Beautiful Bali Tour

Beautiful Bali Tour

Bali Main Tour

Day 1: Ubud
Arrive in Denpasar, Bali in the early afternoon. You will be met by the tour director and guide and transferred by coach to Ubud. Your first few nights will be spent at the beautiful, authentically Balinese ARMA Resort*, owned by Agung Rai, an arts visionary and community leader in Ubud.

Enjoy your first taste of Balinese cuisine at our welcome dinner and then off to a good night’s sleep.

perfectly preserved “Beauty of Loulan” that is more than 3800 years old.

  • Accommodations: ARMA Resort 
  • Meals Included: D
Day 2: Ubud/Batubulan
On the first morning we’ll have a private meeting with Agung Rai, founder of world-renowned ARMA Museum.  Agung Rai will present a historical view of the Balinese arts and its defining role as a key component of Balinese culture. He is considered one of the top historians of the Island. After a presentation along with delicious Balinese sweets and coffee/tea, Agung Rai will conduct a personal tour of his fascinating museum which hosts world-renown artists in addition to its own major art collection–one of the best in Bali!

After lunch at ARMA, proceed to the village of Batubulan to watch a cultural performance of Barong and Keris Dance, which describes the story of the eternal fight between good and evil.  Next, visit the artisan wood-making village of Mas, as well as the Sukawati traditional market.

Our guide will offer optional walking tour of the Ubud, the most lively town in Bali with royal palaces, temples, museum and art galleries and restaurants and bars featuring international cuisine.

Dinner on own in town or at the Resort.

  • Accommodations: ARMA Resort
  • Meals Included: B,L
Day 3: Ubud/Kintamani
Visit the morning market in Ubud where local Balinese do their daily shopping for food and ritual items for upcoming village offerings and ceremonies.

Take a leisurely walk through rice fields and back roads to experience up-close, the life of rice-farmers in an agricultural island that is quickly disappearing with modernity.

Drive to one of the ancient purification sites – Tirta Empul Holy Spring Temple, considered a sacred site by Balinese to get rid of the negative energy in the body and soul by soaking in the fresh and sacred springs. Everyone is invited to experience the cool and holy spring waters.

Transfer to Kintamani, a favorite destination with its panoramic views of the active Mt. Batur volcano (has not erupted in over 50 years) and beautiful Lake Batur, the largest in Bali. Enjoy lunch at a local restaurant with a breathtaking view of the entire island.

The remaining of the day is free to enjoy your hotel spa facility or explore town on your own.

  • Accommodations: ARMA Resort
  • Meals Included: B,L
Day 4: Ubud/Peliatan
This morning we’ll have a private visit with one of the renowned healers of Bali. Western doctors, psychologists, health professionals and other medical experts make special trips from around the world to study with, and observe these traditional healers.

Lunch at delicious Clear Café, one of the best local health food restaurants in Ubud, offering a variety of fresh juices, salads, full entrees and incredible desserts.

In the afternoon enjoy a private visit, conversation, and coffee/tea at the Peliatan Palace with Prince Cokorda Krisna Dalem Agung, a young entrepreneur.

Peliatan, one of the oldest palaces in Bali, is renowned for its artistic activities. The gamelan musicians and dancers travel abroad as cultural ambassadors. One of the living princesses was the first Balinese dancer to travel to the US with Bob Hope and Fred Astaire in the 1930s. Peliatan is also a center of painting and woodcarving with many artist studios on the main street and back lanes. Have lunch on your own here.

In the evening enjoy dinner at ARMA followed by a traditional Balinese dance performance.

  • Accommodations: ARMA Resort
  • Meals Included: B,L,D
Day 5: Pemuteran
In the morning, travel to Pemuteran, the ancient village on the northwest coast. Pass the stunning rice-terraced land and tropical jungles. On the way, stop at the historical Ulun Danu Temple, built in 1633 idyllically located at the shore of Lake Bratan.

After lunch visit Bedugul traditional market.

Arrive at Amertha Villa Resort in time to witness a spectacular sunset on the beach in front of your private villa complete with a pool.

Pemuteran village lies in the shadow of a gorgeous mountainous region to the south and to the north is Menjangan Island, considered one of the best diving spots in the world. Pemuteran has the largest area of shallow coral reefs in Bali, easily accessible, free of strong currents and waves, making it perfect for swimming, snorkeling and diving. Still undeveloped, The Resort blends wonderfully with nature, using natural indigenous materials in a relaxed setting surrounded by tranquil gardens and a gorgeous swimming pool.

Dinner on your own on the sands of the Pemuteran ocean, or perhaps served next to the private pool in your villa.

  • Accommodations: Amertha Villa Resort
  • Meals Included: B,L
Day 6: Pemuteran
Breakfast is served right on the sands of the Bali’s northern coastline!  Take a morning visit to the Coral Reef Restoration Project sanctioned by United Nations and developed by Agung Prana. Optional snorkeling available.

