Questions, answered honestly

It's the first thing most people ask, so here is exactly what we do. We eat at busy warungs with high turnover, the ones our guides eat at, where food is cooked to order in front of you. No buffets sitting in the sun. Sealed bottled water in the car and in your room, always, and for brushing your teeth. Ice only where we know the source, which means the hotel's own or none. No salads or cut fruit from anywhere we don't know. Hand-washing before every meal, and there's sanitiser in every car. Your host has eaten at these places for years and he'll be eating the same food beside you. Nobody can promise you'll never have an upset stomach anywhere in the world, and we won't. What we can say is that this is the thing we're most careful about, at every single meal.

Not from the tap, and you won't need to. Sealed bottled water is included the whole trip. There's a supply in every car and fresh bottles in your room each day, and we top up before anyone asks. Use it for brushing your teeth as well. The hotels we use put out sealed water too, and the tea and coffee are made with boiled water. The heat means you'll drink more than you expect, so keep a bottle with you and sip through the day rather than catching up at dinner. If you'd rather carry your own refillable bottle, bring it and we'll fill it from the big sealed drums in the car, which saves a lot of plastic. Ice in your drink is fine at the hotels and the restaurants we use, because we know where it comes from.

Closer than most people expect in the south, further in the hills, and we plan around it. Bali has private hospitals in the south that treat international patients, such as BIMC and Siloam, and there are clinics in Ubud and the main towns. Your host knows the nearest clinic at every base and how long the drive is: [[NEEDS INPUT: nearest clinic and drive time from each base on each itinerary]]. If something serious happens, the plan is a private car to the best hospital for the problem, with your host beside you and your insurer on the phone. This is one reason the group is small and the transport is private: there's always a car and a driver available, with no waiting for a coach to finish its day. Bring your policy details and any medical letters, and give us a copy at the start of the trip.

Bring enough for the whole trip plus a week, in the original packaging with the pharmacy label on it, packed in your carry-on rather than your checked bag. Bring a letter from your doctor listing what you take and why, especially for anything controlled or anything injectable. Indonesia is strict about some medicines that are routine in Australia, so check the Smartraveller advice for Indonesia and ask your pharmacist before you fly. If you're not sure, ask us and we'll help you find out. Tell us on the booking form about anything you need to keep cold and we'll arrange a fridge in your room. Pharmacies in Bali are good for the basics, but don't count on finding your exact prescription there. Your host carries a first-aid kit and knows the nearest pharmacy at every base.

Less than you'd think, and never more than you want. Every package page has a pace scale and a plain note on the longest walk of the trip, so you can see exactly what you're signing up for. On the 7-Day Reset the longest walk is about 900 metres on a flat path. Most days you're on your feet for less than 20 minutes at a stretch, then back in an air-conditioned car. Where there is a longer walk, like the track into Sekumpul on the 10-day trip, it's optional and there's a car and a coffee waiting for anyone who'd rather not. No early starts unless you want them, and real rest days built in. If you use a stick or a walker, tell us when you book and we'll plan the stops around it.

By not fighting it. Bali sits around 30 degrees most of the year and the humidity is real, so the days are built around it. Anything on foot happens early or late, when it's cooler and quieter, and the middle of the day is for lunch, a swim, a nap or a drive in an air-conditioned car. Every car has cold water and there's always shade or a seat within reach. The hill towns like Munduk and Sidemen are noticeably cooler, which is one reason the longer trips spend time there. Pack light, loose, breathable clothes, a hat and sunscreen. If you're on medication that affects how you handle heat, tell us and we'll plan around it. If you ever feel it getting on top of you, say so. Nobody has to stay out in it to keep up.

You tell your host, who is on the trip with you, not in an office in another time zone. He'll get you to a doctor or a clinic, come with you, and deal with the language, the paperwork and the insurer while you deal with feeling better. He knows the nearest clinic at every base. If you need to fly home early, he'll rebook the flight and get you to the airport. There is also a 24/7 support line in Australia for whoever is waiting at home. This is why travel insurance is compulsory on our trips: if the worst happens, the cost of care and a flight home is covered and nobody is making decisions based on money. We'll help you choose a policy before you go.

