Things to do · Ubud · Indonesia
19 best things to do in Ubud
19 sights and experiences ranked for a first visit, with honest notes on time, cost and crowds.
Updated By the AMZBooking editorial team
Photo: Chainwit., CC BY-SA 4.0
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Quick answer
The essential sights in Ubud are Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary, Tegallalang Rice Terraces and Ubud Palace (Puri Saren Agung). Of the 19 picks below, 5 are free, 6 work on a rainy day and 6 suit children. Allow about 4 days to see the highlights without rushing.
Key facts
- Top sight
- Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary
- Free sights
- 5
- Good on a rainy day
- Neka Art Museum
- Time to see the highlights
- 4 days
At a glance
| Sight | Area | Time needed | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary | Padangtegal | 1–1.5 hours | Low cost |
| Tegallalang Rice Terraces | Tegallalang | 1.5–2 hours | Low cost |
| Ubud Palace (Puri Saren Agung) | Central Ubud | 30 minutes; 1.5 hours with a show | Free |
| Tirta Empul | Tampaksiring | 1–1.5 hours | Low cost |
| Kecak and Legong performances | Central Ubud | 1.5 hours | Low cost |
| Pura Taman Saraswati | Central Ubud | 30 minutes | Free |
| Campuhan Ridge Walk | Campuhan | 1.5–2 hours return | Free |
| Subak Sok Wayah rice-field walk | Central Ubud | 1–2 hours | Free |
| Goa Gajah (Elephant Cave) | Bedulu | 1 hour | Low cost |
| Gunung Kawi | Tampaksiring | 1–1.5 hours | Low cost |
| Neka Art Museum | Sanggingan | 1.5–2 hours | Low cost |
| ARMA (Agung Rai Museum of Art) | Pengosekan | 1.5 hours | Low cost |
| Museum Puri Lukisan | Central Ubud | 1 hour | Low cost |
| Blanco Renaissance Museum | Campuhan | 1 hour | Low cost |
| Ubud Art Market | Central Ubud | 1 hour | Free |
| Tegenungan Waterfall | Kemenuh | 1.5 hours | Low cost |
| Balinese cooking class | Ubud villages | 4–5 hours | Mid-priced |
| The Yoga Barn | Pengosekan | 1.5 hours | Low cost |
| Bali Bird Park | Singapadu | 2–3 hours | Mid-priced |
The 19 best things to do
Nature · Padangtegal
1.Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary
About 12 hectares of rainforest at the bottom of Monkey Forest Road hold several hundred long-tailed macaques, mossy stone statues, a ravine with giant banyan roots and three temples including Pura Dalem Agung Padangtegal. The forest is run by Padangtegal village as a conservation and spiritual site, and the paths take about an hour at a gentle pace.
Leave sunglasses, hats, food and loose bags in your room; the macaques grab anything that looks edible or shiny and will open zips.
- Time needed
- 1–1.5 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- Iconic
- Kids
- Nature
- Photo spot
Nature · Tegallalang
2.Tegallalang Rice Terraces
Terraced paddies carved down both sides of a valley about 10 km north of Ubud, irrigated by the traditional subak system. Paths drop to the valley floor and climb the far side, and cafés line the rim along the main road. Farmers ask for small donations at points along the trail, and swings and photo platforms have been added around the edges.
Arrive before 8am for soft light and empty paths; by mid-morning the rim car parks fill with tour minivans.
- Time needed
- 1.5–2 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- Iconic
- Views
- Photo spot
- Outdoors
- Nature
Palace · Central Ubud
3.Ubud Palace (Puri Saren Agung)
The palace of Ubud's royal family stands at the main crossroads, with carved stone gates and pavilions in its outer courtyards that visitors can walk into by day. After dark the courtyard becomes a stage for Legong and Barong performances with live gamelan, one of the most atmospheric settings for dance on the island.
Buy a dance ticket from the sellers outside earlier in the day and arrive 20 minutes early for a seat with a clear view of the gate.
- Time needed
- 30 minutes; 1.5 hours with a show
- Cost
- Free
- Iconic
- Free
- History
- After dark
- Architecture
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Religious site · Tampaksiring
4.Tirta Empul
A water temple about 15 km north of Ubud founded around a holy spring, where Balinese Hindus queue in the bathing pools to purify themselves under a row of carved spouts. Visitors may join the ritual in a sarong, following the order of the spouts as directed by staff. The presidential palace built under Sukarno overlooks the temple.
Go at opening or late afternoon; skip the spouts reserved for funeral rites, which staff will point out.
