask to share some fishermen's food with the villagers. Along
this coast there are no plastic bottles in the water, which makes for superior
snorkeling.
Buddhist Monastery
Go first to Dencarik village, about 18 km west of Singaraja on the
highway to Seririt. From the highway where the bemo lets you off,
walk two km; then, at the intersection just before the Banjar Tega market,
turn left up the paved road. Climb another two km (40 minutes) to the hilltop
monastery. Or take a honda ojek (Rp2000) all the way up the steep
hill from the Banjar turnoff. Wear long pants or a sarung as you
must be respectfully dressed. Sarung rent for Rp500. Entering the
vihara, sign the guestbook and give a donation.
This storybook monastery, also known as Brahma
Vihara Asrama, has a gleaming orange tile roof, Sukothai-style gold leaf
Buddha images, raksasa door guardians, brightly painted stupa with
Buddha eyes, and exuberant woodcarvings—a dazzling mix of Balinese Hindu
and Buddhist components. Opened in 1970, it's the only Buddhist monastery
on Bali. Tibet's Dalai Lama paid a visit in 1982, and Bali's Chinese make
regular pilgrimages to this peaceful hillside ashram. Severely damaged
in the July 1976 earthquake, it has since been completely restored.
The Theravadic vipashana breathing
technique is practiced here, the aim to produce clear comprehension and
mindfulness. The resident bhikku (Buddhist teacher) will guide you
to equanimity. The bhikku is only here May-June, Aug.-Sept., and
Dec.-January. Instruction in English only in September and April. All are
welcome, but anyone visiting overnight is encouraged to write first. Several
times a year students "speech fast," and no writing, reading, or talking
is allowed. Quite comfortable, with plenty of good vegetarian food. If
you eat, pay.
Note the panels depicting Buddha fables, a
temple bell from Thailand, and a specimen of the bo tree of enlightenment.
A number of books on Buddhism are for sale. The hall at the bottom is for
prayer, the top building for meditation. Unsurpassed views over the north
coast. At night, stars reflect in the rice paddies and fireflies fill the
air.
The road continues past the monastery and
up the mountain to the village of Pedawa. Walk from the monastery to the
air panas on a small path in just 10 minutes, or drive by going
back down the hill and taking the first left, then another left after the
market. Drive 120 meters, then make another left and drive two kilometers.
Air Panas
A hot spring only a 10-minute walk from the monastery, if you take
the shortcut. Or drive six km east of Lovina on Jl. Seririt, take a left
and travel two km to the Banjar Tega market, then a further two km uphill.
Motorcycle ojek drivers or dokar wait at this turnoff to
Banjar to give you a lift, Rp1500. Fifty meters on the left after the market
look for the Air Panas 1 KM sign and follow the forested road to the end.
After cycling up the hill, the hot water will be a great relief. Arriving,
it costs Rp500 to park and Rp1050 entrance (Rp500 child) but you can swim
all day.
Surrounded by jungle and luxurious gardens,
this is the perfect setting for a day's loafing. There are three pools
of varying temperatures. Lay back in one big lovingly warm pool or another
smaller pool of soft, green-yellow sulphur water, both filled by water
pouring out of naga-shaped pipes from the hill and pool above. Wash and
soap in the lowest. If it gets too hot, take a dip in the river. Neat and
clean toilets, showers, and changing rooms available.
Stay at the moderately priced, nice-looking
Pondok Wisata Grya Sati Hotel and Restaurant near the entrance.
Overlooking the pool is the fairly reasonably priced Komala Tirta Restaurant
with a full Indonesian/Western menu—sop ayam Rp2000, beef sate
Rp4000, gado-gado Rp1500. Good, average food and a cool, relaxing
place to sit, read, or write. Two warung makan serve up nasi
campur (Rp500), snacks, fruit, cakes, and es campur. About 10
souvenir shops with very aggressive, hungry sellers selling Kuta-style
garments lurk up the road. Buy your bathing suit here.
Open from 0800 to 1600, the complex is tidy
and well maintained. No nude bathing, shampoo and soap permissible in a
third pool off to the side. The pools could be peaceful, or crowded with
a busload of tourists or screaming schoolkids. One-hundred meters upstream
is another, smaller air panas.
Pedawa
From the Buddhist monastery in Banjar Tega it's a seven-km hike north
to Pedawa, about 10 km inland from Banjar Tega. This is a big grape-growing
area and you'll see vineyards stretching away from both sides of the road.
Pedawa is a quiet, friendly town. Strike up a conversation with one of
the shopowners. At the T-junction, turn west, go past the public mandi,
and stay on this sealed road for four km to Banyuseri through a country
of peanuts, corn, and fruit gardens. From Banyuseri walk down to Banjar
on the coast. In all, it's 13 km from Pedawa to Banjar on this route. If
heading east from Pedawa, the good road ends here.