Ubud is the cultural and spiritual heartland of Bali and attracts many people who lead, shall we say, alternative lifestyles. If you want to improve your yoga, balance your chakra or dive into a vegan diet, Ubud is calling you. It is also a favoured destination for digital nomads because of its fairly cheap cost of living, good wifi, and one of the best co-working spaces around at Hubud.
You can stay right in the centre of Ubud for under $30 USD a night (including breakfast), we know because that is exactly what we did recently. We stayed at the Loris Homestay which is located about a 3 minute walk from the Ubud market. I must admit I was a little nervous about booking a ‘homestay’ because I wasn’t completely sure how integrated with the host family we would be. As it turned out I had nothing to worry about as the guest accommodation is completely separate to the family’s living quarters.
Loris (the lady of the house) and her husband have built two blocks of 4 apartments at the rear of their property. I’m not sure when they were built but they still had that new feel to them when we stayed. We had a first floor apartment with a balcony, and I have to say the room was the equal of many hotels we have stayed at. The room was air conditioned, tastefully decorated, with a private bathroom.
Loris would bring breakfast each morning, and we would eat at the table on the balcony. A beautiful way to start each day. Breakfast was usually some combination of eggs (omelette, fried etc) with a large plate of fresh local fruits. Local coffee and teas are also provided. Now the local Balinese coffee does nothing for me (or my wife), we find it too bitter. One thing we love about living in Australia is the abundance of great coffee shops. As luck would have it though, Loris Homestay is literally across the road from Ubud’s best coffee shop, Seniman Coffee Studio. This was usually our first port of call each morning after breakfast where we would plan our day over a delicious coffee.
Literally 50 metres up the road from Loris Homestay is the Kecak Dance at Pura Dalem Taman Kaja. Loris has a son who performs in this show, and you can purchase a ticket from Loris for about $7. The show exceeded my expectations, as I was thinking it would be similar to other dance shows we had seen. It was pleasantly unique, and we both had a great evening there.
You can certainly walk to just about anywhere in Ubud from Loris Homestay. We walked down to the Monkey Forest and Yoga Barn, at the opposite end of Ubud, taking about 30 minutes. If you want to venture further afield there are plenty of taxis available at the Ubud market, or Loris’s husband will drive you anywhere you want to go for a small fee.
Overall our first experience of a Balinese homestay was a great success. We got to speak with the host family, but still had our own privacy and home comforts, and all at a great price. We will certainly look at other homestay options when we return to explore other parts of Bali.
Loris Homestay’s address is Jl. Sriwedari No.12, Ubud, Kabupaten Gianyar, Bali 80571, Indonesia.
Have you stayed at a homestay accommodation? How was the experience for you? Let us know in the comments below.
