Off to Bali in March for the first time :)

[Jaygraham]

Hi

I'm off to Bali on March the 5th for a week. I'm a intermediate surfer (been surfing 2 years) mainly beach breaks but a few small reef breaks up to 4 ft. I know it's towards the end of wet season then but hoping to get a bit of surfing done. I'm staying in seminyak what's the go and where to go. Do you think I should take my own board (6ft hypto) or hire a decent board out there? Thanks for any help or info this is my first post so be kind haha

Regards

Jay

[Tudeo]

I think when preparing to surf in Bali the most important thing is to consider crowds, so choose a board that gives u the edge in catching waves. That is usually a bigger board but don't overdo it or u wouldn't be able to duckdive or control it in 12+ seconds period waves.

To give u an idea of crowds, januari is considered low season for Bali surfing tourism. But I was surfing Batu Bolong yesterday on an exceptional small day of 2.5ft@15s, I had to share the few waves at 08:00 hours with about 80 other surfers..

[Big H]

East coast up until the end of April is usually the go, but with El Nino, there hasn't been any rain to speak of since December and winds are all over the place so it's anyone's guess....swells are not big that time of year so pretty much anywhere should be manageable....

Where are you coming from? I have zero idea about traveling with a board; never done it. Jaffa has come several times here as well as many other worldwide locations; he'd be the one to weigh in on whether or not to bring a board. I can tell you board rentals vary; I believe there are some services (check the net) that you can rent a board and have it delivered to your hotel (premium) down to on the beach rentals (decent to straight up raggedy). Some people are really tied to their boards and can't surf on anything else; if that's you better bring your own.

There are some decent spots around where you are staying; PM me and I'll share some with you.

You might want to rethink the timing....Nyepi is on the 9th which means from the evening of the 8th until the morning of the 10th you CANNOT go outside, or if you are in a hotel, you can only stay within the grounds. NO SURFING, not even a stroll on the street....

http://www.holidaysia.com/events/nyepi/

[RinkyDink]

You might want to rethink the timing....Nyepi is on the 9th which means from the evening of the 8th until the morning of the 10th you CANNOT go outside, or if you are in a hotel, you can only stay within the grounds. NO SURFING, not even a stroll on the street....

http://www.holidaysia.com/events/nyepi/

It's a toss up for me whether Nyepi or Buy Nothing Day is my favorite holiday. I wish we had Nyepi in America.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buy_Nothing_Day

[Jaygraham]

Cheers guy it's all booked up unfortunately that's all good a few days off surfing and chill haha. Thanks for the great advice.

Regards
Jay

[Big H]

Tour operators should have told you....no one travels here during that period. You can get a wild introduction to the culture and go see the ogoh2 parades. Ask the front desk at your hotel where to go.

[nystea]

Sorry to say but the waves suck that time of the year... better go to lombok you ll be more quite and more good waves for you

[Big H]

Waves in Lombok the same as Bali....not the best time of year for either place though El Nino is making this a different kind of year....Lombok is no paradise either; this happened recently.....I have been cautioned to be careful if you travel at night....


http://www.theinertia.com/surf/3-touris ... in-lombok/

[Big H]

Not looking to colour Lombok too badly, Jaffa and many others have had positive experiences there and waves can be epic....but consider this:

https://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/ ... -on-lombok

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserRevi ... 126520060-


http://balibelly.com/news/3701/robbed-at-desert-point