The Water Temple {Bali}

On the fourth day of our adventure exploring Bali, Julie and I made our way to Jimbaran Bay, near Denpasar, located on the west coast of Bali. This is a great area on the island, so I wanted to share some of our favorite things we did here in case you ever find yourself in Bali, or are considering adding it to your list and wondering where to go! :)

But first! Here’s my travel partner-in-crime, Julie! :)

Uluwatu Temple

The Uluwatu Temple is better visited for the views than the temple itself. Most temples in Bali you won’t be able to enter — and this one is behind gates so you can’t even get a close view of it. But there is a paved path along the cliff of the Indian Ocean with stunning views!! I would 100% do this again.

When we went the entrance fee was 20,000 Indonesian Rupiah (IDR) for adults — less than $2. If you don’t have the proper attire, they will provide it for you. We thought we would need something covering our shoulders, but it turned out we just needed a sash tied around our waists. You can see the yellow sash in the photo above.

The best way for us to get there was to hire a taxi from our hotel in Jimbaran Bay. Our hotel informed us that Bluebird Taxi was the most reputable in this area, and encouraged us to only get in Bluebird Taxis. For 300,000 IDR (about $22), you can hire a private driver from Bluebird Taxi for 4 hours.  They will take you anywhere you want to go, wait for you, then take you to your next destination. We decided this was our best option, after reading reviews that said it might not be easy to get a cab from the temple. We had our hotel call and negotiate the car for us.

Once you get to the Uluwatu Temple, you can also hire a private tour guide for 100,000 IDR (less than $10). Now, this is totally up to you. You don’t really need a guide. You can say no. However, in the name of research, we decided to go for it. The guide will answer any questions and tell you a little about the temple. She will also take as many pictures for you as you want. So, for around $7.50, this might actually be worth it if you’re on your honeymoon or just want some good (non-selfie) pictures with a gorgeous backdrop. However, for the most part, she just walked with us along the paved path. Whether you get a guide or walk by yourself, be sure to walk the path along the coast on the way to the temple! :)

This is where our guide came in handy. After we reached the temple, the path continued along the coast. Julie and I really wanted to check it out. Our guide wanted an extra 50,000 IDR (about $4) to go with us. We tried to tell her we would just go by ourselves, be she insisted she come with us because of the monkeys……

After a bit of back and forth, she grabbed a large stick and we continued on. Sure enough, not very far into the path, we encountered the monkeys. Tons and tons of monkeys. Everywhere. They were NOT shy at all. They would come right up to you looking for food. Some were even sitting on other tourists shoulders. We were warned that the monkeys would steal anything and everything they could get their hands on: glasses, cameras, bags, hats, and to be very, very careful and watchful of our belongings. Fortunately we didn’t have anything stolen and our guide totally had our backs — any time a monkey got near us, she made a loud noise with the stick to scare them off.

Overall, I wasn’t afraid of the monkeys, and it was a neat experience. You could definitely go by yourself. Just grab a stick after the temple and before continuing on the path! And whatever you do, don’t feed the monkeys!

Luwak Coffee Plantation

The Luwak Coffee Plantation was another neat experience in Bali! Just ask any cab driver or your hotel for their favorite Luwak Coffee Plantation and they can take you there. There are locations all over Bali. First they’ll take you on a guide through the garden, where they are growing all their own herbs and spices for coffee and tea. We saw cinnamon, vanilla, ginger, and more.

Now, here’s what’s so special about Luwak Coffee. It’s a delicacy in Bali. It’s also known as the world’s rarest, most expensive gourmet coffee. Why? The Luwak is an animal that looks like a lemur. He lives in the garden and you can see him. He’s fed a special diet of a special kind of cherry (also grown in the garden). The luwak, um, digests the cherries, and it comes out the other end. The cherries are then hand roasted and hand ground on site, as seen in the photos above.

Now whether or not you want to try this special kind of coffee or not, a trip to a Luwak Coffee Plantation is still worth adding to your list. Just for visiting, they will give you 12 cups of their flavored teas and coffees to try — all except for the Luwak coffee, of course. However, most of the teas and coffees are DELICIOUS!!! And so fun that you get to try them all. My favorites were the Lemon Grass Tea, Vanilla Coffee, and Coconut Coffee. You can do this all for free! There is no entrance fee or charge for tasting the teas. Such a fun way to spend an afternoon.

We of course, had to try the Luwak Coffee. Well, Julie tried. I photographed! ;) Want to know what she thought? :) Check out her review, here! :)

The Luwak Coffee Plantations also have a gift shop. Be sure to check it out. You can get all the coffee and tea flavors you tried, even the Luwak Coffee, to take home as souvenirs. They also have chocolate you can sample. I ended up buying some chocolate because it was delicious!! I totally should’ve gotten some Lemon Grass Tea as well.

Definitely check out a Luwak Coffee Plantation if you are in Bali!

Anti-Gravity Yoga at the Four Seasons

Oh my goodness, this was such a unique experience! I love yoga, but I’d never tried anti-gravity yoga before. The classes at the Four Seasons are small, only 4 people per class, so you really get a lot of one-on-one attention from the instructor to make sure you are doing everything correctly and safely. So glad I got to try this!

Plus the view from the Four Seasons is gorgeous!!

Jimbaran Beach

Jimbaran Beach in Bali is perfect for walking.

The beaches are flat, the sand is soft, the water is clear.

And the scenery is so beautiful!

So many fun and unique resorts line the beach.

But it doesn’t feel crowded at all. We were there in August, the absolute PEAK season Bali.

And yet it definitely did not feel crowded or overrun.

This is the infinity pool at the Four Seasons.

That evening some of the locals had come down to the beach to do Tai Chi at sunset.

The beach is the perfect spot to watch the sunset.

Truly magical.

Until next time! xoxo