Bali and Gili Islands itinerary: 7, 10 or 14 days

Choose the nights before booking the boats

For a first Bali and Gili Islands itinerary, use one Gili base and return to Bali before your flight day. With seven days, choose either Ubud or south Bali alongside the Gilis. Ten days allows both; fourteen days can add an east-Bali stay without turning every second day into a transfer.

The plans below count arrival as day one and departure as the final day: seven days means six nights, ten means nine, and fourteen means thirteen. These are suggested pacing plans, not operator packages or minimum stays. They assume arrival and departure through Bali. An early flight or late inbound arrival may require another night.

Seven days: Ubud, one Gili and a final Bali night

Night allocation: two nights Ubud, three nights on one Gili, one night Sanur. This suits someone who wants inland Bali and two full island days. It does not leave room for a separate south-Bali holiday.

Day 1: Arrive in Bali and transfer to your Ubud accommodation. Keep the evening free rather than promising sightseeing after an unspecified flight. Overnight Ubud.

Day 2: Spend the day in and around Ubud. Choose a town-based day if you want less driving; keep any out-of-town excursion to this full day. Overnight Ubud.

Day 3: Take the booked road transfer to Padang Bai, then the confirmed boat to your chosen Gili. Treat the whole day as travel; settle in near your accommodation rather than booking a non-refundable afternoon activity. Overnight on the Gili.

Day 4: Use a full island day for a booked snorkelling trip or a land-based alternative if conditions are unsuitable. Overnight on the same Gili.

Day 5: Keep a second full island day for walking, cycling or another activity. If diving, plan the final dive around the actual onward flight and any altitude travel. Overnight on the same Gili.

Day 6: Return by boat to Bali and transfer to Sanur. Book the Bali arrival port and the onward road journey as one deliberate choice; the boat ticket alone does not get you to the hotel. Overnight Sanur.

Day 7: Transfer by road to Bali airport for your flight. The previous night is disruption margin, not protection against a multi-day cancellation.

Ten days: south Bali, Ubud and four Gili nights

Night allocation: two nights Sanur, two nights Ubud, four nights on one Gili, one final night Sanur. This adds both a south-Bali start and a third full island day, rather than simply stretching the seven-day plan.

Day 1: Arrive and transfer to Sanur. Overnight Sanur.

Day 2: Keep a full Sanur day without another hotel move. Overnight Sanur.

Day 3: Transfer to Ubud and use the remaining day locally. Overnight Ubud.

Day 4: Take your full Ubud day or a prearranged excursion. Overnight Ubud.

Day 5: Travel from Ubud to Padang Bai and continue by confirmed boat to the Gili you selected. Overnight on that island.

Day 6: Book a water activity with pickup from your actual island, not a meeting point on another Gili. Overnight on the same island.

Day 7: Keep a land day or a second activity day; avoid making all three island days depend on ideal sea conditions. Overnight on the same island.

Day 8: Use the final full island day for the activity you most want or for spare time. Do not automatically add an overnight move to a second Gili. Overnight on the same island.

Day 9: Boat back to Bali and road transfer to Sanur. Overnight Sanur.

Day 10: Road transfer to the airport and depart.

Fourteen days: add east Bali and a second return night

Night allocation: three nights Sanur, three nights Ubud, two nights Candidasa, four nights on one Gili, one final night Sanur. If your long-haul flight is expensive or inflexible, move one initial Sanur night to the end instead: two nights before leaving Bali, two nights back before departure.

Day 1: Arrive in Bali and transfer to Sanur. Overnight Sanur.

Day 2: Spend a full day in Sanur without a transfer. Overnight Sanur.

Day 3: Use a second full south-Bali day. Overnight Sanur.

Day 4: Transfer to Ubud; leave time to settle into the new base. Overnight Ubud.

Day 5: Spend a full day in Ubud. Overnight Ubud.

Day 6: Use another inland day for a booked excursion or time in town. Overnight Ubud.

Day 7: Transfer east to Candidasa. This is an east-Bali base, not a substitute name for the Padang Bai departure harbour. Overnight Candidasa.

Day 8: Keep a full east-Bali day and have your next morning’s separate road transfer to Padang Bai arranged. Overnight Candidasa.

Day 9: Travel to Padang Bai and board the confirmed Gili service. Overnight on your chosen Gili.

Day 10: Take a locally departing snorkelling trip or another island activity. Overnight on the same Gili.

Day 11: Keep a land day or a flexible activity day. Overnight on the same Gili.

Day 12: Enjoy the last full island day, with any diving constrained by subsequent flight and altitude plans. Overnight on the same Gili.

Day 13: Return to Bali and transfer to Sanur. Overnight Sanur.

Day 14: Transfer to the airport and depart. With the two-final-night variant, return on day 12, use day 13 on Bali and retain three Gili nights instead if you prefer not to shorten the opening stay.

Match the Bali port to the base, in each direction

BlueWater Express recommends Padang Bai for central Bali and Serangan for south Bali. For these plans, Ubud or Candidasa to Padang Bai is the logical outward road leg; the return can use either Bali port if its actual sailing and hotel transfer suit Sanur. A same-operator ticket need not mean the same port in both directions.

The live schedule checked on 25 October 2026 separates October from November–April. Its November–April panel lists Serangan and Padang Bai sailings through Trawangan, Air and Bangsal, rather than the October Penida routing. The heading says two trips daily, but the November–April panel shows only a first trip: do not budget around an assumed second departure. These are approximate operator schedules, not confirmed seats.

BlueWater lists check-in no later than 30 minutes before departure and an approximate Ubud pickup three hours before a Padang Bai departure. That is a pickup lead time, not a universal three-hour driving duration. Its published 9 March 2027 Nyepi notice says there are no trips that day; move a planned crossing off that date.

Price the complete route, not an invented daily average

For the seven-day plan, price six room nights split across Ubud, your Gili and Sanur; two boat passages per traveller; Ubud–Padang Bai and Bali-port–Sanur road legs; airport transfers; meals; activities; and local charges not included on your ticket. For ten days, price nine nights and add Sanur–Ubud. For fourteen, price thirteen nights and replace Ubud–Padang Bai with Ubud–Candidasa plus Candidasa–Padang Bai.

Current room and boat prices depend on dates and booking terms, so these routes do not claim a fixed package total. Ask for the actual island, port, luggage and hotel-transfer inclusions on each quote. BlueWater’s own terms allow two pieces totalling 25 kg per passenger; that is not a rule for every operator. It also treats connecting flights and additional delay expenses as the passenger’s responsibility.