What is the north coast of Bali like?

North Bali faces the Java Sea rather than the Indian Ocean, which changes everything: no swell, no rips, calm flat water and black volcanic sand. It is three to four hours from the airport, which is why almost nobody goes.

Lovina

A string of villages along the coast west of Singaraja, with a quiet beachfront, a low-key restaurant strip and prices that belong to a different decade.

The dolphin boats are the famous activity: outriggers leaving at dawn to find pods offshore. It is genuinely lovely when the fleet is small and uncomfortable when twenty boats chase one pod. If you go, choose an operator that keeps distance, and go on a weekday.

The beach is black sand, calm and shallow, with no surf. Fine for swimming, not a postcard.

Singaraja, the old Dutch colonial capital, with a harbour, a library of lontar manuscripts and an atmosphere entirely unlike the south.

Around the north

Banjar hot springs, stone pools of warm sulphurous water in a garden, busy at weekends and pleasant early.

Brahmavihara-Arama, a Buddhist monastery above Banjar with a miniature Borobudur and views over the coast.

Gitgit, Sekumpul and Aling-Aling waterfalls, in the hills behind. Sekumpul is generally rated the most spectacular in Bali and the descent is genuinely steep.

Air Sanih, natural spring-fed pools by the sea east of Singaraja.

The north coast temples, including Pura Beji at Sangsit, carved in a style that exists nowhere else on the island.

Pemuteran and Menjangan

Further west, and the reason many people come north at all.

Menjangan Island, part of West Bali National Park, has the best snorkelling and diving in Bali: a coral wall in clear, calm water, protected as a marine park. Boats leave from Labuan Lalang.

Pemuteran itself has an accessible house reef, a long-running coral restoration project using Biorock structures, and a quiet, low-key village atmosphere with good small hotels.

West Bali National Park, with birdwatching including the critically endangered Bali starling, and trails through dry monsoon forest that look nothing like the rest of the island.

Getting there

• From the airport: three to four hours.
• From Ubud: two and a half to three hours, over the mountains through Bedugul.
• From Canggu: three to three and a half hours.
• From Amed, along the east and north coast: two and a half hours, and a beautiful drive.

The classic route is a loop: Ubud, Munduk, Lovina or Pemuteran, then back down the west coast or across to Amed.

Where to stay

Lovina for budget and dolphin boats. Pemuteran for diving, quiet and the best small hotels on this coast. A handful of serious resorts sit near Menjangan, priced accordingly.

Practicalities

Weather: the north is drier and hotter than the south, particularly in the far northwest. Wet season is shorter here.

Food: simple, cheap, and limited outside hotel restaurants.

Getting around: a scooter or a driver. Distances between sights are significant.

Money: ATMs in Lovina and Singaraja, few elsewhere. Carry cash.

Who it suits

Divers and snorkellers heading for Menjangan, anyone doing a full island loop, travellers who want quiet and low prices, and families who want calm water without resort prices. It does not suit a short trip: the drive is too long to justify fewer than two nights.