The Real Deal: Round-trip airfare and five nights' accommodations, from $1,298 per person—plus taxes of $73.
When: Through Mar. 31, 2008; add $80 for Apr. 1-June 5, Sept. 1-Dec. 5; $300 for June 6-July 14, Dec. 6-12; $380 for July 15-Aug. 31; $460 for Dec. 25-Jan. 5, 2009; $540 for Dec. 13-Dec. 24.
Gateways: L.A., San Francisco; add $60 for New York; $180 for Denver, Seattle; $320 for Houston; $360 for Chicago; $440 for Atlanta, Miami; additional cities available.
The fine print: Breakfast buffet daily, round-trip airport-hotel transfers, and a security and fuel surcharge totaling $318 are included. Departure taxes are an additional $73 per person. Based on double occupancy; single supplement is $300. The starting price is valid for travel on any day of the week through Mar. 31; add $120 for weekend departures from Apr. 1, 2008-Jan. 5, 2009. Mandatory tourist visas can be obtained upon arrival at Denpasar Airport for $25. Read these guidelines before you book any Real Deal.
Book by: No deadline; based on availability.
Contact: Asian Affair Holidays, 800/742-3133, asianaffairholidays.com.
Why it's a deal: For comparison, according to a recent search on Kayak, the lowest round-trip fare between L.A. and Bali in early March is $1,212 (Cathay Pacific). For only $86 more, a mere $17 per day, Asian Affair covers airfare as well as five nights' accommodations at a beach resort, including breakfast daily and airport transfers—making this package a real steal.
Trip details: The Bali Spectacular package includes round-trip airfare on award-winning Singapore Airlines to Bali. Be prepared for about 21-24 hours of flying each way. Since there are no direct flights to Bali yet, you'll be making two stops before reaching your destination—one in Taipei or Hong Kong (if you're flying form L.A. or San Francisco) or in Frankfurt (if you're coming from New York) and the other in Singapore.
As far as accommodations go, the starting price of $1,298 allows you a choice of four beach resorts: the 381-room Nusa Dua Beach Hotel and Spa, the 278-room Le Meridien Nirwana Golf and Spa Resort, the 494-room Melia Bali Villas and Spa Resort, or the 386-room Nikko Bali Resort & Spa.
The package also features a daylong cultural and sightseeing tour with lunch. The tour starts with a morning visit to the island's stone-carving center, the village of Batubulan, where you'll enjoy a traditional Balinese Barong dance and drama performance—a colorful depiction of the human spirit's struggle between good (represented by the creature Barong) and evil (represented by the witch Rangda).
Afterwards, you'll drive to the town of Ubud, a haven for artists and expats. You'll also stop in the villages of Celuk and Mas, known for gold and silver work and woodcarvings, respectively. Then you will visit the 11th-century Goa Gajah, a cave with stone carvings, including the head of an elephant.
Then you will travel through the terraced rice fields of Tegallalang on your way to Kintamani for lunch at a local restaurant. Soak up the views of Kintamani Volcano Mountain and Lake Batur before turning back.
If you'd like to extend your stay, expect to pay $59 per person per night for a double room and $119 for a single. You can upgrade your accommodations starting at an additional $126 per person per night for a "palace club room" at Nusa Dua Beach Hotel, a 150-square-foot room furnished with traditional Balinese wood carvings and fabrics, or for a room at the Conrad Bali Resort and Spa or the Ritz Carlton. Upgrades to the Four Seasons Resort are $340 per person per night.
Looking for more tips on what to do in the area? Check out the official Web site of the Bali Tourism Board. For safety information and travel warning updates, consult the U.S. State Department's information sheet on Indonesia.
Bali's tropical climate offers year-round sunshine with average annual temperatures in the mid 80s Fahrenheit. The starting rate for this package applies to travel during the humid and rainy wet season (October through March), though daily downpours tend to be short-lived.
Before you go, check the weather forecast, the exchange rate, and the local time at .