Top photo spots

Karangasem, east Bali

The reflection is a mirror held under a phone by the temple photographer, not a lake — and everyone knows now. Numbered queue tickets; two to three hours' wait by 9am. It is a working temple, so no posing in the shrine areas.

Best time: Arrive 6.30–7am for Agung clear of cloud
Cost: ~IDR 100k incl. shuttle
Wear: Sarong and sash compulsory — shoulders and knees covered

North of Ubud

Carved terraces with mist in the valley at dawn. Small donation boxes at each viewpoint are normal — carry IDR 10–20k notes. Swings and nests are all in the same short stretch.

Best time: 7–8.30am, before coaches and heat haze
Cost: Entry ~IDR 25k + donations at each terrace; swings 300–800k
Wear: Long flowing dress works; bring shoes for muddy steps

Bangli

A fall inside a collapsed cave with a shaft of light through the roof. Go mid-week; the pool is small and a dozen people fills it. Never after heavy rain — the gorge flash-floods.

Best time: 9.30–11am on a sunny day — the sunbeam only lands then
Cost: ~IDR 20k
Wear: Swimwear under quick-dry clothes; you wade the last section

Nusa Penida

The most photographed viewpoint in Indonesia. Shoot from the safe fenced platforms — the unfenced ridge and the descent path have caused real accidents. The climb back up from the beach takes an hour in full sun.

Best time: First boat, on the cliff by 8.30am
Cost: ~IDR 25k
Wear: Grippy shoes, sun cover; no long trailing fabric near the edge

Nusa Penida

Hand-cut cliff stairs down to a turquoise bay with a rock pinnacle. Shoot from the terraces on the way down rather than blocking the staircase.

Best time: Morning, before the east-coast convoys
Cost: ~IDR 25k
Wear: Shoes with grip; the carved steps are steep

Bedugul highlands

The split candi bentar gate framed by mountain forest. It's the entrance to a golf resort, staffed with a queue system, and takes about ten minutes. Combine with Ulun Danu and Munduk.

Best time: 8–10am, cool and misty
Cost: ~IDR 30k per person for the photo queue
Wear: A layer — it's genuinely cold up here

Lake Beratan, Bedugul

The lake temple on the 50,000 rupiah note. Water level varies — the 'floating' effect is best in the wet season. Ceremonies take priority; step back and wait if one is running.

Best time: 7–9am for still water and reflections
Cost: ~IDR 75k
Wear: Modest dress; sarong available at the gate

Tabanan coast

Sea temple on a rock stack with the sun going down behind it. Very busy, still worth it. Low tide lets you walk to the base; high tide gives the better silhouette.

Best time: Arrive 4.30pm for a 6pm sunset
Cost: ~IDR 75k
Wear: Modest; only Hindu worshippers may enter the temple itself

Bukit peninsula

Clifftop temple 70m above the surf with fire-dance kecak at sunset. Monkeys steal sunglasses and phones as a full-time occupation — hands free, nothing loose.

Best time: 5pm for cliff light, 6pm kecak
Cost: Temple ~IDR 50k, kecak ~IDR 150k
Wear: Sarong and sash provided and required, shoulders covered

Ubud

A grass spine between two river gorges. Keep walking to Bangkiang Sidem for the same views with nobody in frame.

Best time: 6–7.30am, mist in the valley
Cost: Free
Wear: Anything comfortable; no shade at all after 9am

Bongkasa, Ubud

Gorge swings, glass floors and bird nests over the Ayung valley. Staffed photographers shoot on your phone. Check the harness and second safety line before you get on.

Best time: Opening time, 8am
Cost: Packages IDR 300–800k
Wear: Long flowing dress (rentable on site) — and shorts underneath

Blangsinga, Gianyar

The bamboo sky-bike, glass platform and swing set over a waterfall gorge — the most efficient single stop if you want several different frames in an hour.

Best time: Morning
Cost: ~IDR 200–500k per package
Wear: Dress rental included in most packages

Sanur

Bali's east coast — jukung outriggers, the wooden jetty, and the sun rising behind Nusa Penida with the fish market waking up next to you.

Best time: 5.45–6.30am
Cost: Free
Wear: Anything

Canggu

Surfers silhouetted against a pink sky, black sand, and the Echo Beach rice-field lanes behind. Golden hour lasts about 25 minutes here.

Best time: 5.30–6.30pm
Cost: Free
Wear: Beach casual — this is the one place nobody is checking

Bukit

An empty kilometre of white sand under cliffs, plus the famous abandoned aircraft on the clifftop road nearby. The stairs are the reason it stays empty.

Best time: Late afternoon
Cost: Small parking fee
Wear: Real shoes for several hundred steps

Ubud / Tampaksiring

A lotus-pond temple in central Ubud and the spring-fed purification pools north of it. If you take part in melukat, follow the fountain order and don't photograph people mid-prayer.

Best time: 7–8am
Cost: Saraswati free (café), Tirta Empul ~IDR 75k
Wear: Sarong required; for the purification, a proper kamen and covered shoulders — sarongs are provided