Have a leisurely afternoon for swimming, massage, and walks on the private beaches.

Dinner on your own at the resort.

  • Accommodations: Amertha Villa Resort
  • Meals Included: B,L
Day 7: Menjangan Island
This morning take a boat to Menjangan Island off the western tip of Bali for some of the best snorkeling and diving in the region. Named after a local species of deer, Menjangan Island is part of West Bali National Park. Enjoy the whole day snorkeling or just relaxing at this unique beach area. Diving is an additional cost.

Return to the hotel for relaxation. Enjoy dinner at a local Balinese home. Afterwards, stop by Melanting Temple, Bali’s prosperity temple.  Most Balinese will travel here at least once a year for blessings of the businesses and crops. We’ll visit at night for a most memorable and magical evening.

  • Accommodations: Amertha Villa Resort
  • Meals Included: B,L,D
Day 8: Munduk Village/ Mengwi
After one last beach breakfast, travel through central Bali to the quiet village of Munduk, situated 1500 meters above sea level. It’s known for the breathtaking views, as well as its clove and coffee plantations. We’ll stop on the way to enjoy the smells and tastes!

Have lunch at a local restaurant before arriving at Puri Taman Sari Resort, a traditional Balinese resort owned by Agung Prana, a member of the Mengwi Royal Family. Enjoy your new home, in the midst of the rice fields for the last two nights in Bali. Dinner is on your own.

  • Accommodations: Puri Taman Sari Resort
  • Meals Included: B,L
Day 9: Mengwi
Enjoy a walking tour of the historical Mengwi, including a visit to one of the oldest and largest temple sites and kingdoms of Bali—the 17th century Taman Ayun temple.  Lastly, we will visit Tanah Lot, sitting on a rock in the ocean. Lunch is on your own at Tanah Lot. Late afternoon, if time permits, meet Agung Prana’s special healer and herbal specialist, Made Mangku. You may enjoy an optional private reading.

In the evening, a farewell dinner, closing ceremony and other surprises.

  • Accommodations: Puri Taman Sari Resort
  • Meals Included: B,D
Day 10: Travel Home or Extension
Our fascinating journey ends today as we return to US, or carry on with a post tour extension.

  • Meals Included: B

Pre-Tour Extension

Orangutans of Borneo

Day 1-2: U.S./Jakarta
Depart the U.S. on your international flight to Indonesia. Cross the international dateline and arrive in Jakarta on the following day. Meet your local guide and transfer to your hotel by the airport. The evening is free for you to relax or explore.

  • Accommodations at the Swiss-Bel Hotel by the Jakarta Airport (1 night)
  • Accommodations: Swiss-Bel Hotel
  • Meals Included: Meals Aloft 
Day 3: Surabaya/Pangkalanbun
Depart for your flight to Pangkalanbun (approximately 30 minutes). Upon arrival at the Pangkalanbun Airport you will be greeted by your local guide and transferred to the Kumai port to board a local Klotok boat for a scenic boat journey along the Kumai and Sekonyer River. Start your navigation first on the wide Kumai River and after 30 minutes enter the smaller Sekonyer River that marks the boarder of the Tanjung Puting National Park. The lush vegetation along the river bank first consists of Nipa palm (a palm tree only found near estuaries as they grow in salty water), slowly giving way to Pandans trees.

After 2 hours of navigation you’ll reach the Rimba Lodge, an eco-lodge located on the edge of Tanjung Puting National Park and only accessible by boat. This area is notable for its ecologically and biologically diverse areas with mangrove swamps, rainforest, and dense jungles filled with primates, leopards, lizards, and more than 250 bird species. Check in at the lodge. The rest of the evening at leisure. Dinner is served at the lodge restaurant. Overnight at Rimba Lodge.

  • Accommodations: Rimba Lodge 
  • Meals Included: B,L,D
Day 4: Orangutan Research Facility at Camp Leakey
After breakfast at Rimba lodge, board the Klotok boat and begin your navigation upstream the Seikonyer River. After an hours journey, the boat will turn off the main Seikonyer river and enter a small narrow branch of the river. Along the way your guide will point out the various birds that live in the jungles around the river such as kingfishers, broadbill, and hornbills.

Continue the journey for about 2 hours to reach Camp Leakey, the most famous place for orangutan research in the world. Over the years as many as 200 orangutans were gradually reintroduced to the wild since the camp was founded in 1971. Today the camp operates mainly as a feeding platform; with orangutans being fed and medically monitored by the local rangers. Over the past few years the overall population of Orangutans have reached a sustainable number; between 5000 to 6000 individuals spread across the 4,000 square kilometer area of the park. Most of the orangutans in the park are born in the wild and the ones that do come to the feeding sites are generally mothers with young offspring and animals that have been recently released.

