There is no other place in the world like Bali — the lovingly named island of the gods is unique and offers beautiful beaches, great waves for surfing and breathtaking nature. And although Bali is becoming increasingly touristy, you will find small, traditional places and above all incredibly hospitable locals everywhere.

In this post I give you the recommendations for my personal must dos in Bali. Have fun and enjoy!

The first thing for me is simply the incomparable, delicious food in Bali! Of course there are a lot of restaurants, street food shops, cafes etc. I can recommend you from the heart of the food baby that you definitely have to visit the Crates Café in Canggu! I was there for breakfast almost every day in my three weeks in Canggu. However, the café is only open until 4pm. If you don’t want to wait too long, I recommend you go for lunch around 2/3 pm. Here you will find a huge selection of smoothies, bowls, sandwiches, breakfast platters and very good coffee! Each dish from the menu costs 55.000 IDR. In principle you will get cheaper breakfast options but the price-performance ratio is more than justified here. The portions are really huge and everything just tastes incredibly good! My favorite for breakfast: “Veto” – two thick slices of bread with avocado, cherry tomatoes, feta cheese, poached egg and salmon!

Nyang Nyang Beach is probably the most beautiful beach in Bali for me. You have to climb down through a small forest for about twenty minutes and up again for about thirty minutes. (People with a better physical condition than me can definitely do it faster :D) When you get to the bottom, an almost deserted white beach and wonderfully clear water wait for you. We stocked up on beer and some snacks beforehand and spent half a day there. An absolute must go!

You can find traditional Indonesian food in almost every corner in Bali. It is still a much better feeling if you cooked it yourself and maybe you can even try some dishes at home. I took part in the Balinese Cooking Class at „Green Kitchen“. You can easily make an appointment via WhatsApp and choose between vegetarian or non-vegetarian. You will be picked up in the morning around 9am and then first shop at the largest market in Ubud (Klungkung Market)! Then you harvest all the vegetables that are needed for the multi-course menu in huge fields. Now you can start cooking! Traditionally with stone mortars and open fire.

ATTENTION: In the end you are simply completely over-eaten and unfortunately have to roll home. The good thing is that you will be brought back to your accommodation.

In principle, you can snorkel or dive almost anywhere on Bali. But you will find the most beautiful corals, great fish and very clear water above all in Amen – the paradise for divers! There is even a huge Japanese shipwreck next to Kawi Karma Beach Cottages & Restaurant that you can visit underwater. Snorkeling equipment is available almost everywhere for 100 IDR per day. There are also many diving schools on the beach where you can book a guided dive. Or you can just go alone if you are experienced!

I read on every Bali blog that you absolutely have to go to Nusa Penida. Okay, I thought to myself. Let’s go there quickly with the ship. Oh. My. God. I have never seen such beautiful beaches, cliffs and blue water before. Hallelujah! I hereby officially sign that a visit to Nusa Penida is definitely a must go! You can find all the details about the small neighboring island here.

The Monkey Forest is one of the most famous tourist attractions in Bali. However, you will not only find hundreds of insidious monkeys here who want to steal your sunglasses, but also a really beautiful nature park with quiet corners and great traditional statues. The visit will definitely be a highlight of your trip to Bali. In order to hike relaxed through the paths and be able to enjoy the time, you should plan half a day. Entry costs for adults IDR 80,000 in 2019 (= 5 euros).

Getting lost. Of course you should take care of yourself and not get lost in Bali. But a really nice day trip happens when everything doesn’t go according to your plan. Just don’t listen to Google Maps and turn left into the small path. Suddenly you stand in front of the most beautiful waterfall and no tourist crowd around you. Trust the tips of the locals about the #SecretSpots! At the end of the day, you’re just grateful.

You will experience the most beautiful moments, which you can experience personally and without a guide tip, with the locals on Bali. The locals here are incredibly open-minded and very happy if they can recommend places to you or tell you stories from their own lives. I really recommend you not to spend a few days in the tourist spots and to live a little more away from the hustle and bustle. There you will get to know the wonderful Balinese life.
We spent f.e. a few days in the Omah Lembu Villa in Ubud. It is very important to the owner Made that his guests get to know the life of the locals. He does a private (free!) Bike tour with everyone through the nearby rice fields with a stopover at a coffee plantation and a traditional Warung (restaurant). We ended the evening with a card game and a lot of arak (home-made alcoholic shot).
I can really recommend asking the staff at your accommodation for tips in the area. This way you will get to know the most beautiful places that you will never find online.

I’ve been officially temple addicted since Thailand. I love to walk through the different temples, wear colorful sarongs and just enjoy the silence. Of course, the famous temples on Bali in particular are littered with tourists. I recommend that you avoid the peak hours from midday and start early in the morning. There are of course an incredible number of temples in Bali. Here you will find my favorites and the rules you should follow. On your trip through Bali you should definitely visit some temples and get blessed. In some temples it is more like a tourist attraction. But in many smaller temples, your personal blessing is often a little more relaxed. You are splashed with holy water and then rice is glued to your forehead. Finally, a Bali flower is stuck behind your ear and zack – blessed.

Everyone have a different budget on a trip to Bali. In principle, I tend to be on a low budget and generally like to stay in hostels to meet new people. If you are in Bali, you definitely have to spend a night in one of the many beautiful villas. You can find them in almost every place, but especially in Ubud there are a large number of villas that are lonely in nature and have beautiful private pools and movie-style bathrooms. You can find a room from just twenty euros a night. There is of course no limit to price and luxury upwards. Mostly it is a double room and if you find a travel companion, an overnight stay for two is not that expensive. Just enjoy a long warm bath, the view in your private pool (I can only recommend floating breakfast!) and let your soul dangle during a day of luxury. A massage can top off the stay very well.

Lots of Love ♥