Mistakes Aussie travellers make in Bali, according to expats

According to these expats, there are a bunch of things that tourists do that Balinese residents think are funny, weird or downright dangerous.

“You know the real reason people get sick in Bali? It’s the Bintangs,” said my friend Talia.*

Talia is an Australian who runs a number of Balinese businesses and who lived on the popular Indonesian island for several years with her young family. She’s seen a lot of tourists make some pretty silly mistakes.

There isn’t anything wrong with Bintang itself, so don’t panic or throw out your singlet collection just yet. The trap that Australian tourists fall into, according to Talia, is that they tend to drink the famous Indonesian beer straight from the bottle. 

Word to the wise - pour that Bintang into a glass before you drink it. Picture: iStock

“We see those bottles sitting around before they make it into the bars and restaurants: generally out on the street in the sun, where monkeys and cats climb all over them and deposit who knows what,” Talia says.

She says locals will still drink Bintangs - or any other beer - but they pour it into a glass first to avoid putting their lips on the dirty rim.

“People always think it’s the food that’s given them Bali Belly when they holiday on the island but this is far more likely to be the reason.”

It may not be the food that gives travellers Bali belly. Picture: iStock

According to Talia and her expat friends, there are a bunch of things that tourists do that Balinese residents think are pretty funny, weird, dangerous or simply make them stand out as obvious clueless foreigners. 

These are their Bali visitor tips to follow, so you blend in a bit more and stick out a bit less:

Leave your pram at home

A sure-fire sign you're a tourist. Picture: iStock

“There is a reason locals don’t know what a pram is,” says one expat. “Nothing says ‘tourist’ more than someone pushing a pram in Canggu.” The reason? Footpaths are virtually non-existent and there are endless potholes and traffic hazards. Using a pram under these conditions equals disaster. “Locals simply don’t walk with their kids; they just get on a scooter,” she says, adding that the only walking Balinese do with their kids is on the beach.

Always eyeball the toilet before you sit

If you fail to check, you could be in for a nasty surprise. Image: iStock

“I always check the toilet before I sit down as I don’t want a creature crawling up my bum!” says one Balinese local. Worst case scenario there could be a snake wrapped around the inside of the bowl (it happens), best case, it’s a gecko or two. Neither is something you want anywhere near your downstairs bits. Incidentally, Balinese call geckos ‘tokays’, in case you need to alert someone that one has made its home in your loo.

Follow the golden rules of scooters

This is a one-way ticket to 'crotch burn'. Picture: iStock

Number one. Check your helmet before putting it on. “Mozzies, geckos, spiders are all commonly found in them. The joys of outdoor living,” laments one local. Secondly, get a seat cover if you don’t want to suffer ‘crotch burn’ from the sun-heated seat. Thirdly, don’t apply any lipgloss or lipstick before you get on board unless you want a patchwork of bugs stuck to your lips after you take off into the wind. And finally, warns one local, ‘Never, ever trust a blinker on a scooter.” They tend to be more decorative than practical. 

Canggu isn’t pronounced how you think it is

Beach life in Canggu, Bali.

“It’s not Kan-goo. It’s Chan-goo.” 

Don’t leave money lying around your villa

A beach bungalow in Uluwatu, Bali. Picture: iStock

Just because your villa is locked, and even though your housekeeper is almost certainly trustworthy, that doesn’t mean you should leave hundreds of dollars lying around in plain view. “People forget that this is more money than many Balinese might see in a year,” says one Bali-based villa manager. “It’s a huge temptation to people. Odds are they won’t steal it but they may mention it to a friend or a cousin and then things can happen.” Be more respectful and sensitive about your privilege and relative wealth compared to the people around you.

No, the staff at your holiday villa don’t speak ‘bad English’

When you go to write your Tripadvisor reviews or an email of complaint to the villa hosting company after your holiday, maybe pause before you let it rip. “Please don’t write that the staff’s English is bad,” pleads one villa owner. Remember, you are the one in a foreign country, not the other way around. “Your Bahasa probably isn’t that great either.” 

*name changed

Originally published as Mistakes Aussie travellers make in Bali, according to expats