Bali Temples - A Few Suggestions

Visitors wishing to visit a temple in Bali will not be disappointed. There are 16,000 of them scattered around the island. Many are small and attached to the village or community it serves. However more tourists head inland to the largest of Bali's religious sites, Basakhi.

As with everywhere in Bali, it takes longer to get to places than a map would suggest. In my case 90 minutes from the coastal resort of Candidasa.

There are pre-arranged tours which can booked but I went by private taxi. However there are certain "obligations" tourists need to be aware of.

Tourists are required to take a guide. Although this is included in the entrance price of less than $5, there is an expectation of a similar amount as a tip at the end.

A motor cycle takes you to the mouth of the temple where again you are obligated to purchase Hindu offerings. Not expensive but it is frowned upon not to enter without an offering. You are also required to wear a sarong, women and men. There is also a small charge to use the toilets. None of this is particularly costly for a western tourist but it is low-level exploitation of visitors.

Putting that to one side, the temple rises from the entrance with a number of steep steps. As the Besakhi temple is built on the side of a significant mountain which offers splendid views over the island.

On the day of my visit, the central part of the temple was out-of-bounds owning the a religious festival taking place.

Before going I had read a recommendation that it is best to visit in the morning as rainfall is most likely in the afternoon.

That was the case although on this day it arrived at mid-day and stayed pretty much for the remainder of daylight. You can see the brief video of the storm as a number of us sheltered in the temple shop.

On balance I am glad I went to Besakhi, not so much for the temple but the drive up to it. It may have taken 90 minutes but it was through divine, lush vegetation and rice paddy fields, which in Bali are arranged in terraces.

I has a private driver, booked for me by my hotel. For around $30-40 I had the use of the car for the entire day.

It really is a great way to see the island, not least because the driver knows the best short cuts and the most interesting routes to take. I spoke to him before setting off to give him an idea what I wanted from the day and he duly obliged.

I had toyed with the idea of a self-drive car, renting from the airport but was put off by forums describing the driving habits of Balinese drivers.

My experience was that the driving was no worse than many other places in Asia and I have driven many miles in SE Asia.

However I was happy to take the taxi because I would never have found Besakhi on my own, not with 90 minutes anyway. The road signage is awful to the point of non-existent. 

My recommendation for visiting Temples other than Besakhi would be to talk to your accommodation provider. They will know the best ones locally and if there are any restrictions owing to ceremonies.