Kuta Beach

Once a lonely little village on the road from Denpasar to Bukit Peninsula, Kuta is now the tourist Mecca of Bali, popular mainly among the young and adventurous. Kuta beach is one of the first favorite beaches discovered by tourist. Coconut trees line the sand beach as far as the eyes can see towards the north stopped by the runway of Denpasar's airport far in the west. The sunset in Kuta is most breathtaking. On the south, the beach is fenced by the airport's runway, which gives the visitors a breathtaking landing experience. Kuta Beach bustles with tourists' vendors and locals. It's the most popular beach in Bali and the island's number one party zone. The beach stretches as far north as the eyes can see. As short walk away north, the waves will invite to surfing. Rapid development and an influx of visitors haven't kept the surfers away and Kuta still remains one of Bali's best surfing beaches and a great place to enjoy a beach lifestyle.

While the surfers are still part of the Kuta scene, it's the shopping, nightlife and party vibes that attracts thousands of visitors. There's a huge choice of accommodation, restaurants and entertainment. The accommodation in Kuta range from a modest home stay for a few dollars a night to luxurious, five star, international hotels costing several hundred to several thousand dollars a night. Legian Street, situated directly behind the row of hotels that face the beach, is lined with shops of all varieties. We can find any Balinese handicrafts here, from the least expensive to the most exquisite; or unique stores such as the leather store staffed by two young Balinese men that will perfectly sculpt a leather jacket. (They are all extremely talented artists). _At night, Kuta is alive with night life. Western influences create discotheques, dance clubs, and pubs. Gastronomical demands inspire a multitude of restaurants, serving traditional Indonesian and Balinese food to various ethnic meals from Japan, Switzerland, etc. As if these were not enough, various Balinese dance performances are staged in Kuta every night. One of the best Kecak performances is found in Kuta.

History or Mission Beach

Mission Beach in its regional historical context

The first white settlement north of Bowen was on Rockingham Bay. Port Hinchinbrook, later renamed Cardwell, was settled in January 1864 and this became the gateway for settlers to the region for a number of years. Cardwell was settled as a result of the need for a port outlet to serve the rich pastoral areas west of the Ranges, in particular, the Valley of Lagoons. In January 1864 a small party of 20 men landed at Rockingham Bay and within days they set up camp, surveyed off the first streets and began work on clearing a track over the range. This track to the south of Cardwell, now known as Dalrymple Track, still includes the oldest engineering structure in North Queensland, the stone-pitched bridge at Damper Creek.

The new port at Cardwell was named after Rt. Hon Edward Cardwell MP, later Viscount Cardwell. The port served the pastoral areas, the early Herbert River settlers and also the arrival of many hopeful gold-seekers. Large quantities of supplies, men and gold passed through Cardwell during the years that it was the closest port to the goldfields, such as the Etheridge.

However, this port proved limited by off-shore shallows which caused even small ships to have to anchor two miles out, and the tracks to the inland had to pass over steep, rainforested ranges. It was not long before Townsville (founded late in 1864) surpassed Cardwell as a port of entry and regional centre. Cairns, Ingham and Geraldton (Innisfail) also developed and Cardwell was left behind.


The district now known as Mission Beach is located on the coast north of Cardwell and was originally part of the Cardwell Division local government area constituted in 1884. This division included the area from the Hinchinbrook Channel in the south to Double Point near Mourilyan Harbour in the north. Later the boundaries were changed and the northern section of "Mission Beach" became part of the Johnstone Shire in February 1937.

However, although the beaches were included on maps, generally known as the "Clump Point" region, opening up for selection and actual settlement was slow in developing. The coastal floodplains of the Murray, Tully and Hull Rivers which discharge into Rockingham Bay are wetlands subject to extensive flooding in the wet season. Mangroves fringe the coast and movement in the area was very difficult for the first white settlers. It was not until the 1880's that the first settlers became established.

