Northern Bali – Pemuteran, Lovina, Waterfalls & Diving

Nature
The wow factor for nature - does it show nature at its best? Doesn't need to be the wildebeest migration or diving with hundreds of hammerheads. Rather make you pause as you realise just how awesome the natural world can be
7
Culture
How much does this experience showcase some of the better and finer things that us humans can offer? Sure, it can be ancient ruins and renaissance churches, but it can also be festivals or soaking up some of the great modern cities of the world
5
Fun factor/activity
Very simple - was it fun? This is usually linked in with doing some kind of activity - i mean, walking along some cliffs is nice, but paragliding from them, now that is fun. Its a vastly underrated factor in a truly great experience
6
Avoid the crowds
Big tour groups and being surrounded by loud fellow tourists can sap the life out of even the greatest of travel experiences. This score is to reflect just how much you can avoid this. But. . . The score also takes into account if the crowds actually add to the experience, such as with a party town or a bustling local market
7
World famous
How world famous is the experience?
3
unique
How hard is it to have a similar experience in other places round the world?
5
Overall TE Score
The overall travel experiences score:  fun factor + avoid the crowds + (best of nature or culture) + (best of world famous or unique). Then convert into a score out of 100
62 *What the scores mean and where do they come from
RANKING
How this travel experience ranks compared to all the other experiences on this site, based on the travel experience (te) score
260th/454
Top 60%
continent
Asia
country
Indonesia
Length of time
3-4 days
Typical daily price
This gives you a rough idea of the daily price based on 2 people travelling where they can split costs like accommodation. It excludes travel there and back, and factors in inflation the numbers in brackets show the price range for the full time of the experience (so not necessarily daily). It is a range to reflect different budget vs higher end
$140 ($250-$650 in 2024 prices)
Time of year visited
July
Primary Tags
Click on any of the tags to see all travel experiences with the same tag
Beaches Jungle Scuba diving
All Tags
Islands Lakes Local villages Mountains Rice terraces / terraces Volcanic Lake Volcanoes
Wow Factor
The wow factor reflects just how much you’re likely to say “wow”. As there’s a lot of experiences in the world, and a lot of wows, i’ve gone with a simple ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ to ⭐️ score, and a separate category for the truly "gash"
⭐⭐

Summary

Northern Bali is the quiet side of Bali — less developed than the south, less busy than Ubud, and the closest thing you’ll find to what Bali used to be like.

If you’re after the glitz, world class restaurants and expensive villas stay in the south (and see the travel entry for South Bali’s Beach Clubs, Restaurants and Chic).

If you want full jungle and yoga vibe go for Ubud (see Bali in and around Ubud).

If you want tranquil hill retreats, typically a longer dry season and to get a bit more of that “what Bali used to be” vibe, give the north a go and I’ve listed tips below.

 

In a nutshell:

  • Much quieter and less developed than the south or Ubud
  • Best for hill retreats, waterfalls, diving and relaxing
  • Not ideal if you want beaches, restaurants or nightlife
  • You’ll need a few days because distances are quite big
  • Best areas are Pemuteran (west) and Lovina (central)
  • Works best as part of a wider Bali trip, not as a standalone destination

 

Table of Contents

Tips

 

Tip #1 Northern Bali is bigger than people think – and you will do quite a bit of driving

It’s around a 3.5hr / 150km drive from one side to the other.  Nicely with way less traffic than in the south, but still big enough that there will likely be a fair bit of driving and you need to factor in the 3 hour drive from Bali Airport in the south.

Because of the travel, I’d suggest you need minimum 4 days, ideally a week. Best to split your time between Pemuteran and Lovina.

 

 

 

Tip #2 There are three main areas in Northern Bali, and Pemuteran in the west was our favourite

Pemuteran in the west is white sandy beaches, very dry hill retreats with cracking views all the way to Java and the gateway to the Pulau Menjangan Nature Reserve.

Lovina in the central north is quiet beaches, slightly more jungle-focused retreats in the hills and a heap of waterfalls to explore.

Amed in the east is quieter but not as pretty.  For me, the only real reason to come here is diving the USAT Liberty wreck — otherwise I’d skip it.

 

 

Tip #3 Our highlights were:

 

1. Just chilling in the more relaxed hill retreats with their amazing sea views and that “what Bali used to be” vibe.

 

Northern Bali, Indonesia - Sumberkima Hill Retreat by Pemuteran

Sumberkima Hill Retreat by Pemuteran

 

Northern Bali, Indonesia - Maha Hills Resort by Mahaprana for Lovina

Maha Hills Resort by Mahaprana for Lovina

 

2. The diving in the Pulau Menjangan Nature Reserve, with its views back up to the hills of Pemuteran.

 

Scuba diving in the Pulau Menjangan Nature Reserve, with its views back up to the hills of Pemuteran. Northern Bali, Indonesia

Pre dive

 

Post-dive

 

3. The waterfalls near Lovina as they’re heaps of them, quite impressive and done very well from a tourist visit point of view.

 

The waterfalls near Lovina - Northern Bali, Indonesia

Waterfalls just to the south of Lovina

 

4. Diving the USAT Liberty Wreck in the east.

 

 

5. Heading more inland for Mount Batur, the pretty lake there and seeing some of the volcanic stuff.  See the video for the idea.

 

 

Tip #4 It is much drier here than central or southern Bali

Dry season typically lasts May – October, but outside of that you’re far more likely to get sunny days.  A big benefit of Northern Bali compared to the uncertainty in the south.

 

 

Tip #5 Where to stay

I’d recommend Sumberkima Hill Retreat for Pemuteran and Maha Hills Resort by Mahaprana for Lovina.

 

Experiences Nearby

The below map shows experiences nearby with a colour that reflect the Overall Score of those experiences

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⭐⭐⭐

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⭐

Tea Plantations of Munnar
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Sibilini Mountains and hilltop villages of Marche
⭐⭐

Champagne region wine tasting
⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tayrona National Park and staying in a bit of paradise nearby
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The Garden Route
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Glamping on Great Keppel Island
⭐⭐

Score Detail

The scores above are the real point of this site.

Over 20+ years and 100+ countries, I’ve tried to rank the world’s best travel experiences — from genuinely mind-blowing ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ to the properly gash.

Every one of the 500+ places on this site has both a Wow Factor rating and a more analytical Travel Experience (TE) score based on the things that actually make travel memorable.

If you're curious about the thinking behind it, head to the About page.

Otherwise, explore the map above or on the Home page and see which places truly deliver maximum wow.

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