36 Hours in Bali

By ERIKA KINETZ

Published: June 24, 2007
Enjoying the sunset at Ku Dé Ta, a chic Bali nightspot.

Correction Appended

SAY Bali and most people think paradise. There are stunning sunsets, sculpted rice terraces and a temple on almost every corner. And for less-spiritual seekers, this steamy Indonesian island also has great surfing and a rollicking nightlife. Sure, it's gotten pretty touristy, especially on the pub crawl along Kuta Beach, where beer-swilling Australians rule. And while recent terrorist bombings have rattled Bali's blissful pace (it is a Hindu-majority island in a Muslim-majority nation), they have done little to temper its popularity or discourage super-chic resorts from being built. Paradise, after all, is as close as the nearest temple, finding yourself on your knees with a blue flower pressed between your fingertips, asking for blessings from Brahma or one of the other gods.

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Friday

3 p.m.
1) MONKEYING AROUND

There's nothing like 200 macaques grooming each other, snuggling together and nibbling on small bananas to make you realize you're not in Kansas anymore. To find the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary (Jalan Monkey Forest, Padangtegal, Ubud; 62-361-971304; www.monkeyforestubud.com) drive an hour north of Kuta Beach to the town of Ubud, often called the cultural heart of Bali. The monkeys, the town's most beloved residents, live in a dense, jungley stretch of green at the southern edge of town, complete with its own temple. A word to the wise: Leave your snacks at home and don't buy any bananas on the way in unless you enjoy being mauled by possibly rabid little tykes. When it comes to bananas, the monkeys will win. Admission is 10,000 rupiah, or about $1.10 at 9,270 rupiah to the dollar.

4:30 p.m.
2) FOUR HANDS BEATS TWO

It's said that labor is cheaper than electricity on Bali, so why not book a four-handed massage at Spa Hati (Jalan Raya Andong 14, Peliatan, Ubud; 62-361-977-578; www.spahati.com), a stone and thatched-roof compound at the edge of town. Add in a lulur body scrub — a traditional Javanese blend of rice flour and herbs — for 90 minutes of rapture (225,000 rupiah). Afterward, the unhurried staff lets you relax for as long as you want in the hot tub, listening to little frogs make big noises in the rice paddy next door. And about that cheap labor: spa profits help support the Bali Hati Foundation, which runs community programs, including a school for local children.

7:30 p.m.
3) DANCE, DANCE, DANCE

Bali is brimming with fire dances, mask dances, trance dances, monster dances and puppet shows, all of which have been refined over the centuries to the point that eyeballs, fingertips and toes all move in elaborate choreographed precision. On a typical night in Ubud you can take your pick from a half-dozen different shows. It's worth ducking into the Ubud Palace (Jalan Raya Ubud; 62-361975057; 80,000 rupiah) to watch good and evil duke it out in the Barong dance. Set in a Balinese-style pavilion, the dance is performed by two fat guys whose choreographed fight scenes draw inevitable comparisons to the WWF.

9 p.m.
4) GO FOR THE GRILL

For tasty Balinese food in a relaxed setting, expatriates flock to Naughty Nuri's Warung (Jalan Raya Sanggingan, across from the Neka Art Museum; 62-361-977547), a cozy hangout opened by Isnuri Suryatmi and her husband, Brian Kenny, who grew up in New Jersey. It does justice to classic Balinese dishes like chicken sate (27,000 rupiah) and nasi goreng — Indonesian fried rice with vegetables and meat (17,000 rupiah). But the main draw of this grubby little warung, or food stall, is the grill. There are succulent pork chops, steaks from Australia and even great hamburgers — and something uncommon in Asia, a good microbrew: Storm Pale Ale (12,000 rupiah).

Saturday

9 a.m.
5) GET DOWN IN THE RIVER

Most of the super-luxury hotels in Ubud are built along the top of the gorge that the Ayung River runs through. There's a good reason for that: the views are gorgeous. Down on the river, climb aboard a rubber raft and watch the thick vines, low-flying swallows and waterfalls go by. Bali Adventure Tours (62-361-721480; www.baliadventuretours.com) runs 90-minute trips down the river starting at $60 for a morning trip that includes a basic lunch of rice and egg rolls.

