Ubud & Central Bali, Bali: things to do, prices and tips 2026

Things to do in Ubud & Central Bali (Bali): Sacred Monkey Forest, Tegallalang Rice Terraces, Campuhan Ridge Walk, Ubud Palace & Market. Prices, opening times and the author’s tips.

Open the interactive guide

What to see

🐒Sacred Monkey Forest

Jungle right in the middle of Ubud: moss-covered ancient temples, banyan roots and hundreds of long-tailed macaques.

Price IDR 130,000 for a foreign adult (since April 2026)

Insider tip Put glasses, earrings and food in a zipped bag. Don't stare monkeys in the eye or try to grab back what they steal: call a ranger.

🌾Tegallalang Rice Terraces

Bali's most famous terraces: green steps dropping into a valley between palm trees.

Price Small entry fee; swings and photo "nests" cost extra

Insider tip Come at 7–8 a.m.: soft light and hardly anyone around. Farmers ask for a donation to cross some plots, which is normal.

🚶Campuhan Ridge Walk

A free path along a hilltop ridge between two rivers: waist-high grass, palms and jungle views.

Price Free

Insider tip Go at sunrise or before sunset: there's no shade on the ridge at midday. At the end of the path there are cafés overlooking rice fields.

🏯Ubud Palace & Market

The royal palace with carved gates and the market opposite: sarongs, baskets, coffee and souvenirs.

Price Courtyard entry is free

Insider tip Legong dance is often performed in the courtyard in the evening; tickets are sold at the gate during the day. Haggle at the market, starting at half the price.

💧Tirta Empul Temple

The temple of holy springs, where Balinese walk through a row of fountains in a purification ritual.

Price Paid entry; sarongs provided

Insider tip Visitors can bathe too, in the sarong provided and respecting the queue. Come at opening time: by noon it's crowded.

🐘Goa Gajah

The 11th-century "Elephant Cave": an entrance carved as a demon's mouth, ancient bathing pools and a jungle path down to a stream.

Price Paid entry; sarongs provided

Insider tip Take the steps down behind the pools: it's quiet there and almost empty.

🪷Saraswati Temple

A temple to the goddess of knowledge right on Ubud’s main street. A path leads across a pond full of lotuses to carved gates. It is quiet during the day, and in the evening there is Legong dance in the courtyard.

Price Free entry; the evening dance is paid

Insider tip The lotuses open in the morning, so come before 10 am. The evening show starts around 7:30 pm, with tickets sold at the gate the same day. You need a sarong, they lend one at the entrance.