Explore Bali by cycling downhill and see genuine Balinese traditional life and the unique culture of Bali while taking in the beauty of its exotic panoramas. We begin our tour by taking you to the spectacular beauty of Kintamani and on the way there, we are going to have a short stop at a coffee plantation to taste various kinds of herbal coffees including the well-known Luwak coffee. Afterwards we head to the serenity of Kintamani, nestled high on a volcanic crater rim, where you will enjoy your morning tea or coffee with a light breakfast overlooking to the stunning view of Mount Batur and its splendid crater lake.

After having breakfast we are off on our mountain bikes, enjoying 4 hours downhill cycling throughout the wonderful and tranquil back roads of rural Bali passing through native villages, seeing classic Balinese daily life and enjoying various spectacular landscapes, all the way down through verdant forested areas, tropical fruit plantations and ancient Balinese temples. If we chance upon a ceremony you will able to witness it directly.

We also have several stopping areas, as well as visiting a Balinese house where you can meet and chat with local families and their adorable children. Our friendly guide will be very happy to explain each part of the traditional house inside. We will have a stop at a traditional warung, see wood carvers and Balinese painters at work, then rest under a peaceful banyan tree, recharging your energy for a while with mineral water and fresh tropical fruit.

After resting we continue on biking through dazzling, lush rice paddies and have the chance to see farmers working at their rice fields, enjoying the Balinese countryside and knowing more about its cultural customs.

At the end of the trip, an appetizing lunch in a delightful local restaurant.

The tour includes:

• Air conditioned hotel transfer
• Morning tea or coffee and light meal
• Fully serviced mountain bikes and safety helmets
• Mineral water and fresh tropical fruit en route
• Rain coats (in case it rains)
• Guide
• Indonesian lunch

What to bring:

• We recommend sports clothes and walking shoes.
• Sunblock, sunglasses and hat
• Small backpack for your camera and video cam.

Minimum height per person:   150 cm

Minimum number 2 (but they may already have another booking, so always check).

Age limit: 12 – 64 years old

PICK UP TIMES

8.30 am – 9.00 am

Book as much in advance as possible.  

We will call for you and reserve the places.  You pay them direct.

Email: murni (at) mMurnis.com or tell Reception. 

We also have a special Tamarind Spa Package:

THE TAMARIND SPA FULL DAY CYCLING AND SPA PACKAGE

Cycle down the back roads of Bali and then refresh those muscles and pamper yourself with our New Full Day Cycling and Spa Package!

https://www.murnis.com/tamarind-spa/spa-packages/

June 2022

Downhill Mountain Cycling Tour

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If you love animals – and birds – this is the trip for you. Go to Phillip Island and see the great penguin parade at nightfall. There are a few interesting stops on the way.

First, we drive out of Melbourne to the suburb of St Kilda, where the sand-coloured Palais Theatre stands. It is Melbourne’s leading entertainment venue. Bob Hope, Joan Sutherland, Tom Jones, the Rolling Stones and many others have performed there. It is the largest seated theatre in Australia with a capacity of nearly 3,000 people. The original building of 1919 was a cinema, but it burned down in 1926 and was rebuilt.

Next to it is Luna Park’s Scenic Railway (1912), which is the oldest continuously operating roller coaster in the world. The Scenic Railway’s scaffolding is made up of 322 posts.

The first stop is Brighton, 11 km south-east of Melbourne, named after Brighton in England. We stop at Dendy Street Beach with its 82 colourful beach boxes. Bathing boxes in Brighton existed as far back as 1862. By 1929 there were between 100 and 200 of them. They were basically changing rooms for Victorians, originally near the sea, but later moved back. They were also moved along the coast several times. The present ones were placed there in 1934.

They are the same as they were over a hundred years ago. Alterations are forbidden. They retain their Victorian architecture, timber frames, weatherboard sidings, and corrugated iron roofs, and have no electricity or running water.

Only residents paying local council rates can buy them. Look out for the red and white striped bathing box 76B. Nick a grandfather of ten, and his wife Ivanka, bought it for $337,000 in April 2018. They are undoubtedly an investment and a good place for a fashion shoot.

The second stop is an hour away, where we have lunch, Moonlit Sanctuary Wildlife Conservation Park in Pearcedale.

It’s 10 hectares of bushland, inspired by the work of Gerald Durrell, the British naturalist and author, and dedicated to the conservation of endangered species.

Buy a couple of bags of animal food and feed the kangaroos and wallabies.

Listen to a keeper giving a presentation – these take place every half an hour. We saw one on the adorable 1 year old baby koala born in the sanctuary.

The highlight is the wildlife show at 2.20 pm, where an experienced keeper describes the behaviour of cockatoos, dingoes, barn owls, tawny frogmouths and others. She has the animals and birds with her and clearly there is an incredible bond between them.

The park won the Victorian Tourism Award in Ecotourism.

We travel on to Woolamai (Surf) Beach, the longest and most exposed beach on Phillip Island with its golden sand, before motoring on to Cowes for dinner.

Cowes has a vibe, lots of restaurants and shops and a lovely north-facing beach.

Then on to Nobbies Lookout for a spectacular stroll along the boardwalks with staggering views over the headland. You may well see penguins in their burrows.

Then the highlight: The Penguin Parade at Phillip Island. There are thousands of Little Penguins, who come out of the sea at dusk, full of fish in their bellies, to waddle back to their nests in the dunes and feed their young. They are the smallest of the 17 penguin species and the only penguin that lives permanently in Australia. No photography is allowed.

We travelled with Go West Tours in a comfortable (small – 24 people max) coach and friendly lady driver guide, Yazmin, pictured here. Highly recommended. They have a very efficient booking system on line.

The Great Penguin Parade at Phillip Island

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