2:30 p.m.
6) MUSEUM MILE

Ubud's artistic appeal is, for the most part, historical. Its reputation dates to the 1930s when Western artists and intellectuals like Walter Spies, Colin McPhee and Rudolf Bonnet moved in, boosting the local arts scene and sparking foreign interest in this tiny island. To understand that history and see some fine examples of Balinese art, start at the Neka Art Museum (Jalan Raya Sanggingan, Campuhan; 62-361-975074; www.museumneka.com), which was founded in 1982 by Suteja Neka, an art dealer whose son now runs the slick Komaneka Fine Art Gallery (Jalan Monkey Forest; 62-361-976090; gallery.komaneka.com). For some high camp, make a quick stop at the Blanco Renaissance Museum (Jalan Campuhan; 62-361-975502; www.blancobali.com); the only thing grander than the peccadilloes of Antonio Blanco, a Spanish painter who settled in Bali in 1952, was his ego.

5:30 p.m.
7) BEST SHOW IN TOWN

Ubud closes early. By 11 p.m., everyone is home, leaving the streets to bands of marauding but basically harmless dogs. If you want to make a night of it, head south to Seminyak, a sophisticated beachside alternative just north of Kuta. The hour-long taxi runs about 150,000 to 200,000 rupiah ($16 to $22). For a front-row seat for the dazzling sunset, grab a chair at Breeze, a sleek beachside bar and restaurant at the Samaya Hotel (Jalan Laksmana; 62-361-731149, www.thesamayabali.com), and order a glass of wine (about 70,000 rupiah). The teak deck juts out so close to the surf you can almost feel the foam from the breakers.

7 p.m.
8) BUST THAT BIKINI

When the last ray of sunlight has faded, head next door for dinner at La Lucciola (Kaya Ayu Beach, Temple Petitenget, Kerobokan; 62-361-730838), a popular beachfront spot, for rich Italian fare like prawn and snapper pie with truffled potatoes (125,000 rupiah) and orecchiette with pancetta and gorgonzola (80,000 rupiah). There might be a line, but don't worry. Sit at the bar for free hors d'oeuvres and watch the frangipani flowers fall around you.

9:30 p.m.
9) BLING IS THE THING

Ratchet things up among the macramé-clad, flash-bulb popping babes at Ku Dé Ta (Jalan Laksmana 9, Seminyak; 62-361-736969; www.kudeta.net), a modern and trendy spot that faces the surf . It's shamelessly sceney — a DVD is sold showing highlights of the high season. Score a beachfront chaise and watch the waves, illuminated with floodlights, come crashing in. After hours, all roads lead to the Double Six Club (Jalan Double Six, Blue Ocean Boulevard, Seminyak; 62-361-733067; www.doublesixclub.com; 70,000 rupiah admission), which sports a giant dance floor and bungee jumping on weekend nights. But don't show up before 3 a.m.

Sunday

10 a.m.
10) ESPRESSO IT

If for some unfathomable reason you tire of Bali's thick, rich coffee, duck into Tutmak Warung (Jalan Dewi Sita, Ubud; 62-361-975754 ) for an iced latte (14,500 rupiah). It's a favorite of local expatriates — a casual, breezy place that looks out on a scraggly soccer field frequented by local kids.

11 a.m.
11) PARADISE WITHIN PARADISE

The six-hectare Botanic Garden Ubud (Kutuh Kaja, Ubud; 62-361-970951; www.botanicgardenbali.com) opened last summer — a magical park with white fairy lilies, weeping figs, a labyrinth, banana twist orchids and a miniature rainforest. Stay for lunch at the Chocolate House Cafe, which is housed in a 130-year-old jogglo, a traditional Javanese hut made of teak wood. The guava and passion fruit juices (12,000 rupiah) are garden fresh and the chicken kutu kaja, which is cooked slowly in banana leaves and served with red Tabanan rice, is a local specialty (42,000 rupiah). The menu rotates, but if it has it, don't miss the coconut and jackfruit ice puter, ice cream made with coconut milk in a hand-cranked drum.

