Bali with Kids

[pico_train]

Hi Everybody,

We're planning a trip to Bali for the end of 2014. So over the New Year. We have 2 kids, they will be 7 and 4. They'll want to swim, boogie board, see animals and do things kids want to do. My wife will want to learn to surf, go to the beach, shop a bit and go to the spa once or twice.

Myself, frankly, I don't give a damn as long as I can surf 2-3ft fun waves and then give the wife time off from the kids everyday for an hour or 2 in exchange for an hour or 2 of surf.

So, is a villa worthwhile and can we get staff to cook us meals. Any recommendations?

Hotel wise, any recommendations with a kids' club and not too too pricey. We can afford 3 or 4 * probably.

Renting a board there? Any good ones or should I bring my own? Waves more suitable to a 5'10 fish or a 9' longboard? (Jaffa, I got a new one, with a proper fin box now, 6'5 incher with sidebites and a 9 incher for summer to mess around on. Goes like a beaut!)

I'm leaning towards Canggu, Seminyak. We don't want to hang around with 18 year old Aussies (no offence to my antipodean friends) getting pissed. We do want to have some activity around just not debauchery and too much noise.

Thanks for your advice and time!

[pico_train]

Oh and I know it's the "wet" season that time of year so will the Seminyak/Canggu area still have waves or will it be junk?

I'm an advanced intermediate.

[Aqualife]

Hi,
December is frankly one of the worst times of the year to go to Bali for your wishes. The monsoon is in full swing and you might get full all day downpours but you might also get rain only from 4pm through the night and then beautiful sunny days. The winds can be often cross-shore or straight onshore on the West Coast and the surf blown out and a mess. The ocean gets quite dirty with all the rubbish being blown over from Java, so it really isn't ideal for the West Coast (Seminyak/Canggu). The coastline that is ok is the East Coast (Nusa Du/Sanur) for surf during this time. The winds are offshore there. The thing is that it all breaks on reef and is much faster and less forgiving than some of the East Coast breaks, definetely not longboard nor beginner territory. You can surf the reform inside reef at Serangan but that's about it.
I would suggest going to Nusa Lembongan (island off the East Coast off Bali), short boat ride from Sanur, there is a speedboat these days as well. There is a wave called Playgrounds there that is suitable to both beginners and intermediates. The island isn't all that much of a party scene but more mellow and laid back. You can stay in a resort or rent a house and get a pembantu (Balinese help) to look after the kids.
What you want (2-3 ft clean conditions and an all-inclusive resort with kids club), you will only get on Bali's West Coast between late March to about late May and in Sept/Oct with consistency. The June-August is mostly big swells. And mid-Nov to late Feb you get onshore and messy swells on the West Coast (with some exceptions but you cannot count on those).

All up, if you want Seminyak/Canggu, don't go in December. Or go and don't expect clean waves, you might get a freak calm day but it's not likely.

Balinese love kids and your kids will get so much attention, they will be in heaven. There is tons of stuff to do and see.

May be do Sanur/Nusa Dua for a few days and then hop on over to Nusa Lembongan (unless you want to travel further afield).

Good luck.

[pico_train]

Thanks for the info Aqualife. Will look into things.

[pico_train]

So it's booked for Nusa Dua - December 2014. Forward planning begins now!

[dtc]

So it's booked for Nusa Dua - December 2014. Forward planning begins now!

2014!

Nusa Dua is really nice but a collection of 5 star resorts. Fantastic for kids, not 'true' Bali of course but I suspect most of Bali is no longer 'true' Bali by a long stretch. Much more of a lay around the pool kind of place. You will have to head into Kuta to do surfing lessons but its no big deal, about 30 minutes from memory. Take the kids to the water park and do all the other touristy things. There are some nice restaurants just outide the security barrier into Nusa Dua

[pico_train]

Yeah thanks, my wife wants to go and do just that in the resorts. Bugger the surfing lessons, will probably contact LW and see what's potting for waves with him. Restaurants nearby is good.

Perhaps a sneaky private boat to Nusa Lebongan for Xmas eve...

[pico_train]

Hi again, reviving this one...

With regards to surfboard rental, has anyone ever used rent a surfboard DOT com? And what was you overall impression? Board good? Etc etc... any info would be great.

As for wax, and using Mrs Palmers as a reference, should I opt for warm water or Tropical water wax for Bali in Dec? Is there any difference between the two? Like Cold and Cool both work fine here.

Thanks!

[jaffa1949]

picotrain, a revival answer for you!. Tropical wax only anything else becomes a squooshie lump that deforms and becomes slippery under your feet!
As for surfboardrentals.com I have no idea looked at the site seems to be lots of boards UNTIL you get location specific and then there are less and they reserve the right to offer something else so ???

Checked their facebook page and also some reviews, seems it could be OK

[pico_train]

Thanks jaffa

[IMinCA]

Pico, I went to Bali a couple of years ago with my then 8 yr old son and 7 yr old nephew and took lessons with Baruna Surf Culture. They were really kind and accommodating. They suggested Canggu since it was closer to them, but we did Kuta and kind of sucked bc it was so crowded. In any case, Adi from Baruna also does surf board rentals and I'm assuming provided the wax. His sister was also available for babysitting services in the event I wanted to surf more.

[pico_train]

Ok, Thanks IMinCA - IMinSA.