Easy walking routes on the Island of the Gods by location:

I like to walk, and this everywhere imaginable – if it is not too strenuous. This was not any different in Bali. After four visits to this island in eight years, I had ample chance to do this on the one or other occasion. So, I will share the best Bali walks with you, divided by location. Take note that it is NOT about (serious) hiking – no climbing Mount Agung or so. Instead I would like to go into walking or hiking for pleasure on the Island of the Gods, with a low to medium exercise intensity.

Before diving into suggestions for best Bali walks, first some general info about walking on the Island of the Gods.

How to proceed when walking in Bali

In my overview post about Bali, I have already promoted the outdooractive app (here for Bali). I find it quite easy to use and very well to navigate. And you can do this also when you are offline. Best in my opinion is it to use it when you are already onsite, for example in Ubud. Then you can list possible hikes, and there are often more suggestions than when doing the same thing from far away.

This app is also great when it comes to possible paths next to where you are (the dotted lines). In such a way, you can find your own ways, for example from your hotel in Ubud’s surroundings to the town center. My husband and I did this on our recent visit to Bali’s cultural and spiritual center. And it was a great way to experience the wonderful rice fields in the area along less visited trails.

One more remark to your Bali walks. Quite often you encounter dogs, especially when doing your own ways in the area. From what I read, there are many more than before Corona. Most house owners have more than one dog, and there are stray dogs too. Please be careful when coming across them. While most are harmless, there are also aggressive ones. Maybe check out beforehand how to handle possibly critical situations in this regard.

But now to concrete walking recommendations, listed by place. I will do this along the same scheme I used for my Bali itinerary in my mentioned overview post about Bali.

Bali walks by location

I usually limit myself to such walks I have already made. Yet there is the one or other walk I only read about but have not done yet. But I will mark them accordingly.

Bali’s south: best walks

I start with the island’s south, known for going to for sun, sea and sand. Yet there are also some walks to do here, however they are not plentiful.

Nusa Dua

Nusa Dua is a purpose-built enclave with predominantly upscale lodging. Many of the hotels are situated along a paved board walk,

which is great for a leisurely walk. You can start either at the Conrad Resort on Tanjung Benoa or near Mengiat Beach close to the Ayodya Resort. The whole path is about 5 km (3.1 mi) long, and you need about two hours out and back. It is really a great thing to have a sneak peek into all these accommodations.

But it is more than this. Along the way – near the Grand Hyatt – , there are two islands (Nusa Due means “two islands”). However, they are more headlands than anything else. You find a statue and a water blow on one and a small temple on the other.

Sanur

This somewhat sleepy town on the southeastern coast also has a great board walk. It is paved and runs for 6 km (3.7 mi) along the sea.

While doing it, you pass hotels just as in Nusa Dua, albeit they mainly cater for midscale to budget travelers. Yet there are also lots of restaurants, beach clubs, small markets and spots full of fishing boats.

I would guess that you need about three hours to do the whole stretch out and back (from Matahari Terbit Beach in the north to Mertasari Beach in the south).

Central Bali: best walks

You find quite a lot of walks in Ubud. Quite often they are in the rice paddies, which are nice. Yet in case you are on the lookout for really great rice terraces, you have to go further north. The big name here are Tegallalang and Jatiluwih.

Ubud

Essentially there are two must-do walks here, both just off the main road of Jalan Raya Ubud. The first is a ridge walk (1.), the other is one in the nearby rice fields (2.). And they are parallel to each other. In addition, there is also a picturesque village in the rice paddies adjoining Ubud’s center where you could do either a circuit or use it as passageway from your hotel by the Ayung river to “downtown” Ubud (3.).

1. Campuhan Ridge Walk

Directions & map: Outdooractive

This is probably the most popular walk in Bali’s cultural hub. From the paved path you have great views of river gorges (Campuhan means “place where two rivers meet”) and lush tropical forests (not many rice fields).

First you are more or less in the nature, later on you come to a neighborhood with lots of cafés and restaurants.

Campuhan Ridge Walk starts off the main road (Jalan Raya Ubud), right before crossing the bridge leading to the Blanco Museum. The (out and back) trail is 4 km (2.5 mi) long (until the Karsa Café). We walked a bit longer until we came to a busy road (Jalan RSI Markandya II) where we turned around. This took us about one hour and 45 minutes.

