The Bali less traveled

For just about every year for the past 15 years that Bali has been home I take a week long road trip with my Balinese brother in law Ketut and our mutual cousin, Dedik.  With no itinerary in mind, we literally go where the wind takes us, and that's been to just about each and ever nook and cranny one could imagine. 

The best of Bali is what I call the hidden gems of Bali and they can only be found off the well beaten paths, and well away from the common tourist destinations. 

Here are just some of the areas of Bali I would call the hidden gems:

-Villages around Ubud:

A great majority of visitors to Bali end up coming to Ubud, but the majority of those visits are with organized bus tours who offer a full day of Ubud sightseeing…the Royal Palace, Monkey Forest, Neka Art Museum, Antonio Blanco Museum, Gunung Kawi, etc. etc.  Those are certainly all excellent sites to see and experience, but all around central Ubud are a number of small traditional villages which offer the visitor a real insight into Balinese culture and how the Balinese live.  It is in these small villages where one can freely wander around and see some extraordinary temples, traditional markets, rice fields, the breathtakingly beautiful Ayung River Gorge, and mingle with locals who are delighted to bring visitors into their family compounds for a rare look on the Balinese live. 

-Temples in Bali:

The five major temples of Bali are all well known and highly visited tourist spots.  But the old saying, there are more temples in Bali is true if one considers all the ancestor and house temples to be found within private Balinese compounds.  Each village in Bali will typically have at least three public temples, but the number of public temples within a particular village can be considerably more.  For example, my own village of Bunutan which has a population of around 230 families has nine public temples.  Some of the most beautiful public in temples are not on the list of the five major temples of Bali, and at anyone particular time on Bali there are temple ceremonies going on at any number of these temples.  That is where one goes to see the real Balinese dances, dramas, and puppets shows as these are essential aspects of all Balinese temple ceremonies.

Remote areas:

Bali has remarkable diversity to its landscape:  Mountains, tropical rain forests, rugged shorelines, hidden beaches, dry and arid flat lands, etc.  Dividing Bali up into four quadrants, (north, south, east and west) each area is considerably different from each other and it is amazing how much things can change within a short 20 km ride.  Most often overlooked by tourists is virtually most of Bali, as the vast majority of visitors spend their time in southern Bali and the tourist hot spots of Kuta, Legian,Seminyak, Jimbaran, Sanur and Nusa Dua.  Many visitors to Bali think they've seen Bali by virtue of their one week spent in Kuta.  Nothing could be further from the truth. 

The best way to discover the real Bali is by hiring a private Balinese driver.  These independent drivers and guides are what I call the hidden gems of Bali tourism.  Writing about them and how to make use of private Balinese driver would be a whole new topic, but in short, it's the only way to make the most efficient use of your time and to see most of what Bali has to offer. 

So Hailey...are you planning on a visit in the near future?

I'm thinking about going back to Bali in August.  I know I saw almost none of it the first time and I know what the travel books say, so that's why I wanted to ask the people who actually know the area.  Anyone who lives in a place should know it a million times better than any wikitravel article.

We had a private driver the first time I went and he was a godsend.  Not only did he take us around for the tiniest fee, but he provided far more insight than we would have ever had without him.

It would be great to finally meet you Hailey, so if your plans include Ubud, give me a heads up if you like.

Cheers, Roy

Yeah lovely bali

It was a nice read Roy. I'll be in Bali next month. Any specific temples or places you'd recommend to go to?

Well, to be honest and considering that I'm probably old enough to be your grandfather, I have little idea of how a young lady would want to spend her time here in Bali off the beaten track.

If it's temples you are really interested in seeing, any edition of the Lonely Planet guide to Bali lists a good number of them.

Just to give you a flavor of what's in store for you by visiting these lesser famous temples of Bali you might want to use the link below which will take you to a write up about a particular temple in my village as well as a number of thumbnail photos which you can click on in order to enlarge:

http://www.homeinbali.com/forum/topic/6 … enggaling/

Please note that the link above will not be functioning on Monday, March 31 in observance of Nyepi, our day of silence.

Enjoy your visit to Bali.

You might also check out the Bali photos on this web site as I have been loading up a number of photos including various temples in Bali.

Ubudian wrote:

You might also check out the Bali photos on this web site as I have been loading up a number of photos including various temples in Bali.

Where is this?

Hopefully you'll read this before it's deleted.

Hi Hailey!

You can either click on Bali as one of the destinations under the Indonesia board and then click on “photos” on the top right tool bar, or, you can click on “Ubudian” just above my avatar, and thumbnails of my photos will show in the lower right of my profile. 

There are still more in “the pipe line” awaiting moderation review. 

I hope things are well in Hong Kong!

Cheers!

Hope you can find some of the unspoilt Bali this trip. Personally I always like to travel to East Bail as less tourists head there, especially after the Bat Caves, places like Ahmed for diving and the scenery is amazing.

I've posted some good diving shots taken at Amed and Tulamben (just up the road from Amed) in the Bali pictures area if you care to have a look. 

For the most spectacular views you'll want to head to the central mountains. 

It's never hard to find unspoilt areas of Bali.  All one needs to do is to get out of Kuta and the rest of southern Bali.   

Hailey I think you are in goods hands with Ubudian. He has been living and breathing Bali for the past 15 years. You should also ask him to bring you to Ahmed as it is not just the diving which is good but also you pass some of the most spectacular scenery in Bali along that route. Aside from that I am sure he can show you the beauty of the Ubud area and the mountainous areas to the north. Have a great time there.

Gee, thanks Mike, but I am very confident that Hailey can find Amed, Bali (no “h” in Amed) quite well enough on her own.  That said I am looking forward to finally meeting her.   

My pleasure Ubudin 

The pleasure is all mine.   

Ubudian wrote:

I've posted some good diving shots taken at Amed and Tulamben (just up the road from Amed) in the Bali pictures area if you care to have a look. 

For the most spectacular views you'll want to head to the central mountains. 

It's never hard to find unspoilt areas of Bali.  All one needs to do is to get out of Kuta and the rest of southern Bali.   

There's some good stuff there.  I went to one or two of those Ubud temples but the clouds weren't on my side and most of the pictures are too dark.  It was raining buckets at Tanah Lot - which makes for a different take - but you don't get the postcard pictures.