Denpasar Airport

Well, if you are a traveler reading this blog, and you are off to Bali, I suppose it would be useful to review Bali by geographical area after the fact, now that I’m back in the freezing cold of the UK. The first thing you are going to be confronted with when you step off the plane is the heat. The second thing is the airport. You will see signs for Denpasar airport around Bali, but you will also see signs for Kuta airport. They are one and the same. Denpasar airport is actually in the region of Kuta. If you surf, locate Kuta reef. You can sit out back while the jumbos go over your head. It’s an experience!

Arrivals:

You will immediately be confronted with officials in police like uniforms offering to fast track you through arrivals. It can make you feel a little taken advantage of, or like you are being scammed as soon as you get off the plane and can be off putting. But the airport staff are in no hurry, and you will be stood in a que for a considerable amount of time waiting for passport control. You also have to que to buy your visitor’s visa, at a cost of 25 USD for 30 days. Remember that 100,000 IDR is around £7 at the time of writing (Feb 2013). Also, every single official in Bali is open to bribery. If you can get a good deal, have the fast track. I wish I did. £7 to avoid standing in the heat and to get outside and have a fag is a snip in my opinion. Then when you get outside, you will be surrounded by taxi drivers. You will soon get used to locals shouting "transport” at you and taxi’s beeping their horns at you. Most want around 200,000 IDR for the relatively short trip to Kuta. Stick to your guns and haggle and you should get that down by 50,000 or so. If you are feeling energetic after your flight walk out of the airport. You will find the light blue cabs (blue bird taxi) with meters and get to your destination a lot cheaper.

 

Departures. 

If its monsoon season and looks like rain on the way to the airport DO NOT WEAR YOUR FLIP FLOPS! The airport is an ice skating rink in the rain. Indo has never herd of health and safety or non-slip tiles and honestly, the place is full on dangerous in flippies. Fall over and bang yourself, and it happens a lot, is not ideal before a 17 hour flight. You will be completely seized up for days when you get to your destination. Also, you have to pay 150,000 IDR airport tax but no one tells you this before you go through the security control, and upstairs. If you don’t have it on you the ATM is outside the airport and you will have to go through control again to be able to pay. But my biggest tip for Denpasar airport is the airport lounge. It cost 150,000 IDR. USE IT! Its only 10 quid, and for that you get a sofa, free hot food (as much as you like), as much free coffee, tea and draught beer as you can drink, and free wi fi. They also record your flight number on entry and call you when your plane is boarding. And it has its own little smoking room. Brilliant!!!