Things to do in Ubud
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Mandala Wisata Wanara Wana
This cool and dense swath of jungle, officially called Mandala Wisata Wanara Wana, houses three holy temples. The sanctuary is inhabited by a band of grey-haired and greedy long-tailed Balinese macaques that are nothing like the innocent-looking doe-eyed monkeys on the brochures.
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Ary's Warung
The name Ary's Warung is something of a misnomer; crisp table linen, architectural food presentation, well-trained waiters and high prices won't be found in any other warung. The spare design opens the ground-floor to the street. Alluring bar.
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Bali Buddha
A local institution, Bali Buddha has a mostly veggie cafe with a long list of healthy foods upstairs and a health-food store and bakery downstairs (the blueberry muffins are mighty fine). Raw foodists and vegans will find much to like here – but so will carnivores and those simply in search of tasty food and drink. The bulletin board out front is a community resource.
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Casa Luna
Janet de Neefe of cooking school and writers' festival fame runs this ever-popular Indonesian-focused restaurant (the seafood satay, yum!), which also has a delicious range of bakery items. Recent renovations have softened the edges; live jazz some nights.
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Café Lotus
A meal at this Ubud veteran, overlooking the lotus pond at Pura Taman Saraswati, is a relaxing treat for many when they first arrive in Ubud. The menu features well-prepared Western and Indonesian fare. Paying extra for front-row seats for dance performances at Pura Taman Saraswati is not worth it, the dancers are still tiny.
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Threads of Life Indonesian Textile Arts Center
Textile appreciation courses in the gallery and educational studio last from one to eight days. Some classes involve extensive travel around Bali and should be considered graduate level.
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Kafe
Kafe has an organic menu great for veggie grazing or just having a coffee, juice or house-made natural soft drink. Breakfasts are healthy while lunch meals feature excellent salads and burritos, with many raw items. One of the places to meet in Ubud, it's always busy.
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Bali Eco and Educational Cycling Tour
For the active, offers a combination of mountain biking (downhill!) and cultural and culinary activities.
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Ubud Fitness Centre
For a basic workout, Ubud has a gym, Ubud Fitness Centre, which offers weight training and aerobics.
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Pura Taman Saraswati
Just a bit west of Pura Desa Ubud is the very picturesque Pura Taman Saraswati. Waters from the temple at the rear of the site feed the pond in the front which overflows with pretty lotus blossoms. There are carvings that honour Dewi Saraswati, the goddess of wisdom and the arts, who has clearly given her blessing to Ubud. There are weekly dance performances.
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Bumbu Bali 2
Unlike the varied Asian cuisine at the original a few hundred metres north, the menu here is almost entirely Balinese featuring items such as lawar (green bean salad), bebek betutu (smoked duck) and sate lilit (minced meat and grated coconut skewers). It's a large and attractive place.
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Nasi Ayam Kedewatan
Few locals making the trek up the hill on the main road through Sayan pass this open-air place without stopping. The star is sate lilit (minced chicken satay), which here reaches heights that belie the common name. Chicken is minced, combined with an array of spices including lemongrass, then moulded onto bamboo skewers and grilled. Simply amazing, as are the traditional Balinese road snacks: fried chips combined with nuts and spices.
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Yoga Barn
Yoga Barn sits in its own lotus position amid trees back near a river valley. The name exactly describes what you’ll find – although this barn never needs shovelling. A huge range of classes in yoga and life-affirming offshoots are held through the week.
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Murni's Warung
Since 1977, Murni's has been an Ubud favourite. The riverside setting is beautiful and a four-level dining room and bar overlooks the lush valley. The menu has good versions of Indo and Western classics. You may find the sizable gift shop not unlike fly paper.
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Bumbu Bali
A good place for Balinese food in the heart of Ubud. The menu features dishes such as lawar (green bean salad), ayam pelalah (spicy shredded chicken salad) and sambal goreng udang (prawns in a tangy coconut-milk sauce). Like your food? You can also learn to cook it.
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Lamak
Artful presentations from the eclectic menu set the mood at this excellent eatery. The large kitchen is open and each day there are specials of Indonesian food that are not found on your average menu. Long wine list.
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Zen
Offers a 90-minute mandi lulur (Javanese body scrub) and a spice bath (160,000Rp).
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Napi Orti
This upstairs place is your best bet for a late night drink. Get boozy under the hazy gaze of Jim Morrison and Sid Vicious.
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Kou
Luxurious handmade organic soaps produced locally. Put one in your undies drawer and smell fine for weeks.
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Wayan Karja Painting
Intensive painting and drawing classes are run by abstract artist Karja, whose studio is on the site of his guesthouse, the Santra Putra.
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Jazz Café
Always popular, Jazz Café has a relaxed vibe in a garden of coconut palms and ferns. It offers good Asian fusion food (mains 35,000Rp to 60,000Rp) and live jazz in various forms, blues and more, Tuesday to Saturday from 7.30pm. The cocktail list is long. It provides transport around Ubud.
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Museum of Fine Arts
The Museum of Fine Arts displays fine examples of all schools of Balinese art. You just need to look at the lush composition of 'Balinese Market' by Anak Agung Gde Sobrat to see the vibrancy of local painting. It was in Ubud that the modern Balinese art movement started; where artists first began to abandon purely religious themes and court subjects for scenes of everyday life.
Rudolf Bonnet was part of the Pita Maha artists' cooperative, and together with Cokorda Gede Agung Sukawati (a prince of Ubud's royal family) they helped to establish a permanent collection
The first pavilion straight ahead as you enter has a collection of early works from Ubud and the surrounding …
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Agung Rai Museum of Art (ARMA)
Founded by Agung Rai as a museum, gallery and cultural centre, the impressive Arma is the only place in Bali to see haunting works by the influential German artist Walter Spies.
The museum is housed in several traditional buildings set in gardens with water coursing through channels. It features work by 19th-century Javanese artist Raden Saleh. It exhibits classical Kamasan paintings, Batuan-style work from the 1930s and '40s, and works by Lempad, Affandi, Sadali, Hofker, Bonnet and Le Mayeur. The collection is well labelled in English.
Look for the enigmatic Portrait of a Javanese Nobleman and His Wife by Raden Saleh, which predates the similar American Gothic by decades.
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Dance Performances
In a week in Ubud, you can see Kecak, Legong and Barong dances, Mahabharata and Ramayana ballets, wayang kulit puppets and gamelan orchestras. Ubud Tourist Information has performance information and sells tickets (usually Rp50000). For performances outside Ubud, transport is often included in the price. Tickets are also sold at many hotels, and by street vendors who hang around outside Ubud Palace - all charge the same price as the tourist office.
Vendors sell drinks at the performances, which typically last about one to 1½ hours. Before the show, you might notice the musicians checking out the size of the crowd - ticket sales fund the troupes. Also watch for potential m…
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