Ubud Highlights

We spent two weeks exploring Ubud and the surrounding areas. Lots of people told us that we would not need that much time there, but we knew we would need to stay somewhere a little longer.

Our days started to run together a little bit. Instead of a chronological play by play like we’ve done in the past, I wanted to just share our highlights from our time in Ubud. We tried to split things up and just plan one thing each day so we could take our time. Plus, we liked to be out of the sun in the middle of the day.

Sacred Monkey Forest

We already shared a ton of pictures from our visit here. I just couldn’t leave this off a list of our Ubud highlights.

Click here for all the monkey photos.

Ubud Palace

This historical complex is located right smack in the middle of Ubud. It’s on the intersection of two of the busiest roads and it’s hard to miss. It was built and is maintained by the royal family of Ubud.

You can get in the front area and the gardens to explore and take photos. The architecture is beautiful. The rest of the palace is off limits because it is still home for some. You can get more history on this site.

Saraswati Temple

This temple is right down the street from the Ubud Palace. It is dedicated to the goddess of wisdom, music, art, knowledge and learning. The defining characteristic of this temple is the beautiful Lotus pond in the front of the temple. It’s beautiful place to walk. We didn’t get a great picture of the front because there were lots of people posing on the steps, but I promise it’s worth a visit.

Campuhan Ridge Walk

I shared some more photos from this beautiful walk on the recap of our first week in Ubud here. The Campuhan Ridge Walk cuts up off the main street in Ubud and walks along a ridge with views of the jungle and rice terraces. We followed it 3 km north and then wound our way back through some quieter areas. There are beautiful views, but I would definitely recommend leaving early in the AM to beat the heat.

Balinese Dancing

There are tons of places that you can see traditional Balinese dancing while in Ubud. We went as part of a tour just outside of town, but you can definitely just buy tickets to shows at the Palace or in the area near there. We saw the Barong and Kris dance which was about an hour long and we were given a written outline so we could follow along with the story. You can find more info here.

Art

Ubud has been a famous retreat for many artists. There are a few large art museums in town. We had them on our list to visit and then just didn’t. That doesn’t mean we weren’t able to take in our fair share of amazing art.

There is street art galore. It’s really cool to be walking through rice terraces and spot colorful buildings with every inch painted in bright patterns.

We also wandered through the Art Market and in and out of lots of different stores. One of the tours we went on brought us to a woodworking shop where we got to meet and talk with the family that hands down the craft to each new generation.

Aimless Wandering

The best part of staying in Ubud is the amount of wandering you can do. There are a few main streets, but lots of little side streets that weave through temples, houses and shops like a maze. We tried to always take a new way around. We walked more in Ubud than we did on any day in New Zealand. It was sweaty and hot, but so worth it.