Aboriginal Heritage
The Dyiru-speaking Aboriginal people who inhabited this island coast were linguistically, culturally and socially related to the Dyirbal, Girramay and Gulngay groups of the Tully and Murray River districts. Hunters, fishers and gatherers of the rainforests and coast, they utilised the rich plant and animal resources to provide their needs. They excelled in making and using canoes and rafts and were expert fishermen of both fresh and marine waters.

Contact with early navigators and coastal surveyors as well as with beche-de-mer fishing boats was established long before the first white people settled the beach areas in 1882. Timber-getters also camped on the beaches during their cutting expeditions and occasionally utilised Aboriginal labour in return for tobacco or tools.

BALI AFTER DARK

Night life in Bali starts late, which means around midnight. Many visitors wonder where crowds of expats suddenly come from around 1:00 in the morning – even when all of Kuta has been very quiet during the whole evening, the IN-places often become crowded after midnight.

There's a simple explanation: during the early evenings many of Bali's night owls either still work, visit friends at home, or simply sleep. Most of them visit pubs, bars, or discos only in the early morning hours. Therefore, if you plan a night out don't start your dinner too early. Between 9:00 p.m. and midnight there are not many places we can recommend.

Visitors looking for company don't need to worry. Wherever you go in Sanur and the Kuta area, there are many other single travellers with the same problem around – day and night. In Bali's discos you'll meet also many "kupu kupu malams" ("night butterflies" or working girls) and young boys who compete with the females and service all sexes. All taxi drivers know the more popular karaoke bars and massage parlours in Kuta and Denpasar, and the various "Houses of ill Repute" in Sanur's narrow back lanes.

As reported in the BALI travel FORUM: "Prostitution is illegal in Bali. However, like in many countries, everyone turns a blind eye. Many girls can be found in nightclubs and bars in most areas. They look usually just like the girl next door, albeit with a bit more make up on, and they usually dress to please the eye. For the most part, they are gentle, easy to be with, and a lot of fun if you want to dance, drink and have a little fun with. Most will be yours for the whole night for about 300,000 Rupiah although prices range from 100,000 Rupiah to 1,000,000 Rupiah and more – depending on the season, the time of night, the situation and the quality of service".

SANUR & NUSA DUA

Some quite popular places in Sanur are the BORNEO PUB on Jalan Danau Tamblingan and the TROPHY PUB in front of the Sanur Beach Hotel. Both, however, close around 1:00 a.m.

The JAZZ GRILLE, located at the Komplek Pertokoan Sanur Raya No. 15/16 at the By-Pass opposite the Radisson hotel, was opened in February 1999 and attracts tourists and locals alike with live bands (from 9:30 to 12:00 p.m.), a smallish menu, and a billiard table upstairs. KAFE WAYANG in the same building has life music with a good local band and jam sessions with foreign guests every Friday – no wonder it's very popular with many residents. JANGER is currently the only disco in Sanur. Most tourists and even the expats living in Sanur prefer to go to "Kuta" if they look for some fun.

The discos and pubs in Nusa Dua's 5-star hotels are often rather empty. They are mostly frequented by those visitors who stay in-house and are too tired to make the 30 minutes drive to Kuta.

THE "KUTA" AREA

Everybody looking for some action and fun in the evening goes to "Kuta" which nowadays means the area extending about 4 miles or 7 kilometers North from the original village of Kuta and includes now Legian, Seminyak and even Basangkasa. Here are most of the better entertainment places offering EVERYTHING single male or female visitors as well as couples might be looking for.

There are several places such as CASABLANCA etc. – down-market open-air pubs and very noisy discos full of stoned Aussies courting Javanese "Kupu Kupu Malams". PEANUTS Discotheque on Jalan Raya Legian at the Jalan Melasti corner (about the border between Kuta and Legian) has been re-opened very soon after it was gutted by a fire. The huge (air-conditioned) dance floor is often crowded, guests are a mix of locals and younger foreign visitors.

