Attraction
Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary
A village-owned forest of about ten hectares at the southern end of central Ubud, home to more than a thousand long-tailed macaques and three 14th-century temples.
Most visitors come for the things to do in Ubud that are hard to find anywhere else in Bali: temple ceremonies, evening dance performances in palace courtyards, art museums devoted to Balinese painting, and rice terraces and river valleys within easy reach of town. Ubud sits in Gianyar regency in the hills north of Denpasar and has long been the island's cultural centre, a reputation built in the 1930s when the royal family worked with painters such as Walter Spies and Rudolf Bonnet.
The centre is compact. Jalan Raya Ubud runs east to west past Ubud Palace and the Ubud Art Market, while Jalan Monkey Forest and Jalan Hanoman lead south towards the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary. Campuhan, Penestanan and Sanggingan lie just beyond the centre, and Sayan and Kedewatan overlook the Ayung River. The food scene ranges from babi guling and crispy duck to tasting menus ranked among Asia's best, with a strong line in plant-based cafés. Three or four days covers the town, the museums and a day trip to Tegallalang and Tampaksiring, and a week allows time for a Mount Batur sunrise trek, cooking classes and yoga.
Attraction
A village-owned forest of about ten hectares at the southern end of central Ubud, home to more than a thousand long-tailed macaques and three 14th-century temples.
Attraction
Terraced rice paddies carved into a river valley about 10 km north of Ubud, watered by the traditional Balinese subak irrigation system and fringed with coconut…
Attraction
A Hindu water temple at Tampaksiring founded in the 10th century around a sacred spring, where Balinese worshippers bathe beneath carved spouts in a purification ritual.
Attraction
The Elephant Cave at Bedulu, an 11th-century rock-cut hermitage with a demon-faced entrance, bathing pool and both Hindu and Buddhist carvings, about 6 km south-east of…
Attraction
Puri Saren Agung, the 19th-century palace of Ubud's royal family at the heart of town, known for its Lempad stone carvings and evening Balinese dance performances.
Attraction
A 1950s Ubud temple dedicated to Saraswati, the goddess of learning and the arts, designed by I Gusti Nyoman Lempad and fronted by a large lotus…
Café
Ubud's original specialty coffee and design studio on Jalan Sri Wedari, roasting its own beans and serving single-origin brews, cold brew and pastries from its bakery.
Café
A healthy all-day café on Jalan Hanoman since late 2004, cooking organically inspired comfort food with vegetables from its partner farm in Payangan.
Café
A barefoot, incense-scented café on Jalan Hanoman serving mostly vegetarian, vegan and raw dishes, nut-milk shakes and elixirs from breakfast until late.
Café
A fully plant-based and gluten-free café in Penestanan, serving raw and gently cooked dishes, with its own raw vegan culinary academy.
Café
A plant-based café and culinary academy on Jalan Sukma Kesuma, serving vegan cooked and raw dishes and raw desserts, with chef trainings and evening events.
Café
A specialty coffee and brunch café on Jalan Hanoman with a terrace over rice paddies, nitro cold brew and an all-day menu.
Hotel
A luxury resort of villas and suites in the Ayung River valley at Sayan, entered across a suspension bridge above the treetops, with a riverside spa…
Hotel
A family-run resort of 40 private pool villas overlooking a jungle valley near Ubud, home to the Apéritif restaurant and Akoya Spa.
Hotel
A hillside pool-villa resort above the Ayung River in Payangan, north of Ubud, known for its cascading twin-level infinity pool facing the rainforest.
Hotel
A design-led boutique hotel of 38 suites on Jalan Bisma with separate pool villas, a rooftop restaurant and a Michelin Key awarded in 2026.
Hotel
A 106-room garden resort on Jalan Hanoman, 800 metres from the Sacred Monkey Forest, with a brasserie, pool bar, spa and weekly yoga classes.
Hotel
A Campuhan hotel welcoming guests since 1927, with a spa at the bottom of the river valley, an Oos Terrace restaurant and a lounge named after…
Bar
The Locavore NXT team's intimate cocktail bar on Jalan Goutama Selatan, mixing drinks from Bali's wild botanicals and folklore, once listed on Asia's 50 Best Bars.
