Things to do & eat
Volcano hikes, waterfalls, beaches, surfing, island trips and food.
Bali ATV Quad Bike Tours: Where to Ride, Prices and Safety
Rice fields, river crossings, tunnels and a lot of mud. Here is what a Bali ATV ride really involves, what it should cost and how to pick an operator you can trust.
Bali Cooking Classes: What You Learn, Where to Go and Prices
A morning at a village market, a stone mortar full of spice paste and a table of dishes you cooked yourself: a Balinese cooking class is one of the most rewarding half-days on the island. Here is how to choose one.
Bali Nightlife Guide: Where to Go Out and How to Stay Safe
Bali after dark ranges from barefoot beer gardens to cliffside superclubs. Here is where to go, which nights are best, and the safety rules every visitor should know before ordering that first drink.
Bali Spa and Massage Guide: Prices, Etiquette and Rituals
In Bali, a massage is part of daily life rather than a rare splurge. Here is what a Balinese massage involves, what it should cost and how to find a spa worth going back to.
Bali Street Food Guide: Night Markets, Warungs and Prices
Some of the best meals in Bali cost less than a dollar and come off a charcoal grill in a market car park. Here is where to find the island's street food, what it costs and how to eat it safely.
Bali Wildlife Guide: What Animals Live in Bali and Where to See Them
Bali has no big cats left and no dragons, but it is far wilder than its beach clubs suggest. From the last wild Bali starlings to manta rays off Nusa Penida, here is what lives on the island, what to watch out for, and how to see it without doing harm.
Diving in Bali: Top Dive Sites, Courses, Prices and Safety
A wartime wreck you can walk to, manta rays at cleaning stations and coral walls that drop into the blue: Bali packs world-class diving into a small island. Here is where to go, what it costs and how to stay safe.
Is Nusa Penida Worth a Day Trip from Bali?
Nusa Penida's cliffs are some of the most photographed places in Indonesia, and most people try to see them in a single day. Here is what that day really looks like, and when staying overnight makes more sense.
Is the Bali Swing Worth It? Prices, Safety and Honest Advice
It is one of the most photographed experiences in Bali: a long dress, a jungle valley and a swing out into thin air. But is it worth the price, the queue and the hype?
Manta Rays and Mola Mola in Bali: Where, When and How to See Them
Off the southwest coast of Nusa Penida, reef manta rays glide over cleaning stations almost every day of the year, and for a few cold months the strange, enormous sunfish rises from the deep. Here is how to meet both without getting hurt or hurting them.
Monkeys in Bali: Where to See Them and How to Avoid Bites and Theft
Sooner or later in Bali, a long-tailed macaque will look you in the eye and then at your sunglasses. Here is where to meet Bali's monkeys, how they operate, and how to leave with your belongings and your skin intact.
Mount Agung: A Guide to Bali's Holy Volcano
Mount Agung is Bali's highest peak and the seat of its gods, a volcano that spared the mother temple in 1963 and shut the island's airport in 2017. Here is how to understand it, and how to climb it the right way.
Mount Batur Sunrise Hike: Is It Worth It?
A 2am pickup, two hours of climbing in the dark and a crater rim crowded with strangers. Here is an honest look at whether Bali's most famous sunrise earns the effort.
Sea Turtles in Bali: Where to See Them in the Wild, Ethically
Green and hawksbill turtles graze the reefs all around Bali, and olive ridleys still crawl up Kuta Beach at night to nest. Seeing them is easy. Seeing them in a way that actually helps them takes a little knowledge.
Shopping and Markets in Bali: Where to Go and How to Haggle
Bali is one of the best places in Asia to shop for crafts, textiles and design, but knowing where to go and how to bargain makes all the difference. Here is a guide to the island's markets, craft villages and boutiques.
Snorkeling in Bali: The Best Spots, Prices and Conditions
Bali's best reefs are not where most visitors stay. Drive east to Amed, north to Menjangan or take a boat to Nusa Penida, and the water turns clear, calm and full of life.
Surfing in Bali for Beginners: Where to Learn and When to Go
Bali has warm water, steady waves and a surf school on every corner, but also some of the most dangerous reef breaks in the world. Here is where beginners should paddle out, and where they should not.
The 18 Best Things to Do in Bali, From Temples to Islands
Bali packs volcanoes, cliff temples, rice terraces, reef and a living Hindu culture into an island you can cross in a few hours. These are the experiences worth building a trip around, and how to do them well.
The Best Beach Clubs in Bali: Where to Go and What It Costs
A daybed, a cold drink and the sun sinking into the Indian Ocean: Bali's beach clubs have turned the sunset into an art form. Here is how to pick the right one, and what it will really cost.
The Best Beaches in Bali for Swimming (Not Just Photos)
Many of Bali's most photographed beaches are surf beaches with powerful waves and rip currents. These are the ones where you can actually swim, and how to stay safe on the rest.
The Best Hikes in Bali, From Easy Ridge Walks to Volcano Summits
Bali is more than beaches. Behind the coast rise misty forests, sacred volcanoes and quiet rice valleys, and the best way to see them is on foot.
The Best Sunrise Spots in Bali, From Volcano Summits to Quiet Beaches
Bali's sunrises happen on its volcanoes and its eastern shores, and the best of them are worth an alarm set for 2am. Here is where to stand, when to arrive and which ones deserve the effort.
The Best Sunset Spots in Bali: Temples, Cliffs and Beach Bars
Almost every evening, the whole west coast of Bali turns to face the sea. Here is where to watch it happen, what it costs and how to get back before the traffic does.
The Best Waterfalls in Bali, Ranked by Effort and Reward
Bali has dozens of waterfalls, and they ask very different things of you, from a five-minute stroll to five hundred steps and a guide. This is our honest ranking of which ones repay the effort.
Vegan Food in Bali: Cafés, Warung Phrases and Prices
Between Ubud's raw-food cafés and the tempeh in every warung cabinet, Bali is one of the easiest places in Asia to eat vegan. Here is what to order, what to ask and where to go.
What to Eat in Bali: 15 Balinese Dishes to Try and Where to Find Them
Balinese food is not the nasi goreng you know from menus everywhere. It is spicy, ceremonial, built around pork, duck and a pounded spice paste, and best eaten at a plastic table in a family warung.
Where to See Dolphins in Bali: Lovina at Sunrise, Done Right
Every morning before dawn, a fleet of outrigger boats slips off the black-sand beaches of Lovina to look for spinner dolphins. It can be magical, or it can be a traffic jam, and the difference is mostly down to the boat you choose.
White Water Rafting in Bali: Ayung River vs Telaga Waja
Two rivers, two very different days on the water. Here is how the gentle Ayung gorge near Ubud compares with the wilder Telaga Waja in east Bali, and which one is right for you.
Yoga in Bali: Best Studios, Retreat Prices and Teacher Training
Few places on earth make it as easy to roll out a mat. Here is where to practice in Bali, what classes and retreats really cost and how to pick the right one for you.