Things to Do in Ubud - Top Attractions, Hidden Gems & Must-See Sights

Goa Gajah, the Elephant Cave, is a 9th-century archaeological site about 6 kilometers southeast of central Ubud, near the village of Bedulu. The name is misleading: there are no elephants, and probably never were. The carved entrance, a gaping mouth surrounded by demons and mythological figures, leads into a shallow T-shaped cave that was likely used for meditation. Inside are stone lingam and yoni, Hindu symbols, and a Ganesh statue. The whole cave is only about 13 meters deep, so the visit is quick but memorable. Outside the cave, six stone bathing pools with fountains were excavated in 1954 after being buried for centuries. The surrounding grounds include a small jungle trail, old Buddhist rock carvings, and a spring-fed stream. Admission is 50,000 IDR, and the site is open daily from 8 AM to 6 PM. You will need a sarong, which is available for loan at the entrance. The carved facade alone is worth the short detour. It is far less crowded than Tirta Empul or the Monkey Forest, and the combination of Hindu and Buddhist elements in one compact site makes it unusual even by Bali's temple-heavy standards.

Gunung Kawi is an 11th-century rock-cut temple carved directly into the cliff face along the Pakerisan River valley. Ten massive shrine reliefs, each about 7 meters tall, are hewn into the rock on both sides of the river. The name translates roughly to "mountain of the poet's carvings," and when you stand at the bottom of the valley looking up at these structures, the scale is startling. Nothing else near Ubud looks like this. Getting there requires descending about 300 steep stone steps through rice paddies and palm groves. It is a beautiful walk down and a sweaty walk back up. The temple sits about 40 kilometers from Denpasar, roughly a 1-hour drive, and just 15 minutes from Tirta Empul Temple, so the two pair naturally for a half-day trip. Open daily from 8 AM to 6 PM. Check the website for current admission prices. Gunung Kawi sees far fewer visitors than Tegallalang or the Monkey Forest, which makes it one of the more rewarding things to do in Ubud for anyone interested in Balinese history. The river setting, the moss-covered stone, the sound of water: it is the kind of place that feels ancient because it genuinely is. A must-see in Ubud for history-minded travelers.

Tirta Empul is a Hindu water temple in Tampaksiring, about 30 minutes northeast of central Ubud by car. Balinese Hindus come here to perform melukat, a purification ritual, in a series of sacred spring-fed pools. The springs have been flowing since at least the 10th century. You can participate in the ritual yourself: rent a sarong at the entrance, wade into the waist-deep pools, and move from spout to spout in the prescribed order. It is a real religious practice, not a tourist performance, so respect the process. Admission is 50,000 IDR. The temple complex is well-maintained, with manicured gardens, koi ponds, and a large courtyard. At the back, you can see the actual spring source bubbling up through black volcanic sand at the bottom of a clear pool. The water is cold and genuinely refreshing after the Bali heat. Unlike the Sacred Monkey Forest or Tegallalang, this place is about stillness. The temple gets packed between 10 AM and 2 PM, especially when large tour groups arrive.

Directly across from Ubud Palace, the Ubud Art Market (Pasar Seni Ubud) fills a two-story building with stalls selling silk scarves, woven baskets, wood carvings, batik fabrics, silver jewelry, and paintings. It opens daily at 10 AM and closes around 5 PM. Bargaining is expected, and starting at about half the asking price is reasonable. The market is not cheap by Bali standards, but the quality of craftsmanship, especially the woodwork and hand-painted items, is higher than what you will find at beach-town markets in Kuta or Seminyak. The ground floor is the most crowded section, packed with similar souvenir items. Head upstairs for better finds: hand-carved wooden masks, traditional Balinese paintings, and textiles that are harder to source elsewhere. The market has been a central part of Ubud's identity as an arts town for decades. This is one of the places to visit in Ubud where you will actually want to spend money. For a different experience entirely, come before 8 AM when the tourist market has not yet opened. The same building hosts a traditional morning market where locals buy fresh fruit, spices, ceremonial offerings, and snacks. It is the real Ubud, no haggling required, and everything costs a fraction of the daytime prices.

Ubud Palace, officially Puri Saren Agung, sits right at the main crossroads of town, directly across from the Ubud Art Market. The royal family of Ubud still lives here. You can walk into the front courtyards during the day (open 7 AM to 5 PM), but the private quarters are off-limits. The carved stone gates, gold-leaf details, and frangipani-shaded courtyards give you a good sense of traditional Balinese palace architecture without needing to travel far from the center. The palace is small. You can see the open courtyards in 20 minutes. What makes it worth stopping for is not the size but the location: it is the geographic and cultural heart of Ubud, and the compound has been the seat of the local royal family since the late 1800s. The carvings on the main entrance gate are particularly detailed. The real draw is the evening dance performances. Traditional Legong and Barong dances are held in the palace courtyard most nights, and the setting, with the lit-up temple walls as a backdrop, is far more atmospheric than any hotel dinner show. Check locally for the schedule and ticket prices, as they change seasonally.

ARMA (Agung Rai Museum of Art) opened in 1996 in the Peliatan neighborhood, about 1.5 kilometers south of Ubud's center. The collection covers classical Balinese painting, modern Indonesian art, and works by European artists who lived on the island. The museum grounds are built around open-air pavilions set in a tropical garden with water features and stone paths, making the walk between galleries as pleasant as the art itself. Admission is 150,000 IDR. That is the highest ticket price among Ubud's museums, but the space is the most polished and the collection is strong. Works by Walter Spies, Rudolf Bonnet, and prominent Balinese painters share the walls. ARMA also hosts dance performances, cultural workshops, and temporary exhibitions throughout the year. Open daily from 9 AM to 6 PM. If you are comparing the best museums in Ubud, ARMA is the most "complete" experience: art, gardens, cultural programming, a bookshop, and an on-site restaurant. Museum Neka has a broader painting collection, and Puri Lukisan has deeper historical roots, but ARMA gives you the full package in one visit. It is south of the main tourist drag, so the walk there takes you through quieter streets lined with workshops and family compounds.

