– ESCAPE THE CROWDS –
AN INDEPENDENT TRAVEL GUIDE

This is us

Om swastiastu; hello! We are Mark and Narina, the authors of this site. We're also wanderers – professional travel writers who call West Bali "home".
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We created this website to share the part of Bali we know and love with travellers who're searching for destinations off the beaten track, and who're looking for authentic Bali experiences. We have included only the hotels, homestays and villas that we know and recommend – places that are truly special.
We have carefully chosen each hotel, restaurant and small business that is included on this site – and we have visited or stayed at each one. Our website is independent – no-one has paid or traded to be on this site, and all opinions are our own. We do, however, use affiliate links and so if you book accommodation or buy a book via our site you will be supporting our work here, and for that we are very grateful.
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People often ask us how long West Bali has been our base – and to be honest, we don't really know. Mark had lived in Pekutetan, a village near Medewi, in 2002 and a decade later when he and Narina became "we", we started to spend more and more time in West Bali. We were drawn to the peace, to the people (and particularly the family Mark lived with), and to the beautiful landscapes out here. Without us making a conscious decision, West Bali became home; our books found their way onto shelves and Mark's quiver of surfboards found a pondok all of their own.
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We hope this website gives you both the inspiration and practical knowledge you need to travel to this special part of the world – and if you have any questions regarding where to stay and what to do in West Bali, please drop us a line (email address is in the footer of this site).