With so many things to see and do in Ubud, it can be quite overwhelming planning your itinerary. During our two-week vacation to Bali, we only had 3 days to spend in Ubud where we wanted to see so many things – from temples to waterfalls and rice fields.

Located in the mountainous regions of central Bali, Ubud is one of the most popular tourist destinations on the island and is known as the island’s cultural hub. It is home to lush jungles dotted with waterfalls, centuries-old temples, adrenaline-pumping activities and bustling markets. We only had 4 nights and 3 full days in Ubud but I would definitely recommend staying longer if you can!

The Original Itinerary

Below was our original itinerary we had planned to do, but in reality, each day was completely different. I will explain more below but I thought that including our original plan would be useful to those who plan to visit Ubud.

–       DAY 1 | Explore Ubud Town  
Stop #1) Campuhan Ridge Walk
Stop #2) grab coffee at Lazy Cats Cafe
Stop #3) Saraswati Lotus Temple and Ubud Palace
Stop #4) Shop at Ubud Art Market
Stop #5) Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary
Stop #6) dinner at cafe wayan

–       DAY 2 | Day trip to east Bali 
Stop #1) Tegalalang rice terraces and Bali swing
Stop #2) Pura Tita Empul
Stop # 3) Tukud cepeng waterfall
Stop # 4) Taman Tirtagangga (Water Palace)
Stop #4) Lempuyang Temple (Gate of Heaven)
Stop #5) Lahangan Sweet

–       DAY 3 | Day trip to north Bali.
Stop #1) coffee/tea tasting plantation
Stop #2) Lake Beratan Temple (Ulun Danu)  
Stop #3) Aling aling
Stop #4) Wanagiri Hidden Hills 
Stop #5) Banyumala Twin Waterfall

What we actually did…

Day 1

As we arrived late the night before, we spent the first day exploring Ubud. We stayed at Kastara Resort, which was simply stunning. We woke up and had breakfast in a cute café a few metres from our hotel. It was so local to the point where we say them pick our eggs from the chickens in their farm. We ordered a banana milkshake and an omelette. This was my first mistake as I was craving salad, and so I ate the lettuce and cucumber that were on my plate. The next day I got the Bali belly from this as I’m guessing they must have washed it using tap water. It tasted delicious at the time though, but please whatever you do – don’t have salad in Bali!

Campuhen Ridge Pathway

Kastara Hotel was right at the end of the Campuhen Ridge Pathway so we decided to spend the morning walking along this free and easy 2km trek. We really enjoyed doing this ridge walk as it took us away from the hustle and bustle of the city. It also made us appreciate how Ubud really is in the middle of the tropical jungle. We passed by a variety of scenery along the way, including forests, green valleys, rice fields, small settlements and pretty streams. There was no shade along this walk so make sure you visit early morning or late afternoon/evening when it is cooler – it makes for a far more enjoyable walk.

The Local Experience

At the end of the path, we asked a local man sitting on the side of the road where Ubud market is. We got talking and he then asked us if we wanted to see the real Ubud. We were reluctant to follow this random man and I think he could sense our hesitancy. We thanked him and declined his offer as we have specific places we wanted to see that day – but he didn’t take no for an answer. So we followed him… I spoke more about this experience here.  

Lazy Cats Café

After the craziest 3-4 hours, we grabbed coffee at the famous lazy cats café which the local guy, Made dropped us off at. This was a really funky café and the coffee was delicious. It’s also a great place to work if you are staying nearby.

Sacred Monkey Forest

We rented another scooter for the next few days and made our way to the Sacred Monkey Forest. Even though Made wasn’t a fan of this place, Khaled and I thought to just pay a quick visit due to FOMO. Ubud Monkey Forest is located directly in the centre of Ubud town and is great place to get real feel of true culture nature of Bali. Now, you know I am not a fan of monkeys (or animals in general) and so this was not the most fun as it just mainly consisted of me hiding and holding onto Khaled while he was taking close-ups of the monkeys. Just be careful when you go and explore the monkeys at ease as they wild animals and can become aggressive in the blink of an eye. A guy next to us got a bit too close and the monkey actually bit him!

Ubud Arts Market

Close to the monkey’s forest was the Ubud Arts Market. We only spent 1-2 hours here but bought a whole suitcase full of souvenirs and home stuff. Our house is in the theme of white/gold/wood so we were in love with all of their bamboo stuff – I literally bought so many bags full of stuff from here. Whatever price they say, quarter it and then settle at half the price. It also helps when you buy a lot of things from one shop and just get an overall price reduction. Every stall is very similar. Khaled hated any sort of bargaining but I was in my element! I really wish i bought more from here as we found it was the cheapest market we visited throughout the whole trip.

