Lonely Planet Bali & Lombok

We purchased this book before our first trip to Bali. We have visited many memorable places that we would not have found out about if it wasn't for the book. The list of hotels and background information also helped us get situated very quickly. I highly recommend it for people who are traveling there for the first time, or want to rediscover more of this beautiful island.

I bought this book when I revisited Bali with my wife. I was last there some 15 years ago using a different guide book. I bought and used this book to explore a few off the beaten track places I didn't see the last time. I find the recommendations on food and lodging excellent. The standard Lonely Planet layout makes it easy to find the info you need. This rewritten edition is not just informative but full of its own unique flavour as well. Not being a trekker, my wife found the info on restaurants and shopping to be very useful too.

I'm just back from Bali and took three guidebooks. The Lonely Planet guide was far and away the best. It was funny and in the best guidebook tradtion, it did a great job of stearing me away from popular places like Gunung Agung and Besakih Temple - which are two of the worst tourist traps on the island. The author seems to have actually spent time posing as a tourist in these places to uncover all the scams. The rest of the book does a good job of finding all the new places to go for dinner and drinks in hot places like Seminyak. Make this your only Bali guidebook.

I was fortunate enough to travel to Bali in 2003, it was so worth the jetlag and my LP was extremely helpful. I was lucky to stay with my friend at his home in Kerambitan during part of the trip and recommend visitors to try and go off the beaten path away from tourist centers if possible. I was traveling with a friend and since we are both students we were really interested in seeing sights and performances more than surfing and snorkeling. We managed to make it over a lot of the island including Lake Bratan, Lake Batur, Besakih, etc. etc. This book was helpful for navigating our guides and drivers to the places we were interested in seeing, as well as knowing exactly where we were heading. The cultural information is really good and really important to read before you go since Balinese culture is not only very interesting, but also really complex. Just be wary of being hassled by guides at Besakih, especially if you don't want one. But this book gives the ins and outs really well. I really prefer LP over other travel guides.

I am Balinese and live in Ubud.As I am involved in tourism, I always keep a close eye on guide books to make sure that they do not give any incorrect information, either generally in respect of Bali, or in particular, in respect of my own restaurant, shops and accommodation in Ubud.I am pleased to say that the text is remarkably accurate - as are the maps - which is not easy in the fast changing world we now live in. The sections on Balinese culture are concise and very helpful to those visiting the island for the first time. Balinese culture is complicated and the visitor will benefit greatly from the explanations in this book.There are also some nice photographs. Recommended.