2 p.m.
12) SARONG AS ART

Ubud is famous for art, which is probably why an awful lot of drek is now on sale. Fear not. For the good stuff, start at the Seniwati Gallery of Art by Women (Jalan Sriwedari 2b, Banjar Taman; 62-361-975485; www.seniwatigallery.com), which Mary Northmore, the British-born wife of Abdul Aziz, a prominent Indonesian artist, founded in 1991 after she was told by several Indonesian art experts that “Balinese women don't paint.” For textiles, stop in at Threads of Life (Jalan Kajeng 24; 62-361-972187; www.threadsoflife.com), which commissions local weavers to make textiles the same ways their grandmothers did, which is to say painstakingly. Even if you're not in the market for a handspun sarong for 4.3 million rupiah, it's well worth the visit.

The Basics

Cathay Pacific flies from Kennedy Airport to Denpasar, Bali, via Hong Kong. A recent Web search showed fares starting at around $1,500. From Ngurah Rai Airport in Denpasar, a taxi to Ubud costs 150,000 rupiah, or about $16 at 9,270 rupiah to the dollar. Taxis can also be hired for half-days or longer; negotiate a price in advance, but it should run about 350,000 rupiah.

Central Ubud can feel like an outdoor mall. If you're on a budget and want rice fields instead of retail, stay south of the Monkey Forest. Alam Shanti and its two sister hotels, Alam Indah and Alam Jiwa are situated along Jalan Nyuh Butan in tranquil Nyuh Kuning village (62-361-974629; www.alamindahbali.com). Rooms are $50 to $175.

For luxurious solitude, try the Four Seasons Resort Bali at Sayan (62-361-977577; www.fourseasons.com/sayan/). The hotel was built around a rice paddy, and villas come with private plunge pools. The hotel's Jati (Bahasa for teak) Bar is perched on the edge of the Ayung River and an excellent place for a sunset cocktail. Rooms start at $460.

Correction: July 1, 2007

The 36 Hours column last Sunday about Bali misspelled the name of a popular place there for coffee drinks. It is Tutmak Warung, not Tukmak.

36 Hours in Sarasota, Fla.

By PAUL SCHNEIDER

Published: December 30, 2007
Feeding the seagulls on Siesta Public Beach.

SET on a sparkling bay, behind a necklace of sandy barrier islands, the resort town of Sarasota was pioneered in the Roaring Twenties by the immensely wealthy John and Mable Ringling of circus fame. The couple didn’t come to get away from the clowns and freaks; they brought the entire circus with them to pass the winter in warmth and style. To this day, this scrubbed, suntanned and artsy little town offers just enough of a city vibe to sustain great food and a little night life. Plus, the circus still comes down in the winter.

Pleasure Without Guilt: Green Hotels With Comfort

By GREGORY DICUM

Published: December 28, 2007
Screens in the lobby of the Gaia Napa Valley, one America’s greenest hotels, track energy usage.

The Gaia, which advertises itself as “Napa Valley’s first fully environmentally sustainable hotel,” has eschewed the tiny plastic bottles of lotion, shampoo and conditioner, instead using wall-mounted dispensers. I breathed a sigh of relief that neither the collection in our bathroom at home nor the infamous raft of plastic garbage in the middle of the Pacific, which I imagine to consist largely of hotel amenities, would grow larger from this stay.

The idea of luxury has long been intertwined with — even confused with — profligate waste. But with green consciousness making its way to center stage, some hotels are changing their ways. They face a delicate balance: when does greening go so far as to cut palpably into the feeling of luxury?

Conversely, with hotels around the country and the world claiming environmental concern — even when all they may actually be doing is inviting guests to forgo clean towels — how can guests be assured that green claims are sincere?

There is no single system for evaluating a hotel’s environmental friendliness. The best starting point is the so-called LEED certification program (for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) of the United States Green Building Council, a program that evaluates everything from materials to energy use to recycling in the construction and operation of a building. A LEED certificate displayed in the lobby means the establishment is serious about being green. Although only five hotels in the United States have this certification, many in the planning stages are incorporating materials and systems intended to gain it.

