Last Updated on May 6, 2022 by Tina
In May 2019, my friend Liza and I gave our best friend Hanna a surprise bridal shower in Bali. We flew to Bali for her bachelorette party which Hanna and I planned together. Little did she know, we were also preparing something for her.
Before I proceed with how we pulled off the surprise, let me share with you first what I have read about the difference between a bachelorette party and a bridal shower. According to the website of The Wedding Notebook, a bachelorette party is a time for the bride to forget all about the wedding plans and have some fun with the girls. It is usually held in pubs, clubs, or anywhere that serves alcohol. However, in recent years, more women are choosing tropical retreats and spa weekends.
On the other hand, a bridal shower is like an engagement party but just for the girls. The bride-to-be is showered with gifts and words of encouragement that will help her start her new home and life as a married woman. What we did though was just shower her with gifts. I think giving words of encouragement is just too cheesy/ too serious for us. When we are together we love doing childish and crazy things together.
Now let’s talk about how we pulled off the surprise…
Preparing for the Bachelorette Party
Sometime in December 2018, Hanna and I were having our usual chat on Instagram. I guess we were talking about Bali at that time, and how much we would love to visit the place. Then suddenly we found the perfect excuse to go there: have her bachelorette party in Bali.
Hanna saw a promo from a travel agency for a Bali tour. The tour package is a 4 days 3 nights package that includes airfare, accommodation, land transfers, and two tours. They thought it was a good deal so they availed of the package. I, on the other hand, is not a big fan of tour packages because I want things to be flexible. Also, I think 4 days is too short for Bali. So I told Hanna I’ll be doing DIY.
Less than a week before our trip, they finally received their flight tickets to Bali. Instead of having 4 full days in Bali, they only have 3 days because their flight to Bali was at night. As for the tours, when Hanna inquired from the travel agency how much it would cost me if I joined their tour, the amount was way higher than the cost of booking a private tour with Klook. So I decided not to join them on the tours. Instead, I booked my own private tour.
Their first two days were spent doing the tours included in their package, and on the third day, I joined them in the Instatour Photoshoot we booked with Insta Tours Bali. Hanna loves posting pictures on Instagram so much, so the highlight of the party was that tour. It is a tour with a photoshoot done by a professional photographer. I have so many pictures to share from that photoshoot so I’m doing a separate post for it.
Planning for the Surprise Bridal Shower
Somehow not availing of the package tour helped in pulling off the surprise. Not once did she get any hint that there is a surprise waiting for her. Liza and I planned to do it the night before our Instatour. She and I agreed that I will take care of the venue and she will take care of the food.
I looked for villas on Airbnb for the venue and found Kampoeng Saya. The villa looks really nice and it has a pool. When I saw the pictures of the villa, I knew that it is something Hanna would love. The place is very Instagrammable. And so I booked the Sanur House for the bridal shower.
We also prepared props for the bridal shower. Liza made her a flower crown with a veil and a sash, while I made penis-shaped lip balm and soap. I also bought a penis-shaped plush toy for her.
To make sure that we would be able to have Hanna come to the villa without her suspecting that there is a surprise party, I pretended to invite them to come to hang out with me in the pool of the villa after their tour. I sent them some pictures of the place. The pictures made Hanna very excited.
Related Post: Bali, Indonesia Travel Guide with 5 Days Solo Travel Itinerary
The Day of the Bridal Shower
On the day of the bridal shower, Hanna and Liza went for a day tour while I checked in at Kampoeng Saya which is located in Seminyak to prepare the room. I had nothing planned that day except watch the sunset in La Plancha. It is also the place where we agreed to meet.
On my way to Kampoeng Saya, I dropped by their hotel, D Varee Diva Kuta Bali to pick up the props and gift from Liza. She left the package at the hotel’s front desk without Hanna noticing.
I arrived at La Plancha earlier than them. When they got there, we stayed there for a while to have some drinks. We also took pictures with colorful umbrellas. After that, we had our dinner in a restaurant near La Plancha before going to the villa.
The Bridal Shower
So for this part, I had to review the videos first so I could tell what happened exactly. Here goes: when we got to the villa we were humming the wedding march while Hanna was walking through the trellis.
When we got to my room, we opened the lights and shouted surprise. I failed on capturing it on video though because I forgot to click on the button on my phone. Epic fail! When she saw the props, she was laughing at the penis-shaped lip balm, soap, and the plush toy. Then she put on the flower crown and the sash. Next, she opened our gifts. Then she laughed again. She was laughing a lot that night.
After that, picture taking! Everywhere. I volunteered to be her photographer. Here are some of the photos:
After Hanna’s photoshoot, we changed to our swimsuits and went to the pool. There were no words of encouragement at the pool though. No serious talk. We just did silly things, laughed a lot, and took more pictures.
I think Hanna loved our surprise for her based on the videos. And watching those videos made me miss the time we had in Bali, even if I only spent a day and a quarter with them.
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