2. Subak Juwuk Manis & Subak Sok Wayah Rice Fields Walk

Directions & map: Outdooractive

If you look for a time out from the hustle and bustle in Ubud’s core, you are only steps away from an easy and peaceful rice field walk. It is actually about two parallel trails connected to a loop. You can start at either of them, here I give directions when doing Subak Juwak Manis first.

The trailhead ist just off the main road (Jalan Raya Ubud). From the Starbucks in Ubud’s center go towards Museum Puri Lukisan (in the direction of the Blanco Museum). Right before the museum there is a small passage where the walk is signposted towards right.

When you are away from the buildings on the main road, rice paddies take turn with scattered houses, always along a narrow river (that you will not necessarily notice).

At one point you come to a forest. After walking in it for a while,

a bridge appears, which you have to cross to get to the other side of the small river. Then you go in the opposite direction until you come to stairs, which you have to climb.

At this point, you are on the other trail, Subak Sok Wayah. You either return to Ubud’s core or explore the path a bit further before heading back. My husband and I did the latter and turned around when we caught sight a dog that seemed not that friendly. The whole trail is about 6.6 km (4.1 mil) long. You need about one hour and 45 minutes to finish it.

3. Penestanan Rice Field Circuit

Directions & map: Outdooractive

The Penestanan village adjoining to Ubud’s center is a great area for having a pleasant rice paddy walk. Or, as in our case, it offers an idyllic passageway to walk from Ubud’s core to all the nearby hotels along the Ayung River.

I name here just a few of them: Mandapa A Ritz-Carlton Reserve, Amandari, Four Seasons Resort or The Samaya Ubud.

If you like walking just as my husband and I do, it is a great way to explore a lesser known area in Ubud. If you should have your hotel around here, check out possible paths on Outdooractive. The link above brings you to a circuit in Penestanan from which I only did parts of it (using it as a passageway). Yet, I think that it would be worthwhile doing as a whole.

From Ubud’s center, walk on the main road (Jalan Raya Ubud) to the Blanco Museum (about 12 minutes). From here you are only a few minutes away from the Penestanan stairs that bring you up to the picturesque village of Penestanan.

Tegallalang Rice Terraces (20 minutes from Ubud by car)

These are probably the most beautiful rice terraces I have ever encountered. Their steepness makes them really special. Yet there is a big BUT. When I was here in 2016, Tegallalang was already a big tourist attraction with quite a crowd around. From what I read, it got worse. The rice terraces seem to have turned into some sort of a tourist trap with swings and other Instagram spot everywhere. I am sad to hear this, and I dearly hope that the government will intervene to put an end to the overexploitation of this wonderful patch of earth.

On our 2016 visit, it was still possible to get away from the masses by walking a bit further into the valley. But as I understand, much has changed, and overtourism is prevalent here. So, I am not in the position to give good advice in terms where to go for a walk to take in these amazing rice terraces. I checked out walking suggestions on the internet (nothing on Outdooractive). And what I found is following trail how to access the most beautiful part of these steep Tegallalang rice terraces. Maybe give it a try!

Jatiluwih Rice Terraces (one hour 15 minutes from Ubud by car)

Instead of going to Tegallalang for a walk in the rice terraces, which seems overcrowded, I suggest heading to Jatiluwih. While it is further away from Ubud, it is well worth doing so. Jatiluwih is supposed to be the largest and most picturesque among the rice terrace areas in Bali. Plus, it is the only one that is a UNESCO World heritage site. However, the terraces are not so steep as the ones in Tegallalang. But this and its distance from Ubud are the only drawbacks I can think of.

On the plus side, it is uncrowded, beautiful, well kept and with lots of options for walking around. You find here warungs (simple restaurants), bathrooms, and there is only the one or the other Instagram spot. It is actually some sort of a National Park. In terms of walks, there are six different tracks to undertake here ranging from 1.5 km (0.9 mi) to 5.5 km (3.4 mi).

On our visit, not all of the tracks were open. So, we did a mix. We started near Gong Jatiluwih Restaurant where we followed the orange trail to the almost end. Before coming to the exit, we took the red one back to where all the trails are together. Here, we followed the purple one to its very end. We spent about two and a half hours in total at Jatiluwih with a short break at one of its warungs.