Antonio Blanco was a Filipino-Spanish painter who moved to Ubud in the 1950s, married a Balinese dancer, and spent the rest of his life creating flamboyant, erotic artwork in a hilltop compound overlooking the Campuhan river valley. The museum he built to house his work is as theatrical as the man himself: gold-trimmed frames, baroque furniture, parrots on perches, and his own poetry displayed alongside the paintings. Admission is around 100,000 IDR. Open daily from 9 AM to 5 PM. The art is divisive. Blanco's style is extravagant and self-referential, heavy on sensuality and self-promotion. You will either find it fascinating or excessive. But the compound itself, perched on a steep hillside with views over the jungle canopy, is genuinely beautiful. The gardens alone justify the entrance fee if you have time to spare. A small cafe on the terrace makes a good rest stop. Among the best museums in Ubud, the Blanco sits apart from the more scholarly collections at Museum Neka or Puri Lukisan. It is more about one artist's personality than about Balinese art as a whole. If you are walking the Campuhan Ridge, the museum is right at the start of the trail and makes a natural pairing.

Puri Lukisan is the oldest art museum in Bali. The cornerstone was laid on January 31, 1954, and it opened two years later in 1956. The museum grew out of a collaboration between Tjokorda Gde Agung Sukawati (the Raja of Ubud), German painter Walter Spies, and Dutch painter Rudolf Bonnet, who together founded the Pitamaha artists' cooperative in 1936 to preserve Balinese art that was rapidly being sold abroad. That history gives the collection real weight. The museum is on Jalan Raya Ubud, a short walk west from Ubud Palace, set in lush gardens with lotus ponds. Three buildings house paintings, wood carvings, and sculptures from the 1930s through the present, spanning traditional Balinese styles from Ubud, Batuan, Sanur, and the Young Artists school. The woodcarvings are particularly strong here, something the other Ubud museums do not match. As one of the best museums in Ubud, Puri Lukisan rewards visitors who want to understand where Balinese art came from before it became a tourist commodity. It is smaller and more focused than Museum Neka, which covers broader ground. Check the museum website for current admission prices and any special exhibitions. Allow about an hour.

Tegenungan is the most accessible waterfall near Ubud, located about 30 minutes south of the center in Kemenuh village, Sukawati district. At 15 meters tall, it is not the highest waterfall on Bali, but the volume of water from the Tukad Petanu river is impressive, especially during the wet season from November to March. The pool at the base is deep enough for swimming, and some visitors jump from the rocks above, though that is exactly as risky as it sounds. The walk down to the falls takes about 10 minutes on concrete steps. There is a second viewpoint and a smaller upper cascade on the far side that fewer people bother to visit. The surrounding area has been developed with cafes, infinity pools, and photo platforms, so do not expect a wilderness experience. It is among the more popular places to visit in Ubud, and the crowds reflect that. If you are deciding between Tegenungan and the more remote Agung Waterfall further east, the trade-off is simple: Tegenungan is easy to reach and has facilities; Agung is quieter but harder to access. For a quick half-day trip combined with Goa Gajah, which is nearby, Tegenungan works well.

Museum Neka (Neka Art Museum) sits on a hillside along Jalan Raya Campuhan, about a 10-minute walk west of the Campuhan Ridge Walk trailhead. Founded by art collector Pande Wayan Suteja Neka and officially opened in 1982, the museum holds a serious collection of Balinese and Indonesian painting across six pavilions. The range runs from traditional Kamasan-style works to modern and contemporary Balinese art, plus a pavilion dedicated to foreign artists who lived and worked in Bali. The keris (dagger) collection is a standout that most visitors do not expect. The displays put these weapons in their cultural context, explaining their spiritual significance in Balinese and Javanese tradition. Open daily from 9 AM to 5 PM. Check the museum website for current admission prices. Among the best museums in Ubud, Neka gives the broadest survey of how Balinese painting evolved from the 1930s onward. If you only have time for one art museum, this or Puri Lukisan are the strongest choices. Neka is slightly stronger on modern work and international connections; Puri Lukisan, closer to the town center, is better for understanding the traditional roots. Both are worth the ticket if you care about art at all.

Rudana Museum sits on Jalan Cok Rai Pudak in Peliatan, about 2 kilometers south of Ubud center, in the same general area as ARMA. Founded by art collector Nyoman Rudana, the three-story building houses paintings and sculptures from major Balinese artists alongside Indonesian names like Affandi and Basuki Abdullah. Foreign artists who settled in Bali, including Antonio Blanco and Arie Smit, are also represented. Admission is 20,000 IDR for adults and 10,000 IDR for children. The museum gets significantly fewer visitors than Museum Neka or ARMA, which means you can actually stand in front of a painting without someone elbowing past you. The building itself is modern and well-lit, a contrast to the open-air pavilion style of most Ubud galleries. Three floors of gallery space give it more room than you might expect. Rudana is one of the best museums in Ubud for visitors who have already seen the big names and want to go deeper. The price is right, the collection overlaps partially with Neka and ARMA but has enough unique pieces to justify the visit, and the quiet atmosphere makes it a pleasant escape from Jalan Raya. Pair it with the Setia Darma House of Masks, which is in the same part of town.