Closer to the center of Kuta you find the BOUNTY SHIP with a noisy, over-air-conditioned disco in the basement and the re-built PADDY'S RELOADED not far from the original PADDY'S. When most places close around 2.00 or 3.00 in the morning, night owls of all kinds continue drinking at nearby MAMA'S until sunrise.

For a somewhat more civilized evening out, you can have dinner and a couple of drinks at the bar at either TJ's or KORI in Kuta, at POCO LOCO in Legian, at the open street side bar at NERO Bali right opposite AROMAS Restaurant in Kuta, at the re-built MACCARONI CLUBMADE'S WARUNG in Basangkasa (see BALI - Restaurants to Enjoy), or at the trendy HU'U Bar & Lounge near the Petitenget temple, LA LUCIOLA and THE LIVING ROOM. in Kuta, at

Something more outrageous and only for open-minded people is HULU CAFE between Jalan Padma and Jalan Melasti in Kuta/Legian, a place which calls itself the "only real gay bar in all of Bali" with drag shows starting at 11:00 p.m. three times per week. The performances are actually kind of funny!

You'll find a large and quite popular HARD ROCK CAFE right at the beginning of Kuta's beach road with live music from 11 p.m. to 2 a.m. Expect to find many singles of all kinds here looking for company. If you think this is too noisy, too crowded, or the air-conditioning too cold for you, try the CENTER STAGE at the HARD ROCK RESORT located in the back of the CAFE. As the name implies, the band performs on a raised stage in the middle of the huge round lobby bar until 11:00 p.m. Both HARD ROCK outlets are expensive by Bali standards.

The JAYA PUB on the main road in Seminyak features also live music and attracts many Indonesian customers who don't mind the chilling air-conditioning and the sometimes horrible bands and singers.

Seminyak's best place to have a drink and some fun at night is nowadays probably SANTA FEE Bar & Grill, Jalan Abimanyu No. 11 (also known as Gado Gado Road or Jalan Dhyana Pura). Life music, reasonably priced cocktails, a surprisingly good wine list (you have to ask for it, but the prices are very low for Bali standards), and a menu offering local, Mexican, and Japanese dishes as well as a choice of pizzas around the clock and the friendly service attract many visitors until the early hours. If you feel too hot downstairs, you can move to the small air-conditioned "Wine Lounge" upstairs where you find also a rather good choice of wines to take home.

Other popular night spots nearby in the same street are SPY BAR, LIQUID, Q Bar ("for the alternative lifestyle"), Antique Bar, SPACE, THE GLOBE and "A" BAR. New bars and "Chill-Out Lounges" are opening all the time, and most of them feature DJ's and/or live music on certain nights. Just walk down the road and check them out !

Later, from 2:00 a.m., it's party time at the PAPARAZZI LOUNGE and DOUBLE SIX, a large open-air disco with several bars, big dance floor, and many tables. Both are located next to each other on the beach in Seminyak and charge an entrance fee of 30,000 to 100,000 Rupiah (depending on the day) for which you get a voucher for a free drink. Here you'll find most of Bali's night owls drinking and dancing the night away until 4:30 a.m. or so. (The legendary GADO GADO Disco has been re-converted into a restaurant.)

Also, watch out for notices and small posters in Kuta and Seminyak announcing special events such as Full Moon Parties, House Warming Parties, Body Painting Parties, etc, etc. If these "parties" are announced to the public (even if only by word-of-mouth), they are open for everybody. You'll have to pay for your drinks, therefore, don't be shy.

UBUD

Don't expect too much here. We are not Ubud nightlife experts, but names frequently mentioned include PUTRA BAR, Jl. Monkey Forest (every night live music ranging from Reggae to rock), MAGIC BAR, Jl. Monkey Forest (live music and sometimes great atmosphere), JAZZ CAFE, Jl. Tebesaya (live music and jam sessions on different nights), EXILE BAR (Saturday nights only, great music), and FUNKY MONKEY (early hours cafe).