In my previous post I shared about my staycation in Ubud, Bali. My friend and I wanted to have a calm vibe for the weekend and Ubud was the perfect choice. It’s not so far from where we live and is easy to explore by motorbike. If you are wondering where to stay in Ubud and if you have a tight budget but still want to have the perfect place to stay for your vacation, I have one recommendation for you.
Keraman Suites Ubud. It is located 10 minutes away from the centre of Ubud and 5 minutes away from the Tegalalang rice terrace. I found this place from airbnb. It has a really great value for money and you will have the whole suite all for yourself. The facilities inside are the TV with international channel, AC, a nice bathtub with hot & cold water, also includes the basic bath amenities like shampoo, conditioner, shower gel, sea salt and hair dryer. The best part of this place is, it’s surrounded by the rice field and every morning you will wake up with a breathtaking view that you will never forget.
Comfortable gazeboInstagrammable spotIn front of the suiteView from the roomFresh welcome drinkBedroom areaFlower decoration on the bedBathroom
When you check in, Mr. Putu, the staff from Keraman Suites, will escort you to your suite, then bring the welcome drinks for you. The welcome drinks are a traditional drink that similar with Jamu. It was an extract of cem-cem leaves mixed with lemon. The taste is soft, not too bitter and a bit sour and salty. The room isn’t huge, but has enough space for you to put your stuff and luggage. The flower decoration on the bed and the welcome letter made us feel special. You need to know that this place has no phone in the room, so you need to remember to ask for the staff’s phone number to be easier to get contact with the staff member if you need help. In the morning you’ll have 3 options of breakfast that you can order once a day. These options are Indonesian breakfast, American breakfast and Continental breakfast. For the Indonesian breakfast, like what we had, you will get fried rice, the choice of fresh juice or fruit platter and the choice of coffee or tea.
For the availability and the price, you may need to check the listing of Keraman Suites in airbnb. It was $40 USD in total when I stayed there. I have a discount voucher for first time users if you click on the link here: discount voucher, so don’t miss it! 😊
People love to celebrate Valentine’s day with their loved ones. Whether it being with their partner, lover, family or best friend. I really wanted to have a romantic candle light dinner like a normal couple would, but due to Jake and I not being a normal one, we couldn’t do that. Separated by continent is real challenging, but we know we can do it! Soon enough, we will write a post about our next vacation. That’s another story but right now I’m going to share about my staycation with my best friend in Ubud, Bali. The original plan was totally different. I had a plan for solo travelling to Singapore for 4 days but since the Corona virus has spread there, it was cancelled. I wish for the ones who have the disease to recover soon and the death cases to be minimized.
First thing’s first, when we had just arrived in Ubud, we had lunch in Seniman Coffee Studio. People usually just call it Seniman Coffee. Seniman means artist in Indonesia. I always wanted to visit this Coffee place since everyone was giving me recommendations. Yes, literally everyone! And after I tried it, I never regretted my decision to come here. Their coffee is great! I have gastric acid, so I need to be really careful on what I eat and drink, but the coffee from Seniman Coffee Studio wasn’t causing any reactions on my belly. They not only serve coffee, but also serve varieties of chocolate and tea from all around Indonesia. Don’t forget, if you are in the mood for a snack or proper food for your hungry belly, the Indonesian foods and the bread from their bakery are worth a try. It is located in central Ubud, only 500 meters from Ubud Palace. Adding this place into your Ubud itinerary is not at all a bad idea.
Seniman COffee Studio Sign
Front Area of Seniman Coffee
Our choices of Food & Beverages
Right after our bellies were full, we went straight to Saraswati Temple. This temple is one of the most famous landmarks in Ubud. You can easily find the images of the place by the lotus pond and it’s water garden on the internet. This temple is dedicated for Saraswati Goddess, the Hindu deity of learning, literature and art. The temple itself, built in 1951, was initiated by the Prince of Ubud Cokorda Gede Agung Sukawati and designed by I Nyoman Lempad, the famous Balinese sculptor. Tourists are prohibited from entering the temple because it is only open for visitors who wish to pray. Most tourists are visiting Saraswati temple just to take photos. It is great for your instagram content because the background of the Balinese temple architecture with the lotus flower arrangements is very beautiful (although, it was not that great when I went there because the lotus flowers were not blooming at that time). Also, the combination of the temple gate and lotus pond architecture will make your pictures oh-so perfect. Oh, and don’t forget, you can see the Kecak Dance Performance at Saraswati Ubud Temple scheduled on Tuesday and Thursday, which starts at 19:30.