- Time needed
- 1–1.5 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- Iconic
- History
- Photo spot
Experience · Central Ubud
5.Kecak and Legong performances
Each evening several venues stage traditional dance: Legong and Barong with gamelan orchestras at the palace, and the Kecak fire dance, performed by a circle of chanting men, at Pura Dalem Ubud on Jalan Raya Ubud and in nearby villages. A programme board at the tourist office on Jalan Raya lists who is performing where.
Kecak shows often end with a trance dancer kicking through burning coconut husks; sit to the side rather than in the front row.
- Time needed
- 1.5 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- Iconic
- After dark
- History
- Kids
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Religious site · Central Ubud
6.Pura Taman Saraswati
A temple dedicated to Saraswati, goddess of learning and the arts, set behind a walkway across a pond filled with lotus flowers. It was built in the 1950s under the direction of the Ubud royal family and is used as a venue for evening dance performances.
Lotus flowers are at their fullest in the morning; come before the cafés along Jalan Raya fill up.
- Time needed
- 30 minutes
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Photo spot
- Couples
- Architecture
Nature · Campuhan
7.Campuhan Ridge Walk
A paved path of about 2 km follows a grassy ridge between two river valleys, starting beside Pura Gunung Lebah near the Campuhan bridge and ending at the rice fields and cafés of Bangkiang Sidem. There is little shade, but the views over palm-covered gorges are some of the best free sights in Ubud.
Start at sunrise to avoid the heat; continue to Karsa Kafe in Bangkiang Sidem for breakfast before walking back.
- Time needed
- 1.5–2 hours return
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Outdoors
- Views
- Active
- Couples
Nature · Central Ubud
8.Subak Sok Wayah rice-field walk
A narrow path north from Jalan Raya Ubud through working rice fields, reached via Jalan Kajeng or a signed alley near the Ubud Palace. It passes irrigation channels, farmers' shrines and a handful of organic cafés, and shows how close the paddies still are to the town centre.
The path is a raised concrete strip with ditches either side; wear proper shoes and carry a torch if you return after dusk.
- Time needed
- 1–2 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Outdoors
- Nature
- Food
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Historic site · Bedulu
1.Goa Gajah (Elephant Cave)
About 4 km east of Ubud, a cave entrance carved with a demonic face leads into a small chamber with Hindu shrines, believed to date from around the 11th century. Below it are ancient bathing pools with water-spouting figures, and a path leads down to Buddhist relics by a stream in the jungle.
Sarongs are lent at the entrance; walk the steps down to the stream, which most groups skip.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Low cost
- History
- Nature
- Photo spot
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Historic site · Tampaksiring
2.Gunung Kawi
Ten shrines about 7 metres tall are carved into the cliffs either side of the Pakerisan river, thought to be memorials to an 11th-century Balinese king and his family. Reaching them means about 300 steps down through rice terraces, which makes it quieter than Tirta Empul a few kilometres away.
Combine with Tirta Empul on the same morning; the steps are steep and slippery after rain.
- Time needed
- 1–1.5 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- History
- Outdoors
- Active
- Photo spot
Museum · Sanggingan
3.Neka Art Museum
Founded by the collector Suteja Neka, the museum's pavilions cover the development of Balinese painting from classical Kamasan wayang works to the Ubud and Batuan styles, plus foreign artists who lived on the island such as Arie Smit and Rudolf Bonnet. A separate pavilion holds a fine collection of kris daggers.
Start in the Balinese Painting Hall to understand the styles, then you will recognise them in the galleries in town.
- Time needed
- 1.5–2 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- Art
- History
- Rainy day
Museum · Pengosekan
4.ARMA (Agung Rai Museum of Art)
A museum and cultural centre set in gardens and rice fields off Jalan Raya Pengosekan, with works by Walter Spies and Raden Saleh alongside Balinese painters. It also runs classes in dance, offering-making and gamelan, and stages performances in its open-air pavilion.
Check the noticeboard at the entrance for workshops; a hands-on offering-making class suits children too.
- Time needed
- 1.5 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- Art
- Rainy day
- History
- Kids
Museum · Central Ubud
5.Museum Puri Lukisan
Opened in 1956 on Jalan Raya Ubud with the support of the Ubud royal family and Rudolf Bonnet, this is one of the oldest art museums in Bali. It focuses on modern traditional Balinese painting and woodcarving from the 1930s onwards, displayed in pavilions around a lotus garden.
It is a five-minute walk from the palace, so it fits neatly into a rainy afternoon in the centre.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Low cost
- Art
- Rainy day
- History
Gallery · Campuhan
6.Blanco Renaissance Museum
The flamboyant former home and studio of the Philippine-born painter Antonio Blanco, who settled in Ubud in the 1950s, stands on a hill above the Campuhan bridge. It displays his romantic portraits and illustrated poetry in a domed building with garden views over the river.
