Hiring a Babysitter in Bali – Parents can Now Eat, Pray and Love
Our 4 year old son having fun with the babysitter.
Several year ago I listened to Elizabeth Gilbert’s now famous book Eat, Pray Love.
At the time I am not sure that I knew such a large portion of this book was written about Ubud Bali, our next stop, but I remember Elizabeth finding her spiritual center on an exotic island, and yes, I guess it really was Bali.
As a single white female traveling alone through Bali to discover yourself and find love, it may be easy to find time to relax. But can you do this as a parent?
Finding a Babysitter in Bali
On the travel circuit you meet all types. When it comes to families and Bali, the majority have been Aussies taking 1-2 week holidays to unwind.
The Aussies and New Zealander’s seem to know how to do Bali right, so we took notes.
Leaving your children in a foreign country with a babysitter who 90% of the time doesn’t speak a lick of English can be a frightening thought. But, after watching the Aussie parents relax to morning Yoga, get a massage, take day trips and generally unwind all while their children were being thoroughly entertained by a kind, smiling Balinese teenager… It was just too much to resist.
So, we decided to take the leap.
The typical cost of a babysitter in Bali is about $3-4 US per hour, this was for 2 children
To find a babysitter it is easy, simply ask someone at the front desk of where you are staying, or really any other Balinese person you come across. If somebody asks you if you need a taxi, you can say no, but I need a babysitter and I am sure they will be happy to oblige.
Many of the Aussies would set this up for the entire week. For example, taking yoga every morning and scheduling a babysitter to come in for 2 -3 hours daily for the week. You can do this for a day, a month, a week or probably the year 🙂
The babysitters smile and let your children really do whatever they want. The kids couldn’t be happier. What is amazing is that when you give kids the reins, remind them to be careful and respectful, things work out surprisingly well.
We took a 6 hour snorkeling trip, and the kids had a great day, we gave the hotel our cell phone number and made sure the babysitter could swim if they were to go in the water. Otherwise no pool time. When we got back they were happy as larks, and so were we.
My only regret about the babysitting in Bali is that we didn’t use it more.
You do not need to stay in fancy hotels to get a babysitter. Babysitters are ubiquitous and everybody in Bali is trustworthy and kind. You can feel very confident taking longer day trips and know that your kids will be well entertained. You can worry about something bad happening, but it is a waste of time, kids will be kids whether they are with you or the babysitter and actually they are probably safer with the babysitter.
For parents it can be a well deserved break, that is very inexpensive and probably under-utilized.
Jump into the Gap
"I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived" - Henry David Thoreau
