How should you plan 10 days in Bali?

Ten days is the sweet spot. Three bases, two moves, and enough time that a rainy afternoon does not cost you a sight.

The classic ten

Nights 1 to 3: Ubud. Ridge walk at sunrise, Tegalalang early, Tirta Empul, a cooking class, the monkey forest, a spa.

Nights 4 to 6: Nusa Lembongan or Nusa Penida. Boat from Sanur, snorkelling with mantas, cliffs, island pace. Lembongan for comfort, Penida for scenery and worse roads.

Nights 7 to 10: the south. Canggu, Seminyak or Uluwatu. Surf, beach, the Bukit, kecak at sunset, one last long dinner.

Two moves, both short, and three genuinely different experiences.

The ten for people who like the outdoors

Nights 1 to 2: Munduk. Waterfalls, lakes, cool air, walking.

Nights 3 to 5: Sidemen or Amed. Rice terraces under Agung, water palaces, shore diving at Tulamben.

Nights 6 to 10: the south or the Bukit. Surf and beaches to finish.

More driving, far fewer people, and the version that surprises returning visitors.

The ten with Lombok or the Gilis

Nights 1 to 4: south Bali. Beach, surf, Uluwatu.

Nights 5 to 8: Gili Air or Gili Trawangan, fast boat from Padang Bai or Sanur, two to three hours.

Nights 9 to 10: Sanur or Seminyak before flying.

Build in a buffer day. Fast boats are weather-dependent and cancellations happen, particularly in wet season.

What ten days lets you add

• A full day in the highlands without sacrificing a beach day.
• A volcano trek with a recovery day after it.
• Two nights somewhere with no tourism at all.
• A dive course, which takes three to four days.
• An actual rest, which is the thing most people skip and then regret.

The moves

Plan each transfer as a half day and do them in the morning. The good ones:

• Ubud to Sanur: 45 to 60 minutes.
• Sanur to Nusa Lembongan: 30-minute boat.
• Nusa Penida to Canggu: boat plus 90 minutes.
• Ubud to Munduk: 90 minutes to two hours.
• Sidemen to Amed: 90 minutes.

The ones to avoid: anything that crosses the south at 4pm, and Amed to Canggu in a single afternoon.

Costs for ten days

Per person, sharing, excluding flights:

• Backpacker: 450 to 650 USD.
• Comfortable: 1,200 to 1,900.
• Villas, drivers and boats: 3,000 and up.

Boats to the islands are 150,000 to 400,000 rupiah each way per person depending on route and operator.

The thing to protect

Leave two afternoons with nothing in them. Bali in the middle of the day is hot and the best parts of a trip here tend to happen in the gaps: the warung you stopped at, the ceremony you drove past, the beach you found because the road ended there.

Ten days with children

Three bases is one too many with small children. Use two: Sanur or Nusa Dua for calm water and short transfers, and Ubud for green, with day trips from each. Add the safari park, a cooking class, a rice-terrace morning and a lot of pool time, and leave the volcano for another trip.

Ten days for divers

Four nights in Amed, diving the Liberty wreck and the shore sites, then three nights on Nusa Lembongan for Manta Point and the drift dives, then three in the south. Or use the ten days to complete an Open Water and Advanced course, which is cheaper here than in almost any other country.

Ten days for surfers

Base in Canggu for the first half and Uluwatu for the second in dry season, or reverse the coast entirely and go to Sanur, Keramas and Nusa Dua in wet season. Add two nights on Nusa Lembongan, where the reef breaks are good and the lineups are a fraction of the size.

What to book ahead

Accommodation for all three bases, the airport transfer, the boat to the islands in high season, and a driver for the transfers. Boats sell out in July and August and the early crossings are the calmest.