Beyond that, the best way to ensure that you are at a truly green hotel is to ask questions. When I stayed recently at four hotels that call themselves green, I found that everyone on their staffs, from managers to maids, was well-informed about the green features.

“You can’t just send out a memo,” Stefan Muhle, the general manager of the Orchard Garden in San Francisco, told me when I called him after my stay. “All the staff have to be included, front to back. Their heart has to be in it.”

Because I live in California — the home of much environmental action, hope and hype — I didn’t have to travel far from home to check out green hotels. Not all of them are LEED-certified, but they all featured green design elements, nontoxic materials and cleaning supplies, low-flow showerheads and toilets, and in-room recycling. I never once saw an incandescent light bulb.

The Ambrose Hotel,

Santa Monica

The Ambrose opened in 2003 and began its green conversion the next year.

“We were nervous about how guests would react,” said Deirdre Wallace, the owner. “But they were relieved. People have been recycling at home for 10 years, so why not in a hotel?”

In a comfortable Southern California-style marriage of disparate design currents, a cozy Craftsman drawing room opens onto a small garden designed for sustainability, with drought-tolerant native plants maintained with rakes instead of leaf blowers. Arching above are big red feng shui banners.

The Ambrose has installed energy-efficient lighting and appliances, economical ventilation equipment and low-flow sprinklers. It has switched to nontoxic cleaning products, paints and sealants, and buys part of its power from sustainable wind projects. It composts and has done away with disposable dishes and cups. Guests can rent bicycles or catch rides to nearby destinations in a biodiesel-powered London-style taxi.

My one true green-inspired inconvenience took place at the Ambrose. I forgot my toothpaste, and the front desk was out of their preferred eco-friendly brand, so I was forced to go on a midnight stroll to Walgreens.

Nonetheless, the hotel has greened itself with virtually no change in the experience for guests (who still enjoy Aveda amenities in those bottles destined, in my mind at least, for the nearby Pacific). The rooms, with comforting dark wood accents, long decks outside sliding glass doors and comfortable furniture, are well suited to the business travelers the hotel attracts.

Ms. Wallace expects LEED certification soon and plans to extend the Ambrose into a green brand by building more LEED-certified hotels.

“There’s an emerging green style,” she said, but added, “Simply not washing sheets and towels does not cut it.”

The Ambrose, 1255 20th Street, Santa Monica, Calif.; (310) 315-1555; www.ambrosehotel.com; rates from $229.

The Orchard Garden,

San Francisco

This is the Prius of hotels: distinctly green, but in a way that enhances the user experience beyond mere eco-karma. Among the features that helped the Orchard Garden earn LEED certification when it opened last year were extra layers of insulation that not only reduce heating and cooling costs, but make the hotel — on a busy downtown street — blissfully quiet. In our room on the eighth floor, we heard no outside sounds and, even though we were next to the elevators, barely a peep from the hallway.

The bathroom, which unfortunately contained more of those earth-destroying tiny plastic bottles, is ample. Blond wood furniture in the room matches the palette of soft greens and khakis. A huge mirror expands the space and lets you gaze at yourself luxuriating in the big, just-right bed.

The Orchard Garden seems all about cocooning. Its public spaces are little more than utilitarian. The small roof deck offers a chance to hear the city noise you’ve been missing; the lobby is little more than a corridor; and the restaurant, which features sustainably produced local food, is unremarkable in light of the culinary delights a block in any direction.

A feature I liked was just inside the room’s door: a slot where a guest slips the key card to activate the lights and temperature control. When leaving the room, guests remove the card and everything turns down. It’s a system common in Europe and Asia, where energy costs are higher, and it has an additional benefit: I never misplaced my key card.

Mr. Muhle, the general manager, said the green features had helped the hotel stabilize its occupancy and earn repeat customers faster than the standard of 18 to 24 months from opening.

“We’re not just another boutique hotel in San Francisco,” he said. “Green had a huge impact on our launch, and that’s money in the bank for the owner.”

Orchard Garden Hotel, 466 Bush Street, San Francisco; (415) 399-9807; www.theorchardgardenhotel.com; rooms from $229.