Rice terraces for days, organic food central, yoga retreats, waterfalls. This is where the influencer lot hang out for several months while they have social media retreats and spend hours perfecting that Bali swing shot that I know I will never get. But never say never, right?

STAY

From ultra luxe hotels to rental apartments and guesthouses smack in the midst of paddy fields the options are endless.

For my one and only time (yet) in Ubud we chose possibly the best hotel I have ever been to.

Ritz Carlton Mandapa Reserve

The Mandapa village as they call it is a small little paradise valley of rice terraces by the Ayung river. A sanctuary where villas and suites face a scenic and serene lush green valley of paddies, a hill and also the gushing river, dotted with rafters every morning. The spa, pools, dinner cocoons, service, temple, world’s best buffet breakfast ever and just everything was next level luxury. We had booked a suite and a private villa and to be honest I still can’t decide which one I liked more. The bathtub in the suite had a feeling reminiscent of Mughal royalty while the service was even better than royal treatment. The infinity pool had just the perfect blend of greens and blues, making me wish I had never gotten out of it.

Other great properties in Ubud are Alila Ubud, and there are a ton of hippie, yoga retreat-ish places that I haven’t had the liberty to stay at.

EAT

Locavore

In the heart of Ubud is this cozy little restaurant rated one of the top 50 restaurants in Asia, boasting a tasting menu using local produce. The meal itself is pricey but fabulous. The chef takes into consideration your dietary preferences and be sure to scan through everything or some stuff like the Goat tartare (ick!) will be sitting pretty on your plate and sadly you may not be able to stomach it. Let me tell you, if Chrissy Teigen came back for round 2 of this fabulous meal, you better get yourself a reservation. Opt for the drink pairing and you are in for one hell of an explosion of flavours.

Warung Babi Guling Ibu Oka

Anthony Bourdain’s “best pork in the world” and he wasn’t kidding. This little hole in the wall with new found fame definitely serves some of the best pork and curry. We had it picked up by Putu (our driver) before noon because it usually sells out by mid-day. The crispy skin and other mysterious pieces are just heavenly.

Kubu at Mandapa Reserve

The string of cocoon tables by the Ayung, Kubu makes for a gorgeous and romantic setting.

Uno

A pizzeria with wood fire oven pizzas very close to the Ubud traditional market gave us a good break from all the Indonesian food.

Right opposite is a gelato spot called Gaya that has some really interesting flavour choices.

SHOP

Walk along Jalan Raya and turn onto Jalan Dewisita to find little boutiques and gems.

Gangga for Handicrafts

Quality statues, handicrafts and well displayed way better quality stuff than you will find in the market.

Uma and Leopold

A mix of modern silhouettes and Balinese lace craft creating wearable and chic pieces. Love the sandals.

Andy Risla

Hippy chic at this adorable store full of luscious soft fabrics embellished with bead work. I loved loved loved so many pieces and they are well priced too. I also think the inner Sindhi in me was just so into the embellishments.

Smarteria

Up cycling meets travel accessories. Really nice and very sturdy cosmetic and toiletry pouches, bags, and sleeves using discarded fishing nets. Everything is made in Vietnam by a group of women who have been evicted from their homes forcibly. SOLD.  Mind you, it isn’t cheap like the art market pouches and bags but absolutely worth every penny.

Jewellery from Kapal Laut and Blink. Super trendy pieces of jewellery, tassel earrings, silver classic pieces and beaded beauties.

Blue stone Naturals Oils has body mists, room sprays and the most luscious, yummy smelling products.

Ubud traditional art market

Endless stalls of handicrafts, dreamcatchers, baskets, bags, clothes, paintings and home décor for miles. Bargain your heart out and don’t forget to carry large shopping totes.

This is a blackhole for someone like me who can buy anything under the sun justifying to myself how much I really ‘need’ it so be careful or you will be going back home with an extra suitcase or two.

SEE/ DO

Rice terraces

Tegalalang Rice terraces, the typical Ubud thing to see. The rice paddies and terraces are gorgeous but the lines and crowds are not. It’s quite the hike to climb all the way down and walk around, but I managed to get on a version of the overly popular Bali swing here and enjoyed 5 minutes of wind in my hair minus the long line at the official “bali swing” park.

Bali swing park

There are a bunch of parks that offer a variety of swings now. If you want to stand in line for a perfectly curated swing and get a dreamy shot of you, this is your spot. I am not a fan of waiting to get the ‘perfect’ fake shot so I gave this one a huge miss. Don’t let any influencers fool you into making it feel like a serene experience.

Holy water temple Tirta Empul

One of the many famous temples, this one is a big different with the holy spring water that the Balinese people spiritually cleanses you. Quite a pretty place and lovely energy. Make sure you wear the sarong over even if you are in a long dress.

White water rafting

One doesn’t usually think of rafting in Bali and nor had I. I had not been rafting before and these rapids are ‘for babies’ so that seemed perfect for me. Also, having to watch rafters scream past us from breakfast at Mandapa meant it had to be done. The entire experience was super fun, the steps going down to the river were in hundreds… phew! We were told that the steps going up from the river at the end of the rafting course were even worse but we literally got off at our hotel (VIP style) just before the rapids ended so was a super and drenching experience.

The company we went with was Bali Sobek www.balisobek.com

Rafting in Bali vlog coming soon

For other General details read Bali Baby: My Bali guide