Tag: bali safety

Common tourist scams

Bali is incredibly tourist-friendly, especially in the south where places like Kuta, Seminyak, and Canggu are buzzing. However, where there are tourists, tourist scams often follow. That being said, to be honest I didn’t find Bali had many compared to other destinations in South East Asia. Overcharging is the most common issue, like taxis trying to hike up prices, particularly at the airport. To avoid this, when you arrive I’d suggest either having your transfer booked in advance, or alternatively use Grab (equivalent to Uber) so you have the cost up front.

Often tours are marked up for foreigners, so as a tourist you can expect to be a bit overcharged for transport, trips, market goods, scooters etc. You can haggle a bit, but don’t get too competitive – this is their livelihood after all, and often the number you’re haggling over isn’t as high as you think it is.

Our experience in Bali

We didn’t encounter any major problems during our time in Bali (or anywhere else in Indonesia). That said, we did fall into the occasional tourist trap, which honestly is part and parcel of any backpacking trip.

Sometimes as a foreigner and a guest in the country you do just have to pay extra, especially for tours or transport. But it’s not necessarily a scam, it’s just often marked up if aimed at tourists. For example the speedboat to go from Bali to Lombok is around IDR400,000 (~£20), which as a tourist option is more expensive than the local ferry at around IDR75,000 (~£3.50). We did get slightly scammed on our return on the local ferry, where a guy rushed us on to the boat saying it was going to leave, said he could get us tickets, charged us double, and then we sat sheepishly on the boat for 2 hours before it left until it was full. But it wasn’t an issue, and I low key respect the hustle.

In general, trust your gut. It’s ok (and expected) to be overcharged a bit, but if someone’s taking you for an absolute ride it’s also ok not to go ahead with it.

Often it’s more convenient and reliable to book your transport online. We used the website 12Go Asia for a number of other transport links getting between islands across Indonesia and it works really well.

Boats in Bali

There have been several instances of boats sinking and capsizing in Indonesia, especially in the last year or so. It would be hypocritical of me to say don’t get any boats, as we got several along our 3 months in Indonesia (and had no issues). That being said, keep an eye on the conditions, and if the sea seems too choppy, or bad weather is forecast, trust your gut and rebook for a day where you feel safer and the forecast is good. Don’t feel pressured into going on a day where it just feels off, because the safety precautions on board might not be at the same standard as your home country, and it’s never worth risking your life over.

Vaccinations

Depending on where you’re coming from it’s quite likely you’ll need some vaccinations for your trip to Bali, so bear this in mind when budgeting for your trip (they can get expensive). Certain vaccines also need multiple doses across several weeks, so make sure you’ve left enough time before you depart. The Japanese Encephalitis jab for example has 2 doses, 4 weeks apart, and the Rabies jab has 3 doses.

Consult your local doctor or pharmacist to check which exact vaccines you need, but here is a useful link from Finn’s beach club about vaccines and other health info for your trip:

https://finnsbeachclub.com/guides/vaccinations-bali/

Safety Tips for Solo Travellers in Bali (or Solo Travellers anywhere)

A good rule of thumb for travel is – if you don’t do it at home, don’t do it abroad.

Bali is filled with incredibly kind and welcoming people, and safety issues are rarely serious if you stay alert. Just use the same common-sense travel precautions you already know and likely use at home. Keep your bag cross-body so it’s hard to snatch, keep your valuables hidden. Cover your PIN when you’re getting cash out. If you’re travelling solo and someone seems dodgy don’t let them know you’re solo, just say you’re on your way to meet someone. If you go out with friends in a hostel, message them when you’re home and/or check they got home safely. Don’t get so drunk you don’t know how to get home. For the love of god, don’t drink and then drive a scooter. Please also always wear a helmet. Pretty please.

Staying connected

I always feel safer when I can use my phone, so staying connected is one of the best ways I like to feel secure while travelling.

If you’re staying 30 days or longer in Indonesia I’d recommend getting a physical Telkomsel SIM card. We had signal everywhere we went across Bali, Lombok, Java and Sumatra, even in the middle of quite remote places (the only place we didn’t was deep in the jungle in Sumatra). Your taxi driver from the airport may offer to take you to a shop to get a SIM on the way to your accommodation – ours did, and took us to a shop that charged us IDR500,000 (about triple the actual price). So I wouldn’t worry about needing to get a SIM immediately – get to your accommodation and then just go to any shop advertising Telkomsel and get a SIM there instead.

If you’re going for a week or two, it may be worth getting an eSIM instead. eSIMs tend to be more expensive, but are more convenient. You’ll need wifi to set it up, so either buy it before your trip, or use the airport wifi once you’re there. Sometimes I like to get an eSIM before any trip just for a couple of days, or even just 24 hours, as that way I can stay connected while finding an actual SIM at a local shop. While I’m on wifi I also like to download an offline map from google maps of the area I’m heading to just in case.

Apps I Would Download Before Your Trip

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• Grab – there’s no public transport in Bali, so Grab will be your way of getting about, either by taxi or bike. Grab is like Uber and will have the cost up-front.
• 12Go Asia – a great website for transport bookings like booking ferries or speedboats to the islands. Again the cost is there up-front so no need to haggle, and we have found it to be pretty reliable.
• Airalo – great for eSIMs, get one for the first day of your trip or even your whole trip so you always can find your way about.

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In short — yes, Bali is safe for backpackers and solo travellers. You may pay tourist prices at times, but the people are warm, generous, and often willing to help if you’re in need. It’s not somewhere I felt I had to be constantly wary of scams, so I just followed the same basic travel precautions I would anywhere, and had a wonderful time in one of the most beautiful and culturally rich places on earth.

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