Bali

Since 1971 Bali has had a rule that no building may stand taller than a coconut palm, about 15 metres. Round Kuta, on the south coast, we doubt anyone is still measuring. The island's original resort strip is cheap and crowded, and these days it belongs to young Australians out to party, well meaning and raucous with it. Nobody could hold it against them: Britain has Magaluf, and Australia has Kuta. For a quiet stay, go elsewhere.

Kuta still earns a morning, for the surf. We took a lesson there with a heavy head after a night on the dance floor, and it was one of the best mornings of the trip. By the end of it the sea had put us right. Seminyak keeps the party going with better clothes on: beach clubs and boutiques, for a more stylish crowd.

Inland, Ubud is the place for the wildlife and the wellness retreats. The town sits among rice terraces centuries old, fed by the subak irrigation system; those at Tegalalang are 15 minutes away by car and better seen on foot or by bike. The monkeys are closer, in the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary in the middle of town. Treks up Mount Batur set off before dawn and take around three hours to the top, the going rate for a sunrise from an active volcano.

Some of the best eating was on the street, the satay especially, and some of the best of the trip was seafood off a barbecue on the beach. At Jimbaran Bay, a short drive south of the airport, the grills are on the sand and dinner is timed to the sunset.

June was kind to us, with good weather almost all the way through: the dry season, with July and August's weather and fewer of their crowds. The seas are roughest from December to March, which matters for the boats to the Gilis.

For the best beaches, and what felt like the real island life, leave Bali. The Gili Islands lie off Lombok, an hour and a half to two by fast boat from Padang Bai on Bali's east coast. Motor traffic is banned on all three, so people get about by bicycle and horse cart. Gili Air and Gili Meno are quieter than Gili Trawangan, and to us more beautiful. Our visit fell during Ramadan, and we had been warned things might be closed. It seemed to be business as usual, though where nothing on the road has an engine, business as usual is never much of a rush.