20 Best Things to Do in Canggu

Tanah Lot is one of Bali’s most iconic landmarks. The ancient Hindu shrine is perched on top of an outcrop amid constantly crashing waves, making it a popular spot for sunset photography. Although you cannot enter the main temple grounds of Tanah Lot, the panoramic views and cultural offerings around are highlights to enjoy. The onshore site of the temple complex has smaller shrines, restaurants, shops and a cultural park where regular dance performances take place.

Echo Beach is one of Bali’s most popular surf spots. It has advanced reef breaks, 180-degree seascapes and sunsets, as well as seafood cafés set on a high vantage point. The black-sand beach is approximately 35 km northwest of Kuta and Seminyak, and a 14-km drive west from the provincial capital of Denpasar.

Surfers dominate the scene by day, before things shift to a more ambient dining scene by night. Echo Beach is clean and well-kept thanks to the joint efforts among various surf schools and clubs along Canggu’s coast, which carry out routine beach clean-ups.

Finns Recreation Club is a world-class recreational hub in Canggu. You’ll find plenty of sports facilities and entertainment centres, including a full-fledged gym, the Bounce Bali Trampoline Centre, Splash Water Park, Strike Bowling, a tennis centre, a kid’s club, and a spa centre.

It’s open to the public year-round, with day passes and long-term memberships available at reasonable prices. Finns Recreation Club also has a sports bar that screens live sports events, from AFL and NFL to cricket and soccer matches.

Splash Waterpark in Bali spans 2,400 sq m, with a good number of top-quality pools and slides with supporting facilities that promise a fun and safe day out for all ages. It’s located right next to the main facilities of Finns Recreation Club, a sporting and leisure complex along the road leading to Berawa Beach.

Among the options for grownups and bigger kids is Giant Racer, a high 90-metre-long slide with an integrated speedometer that tracks your race. You can check on a screen at the end of your ride in case you need to settle any disputes and declare who the true winner is. Speed Racer is a smaller slide designed for younger kids so they won’t miss out on the fun. 

Bali Equestrian Centre is a 25,000-sq-m facility that’s manned by certified international instructors. The stables are home to over 30 trained horses of local and imported breeds. The centre welcomes families with leisurely pony rides and day camps for kids.

If you’ve never ridden a horse before, Bali Equestrian Centre offers lessons for adults and kids. Breakfast and lunch are served at the centre’s onsite restaurant. You’ll also find a swimming pool and playground that overlook the main riding arena.

Berawa Beach directly borders the neighbouring coast of Seminyak. It has a mix of dark grey and black sand, and is home to one of the largest lagoons along Canggu’s coastline. It’s a preferred stop for surfers looking for a quiet place to surf in Bali. You can expect some rocky reefs that help shape up some nice rights and a few lefts at high tide. Recreational swimming isn’t recommended at Berawa Beach due to the strong undercurrents. Unique bars along the beach make for some nice spots to enjoy Bali’s famous sunsets.

House of Alaia is a small studio that organises jewellery making classes. Located on the main Jalan Batu Bolong, it also displays a collection of exquisite jewellery pieces by founders Nea and Christy. The workshops focus on making jewellery out of silver, and you can create your own design using traditional techniques. The full-day jewellery making class takes place from 9am to 4pm, with lunch provided.

Bali Island Horse at Yeh Gangga Beach offers horseback riding tours to villages, local temples, rice fields and rivers, as well as a stopover at a bat cave. Located at the far northern end of the Canggu area, the stable works with one of Australia’s leading equine nutritionists and feeds its horses with all-natural food.

The basic horseback riding tours take around 2 hours – book an evening tour so that you ride down the beach for impressive sunset views. Bali Island Horse also offers a full-day excursion, which includes a 2-hour tour of Canggu on horseback, lunch at Tabanan Monkey Forest, a 2-hour ATV ride, and a trip to Tanah Lot at sunset.

