Development has been slower to gather pace on Bali’s quieter northeastern coast, where a string of low-key resorts and pretty villages are dotted along a spectacular shoreline known as Amed. Colourful catamarans idle on grey-pebble and black-sand beaches, against a backdrop of hills sweeping straight from the shoreline. This dramatic hinterland lends a vivid edge to swims in the translucent waters offshore, whose coral reefs swirl with colourful marine life.