7-Day Bali Itinerary — Sidemen, the East Coast & the Northern Waterfalls

Warung Mak Beng

📍 Sanur

One dish since 1941 — fried fish, fish-head soup, sambal. No menu, no decision to make on your first jetlagged afternoon.

Pura Blanjong

📍 Sanur

A small compound holding Bali's oldest dated artefact: a stone pillar inscribed in 913 AD, in both Sanskrit and Old Balinese.

Sindhu Beach

📍 Sanur

The reef here kills the surf, so the water is flat — the opposite of the west coast and much better for a first swim.

Mertasari Beach

📍 Sanur

The quiet southern end of the Sanur strip, with the kite flyers out on the field behind the sand.

Pasar Sindhu Night Market

📍 Sanur

Local, cheap and busy from dusk — martabak, satay and babi guling among people doing their actual shopping.

Kanto Lampo Waterfall

📍 Gianyar

Water fans down a staircase of rock rather than dropping. Go at opening — it is a single narrow gorge and fills fast.

Gunung Kawi Temple

📍 Tampaksiring

Ten 11th-century shrines cut directly into the cliff face, down 300 steps through the rice terraces of the Pakerisan valley.

Tegenungan Waterfall

📍 Blahbatuh

The wide, powerful one at low altitude — the only major Bali waterfall you can reach without leaving the Ubud plain.

Pura Taman Saraswati

📍 Ubud

A lotus-pond water temple hidden behind a cafe on the main road. Free, and most people walk past the entrance.

Ubud Art Market

📍 Ubud

Pasar Seni — busiest in the morning for locals, calmer in the late afternoon for browsing. Bargaining is expected.

Warung Babi Guling Ibu Oka

📍 Ubud

Ubud's suckling pig institution. Go before 6pm on a busy day — they close when it runs out.

Tukad Cepung Waterfall

📍 Bangli

Inside a collapsed cave, so the light beam only lands mid-morning on a clear day. You wade the last stretch.

Pura Besakih

📍 Karangasem

The Mother Temple — 23 separate temples up the slope of Mount Agung. Sarong required, and hire the official guide at the gate.

Gembleng Waterfall

📍 Sidemen

Natural rock pools stepped up a hillside, looking out over the whole valley rather than boxed into a gorge.

Mahagiri Panoramic Resort & Restaurant

📍 Sidemen

The valley's best-known terrace view — rice fields falling away below and Agung filling the skyline behind. Stop for coffee, stay for the panorama.

Pura Bukit Tageh

📍 Sidemen

A hilltop temple above the valley floor — the sunset view back down the Sidemen terraces.

Tirta Gangga

📍 Karangasem

The former royal water garden — stepping stones across a carp pond, tiered fountains, and far fewer people at opening.

Taman Ujung Water Palace

📍 Karangasem

The other Karangasem palace, half-ruined by the 1963 eruption and the 1979 earthquake, with the sea on one side and Agung on the other.

Lahangan Sweet

📍 Karangasem

A ridge viewpoint pointed straight at Mount Agung. Clouds usually win by afternoon — worth the gamble on a clear day.

Jemeluk Bay Viewpoint

📍 Amed

The curve of black-sand bays with the outrigger jukung fishing boats drawn up in rows below.

Amed Beach

📍 Amed

Volcanic sand, calm water and a reef straight off the shore. Snorkel here, then watch Agung go pink behind you.

Sekumpul Waterfall

📍 Sawan

Widely called Bali's best — a fan of tall falls into a jungle bowl. It is a real trek down and back up; budget three hours and take a guide.

Munduk Waterfall

📍 Munduk

An easy 15-minute path through clove and coffee plantations — the recovery walk after Sekumpul.

Banyumala Twin Waterfalls

📍 Wanagiri

Twin falls into one clear swimming pool. The descent is steep and slick; the pool at the bottom is the reward.

Wanagiri Hidden Hills

📍 Wanagiri

The ridge platforms looking down over Lake Buyan and Lake Tamblingan sitting side by side in the old caldera.

Ulun Danu Beratan Temple

📍 Bedugul

The temple on the lake from the 50,000 rupiah note. At 1,200m it is cold and often misted — bring a layer.

Jatiluwih Rice Terraces

📍 Tabanan

UNESCO-listed and on a completely different scale to Tegallalang — whole valleys of terraces still farmed by the subak water system.

Pura Luhur Batukaru

📍 Tabanan

A mossy, forested temple on Bali's second-highest volcano. Almost no coaches come here, and it feels it.

Taman Ayun Temple

📍 Mengwi

The moated royal temple of the Mengwi kingdom, part of the same UNESCO subak listing as Jatiluwih.

Pantai Kedungu

📍 Tabanan

A wide, near-empty black-sand beach with rice fields running to the dunes — Tanah Lot's sunset without Tanah Lot's crowd.

Pererenan Beach

📍 Pererenan

The quieter end of the Canggu strip for a last dinner on the west coast.

Sanur Beach

📍 Sanur

Back to the Sanur boats — Lembongan is the short crossing, about 30 minutes, and far calmer than the Penida run.

Jungut Batu Beach

📍 Nusa Lembongan

The main arrival beach, with the seaweed farming plots still worked at low tide.

Devil's Tear

📍 Nusa Lembongan

A rock shelf where the swell detonates upward in spray. Stay well back from the edge — people have been taken off it.

Dream Beach

📍 Nusa Lembongan

A short crescent of white sand below the cliffs. Strong shorebreak; good for the view and a careful swim.

Yellow Bridge

📍 Nusa Lembongan

The narrow suspension bridge across the channel to Nusa Ceningan — foot and scooter only.

Blue Lagoon Nusa Ceningan

📍 Nusa Ceningan

A slot of impossibly blue water between limestone walls, and the cliff jump if you are so inclined. Last boat back is around 4:30.