Dinner at Café Wayan

After a very tiring shopping trip, we were getting hangry (hangry and shopping never goes well together) so we stopped off at Café Wayan, just off Monkey Forest Road. We loved this restaurant as you are surrounded with pavilions amongst lotus ponds. We sat on the cushions on the floor, and had the whole pavilion to ourself – it was very romantic. The food was delicious as we both ordered some skewers and nasi campur. We went back to the hotel feeling like we had such a wholesome day. Even though we didn’t follow the itinerary exactly, we always leave room for spontaneity and experiences like the one we had today.

Day 2

I woke up on Day 2 with the Bali belly. It was really quite severe, but I knew we had a long day ahead of us and I didn’t want to miss anything. We had to miss quite a few things in the itinerary above as we had to keep stopping so I can puke on the sidewalk (niceeeeee). What also didn’t help was that there was torrential rain on the drive to Tukud Cepeng Waterfall, but we persevered (the reality of travelling at times!).

Tukud Cepeng Waterall

We finally arrived at Tukud Cepeng Waterfall, one of Bali’s most interesting waterfalls because it’s hidden in a cave. Luckily the sun was coming out so we witnessed a beautiful display of sun rays coming to the cave. It is best to come here in the morning, around 9 – 11am depending on the season and position of the sun.

Lempuyang Temple

We then made our way to Lempuyang Temple. I was in such a bad shape as I kept falling asleep on the back of the moped, Khaled had to keep holding me on. The dedication was unreal. We parked our moped and then paid 20k RP to jump on the jeep that transports visitors along the uphill road to the entrance of the temple.

Lempuyang Temple, otherwise known as Gates of Heaven is one of the holiest temples in Bali. It is located on the slopes of Mount Lempuyang and pilgrims would regularly take on the trek to the main mountainside temple. It’s also a top Instagram spot for visitors due to its incredible natural beauty. The main temple enshrines the god Ishvara, a deity who according to legend, guards the east.

The gate of heaven is what often draws the crowds as it perfectly frames Mount Agung in the distance. We waited almost 3 hours in order to get a few shots in the gates of heaven below but I just slept on the side benches for all of it so didn’t feel the time go past! Just make sure you know which 3 poses you want to do as you have to do it quickly.

One thing to note is that while you may have seen images of the gates reflected in water, this is not real – it’s a man taking photos with a pocket mirror.

Lahangan Sweet

Our last stop for the day was Lahangan Sweet – one of Bali’s newest attractions boasting an epic viewpoint of Mount Agung. It is quite a challenge getting up the hill with the moped as we had to resort to me walking up and Khaled powering through with the moped. It can also get very muddy but all in all, the view was worth it…

After a long day, we made our way back for 1.5 hours to the hotel. Even though I was very ill, I am so glad that I managed to power through and see those beautiful sights.

Day 3

I woke up on Day 3 feeling slightly better but still not 100%. We thought to change the itinerary we had planned which was to visit north of Bali and instead lounge by the pool, and take it easy. We took some shots of the hotel and checked out (but still leaving our suitcases until later on in the day so we can go to Sideman).

Tegalalang Rice Terrace

Our first stop was the Tegalalang Rice Terrace, a gem tucked into the hills north of Ubud. I was so excited to visit this, especially as this particular was one is centuries old and features a special water system called ‘subak’. This Is where water from springs flows into water temples and form there is distributed through the rice paddies.

We wanted to visit Bali Swing but I thought I would be in no state to swing. We really enjoyed our time here and would recommend a visit.

Coffee/Tea Tasting Plantation

Our final stop of the day was Bali Pulina. This coffee plantation is located near Tegalalang rice terrace, 12kms from the main city. This plantation has a huge variety of vegetation and as soon as you enter, you will notice the different kinds of teas and coffee plants all around you. We had a tour guide show us around and explain the entire process of the famous Luwak Coffee and showed us the different types of trees/plants that produces teas. She explained how Kopi Luwak is the coffee produced from coffee beans digested and excreted by the Civet Cat (Luwak). The excreted beans are then collected, processed and roasted to prepare the coffee beans. Due to the fact that the cat digests the coffee bean, it reduces the bitterness and increases the smoothness of the coffee. Fascinating stuff…

At the end of the tour, we sat down in their café which had a beautiful view over Ubud. We had some snacks coffee and tea offered to us – there were 8 samples of tea you can choose from. The snacks and drinks were included in the price of the ticket. Though this plantation is slightly more expensive than some other ones, we would recommend this tour and we thought the explanation was really good.

We drove back to the hotel, returned the scooter and then got a taxi onto our next stop – Sideman.

Accommodation: Kastara Hotel

We stayed 4 nights at Kastara Hotel, a new resort which just opened in Ubud. I absolutely loved this hotel as it had a very intimate and boutique feel about it. It has a great atmosphere, great jungle view and rice fields on the other side. We loved the bath tub on our balcony and the main infinite pool with the iconic boat.