Do's and Don'ts in Bali
Do's and Don'ts in Bali
- Do relax and enjoy your holidays.
- Do understand Bali is as safe as you can make it.
- Do understand Bali is a cultural destination,
- Do smile first.
- Do wear the correct clothing when visiting religious sites.
- Do dress modestly. (Female travellers are very safe in Bali, if dressed modestly.)
- Do help us keep Bali clean. (Set an example to the people by taking your rubbish with you if you cannot find a rubbish bin)
- Don’t use or carry drugs. (Serious penalties apply, including the death penalty.)
- Don’t Drive without a correct licence and an International Driving Permit (IDP).
- Don’t ride a motorbike without wearing a helmet
- Don’t walk the streets, enter restaurants or ride a motorbike without a shirt - men
- Don’t walk the streets, enter restaurants or ride a motorbike wearing a bikini - women
- Don't work in Bali without a work permit, this includes unpaid work
- Do practice safe sex: (AIDS/HIV is a major problem in Bali amongst prostitutes).
- Do show respect to all elders, a simple nod of the head while passing in the street will suffice.
- Do take your shoes off when entering a small shop (warung), look for the shoes at the door to help you. (You do not do this in department stores.)
- Do take your shoes off when entering someone’s home.
- Do please, learn local customs before visiting small remote villages
- Do learn some of the courtesies in Social Life in Bali (and Indonesia) before visiting.
- Do sit down when your host asks you to (we do not stand when our host is sitting).
- Don’t allow the bottom of your feet to face or point at another person.
- Don’t use your foot to point to something (i.e., a spot on the ground).
- Don’t touch anyone on the top of the head.
- Don’t put your feet up on any tables while sitting.
- Don’t take a pillow from your hotel bed and put on a chair to sit on, or on the ground.
- Don’t call someone over with your palm up.
- Don’t talk to someone with your hands on your hips.
- Don’t talk to someone with your hands crossed over your chest.
- Don’t raise your voice in public; that's with anger or joy.
- Don’t kiss (overly passionate) in public places.
- Don’t do yoga poses in front of temples or sacred sites.
- Don’t do handstands in front of temples or sacred sites.
- Don’t buy Balinese antiques. Bali’s genuine antiques are all family heirlooms and most likely have been stolen, as Balinese do not sell their family antiques.
- Don't forget our motto 'Sustainable tourism is when the tourist adapts to the place they are visiting and does not expect the place to adapt to them'
You will find more detail and the explanation of why the above in our Guide Book
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