Bali - the land of smiles and beauty

We went in April to Bali for the first time as a family. I'd been before, but just after the Kuta bombs and with work, so a very different experience. We started in Ubud, which we absolutely loved. The food was outstanding and the hotel exceeded our expectations. My husband asked for views of the jungle, and that’s what we had from our two bedroom pool villa. We stayed at Jannata Resort & Spa: https://jannataresort.com/ This place was beautiful and the staff could not do enough for us. We spent our time relaxing, listening to the Cicadas and looking out onto jungle while having a cold Bintang or three! Ubud town has loads of amazing places to eat, where you can dine on local dishes, before spending the time sightseeing. The Monkey Forest is a must - prices are roughly £15 for a family of 4. I can highly recommend a stop in Ubud, as part of a Bali itinerary. Next stop was Nusa Penida - a paradise for divers and snorkelers. We had three nights and stayed in the gorgeous Adiwana Warnakali hotel: https://adiwanahotels.com/warnakali-resort-nusa-penida-bali/ Again with stunning views from the rooms and the dining area. The pool is beautiful too and you can even see the mainland and a volcano from the loungers! However, it's not easy to walk around from the hotel and roads are hard to navigate. If we rented some scooters, we may have enjoyed the area more, but with two kids it's not easy to scoot around! We went on a couple of excursions and if you’re a diver, this is the place to go with clear sea and so much fish and coral and mantas (which we sadly didn’t see but had fun searching for!). Our last stop in Bali was Seminyak - what a fabulous town! We stayed at Blue Karma Dijiwa Seminyak: https://www.dijiwasanctuaries.com/at/bluekarmaseminyak in a two bedroom villa steps away from lots of great restaurants and a few blocks away from the beach. The restaurants here in particular surprised me with their high quality and variation. There’s everything from great Indonesian places to tasty Japanese conveyor type restaurants, a fraction of the price of Yo Sushi, but better! The beach side restaurants and bars are the perfect places to watch sunset, while listening to djs play and drinking cocktails. There are also loads of fabulous temples and places of worship. One day we watched as they closed the road for a procession with locals dressed in traditional dress, and musicians playing. It was great to watch. Our overall impression of Bali is that it's a stunning country with the friendliest and most honest people. Everyone seemed to smile with a genuineness that shines through. Bali is an amazing country and I can’t wait to return.