Best Places To Go In Bali Indonesia

If you’re looking for the best places to go in Bali Indonesia then check out some of my top recommendations accompanied by beautiful pictures and a video to help you not waste time deciding where to go. If you’ve never been to Bali or are planning on visiting this might help you either decide to come, or where you will go once you get here.

The places I am listed are in no particular order, but they are my most favorite memories from the first time I visited this magical place. There is literally endless beauty from one end of the island to the other, a ton of places to visit from Denpasar in the South to Bulelang in the North.

According to Telegraph.co , Time Inc. and Travel + Leisure Magazine, Bali has been named one of the best tourist destinations in the world. This should come as no surprise, considering when you merely mention the name to people who have never been there it naturally evokes a sense of wonder and elicits images of tropical beaches in paradise.

Well, the imagination and reality of Bali’s beauty are fortunately both true! I have been traveling and working as a Digital Nomad for 6 months now, and I am really looking forward to returning to Bali which evidently has become a hub for other digital entrepreneurs like myself.

In this post I am going to introduce you to some of the best places to go in Bali Indonesia, not only according to other travel recommendations, or my local friends who showed me around but you can see it with your own eyes in the images and video below.

My top recommendations to visit are Green Bowl Beach, Nyang Nyang Beach, Kuta Beach, The Cliff Temple at Uluwatu, Tirta Empul (holy water temple), Monkey Forest, Brahma-vihara Arama, The Secret Gardens of Sambangan, Tanah Lot, Ulun Danu Beratan Temple, Jatiluwih and Tegallalang Rice Terraces.

Now it took a lot of effort to get around to all of these places, so depending on your time frame and where you are staying you will want to be selective about where you go. There are other waterfalls and places I went along the way but the places I listed above and will describe below are my must see recommended spots!

I will start off by mentioning that the only way I got around was on a scooter, which might seem scary to some but well worth it as compared to being stuck in traffic in a car rental, bus or tour group…and believe me, traffic in Bali is insane!!

I will be returning in a couple weeks and am really looking forward to being able to drive on the sidewalks again, lol. So, I stayed at the beautiful ONE Legian hotel, located on Legian street right in the heart of Kuta and a short walk to Kuta Beach.

The ONE Legian Hotel

This hotel, location, and wifi were all excellent, I highly recommend staying here. Now on to the awesome Bali Destinations!

Green Bowl Beach

This place was hands down one of my favorite places to visit on the island. As you pull in try not to run over any of the monkeys laying around on the road, also don’t leave anything on your bike when you park because they will get into it!

Green Bowl beach is one of the most secluded beaches, you have to descend a few hundred steps down a steep staircase before you come down into an opening to the beach. I was immediately drawn aback by the beauty of the jet black sand mixed in with the pearl white and tan grains making up the shoreline.

You can move in either direction, to your left you can climb over some rocks or through the water to get to one of the two limestone coves. Here you can stand on the rocks being pounded by the waves in this beautiful picture with my friend Mita.

If you go right, there is about 30m beach and a cave with a small shrine inside. We stayed until about 5 o clock when the tide was coming in, taking away most of the lounging area on the sand. Not too many people were here either, which was another benefit.

Nyang Nyang Beach

Nyang Nyang Beach has been one of Balis best-kept secrets. Fortunately it is not overcrowded with tourists yet, this 1.5 km long stretch of pristine beach is surely a sight to see as you descend the massive cliff hike down. The road out there is windy and off the beaten path. Once you get to the top of the cliff, you have to hike down very steep rocky cliffs.

My flip flop actually ended up breaking on the way down, I had to walk half barefoot and the jagged and painful rocks until my friend Mita miraculously repaired my sandal with one of her hair pins! (It even lasted another two weeks til I was in Cambodia!)

Once you finally make it down the sketchy cliff (which you also have to climb back up) you will walk into a large opening where there are no more trees, wind blowing in your face and wave crashing ashore nearby.

