Within an Hour of Munduk: Hot Springs, Temples and the North Coast
Updated: 7 hours ago
Most of what makes Munduk worth the drive is within walking distance of where you are standing. But two or three days in, some people want a road trip, and the north has things worth pointing a car at.
This is ordered by how much we would actually recommend each one, which is not the order the guidebooks use.
Banjar hot springs
Around forty-five minutes, downhill most of the way.
Sulphur water at roughly thirty-eight degrees, running out of carved stone mouths into three tiered pools in a garden. It is old, it is used by locals as much as visitors, and it is the best thing on this list.
Go early. By eleven the pools are busy and the pleasure of them is partly the quiet. Bring a towel, since the ones for hire have seen a lot of service.
The counterintuitive part: this works best on a cool or drizzly day. Coming down out of seventeen-degree mountain air into hot sulphur water is the entire point, and a bright hot day dulls it.
The north coast at Lovina
About an hour.
Black sand, calm water, and a completely different Bali from either the mountains or the south. The sea here is flat, which makes it good for swimming and unremarkable for surfing.
The dolphin boats are the famous thing and we are lukewarm on them. It means leaving at five in the morning to join a flotilla of boats chasing pods, and the chasing is not pleasant to watch. Some operators are better than others. If you want to go, tell us and we will point you at one that keeps its distance.
What we would do instead: swim, eat lunch on the sand, and be back up the hill by mid-afternoon before the heat sets in.
Ulun Danu Beratan
Forty minutes.
The temple on the lake, the one on the fifty thousand rupiah note. It is genuinely beautiful and it is genuinely crowded, and both of those facts arrive at the same time.
Worth it if you go at opening, in the mist, before the coaches. Not worth it at midday.
Easy to combine with the twin lakes at Tamblingan and Buyan, which are on the way and quieter.
Sekumpul and the eastern waterfalls
About an hour.
Munduk has its own waterfalls, including the one a ten-minute walk below the property. Sekumpul is the one people drive for, and it is a serious set of falls reached by a serious number of steps.
Only go if you want a proper half-day with real climbing. Otherwise the water near here is closer, quieter and free.
Munduk village itself
Ten minutes.
Worth naming, because people drive past it looking for attractions. A ridge road, coffee stalls, small warungs, and the ordinary business of a farming village.
Walk it slowly in the late afternoon. It is the cheapest and most underrated thing on this list.
Practicalities
Transport: we arrange a car and driver at cost. Grab and Gojek do not work reliably up here
Timing: leave early for everything. The north coast is hot after eleven and the temples fill by nine
Cost: modest entrance fees at the hot springs and the temples. Bring some cash
How many in a day: two, at most. Three becomes a day of driving with stops
What to take: a towel and swimwear for the springs, a sarong for the temples
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to hire a car for my whole stay?
No, and we would advise against it. Hire a driver for the day you want to go somewhere. A car parked for three days is a car you paid for twice.
Can I do all of this in one day?
You can drive past all of it in one day. You will not have been anywhere.
Are the hot springs clean?
They are natural sulphur pools, well maintained and busy. If you expect a spa, adjust. If you expect an old stone bathing place, you will be delighted.
Is it worth going to the south for a day?
No. Ubud is two and a half hours each way and the airport is three. Those are trips, not day trips.
What if it rains?
Go to the hot springs. Rain improves them.
The honest recommendation
Do one of these, not four. Most guests who plan three end up doing one and spending the rest of the time on the property, and they are the ones who go home rested.
Tell us the night before and the car will be ready.
Two nights, eight rooms, a thousand metres up. We arrange the driver at cost, so nothing here needs a hire car.
Check dates on WhatsApp — it opens a message, not a booking form. Or read what The Quiet actually is.
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