Pair it with the Campuhan Ridge Walk, which starts a few hundred metres away.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Low cost
- Art
- Rainy day
- Views
Market · Central Ubud
7.Ubud Art Market
Across from the palace, the Pasar Seni and the traditional Pasar Ubud behind it sell rattan bags, sarongs, carvings, kites and paintings on several floors. Early in the morning the lower levels are a working market with produce and flowers for offerings, before the souvenir stalls take over.
Come before 8am to see locals buying offerings, and bargain politely for souvenirs, starting at around half the first price.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Free
- Shopping
- Free
- Food
Nature · Kemenuh
8.Tegenungan Waterfall
A broad waterfall on the Petanu river about 10 km south of Ubud, reached by a long stairway down from the car park. Swimming in the plunge pool depends on water levels, and the falls are at their most powerful in the wet season.
Go early on a weekday; swimming is unsafe after heavy rain, when the water turns brown and strong.
- Time needed
- 1.5 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- Nature
- Outdoors
- Kids
- Active
Experience · Ubud villages
9.Balinese cooking class
Morning classes start with a visit to a local market to buy spices and vegetables, then move to a family compound or farm kitchen to grind base genep spice paste and cook several dishes such as sate lilit, lawar and pepes. Most include hotel pick-up and finish with the meal you cooked.
Choose a class with a market visit; tell the school in advance if you are vegetarian, as most can adapt every dish.
- Time needed
- 4–5 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Book ahead
- Reserve a day or two ahead in July, August and December, when classes fill.
- Food
- Kids
- Rainy day
Experience · Pengosekan
10.The Yoga Barn
One of Ubud's longest-running yoga centres, set in gardens off Jalan Hanoman, with several studios running drop-in classes from early morning to evening, plus sound healing, ecstatic dance and a vegetarian café. It is a common first stop for visitors new to Ubud's wellness scene.
Arrive 15 minutes early for popular morning classes; mats are provided.
- Time needed
- 1.5 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- Active
- Rainy day
- Off the beaten path
Zoo · Singapadu
11.Bali Bird Park
About 12 km south of Ubud in Gianyar, the park keeps hundreds of birds from Indonesia and beyond in walk-through aviaries, including birds of paradise from Papua and the rare Bali starling. Free-flight shows and feeding sessions run through the day.
Visit in the morning when the birds are most active, and combine it with Tegenungan Waterfall on the same road.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Kids
- Nature
- Outdoors
Pick by interest
| Interest | Best picks |
|---|---|
| Art and museums | Neka Art Museum, ARMA (Agung Rai Museum of Art), Museum Puri Lukisan and Blanco Renaissance Museum |
| History | Ubud Palace (Puri Saren Agung), Goa Gajah (Elephant Cave), Tirta Empul and Gunung Kawi |
| Views | Tegallalang Rice Terraces, Campuhan Ridge Walk and Blanco Renaissance Museum |
| Outdoors and nature | Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary, Tegallalang Rice Terraces, Campuhan Ridge Walk and Subak Sok Wayah rice-field walk |
| Food and markets | Subak Sok Wayah rice-field walk, Ubud Art Market and Balinese cooking class |
| After dark | Ubud Palace (Puri Saren Agung) and Kecak and Legong performances |
| With children | Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary, ARMA (Agung Rai Museum of Art), Tegenungan Waterfall and Kecak and Legong performances |
| On a rainy day | Neka Art Museum, ARMA (Agung Rai Museum of Art), Museum Puri Lukisan and Blanco Renaissance Museum |
What to book ahead
- Balinese cooking class: Reserve a day or two ahead in July, August and December, when classes fill.
Plan the rest of your trip
Questions travellers ask
+What is the number one thing to do in Ubud?
Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary. About 12 hectares of rainforest at the bottom of Monkey Forest Road hold several hundred long-tailed macaques, mossy stone statues, a ravine with giant banyan roots and three temples including Pura Dalem Agung Padangtegal.
+What can you do for free in Ubud?
Ubud Palace (Puri Saren Agung), Pura Taman Saraswati, Campuhan Ridge Walk, Subak Sok Wayah rice-field walk and Ubud Art Market. More free things to do.
+What is there to do in Ubud when it rains?
Head indoors to Neka Art Museum, ARMA (Agung Rai Museum of Art), Museum Puri Lukisan and Blanco Renaissance Museum.
+What is there to do in Ubud at night?
Ubud Palace (Puri Saren Agung) and Kecak and Legong performances are best after dark.