When you step foot on the beach you can look left or right and see the beach as far as your eye can see. I have some excellent pictures on my Instagram of people and the shoreline disappearing in the distance.

As I lay on the beach soaking in the natural beauty I was surrounded by, I found myself playing with a hermit crab, loving life as any problems in my life seemed to fade away in that moment in time. If you’re able bodied and adventurous, I highly recommend coming here.

Kuta Beach

If you’re staying in Kuta or anywhere on Legian like I was, Kuta beach is just a short walk away. By far the most well known and over populated places on the island, this is where many surfers come to get lessons before heading into more challenging or dangerous waters.

The Cliff Temple at Uluwatu

The Cliffe Temple at Uluwatu is an excellent sight to see in South Denpasar. This was about a 30 minute motorbike ride out of Kuta. The temple is located up on the cliff but there is a walkway all along the cliff side leading to a viewpoint opposite the temple.

This place is full of breathtaking views of waves crashing against the rocks and cliff walls below you. Monkeys are running around stealing peoples belongings like my sunglasses right off my head so be careful not to get your phone or other belongings stolen. The views are incredible, I would recommend anyone who is on the island for their first time to come here. You can even work in the other beaches I wrote about above as they are all located on or around the southern peninsula.

Brahma-vihara Arama

Brahma-vihara Arama is an awesome and peaceful meditation center also known as Vihara Buddha Banjar due to its location in the Banjar District of Buleleng. This is a budBuddhistmple Monastery in the mountains near Lovina in North Bali and has some incredible sites to behold.

This place is truly a spectacle, and was one of our last stops after a super long day of traveling, we were tired and beat from the heat and riding. Super happy we decided to stop here as will any of you who decide to visit. We got in for free which was another plus, although I’m not sure I can say you can expect that.

Tegallalang Rice Terrace

Tegallalang Rice Terrace is located at the village of Tegallalang, which is very much a tourist trap but well worth the venture. This is not too far from the Tirta Empul water temple, which is also conveniently close enough to the Monkey Forest which is the path we took when visiting all three in one day.

I definitely recommend coming here for the scenic views and popular rice paddies pics.

The Secret Gardens of Sambangan

This was for sure one of my top 3 favorite places to visit. Located North of Git Git in Ubud this awesome tropical canyon trekking experience is well worth visiting. Comprised of 9 interconnected waterfalls along your path, its just absolutely gorgeous and super fun to swim and slide down into the pools of water.

This was one of my most unforgettable experiences, but the hike in and out are very difficult, like any other less populated and promising places on the island.

Tirta Empul

Tirta Empul temple is a Hindu Balinese water temple located near the town of Tampaksiring, Bali, Indonesia. Many people come from all over the world to bathe in its holy water blessed by monks and long history of holy healing properties. I wished for good luck and fortune and I seem to be doing pretty well = )

Monkey Forest

Monkey forest is a must visit place on Bali. Its an awesome forest filled with a ton of monkeys! Sounds great right? We had a really good time but be careful busting out banannas bc these guys go NUTS! They jump all over you, which is ok, but some of them get really aggressive and violent!

There were several monkey fights and I even got bit by one bad monkey who was upset I did’nt have any more to give him. So if you are coming with kids be careful. Otherwise, this was well worth the visit, other than being slightly terrified a couple times, lol.

Tanah Lot

Tanah Lot is a rock formation off the Indonesian island of Bali. It is home to the pilgrimage temple Pura Tanah Lot, a popular tourist and cultural icon for photography. I came during low tide, but when I go back I hope its high tide again so I can get some better pictures without all the tourists everywhere.

The other picture is of Pura Batu Bolong which is a small shrine located just a stone’s throw from the famous Tanah Lot temple.

Ulun Danu Beratan Temple

Ulun Danu Beratan Temple is a water temple in the Lake Beratan area in Bedugul, Bali. This place is located 56 km from the center of Denpasar and is a very popular tourist attraction. I personally found it disappointed and overpriced, but could not leave it out of my list purely out of popularity.