The Temple of Enthusiasm is the flagship store of Deus Ex Machina, an Aussie company specialising in custom motorcycles, surfboards and skateboards. The Canggu outlet displays vintage bikes and surfboards, as well as a workshop and board factory.

You’ll find plenty of things to see at The Temple of Enthusiasm’s dedicated art gallery, which regularly hosts pop art, graffiti, and surf art exhibitions. Deus Café Canggu is an all-day dining venue serving international and Pan Asian cuisine, as well as cocktails, beers, wines and non-alcoholic drinks.

Kuda P Stables is an Aussie-owned company that has over 50 years of experience with horses in England, Australia and Indonesia. Its many well-trained and groomed horses can take you for a leisurely ride through rice fields, local villages, and along Pererenan Beach. Kuda P Stables also offers therapeutic rides for the disabled, while kids below 6 years old are welcome to try out their pony rides, which take about 30 minutes.

Mekotekan (or mekotek) is a traditional ritual that takes place in Munggu Village, about 6 km east of Tanah Lot Temple. It coincides with the day of Kuningan Saturday, a Balinese Hindu observance that follows 10 days after the Galungan Day celebrations (in July or August).

Mekotekan Day sees hundreds – sometimes over 1,000 – of adult males from several villages in Munggu walking towards the Pura Dalem temple, all brandishing long bamboo poles. Participants in a group converge their poles at 1 point to form a pyramid. Their hero climbs up its rickety peak and competes against a hero from a different group until one of the pyramids fall apart.

Nelayan Beach covers 3.5 km of black sand, and is located between Canggu’s Pantai Batu Bolong and Berawa. This local fisherman’s landing offers a bit of seclusion and a nice spot for quiet sunsets. Two small river mouths mark each end of the beach. Several luxury villas offering cosy retreats are just beyond the coconut groves. Note that the waves at Nelayan Beach don’t offer much for surfers – you’re better off paddling out to neighbouring Batu Bolong, which has long rights and lava-rock reefs.

Experience a scenic drive down the main roads of Canggu’s seaside villages, where you can see the Pererenan and Seseh rice fields. You can pull over anytime to see local farmers tending to their crops from up close. Most come to these villages for the relaxing atmosphere of the flowing green rice fields and proximity to the Indian Ocean. It’s also a popular stopover for those on day trips to the famous Tanah Lot Temple.

Pererenan Beach is one of the most popular horse-riding beaches on the island, partly due to the many horse stables along the coastline. Its namesake village offers serene views with its green rice fields, while the 700-metre-long beach is also a nice surfing spot. The best time to go to catch waves is between April and October. Swimming isn’t a good idea here as Perenan has rough tides with undercurrents. It’s a nice spot if you’d like to get away from the crowds who usually frequent popular beaches like Kuta and Double Six.

Seseh Beach is a quiet black-sand strip where experienced surfers can enjoy fast, challenging and mostly long lefts. Located about 9 km east of Tanah Lot Temple, the beach is relatively small, spanning around 1 km along Bali’s western coastline. Seseh is also a major pilgrimage destination for local Balinese Hindus during the annual Melasti ceremony, which takes place several days before Nyepi Day (Bali’s day of silence).

Strike Bowling at Finns Recreation Club Bali has 6 lanes with automatic pinsetters, together with a computerised system that takes out the hassle of keeping track of your scores. This kid-friendly centre also has bowling lanes with bumpers that stop the ball from going into the gutter. Each lane can accommodate up to 6 people, making it a popular group activity in Bali. Strike Bowling’s onsite restaurant and bar serve a wide range of snacks, meals and drinks from 12pm to 8pm every day.

The Garden Bali is a childcare centre offering a fun and stimulating learning environment. It has 7 classrooms, a dedicated extracurricular room, several playgrounds, and a large garden area. Most of its classes cater for children between 18 months and 6 years old, with multi-day programmes such as Balinese arts and crafts and cooking classes. If you only have a few hours to spare, The Garden Kids Club is an onsite drop-in learning centre, where children aged 2 to 12 years can enjoy games, arts and crafts, storytelling, and gardening.