Bali’s north: best walks

While staying in Lovina back in 2014, we did not do any walks here. And from what I learnt now, when checking out the area in terms of walks, there is not much to undertake in this regard. My advice is to head to Munduk further south in case you feel like walking Bali’s north.

Munduk (45 minutes from Lovina)

Directions & map: Outdooractive

I came across the mountain village of Munduk several times when researching Bali’s north. It is located near the so called Twin Lakes of Buyan Lake and Tramblingan Lake. I have not been here, but it seems like a good place to go if you like walking in beautiful natural surroundings. Think in this context of waterfall treasure hunting – some of Bali’s most beautiful waterfalls are located here – , or walking/hiking through the area’s rice paddies and other plantations.

There are several walking suggestions for Munduk on Outdooractive, I have listed a waterfall walk above.

Bali’s east: best walks

On our two stays near Candidasa,

my husband and I did a couple of walks. However, most of them were not self-guided but arranged by our hotel. One must-do tour in the area is the one from Kastala to Tenganan.

1. Kastala to Tenganan (25 minutes from Candidasa)

The two-hour walk (out only, you have to arrange for a transport once you have finished it) is described in my post about what to see and to do in east Bali. So, go to the correspondent section to get the details. Only so much, it is a rewarding thing to do, walking along an irrigation canal

with fantastic views of rice terraces with mount Agung as a backdrop.

The wal ends in Tenganan, a traditional village of the Bali Aga, the pre-Hindu original people of Bali.

2. Lempuyang Pura/Temple (45 minutes from Candidasa)

Directions & map: Alltrails

Although I promised to provide suggestions for easy walks, this one is a bit of an exception. It is about the Lempuyang temple trail, where 1,700 steps bring you to the topmost temple, Lempuyang Luhar (1,175 m/3,855 ft. above sea level). In total there are seven temples, from which the bottom most one is an Instagram spot (Gate of Heaven).

This temple complex is one of the holiest on the whole island.

From the first temple there is a tarmac road leading to the second temple (Telaga Mas). Here the steps start. At the first crossing, you can either turn left in the direction of the 6th temple (Pasar Agung, we got there after a one hour walk)

or right where you come first to temples No three to five (Telaga Sawang, Lempuyang Madya and Puncak Bisbis). When doing the latter loop, you can return to the beginning (left) at the next crossing (as the above mentioned trail does) or you can continue your climb to the 6th temple.

On our visit, we could not do the loop because of a land slide that had destroyed the path. Once arrived at the 6th temple, you need one hour more – according to our guide – to the topmost temple. At the summit, you seem to have great views of the surroundings, at least if the weather allows it. We did not do this (it was misty), but took the way back to the Gate of Heaven (about half an hour).

I found the trail strenuous, especially as we had to go the direct way. And the heat and the humidity did not help. Go as early in the morning as possible to make the climb more pleasant. And be careful, there seem to be no dogs around, but monkey (macaques), and they are very aggressive (at the upper part of the trail).

3. Sidemen Rice Terraces (45 minutes from Candidasa)

Directions & map: Outdooractive

If you feel like walking east Bali’s rice terraces, the ones in Sidemen are probably your best choice. I have been in the area but I did not do either the suggested walk nor any other ones. I visited the town of Sidemen because of the weaving that is traditionally done here. In any case, you are in here for “real Bali” as this region still seems largely unaffected by mass tourism.

You find in the Sidemen area not only lots of rice terraces but also other farmlands and some quaint villages. As to the walk listed, it is the only one I found on Outdooractive.

Overall/What was before and what is next?

This post was about where to go in Bali for an easy walk, and this divided by location. I covered not only the island’s popular south but also the cultural hub of Ubud and other places in central Bali. Furthermore, I made a suggestion in the north and several ones in the east.

Earlier on my blog I already reported on my findings on luxury travel in Bali after four visits in eight years This included the Island of the Gods as a travel destination, best time for visiting, how to proceed when having walks in mind and where to go for sights (and at the same time for staying in style).

There will be two more posts about Bali. The next will be about hotels that are suitable for discerning travelers, again divided by location. The last one in this mini series about the Island of the Gods is for the foodies among us. It will showcase the best (casual) fine dining you get in Ubud in central Bali.

Last date of stay: November 2022

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