Lunch is served on board before arriving at Camp Leakey. Disembark at Camp Leakey for a 30 minute walk along a wooden pontoon, then follow a jungle path with a chance to observe more wild animals on the way: gibbons, long tail macaques as well as wild pigs. The Orangutan feeding at Camp Leakey takes place daily in the afternoon when rangers bring bananas or other fruits to a wooden platform inside the jungle. Watching the Orangutans emerge from the jungle as they swing branch to branch is an unforgettable experience! You will be near the platform, supervised by the rangers as the Orangutans can come from anywhere around you! Return to the boat in the late afternoon and start your navigation back to Rimba Lodge. At this time of the day many proboscis monkeys, an endemic species of Kalimantan and easily recognizable by their long red nose, come close to the river banks to spend the night in large groups. You will also have a good chance to watch wild Orangutans coming down to the riverside to pick up the fruit of the pandan trees, one of their favorite foods.

Dinner is served at the lodge. (B,L,D)

  • Accommodations: Rimba Lodge
  • Meals Included: B,L,D
Day 5: Pondok Tanguy/Pasalat Station/Tanjung Harapan Camp/Harapan Village
After breakfast, travel upstream for about an hour to reach Pondok Tanguy, the second feeding center of orangutans. The platform is located down a half mile walk on a wooden pontoon then past a sandy path surrounded by ferns and lush vegetation.

After feeding time, return to the boat and travel downstream to Pasalat Rainforest Station where several institutions and NGO are working on conservation efforts with a strong focus on reforestation, in order to preserve the natural habitat of the Orangutans. You will get an opportunity to plant trees during your time at Pasalat Rainforest station.

Return to your Klotok for a trip down to Tanjung Harapan Camp, where you will visit the third and most remote of the Orangutan feeding platforms.

Afterwards, take a short crossing to Harapan village, one of the only settlements along the river. Have a walk through the village and visit with the Malayan families and observe their daily activities. Return to Rimba Lodge, just over the river from the village. Dinner at the lodge.

  • Accommodations: Rimba Lodge
  • Meals Included: B,L,D
Day 6: Pangkalanbun/Surabaya/Bali
After breakfast at the lodge, return by boat to Kumai and transfer by private vehicle to the Pangkalanbun Airport for your flight to Surabaya. Transfer to a flight to Denpasar, Bali. The main tour starts today.

  • Meals included: B

Pre-Tour Extension

Temples and Artisans of Java

Day 1-2: U.S./Yogyakarta
Depart the U.S. on your international flight to Indonesia. Cross the international dateline and arrive in Yogyakarta on the following day. Meet your local guide and transfer to your hotel. The evening is free for you to relax or explore.

  • Accommodations at the Eastpark Hotel in Surabaya (4 nights)
  • Accommodations: Eastpark Hotel 
  • Meals Included: Meals Aloft 
Day 3: Yogyakarta
After breakfast, head for the Sultan’s Palace. Situated in the heart of the city, the building still holds its function as a royal palace. Learn about Javanese palace architecture and pass by the market, shops, batik, silver studios, and mosques serving the area’s residents and preserving Java’s cultural heritage.

From here, continue to the Sonobudoyo Museum; the region’s most comprehensive exhibit of Javanese art. See its vast collection, including wayang kulit (shadow puppets), topeng (Javanese masks), kris (religious knives), and batik.

After lunch at a local restaurant, travel to Kota Gede, a handicraft district of Yogyakarta with fascinating architecture and great bargains for anyone looking for high-quality goods. Stroll the narrow alleyways and dip into the silversmith shops, reminiscent of the lively silver industry established in the 1930s.

After dinner, finish your day at the famous shopping street of Malioboro where you can test your bargaining skills on handicrafts, Batik clothing, and Javanese snacks. (B,L,D)

  • Accommodations: Eastpark Hotel
  • Meals Included: B,L,D
Day 4: Yogyakarta
Start your day with a community batik workshop to create your own batik designs. During the two hour class you’ll see how batik is created from designing a meaningful pattern, to carefully adding hot wax to the fabric, and receiving the final product. You will also learn about the history and symbolism behind the batik technique.

Lunch is at a local restaurant. In the mid-afternoon, head to Prambanan Temple. These huge ancient Hindu temples were built in the 9th century and the three main inner shrines are dedicated to the Hindu trinity: Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva. Prambanan became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1991. Your guide will explain the history and symbolism of the temples as you walk around.

After the visit, continue to a nearby local restaurant where you will enjoy an early dinner followed by a traditional performance of the Hindu epic tale Ramayana. The play takes place at an opened theatre with the illuminated temples of Prambanan as a background.

