Capture the Mystique of Bali: A 5-Day Itinerary
- Anju Chandna
- Jul 22, 2019
- 8 min read
Bali is one of the 17508 islands belonging to the Indonesian Archipelago in the Java Sea.
We spent 5 days in Bali; this beautiful island can give you an excellent taste of the beautiful Balinese beaches, an insight into the architectural marvel of their temples, water sports, traditions and culture, cultural performances, lively shopping streets and much more!
What struck me the moment we landed at the Arrival Lounge in Bali at the Ngurah Rai International Airport was an artistic display of Balinese life and culture everywhere, starting from the precinct of the airport.
The entire city has beautiful statues depicting scenes and anecdotes from the Hindu sacred texts of Ramayana and Mahabharata.
Things to Know Before Planning a 5-Day Visit to Bali
The island of Bali is divided into many regions, and each region is radically different from the others, with a different vibe to it.
Before planning your vacation, it's a good idea to identify the different regions and decide where you wish to stay. Most travellers to Bali plan to stay in 2 or 3 different locations to experience different cultural vibes.
The different regions in Bali are...
Ubud - Cultural heart of Bali, known for temples, beautiful rice paddy fields and lush green landscape.
Seminyak - If you're a compulsive shopper and a foodie, then the upscale Seminyak is the place for you. It has the exotic Seminyak beach, luxury restaurants and beach bars that exude vibrancy as the sun goes down each day.
Kuta - Popular tourist area with beaches, nightlife, and surfing. If you’re a party animal, then Kuta will cater to your needs.
Legian - A quieter beach destination between Kuta and Seminyak.
Nusa Dua - Nusa Dua is the high-end southeastern coast of Bali that is synonymous with luxury and opulent living. Nusa Dua is like a luxurious tableau depicting the Balinese culture and religion in its impeccably manicured verdant green landscapes. The most popular attraction in this part of Bali is the famous Nusa Dua Theatre.
Uluwatu - If you like fancy clifftop resorts, vast walking stretches, and surf beaches, then Uluwatu should be your place to stay. It also has the famous Uluwatu Temple.
Apart from these regions, there are also Amed, Lovina, Munduk, and Sidemen Valley.
The distance between these regions is a lot, but travel by cab is cheap. You will need to watch out for the traffic during rush hours, though.
People of Bali are very civil towards tourists. Cab drivers are very polite and are more than willing to help resolve your touristy curiosity about the place. Most of them speak English, so communication is not a problem.
We learnt from one of the drivers that the economy of Bali was hugely dependent on tourism for its sustenance. The bombing in Kuta in October 2002 had adversely impacted tourism and their livelihoods for some years when tourism declined drastically, but the city crawled back to its status as being the safest destination in Asia for travel.
Bali is predominantly Hindu, and the island is replete with old Hindu temples with breathtaking architecture and locales, such as Tanah Lot Temple, Uluwatu Temple, Besakih Temple, Goa Gajah, and Tirth Empul Temple, to name a few.
If you’re visiting Bali as a regular tourist, then it would be wise to plan and take your pick on which temples you would like to visit during your stay in Bali, depending on your interests, their location and popularity.
Otherwise, you could spend your entire vacation only seeing all the temples. There is nothing wrong with that, but there are many other things worth seeing too! The same is true for the many other attractions, depending on which part of Bali you plan to stay in.
Day 1: Watching the Sunset at Tanah Lot Temple
We were in Bali to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary, and we started our vacation with an upscale resort called ‘Nyuh Bali’ in Seminyak.
The resort has independent cottages with a private swimming pool and is extremely well-maintained with excellent room service and great food.
The breakfast in the morning is made to order, so indulge your taste buds if you're staying here.
I can’t help but notice that a lot of bamboo and wood have been used as part of the décor, which gives the rooms a rustic yet cosy feel.
Bamboo straws are used throughout Bali, I noticed, which I found to be a wonderful variant to the conventional paper or plastic straws.
Since we had only the second half of the day at our disposal, we started with the Tanah Lot Temple.
The temple is built on a huge rock and is dedicated to the God of the Sea. The temple is surrounded by seawater, and one can walk right to the base of the temple when the tide is low over a makeshift bridge of small rocks and stones. The scenery around Tanah Lot is beautiful, and one can spend a whole evening looking at the sights.
There is also another small temple called Batu Bolong Temple near Tanah Lot overlooking the Indian Ocean, conspicuously located on top of a cave with water flowing through it.
My Tip for You
If you plan to visit this area, then you should plan to go in the early evening to be able to catch the sunset.
The temples' views in the setting sun's backdrop are mesmerising.
Day 2: Exploring Seminyak and its famous Double Six Beach
We started our morning at Seminyak Beach. It's quieter in the mornings but comes alive as the evening descends.
If you go in the mornings, you can find children taking surfing lessons and flying kites. There is a 500-meter stretch of golden white sand on the beach called the Double Six Beach.
One can stroll along this beautiful coastline that is lined with amazing eateries and bars, and the whole place comes alive around sunset. Some coconuts contain at least a litre of coconut water.