12 people at most, and often fewer. That's not a marketing number. It's the size that fits in a couple of comfortable cars with room for bags and for stretching out. It means a long table at dinner where everyone can hear each other, a guide who knows your name by the first afternoon, and nobody standing in a car park waiting for stragglers. It also means we can actually change plans. If the group would rather have a slow morning than a temple, we have a slow morning. Fifty people on a coach can't do that. If you're coming as a private group of six or more, ask about our multigenerational and celebration trips, where the 12 places are all yours.

Unhurried. Every package page has a pace scale so you can see it before you book, and none of our trips is rated above gentle. A typical day is one thing in the morning, a long lunch, one thing in the afternoon or nothing at all, and dinner together. Breakfast is when you want it. No early starts unless you want them, and when we do go early, it's because a place is empty at 7:30 and full by 9. You unpack at each base for several nights rather than moving every day, and the longer trips have full rest days with nothing scheduled. If the group would rather have a slow morning by the pool than a temple, we have a slow morning. 12 people can decide that at breakfast. Fifty people on a coach can't.

Yes, and we do it properly, not by asking the waiter on the night. Your dietary needs go on the booking form and travel with the group. Before every trip we brief every kitchen we'll eat at, in Bahasa Indonesia, with a written note of who needs what, so the cook knows before you sit down. On the day, your guide double-checks, because soy sauce with wheat in it or a spoonful of shrimp paste is the sort of thing that slips through otherwise. Vegetarian is easy in Bali. Halal food is widely available across Indonesia. Coeliac and diabetic needs take more care, and that's exactly why we don't use buffets. Rice, grilled fish and chicken, and fresh fruit are on every table, and there's always a plain option. If you have a severe allergy, tell us on the phone as well as on the form, so nothing gets lost.

Yes, at every stay. The hotels we use offer a laundry service, usually back the same day or the next morning, and most bases are long enough that you can send a bag out and have it back before we move on. It's not included in the price, but it's cheap by Australian standards, and there's usually a local laundry near the hotel that is cheaper again if you'd rather. Your host will point you to it. This is why we suggest packing for a week, even on the 14-day trip: a lighter bag makes every airport and every hotel room easier. Bring a small bag of washing powder for the odd thing you'd rather rinse in the sink, and remember that anything left on a balcony in the humid months can take a while to dry.

Yes, in every hotel, in your room and around the pool and restaurant. It's good enough for email, video calls home and a show in the evening. In the hills and on the smaller islands it can slow down or drop out for a while, especially in a storm, and that's part of the deal with being somewhere quiet. The cars don't have wifi, but if you've got an eSIM or a local SIM you'll have data on the road for most of the island. If you need to be reachable for work, tell us before you book and we'll be honest about which stays are the most reliable. If you're hoping to be unreachable, the wifi has a switch.

More than you'd expect from a guided trip. Most days have a long break in the middle, and every base has at least one afternoon with nothing planned. On the 14-day trip there are three full rest days. Free time is real free time: a swim, a massage, a walk into town with the guide's directions, a book by the pool, or a nap. If you want to do something with it, whether that's a cooking class, a surf lesson for the teenagers or a visit to a place you've read about, ask your host and he'll usually be able to sort a car and a guide for it. Some of those extras cost a little on top, and we'll tell you the price before you say yes. Nothing is ever scheduled just to fill the day.

Yes, any time, and nobody will make a fuss. Tell your host the night before or at breakfast, then stay by the pool, sleep in or wander into town instead. The group goes on without you and you're back together for dinner. If it's a day trip and you'd like to join for lunch only, the driver can usually bring you along later. If it's the middle of an outing and you've had enough, there's a car and a driver with the group, so you can go back to the hotel whenever you like without waiting for everyone else. That's the point of private transport and a group of 12. Skipped days aren't refunded, because the flights, rooms and guides are already paid for, but there's never any pressure to keep up.