Well, you have these 5 options to make payments at Bali.
1. Cash by converting USD
2. Credit Card
3. Debit Card
4. Forex Card
5. Withdraw Cash from ATM
For Sl No 1: You have to buy USD from India. Banks will charge 2–4% commission on the amount of USD that you buy (You have to buy at Rs 2–3 high per dollar than the rate declared by RBI on that day). And again you will have to pay charges of about 2–3 % when you exchange USD for Indonesian Rupiah. If you think that you are smart and purchase Rupiah at India itself, then be for a shock because you will get a pathetic rate. Its better to convert USD. So for 1 lakh Rupees exchange, you will have to pay Rs 5000 approx as forex charges.
For Sl No 2: Credit Cards charges 2–4 % on transaction charges plus GST. That will also amount to about Rs 2400-Rs 5000 per lakh as Forex charges. I use the HDFC Regalia Credit Card which charges 2% as Forex Charges.
For Sl No 3: Debit Cards charges 3.5% minimum plus GST. So expect to pay around Rs 4000 per lakh.
For Sl No 4: Forex card charges about Rs 500 as issuance fee plus Rs 75 per reload. Assuming you use an Indonesian Rupiah Forex Card (I highly doubt you will get an Indonesian Forex Card), then loading Rs 1 lakh directly will cost you only about Rs 680. However, i believe you will have to use a USD Forex Card for which you will have to pay 2% cross currency charges. So for 1 lakh, it will be around Rs 3000.
For Sl No 5: ATM withdrawal charges are 3.5% +GST and Rs 100+GST per transaction. If you withdrew Rs 1 lakh directly, then expect to pay around Rs 4300.
Hence, the worst is converting cash and the best is using either an HDFC Bank Regalia Credit Card (or any card which charges 2% as cross currency charges) OR using a Forex Card (if you don’t have a credit card that charges 2% cross currency charges)
In all the five scenarios, it is seen that the maximum charges will be about Rs 5000 and minimum will be around Rs 3000. So, it is of no use in trying to think so hard because you will save just Rs 2000 per lakh which is not much considering you are spending in lakhs for a foreign trip.
Lastly, if you get a Forex Card that has the currency that you will use in the country you visit, then i think that will be the cheapest.
Thus, FOREX CARD is the winner among all !!
And one more thing. Cards are accepted in almost each and every shop of Bali. So no need to take any tension!