Bali to Flores: Trails, Tribal Villages & Dragon Lagoons

Arrival in Ubud & First Night Out

Land in Bali, grab a ride to Ubud, and drop your bags at the hotel. You'll meet the rest of the crew in the evening for a quick briefing before heading out for the first group night on the town. It's a good chance to get your bearings and figure out who you'll be splitting cabs with for the next two weeks.

Free Day in the Heart of Bali

Today is a free-for-all in Ubud, and the options are solid. You can lean into the spiritual side with a local tour, take a cooking class at a community-run kitchen, or rent a bike and get lost in the rice terraces. It's your call. The town is walkable, but renting a scooter for the day is the fastest way to cover ground if you're feeling ambitious.

DIY Reality Check: As of early 2024, all foreign arrivals must independently navigate the official "Love Bali" government portal to pay a mandatory IDR 150,000 tourist levy, a process requiring them to vet the correct website and secure a QR code for checkpoints. This administrative step mirrors a larger challenge for DIY travelers in Ubud: sifting authentic community enterprises from the sheer volume of commercial tours. The market is saturated with cooking schools and spiritual tours, making it difficult to verify which ones are genuinely community-run and ensure funds directly support the local villages, rather than just commercial operators in an area struggling with overtourism's impacts. A trip with pre-vetted partners removes both the regulatory paperwork and the guesswork of finding a truly ethical and impactful local experience.

Across the Strait to Lombok

It's a travel day. The morning starts with a drive to the harbour at Padangbai to catch a speedboat across the strait to Lombok. Once you land, it’s another overland journey inland to Tempasan, a small village far from the main tourist circuit. The day ends with a group dinner hosted by the local villagers, a proper introduction to the island's culture before the trekking starts.

DIY Reality Check: This multi-stage travel day requires coordinating three independent vendors: a car to Padangbai, a fast boat across the Lombok Strait, and a second vehicle for the long overland drive to Tempasan. Vetting a safe fast boat operator from the crowded market is the first hurdle, as safety standards and vessel quality vary significantly for the potentially rough sea crossing. The real challenge, however, begins upon arrival at Lombok's Bangsal harbour, an entry point consistently documented as a chaotic hub for aggressive touts and transport scams. A DIY traveler must navigate this environment to secure reliable transport for the final 72km leg to a remote village, a process that risks significant delays and overcharging. A trip where all transport is pre-booked and stitched together removes the entire chain of logistical risks and vendor negotiations.