Day two also happened to be our 25th wedding anniversary. We had made dinner reservations at 'Bambu', a classic Indonesian restaurant in the quieter side of Seminyak.
The restaurant boasted a modern twist to classic dishes. The restaurant was expensive but well worth the money.
Day 3: Uluwatu Temple and Kecak Dance
After spending the first two days of our vacation just loitering around Bali, on day 3, we moved out of our cottage in Seminyak to Anavaya Beach Resort in Kuta so that we could get down to the business of sightseeing.
As I've mentioned earlier, Bali has very distinctly different regions, and we wanted to stay in at least two of them. The route to the beach in a cab was a treat in itself.
A tour of the city throws up some very interesting facets of Balinese culture, which is steeped in religious rituals even in this day and age and is very much a part of the people's everyday life.
Along the roads, throughout the city, one can see bamboo poles adorned with palm leaves and flowers and some fruits, even vegetables, tied to them.
We again chat up with our driver, and I learned that these poles are called 'Penjor' and these fruits are a way to thank Mother Earth for its many blessings.
At a lot of places, in front of trees and shrines, I notice this black and white checkered cloth tied around trees and even around small temples made outside houses. This is called 'Kain Polena', literally meaning two-coloured cloth.
This cloth symbolises the two dual aspects of life, the good and the evil, darkness and light.
I saw this even in front of houses and shops. Apart from this, the Balinese people also keep offerings to spirits outside their shops and houses each morning, called 'Canang Sari'.
These are small palm leaf baskets filled with rice cookies, sweets and flowers. Passersby ensure that no one steps on these while walking by.
After jostling through heavy traffic, taking pictures en route and chatting with our cab driver, we finally reached the Anavaya Beach Resort.
This is a very popular resort for tourists in the centre of Kuta on the Islands of the Gods.
The uber-luxurious resort boasts a private sand beach and walking platforms.
The resort has beautiful water bodies all around. These musicians are playing the 'Rindik', an instrument made by suspending bamboo tubes on a wooden frame.
In the afternoon, we head to the beautiful Balinese Sea Temple of Uluwatu.
En route to the Uluwatu Temple, one can see the mammoth statue of Garuda Wisnu in the Kencana Cultural Park, which is about 11 km away from Uluwatu.
This colossal statue is dedicated to Lord Vishnu, the preserving deity in the Hindu Trinity and Garuda, his mount.
The statue is huge, about 30 meters taller than the Statue of Liberty!
A trip to the park can be exhilarating and informative. There are street performances, cultural events in the amphitheatre and many more activities for tourists to give them a full day of entertainment.
Time was short, and I had set my heart on watching the Kecak dance at the Uluwatu temple.
I had read so much about it. So, we saw the statue from a distance, and it looked just as majestic.
A lot can be said about Uluwatu and the energetic Balinese Kecak Dance...
Day 4: Dream Museum Zone, DMZ and Jimbaran Bay
After watching the scintillating Kecak dance performance the previous night, we decided to spend the morning at the Anavaya beach.
The water around the resort is shallow, and the weather was great for walking on the platform around the resort. In the evening, we decided to go to DMZ, Dream Museum Zone, Bali.
The museum is not a very impressive structure on the outside, but the artworks inside are fun. This can easily be the highlight of your trip if you're travelling with kids.
This is a 3D Art museum with illusionist effects. One can take pictures against the backdrop of these 3D artworks. The pictures are embarrassingly childish, but the experience was certainly enjoyable.
In the late evening, we visited the Jimbaran Bay.
The bay is located in the south of Kuta and is a haven for seafood since it is the biggest fish market on the island.
The sea here is tranquil, and in the evening, the beach comes alive with tourists wanting to taste the seafood delights. The barbecues are rustic and cheap.
My Tip for You
There are numerous luxury beach resorts in the Jimbaran Bay; it's called the Beverly Hills of Bali. But this experience of going into the fish market and picking the seafood of your choice and then eating it on the seashore is hardly the definition of luxury!
Go to this place if you're not too finicky about hygiene and ambience, because the fish we ate was not cleaned properly and not well-cooked.
Day 5: Devdan at the Nusa Dua Theatre
This was the last day of our stay in Bali. We decided to go shopping in the morning and have tickets for the famous Nusa Dua Theatre for the evening.
Kuta has some of the hottest shopping centres in Bali, Ubud Art Market, Guwang Market and Pasar Badung Market are some of the markets to buy souvenirs, handicrafts and clothes.
Don't forget to indulge in some bargaining before you go buying things.
There is also Legian Street with luxury boutiques. A memorial to the infamous bombing of 2002 in Bali is also located here. In the evening, we head to Nusa Dua Theatre for the Devdan Show. This spectacular show turned out to be the highlight of our trip to Bali.
Final Thoughts on Bali
Five days may not be enough to uncover every facet of Bali. But what we did see was the captivating beauty of this island and why it attracts so many travellers from around the world.
It's not just beaches and luxury resorts, temples and cultural performances; there is more to Bali than that.
While visiting Bali, try to embrace the quiet rhythm of its cities and the warm hospitality of its people.
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