Bar
Viceroy Bali's speakeasy-style cocktail bar, with a mahogany bar and 1930s colonial-style interior, serving award-winning cocktails made with in-house infusions.
Bar
Ubud's long-running live music bar on Jalan Monkey Forest, with blues, rock, reggae, soul and jazz on a small stage almost every night and a happy…
Bar
A small, unpretentious bar on Jalan Monkey Forest with strong drinks, a long happy hour and live bands most nights playing everything from covers to rock…
Bar
A long-standing late-night venue halfway along Jalan Monkey Forest, with live bands, DJs, a pool, pool tables and garden seating in a large pavilion.
Bar
An intimate wine and cocktail bar on Jalan Goutama, pouring 20 wines by the glass via Coravin alongside cocktails and tapas, in a space of about…
Restaurant
The successor to Bali's famous Locavore, a tasting-menu restaurant in Lodtunduh with a rooftop food forest and fermentation lab, ranked on Asia's 50 Best Restaurants.
Restaurant
Chris Salans' long-running gastronomic restaurant on Jalan Raya Sanggingan, serving seasonal tasting menus of contemporary Indonesian cuisine in a garden setting.
Restaurant
Chef Will Meyrick's modern Indonesian restaurant in a heritage townhouse on Jalan Sri Wedari, serving regional recipes and sharing plates from noon until late.
Restaurant
The original Dirty Duck Diner on Jalan Hanoman, serving its crispy duck, steamed in Balinese spices then fried, in a garden setting since 1990.
Restaurant
Ubud's famous babi guling stall in the town centre, serving Balinese spit-roasted pork with crackling, lawar and sambal until the day's roast runs out.
Restaurant
The rooftop restaurant and bar of Bisma Eight on Jalan Bisma, cooking modern European food with Southeast Asian touches using produce from its own Tegallalang garden.
Thing to do
A paved path of about two kilometres along a grassy ridge above the meeting of two rivers at Campuhan, starting beside the temple of Pura Gunung…
Thing to do
Pasar Seni Ubud, the central craft market opposite Ubud Palace, selling woodcarvings, paintings, ikat, baskets and bags made in the surrounding villages.
Thing to do
A yoga and wellness campus in Peliatan, opened in 2007, running more than 25 classes a day across several studios, plus teacher trainings, a café and…
Thing to do
A waterfall more than 40 metres high on the Petanu River at Kemenuh, close to Ubud, with a viewpoint at the top and stairs down to…
Thing to do
A pre-dawn hike up the 1,717-metre active volcano of Mount Batur in Kintamani to watch the sunrise over its caldera lake, a popular day trip from…
Tour operator
A Balinese cooking class in a family compound in Laplapan village, combining a market visit, a walk through the rice fields and a hands-on lesson in…
Tour operator
Janet DeNeefe's cooking school, founded in 1992 as Ubud's original, teaching hands-on Balinese classes in the gardens of Honeymoon Guesthouse on Jalan Bisma.
Tour operator
Bali's first professional adventure company, founded in 1989, which pioneered rafting on the Ayung River at Kedewatan and also runs cycling tours around Ubud and Batur.
Tour operator
A leisurely guided walk of about 5 km through the rice fields behind Penestanan, founded in 1992 by the late Victor Mason and led by Wayan…
Tour operator
The natural dye studio of Threads of Life, a fair-trade textile project working with weavers across Indonesia, offering half-day and multi-day dye classes near Ubud.
Three or four days covers the palace, museums, Monkey Forest and a day trip to Tegallalang and Tampaksiring; allow a week to add a Mount Batur sunrise trek, cooking classes and yoga
Jalan Monkey Forest, Jalan Hanoman and Jalan Bisma put you within walking distance of the centre, while Sayan, Kedewatan and Payangan have quieter resorts above the Ayung River valley
I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport is about 35 km away; most visitors arrange a transfer through their hotel or book a private driver
It suits most budgets, from warungs serving babi guling and nasi campur to tasting-menu restaurants and luxury villa resorts
It is generally relaxed; take normal care with belongings, follow the rules at the Monkey Forest, and dress modestly at temples