Other Activities in Ubud

While Ubud is best known for its active traditional Balinese culture, vibrant arts scene and restaurants as well as the many beautiful walks across picturesque rice paddies and over dramatic gorges, it is a bustling town in its own right, and there are many other great things to do and see.

Monkey Forest

For the chance to meet 300 cheeky macaque monkeys up close, head over to the Monkey Forest located on the south part of Monkey Forest Road. At the entrance you can buy peanuts or bananas for the monkeys. These monkeys will eagerly wait for their treat, so be careful if they jump on you once they have spotted the goodies. Despite all the tourists, it is still pleasant to walk around the cool forest, over ancient looking bridges, past huge banyan trees, and down an atmospheric river gorge all the time accompanied by dozens of monkeys.

Cookery Classes

Ubud is a great place to try your hand out at a bit of Balinese cookery, and there are many restaurants that offer you the chance, and it is always enjoyable as well as interesting. Some the favourites of our guests include: Casa Luna which runs various great restaurants in Ubud but also runs a different cookery class every day for Rp 300,000 (call +62 361 973 282); Bumi Bali on Monkey Forest offers a one-day course for Rp 175,000 (call 0361 976698); Cafe Wayan also offers courses that have been recommended (call (361) 975447). Classes typically start about 9am and last for a single day and need to be booked 24 hours in advance.

Morning Market

If you are not doing a market tour as part of a cookery class then it is still worth a visit. Early in the morning local people head to the market to buy the things they need for the day. This can include fruit and vegetables, but also flowers and flower petals for their decorations and offerings. It is even possible to buy a full bag of ready made offerings, so no hassle with that anymore.

To see this colourful spectacle you do need to wake up early. If you are there by 6.30am the market is already out and about, so you will see enough action that will wake you up immediately. At the market you can buy delicious cakes and fruits too.

Gunung Batur & Other Tours

It is possible to arrange a tour to almost anywhere in Bali from Ubud, so if you fancy seeing the Tanah Lot temple, or anywhere else it can all be arranged for you. If you are looking to escape to the beach or to do some diving and snorkelling, we would of course heartily recommend you stay at Villa Talia Vashti our sister villa in Candidasa, which is more convenient for all things sea and sand than Villa Kalisha.

Villa Kalisha is however a great jumping off point for the spectacular mountains and volcanoes of central Bali. In particular Gunung Batur is only 30 minutes away, with its spectacular caldera containing a lake and numerous small craters, hot springs and traditional Bali Aga village of Trunyan, still inhabited by remnants of the original Balinese, the people who predate the Majapahit arrival. You can easily head up by car (or bike) to Kintamani on the outer crater rim and take in the great views at one of the many cafes there or if you are feeling more active it is relatively easy to climb up Gunung Batur itself (which is a mini-volcano within the large caldera) and take in some amazing views of the volcanic lake below.

Shopping

Ubud is the shopper's paradise of Bali, with everything from tacky plastic tat to priceless works that will have you thinking of mortgaging the house. The real attraction though is the huge number of shops set up by people to showcase their own individual designs, be it art, jewellery, carvings, clothes or whatever. Most people start at Ubud Market, at the northeast corner of Monkey Forest Road and Jalan Raya Ubud. Open during daylight hours only, it's a real market -- great noisy fun, with dozens of stalls selling produce and livestock along with tourist kitsch. All along Monkey Forest Road, Jalan Raya Ubud, and Jalan Hanoman, there is shop after shop filled with gorgeous sarongs, woodcarvings, mobiles, jewelry, incense, pottery, and gaily colored shirts. It's all geared to tourists, but the quality is often surprisingly good, and the choice astonishing. With Ubud it is best just to see where your eyes take you.

Movies

Numerous cafes and bars show recently released movies on big screen televisions, and there is no charge to watch. Casa Luna tends to choose films of higher intellectual content, as well as quality films for children and families (Tel - 976283). Times for some of the locations are as follows: Casa Luna (Jalan Raya) 7:00 with a second film following around 9:00. Sai-Sai Bar (Monkey Forest Road) 7:00 Putra Bar (Monkey Forest Road) 7:00 and 9:00 Bamboo Restaurant (Jalan Dewi Sita) 9:00. Do Drop Inn (Behind the Football Field) 8:00, Coconut Café (Jalan Suweta) 8:00, Café Yogyakarta (Monkey Forest Road) 7:00.