Saraswati Temple
Saraswati Temple area
In the late afternoon, we checked into The Keraman Suites Ubud. I found this place from airbnb and everything about it was great! It was only $34/night in US dollars, so, not so expensive. The location is not too far from the Tegalalang rice terrace. Only 5 minutes away and around 10 minutes to the centre of Ubud by motorbike. You will get a super cozy wooden suite with a nice bathtub as a plus. Outside of your suite, you will see such an amazing view with a small gazebo for spending your day next to the swimming pool. From speaking to Pak Putu, a staff member, I learned that the Keraman Suites had just opened up a month ago.
Entrance to the suite
Bedroom
Swimming Pool
Vacation isn’t complete without having a nice dinner with a nice view. (let’s call it an early dinner though, since we went there at 5 pm.) We were afraid of getting back to the place we were staying at too late because Ubud can be sooo dark at night. There is a cafe called Green Kubu that is only 5 minutes away from Keraman Suites and is famous for locals. It is common to see teenagers from all around Bali to be hanging out there. Price wasn’t expensive at all, only around IDR 100,000 for 2 pax. You can choose to sit on the bean bag chair, under the alang-alang roof or choose the seat surrounded by the vines. The food is fine and has a cheap price. There are many places with nice views there to take pictures for your instagram.
In the next morning we had our breakfast at 8.30 am, which was nice. It wasn’t too fancy but was yummy. There were only 3 breakfast options to choose from, the American breakfast, Indonesian breakfast and Continental Breakfast. We were in the mood for some fried rice so we chose the Indonesian breakfast. You can also choose between tea and coffee and also choose between juice and a fruit platter.
The last place we visited before we went back to Denpasar was The Cat Cafe Ubud which is located in Pengosekan. Don’t worry, it’s easy to find the location because you will see the big cat sign from faraway. They have about 15 cats that you can interact with and they are veeery cute and funny. They might look lazy but once you’re holding a cat snack, they will wake up and you will instantly be surrounded by them 😂. You only need to pay IDR 55,000 for 1 drink, which includes 1 cat snack. There are also some snacks for us humans as well 😂 but that is additional cost. This place is heaven on earth I must say 😍.
I visited this restaurant a while ago when my colleague asked to hangout near our office. It’s very easy for us to come after office hours. My office, located not far from the beach, is still in Sanur so we have many options to choose to hangout at. Our choice was Kayumanis Seaside Restaurant, located in Jl. Pantai Shindu. It’s only a 5 minute walk north of the parking area of Shindu Beach, so if you drive a car you don’t need to be worried about having to park too far away. If you walk north along the sidewalk of Shindu, there are a few other options of restaurants that you could try as well.
Kayumanis Seaside Restaurant is an open air bistro with a very stylish and modern design. It is open from breakfast time (6am) to dinner time. Kayumanis is separated into two sections, outdoor and indoor. I prefer the outdoor area due to it being in front of the beach with the sea breeze, which makes you sleepy. That’s typical for the Sanur area, authentic and calm.
The specialities are Indonesian mixed with Asian cuisine. From the menu you will see that they want to introduce their guise, the diversity of Indonesian food. You will also see some options of seafood if you want to match what you eat with the Sanur vibes, that famous fishing village :). You are vegan? no worries, they also have vegan options available. Kid friendly? Of course, you will see some choices of dishes for kids but don’t expect there to be a playground area. (I hope playing in the sands on the beach with your kiddos is enough). I love their excellent service. The fact that they are always willing to help and their taste of food is amazing, even though, to be honest, price wise it’s a bit more pricey compared to other restaurants in Sanur. The cost for 2 people will be around IDR 350,000. No worries, it’s worth the money and time. As a local, I may prefer the typical bistro food like steaks or burgers but for a foreigner, usually they love the Indonesian choices like beef rendang or Nasi campur bali. Let’s see which one you prefer. If I’m not mistaken, they also have afternoon tea from 2pm to 4pm (I didn’t get a chance to try it yet) and if you’re in the mood to unwind and have a me-time, I suggest trying the tapas and cocktail from 5pm to 7pm.
It might be a good idea to try it by yourself on a weekend. You will get the chance to see the performance on a Friday night.
Wander and Explore 