Bali Destination Guide

General Information

Part of Indonesia, the island of Bali is stunning in its wealth of ancient and exotic cultural traditions, which are still very apparent today. Despite being a major tourist destination, Bali has incredibly beautiful and untouched landscape – in its terraced rice paddy fields that run down the side of steep hills, giant volcanoes that rise up, lush rain forests inland, and pristine beaches on the shores of the Indian Ocean.

The Balinese lifestyle permeates every aspect of its culture, including architecture, décor, and artefacts. In addition to its cultural heritage, Bali offers a great deal to its visitors – for sea sports, recreational activities, and fun nightlife.

Environment

Located only two kilometers east of Java, Bali’s climate, flora and fauna are quite similar to its much larger neighbor. The island is famous for its beautiful landscape. A chain of six volcanoes, between 1,350 meters and 3,014 meters high, stretches from west to east. There are lush tropical forests, pristine crater lakes, fast flowing rivers and deep ravines, picturesque rice terraces, and fertile vegetable and fruit gardens. The beaches in the South consist of white sand, beaches in other part of the island are covered with gray or black volcanic sand.

How To Get There

When To Go

You can expect pleasant day temperatures between 20 to 33 degree Celsius or 68 to 93 degree Fahrenheit year-round. Bali has tropical climate all year with two different seasons: namely dry season from April to October and wet season from November to March. The average yearly rainfall between 893,4mm till 2702,6mm with average humidity is 79%

Due to its tropical island climate, visitors can protect themselves from getting sunburn by wearing a hat or applying sun block lotion.

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Travel Tips

Passport / Visa Requirements

All visitors must hold a current international passport valid for at least six months upon arrival in Indonesia. Proof of onward passage and sufficient funds are required.

New visa requirements for Foreigners traveling to Indonesia has been introduced from the 1st of February 2004.

• Free Visa is given to the following Nationals:
Brunei Darussalam, Chile, Hong Kong SAR, Macao SAR, Malaysia, Morocco, Peru, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

• Visa on Arrival (VOA) is accessible upon arrival at Indonesian immigration counter with the following fees:
US$10 for max 7 days, US$25 for visit from 8 to 30 days for the following Nationals:
Argentina, Australia, Brasilia, Canada, Denmark, Emirate Arab, England, Finland, France, Germany, Hongaria, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, South Africa, South Korea, Switzerland, Taiwan and United States of America.

• All other Nationalities obtain their visas at Indonesian Consulate of their respective country of origin.

Time Zone: 8 hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time (+8 GMT)

Voltage Requirements: 220 volts AC

Socket Type:

Food

The staple food of most of Indonesia is rice. From the surrounding seas as well as from fresh water fisheries fish is abundant and of great variety. Coconut is found everywhere and besides being produced for cooking oil, its milk the juice from the white meat is an ingredient for many dishes. Spices and hot chili peppers are the essence of most cooking,

Currency : Indonesian Rupiah

In Club Med Village, the easy way to pay for all your bar and disco drinks and snacks is to charge them to your Club Med Pass and make one simple payment at the end of your holiday.

Open a Club Med Pass account at Reception with a credit card imprint or cash deposit of US$500. Remember to return your card when checking out to avoid a US$10 surcharge.

Cash payment is only accepted at the Bar in Indonesian Rupiah.

Note on Exchange Currency: There are 2 (two) different rates between Indonesian Rupiah (IDR) against US Dollars (USD) that is being practised in all hotels/resorts in Bali. According to Indonesian Monetary regulation:

All USD notes issued before 1996 is 7 733 IDR for 1USD. All USD notes issued after 1996 is 8 686 IDR for 1USD

Credit cards accepted: Visa, Master, Amex, JCB & Diners

Dress Code

Dress is normally informal in Indonesia due to the warm, humid climate and clothing of light fabrics are recommended. Traveling in highland areas is noticeably cooler, however, and carrying a light sweater may prove useful.

Things To Bring

Don’t forget to take your suntan lotion, shower gel, shampoo, tooth brush, tooth paste and mosquito repellent.

Common Phrases

• Selamat Pagi - Good morning
• Selamat Siang - Good afternoon
• Selamat Malam - Good evening
• Terimakasih - Thank you
• Bagus / Baik - Good

Tipping

No tipping is needed in Club Med, as it is all-inclusive. Major hotels usually add a 10% service charge to bills. Where it is not included a tip of between 5% to 10% of the bill would be appropriate if the service is satisfactory.

Airport porters expect Rp.2,000,-for a small bag and Rp.3,000, for bags weighing more than 20 kg.

Tipping taxi and hire-car drivers is not mandatory, but if service has been satisfactory a basic Rp.1,000,- tip is sufficient for a taxi driver, Hire-car drivers would normally expect a larger tip.

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