  • Accommodations: Eastpark Hotel 
  • Meals Included: B,L,D
Day 5: Borobudur Temple
Wake up in the early hours of the morning to reach Borobudur Temple for sunrise. This is the most mystical time to see the temple as the sun rises over the structure in the tranquil morning air with very fewer tourists at the temple. Built around 800 A.D., this colossal Buddhist relic is one of Indonesia’s marvels and is considered the largest Buddhist temple in the world. After the decline of Buddhism and the shift of power to East Java, the monument was abandoned soon after its completion. For centuries the complex lay forgotten, buried under layers of volcanic ash.

Lunch is on the way back from Borobudur Temple. This afternoon is free for shopping, sightseeing or relaxation at the hotel.

  • Accommodations: Eastpark Hotel
  • Meals Included: B,L
Day 6: Yogyakarta/Bali
After breakfast at the lodge, return by boat to Kumai and transfer by private vehicle to the Pangkalanbun Airport for your flight to Surabaya. Transfer to a flight to Denpasar, Bali. The main tour starts today.

  • Meals Included: B

Post-Tour Extension

Komodo Dragons of the Flores Island

Day 1: Bali/Labuan Bajo
Depart Denpasar on a flight to Labuan Bajo, a city at the Western tip of Flores Island. Your guide and private car will transfer you to your hotel.

In the afternoon visit Batu Cermin Cave, which means ‘Mirror Rock’ in the local language due to its eerie glow emitted when the sun is at the right angle. This limestone cave is home to a large bat and monkey population and also offers panoramic views of the mainland and bay.

Dinner is at a restaurant near your hotel in Labuan Bajo. (D)

  • Accommodations: Bintang Flores
  • Meals included: D
Day 2: Labuan Bajo/Rinca Island/Kalong Island
The beautiful Phinisi schooner Plataran Felicia awaits at the private jetty near Labuan Bajo. Your journey starts as you sail over the blue ocean to Rinca Island (approximately 3 hours), part of the Komodo National Park with its famous inhabitants – the Komodo Dragons. The trek starts at the ranger station near the jetty in a small lagoon, and is guided by experienced rangers. The trek will lead to the unique lizards, who relax hidden among the large trees or under the local people’s stilt-houses.

Afterwards, enjoy a session of snorkeling and some relaxation at the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Pink Beach (Pantai Merah). The beach gets its color from small red coral fragments that mix with the white sand.

After snorkeling, the cruise continues to Kalong Island where the Plataran Felicia will be mooring for the night. Kalong Island is known for its mangrove forest and the “house of thousand bats”. After sunset, witness thousands of bats fly overhead out of the mangroves.

  • Accommodations: Aboard Plantaran Felicia 
  • Meal included: B,L,D
Day 3: Kalong Island/Komodo Island/Manta Point
Early in the morning the boat will set-off to Komodo Island. After breakfast, another trek awaits on Komodo Island, offering a different landscape and features from Rinca Island. Besides the dragons, other animals can frequently be observed in Komodo, such as deer, wild boar and various birds. A local ranger will lead you through this nature reserve.

Take a tour of a village nestled in Komodo National Park. Get a glimpse of life in this remarkable setting and learn how the community manages to live among the dragons.

In the afternoon proceed to Manta Point. Manta Point (Karang Makassar) is a spot where manta rays can often be encountered (Although manta rays spotting isn’t guaranteed, Manta Point offers excellent snorkeling as well!). These huge marine creatures can grow up to 4 meters in width and are extremely friendly to swim with. They are endangered, and efforts are made to protect them from illegal fishing practices. Turtles, eagle rays, giant trevallies, huge clams, various kind of sponges, and cuttlefish are frequently seen on the reef.

Back on board enjoy a drink for sunset. Dinner is served on board as you slowly sail to Siaba for an overnight stay.

  • Accomodation: Aboard Plantaran Felicia 
  • Meals included: B,L,D
Day 4: Kanawa Island/Sabolon Island/Labuan Bajo
After breakfast, enjoy snorkeling at Kanawa Island, a beautiful small island with amazing corals. Afterward the Plataran Felicia will bring you to another beautiful snorkeling spot at Sabolon Island. Sabolon is one of the best snorkeling areas in Indonesia. The islands itself is uninhabited (except for goats!) and is only accessible by a small beach wreathed by a spectacular underwater reef.

Continue sailing to Labuan Bajo and disembark around noon. Transfer to the hotel in the late afternoon. Dinner is at the hotel. (B,L)

  • Accommodations: Bintang Flores
  • Meals included: B,L
Day 5: Labuan Bajo/Bali
After breakfast at the lodge, return by boat to Kumai and transfer by private vehicle to the Pangkalanbun Airport for your flight to Surabaya. Transfer to a flight to Denpasar, Bali.

  • Meal included: B