Bukit Peninsula (Bali):
We took the one-hour drive south from Canggu Beach to the Bukit Peninsula, and it was a game-changer.
On my last visit to Bali about ten years ago, I only visited Kuta, Legian and Seminyak, and honestly? I left unimpressed with Bali’s beaches. But I wanted to dig deeper on this trip. The Bukit Peninsula has about a dozen beaches lining its coast, and I am thrilled we checked them out. They are real nice. If you love the beach or are an avid surfer, this is the part of Bali you need to visit.
If you go counter-clockwise down the western side of the peninsula, you’ll hit the beaches of Jimbaran, Balangan, Dreamland, Bingin, Padang Padang, Uluwatu, Gunung Payung, Geger, and Nusa Dua.
For the best beaches and the youngest crowd, stick to Bingin, Padang Padang, and Uluwatu. We skipped the others because they looked a bit too geared toward package tourists. Instead, out here you get an endless stream of motorbikes with surfboard racks zipping from break to break, chasing the best waves.
Staying in Bingin Beach (Flashpacker Style)
Bingin is where we shacked up, and we loved it. The beach sits below a massive bluff, and you have to scrabble down the hillside to get to it. Once you’re down there, it’s a cool maze of alleyways packed with guesthouses and warungs (small Indonesian restaurants) lining the paths. It actually reminded me a bit of Santorini, Greece. The vibe is super relaxed, bohemian, and full of young surfers. Plus, climbing up and down that bluff is one hell of a workout.
We decided to splurge a bit here. I had a gut feeling this was going to be a special place, and it definitely delivered. We stayed at Mick’s Place, a stunning spot with only about seven outdoor-style bungalows and a small infinity pool overlooking the beach from the top of the bluff. The views of the Indian Ocean are fantastic.
It’s a real experience and tough to book since it’s always full—people even rent out the whole property for weddings. It’s a killer honeymoon destination, and their honeymoon suite is sweet. We stayed in the Sunset Bungalow, which has no doors or windows—just completely open-air. It was unique and we really enjoyed the place.
Doug’s Tip: If you can snag a room here, do it. Go with a group of friends and you’ll have the time of your life, or go solo and mingle with fellow international travelers. Watch the sunset every night from the infinity pool, throw on some Grateful Dead (the song Wharf Rat works perfectly), and life just doesn’t get any more relaxed.
Update 2026: The Price of Progress
Bali is growing rapidly, and the beaches on the Bukit Peninsula are no longer a secret. Like all hidden gems, word got out, over development has crept in, and tourists are flocking to the Peninsula in droves.
I recently read some devastating news about Bingin: that entire steep hillside rolling down to the ocean right below our old spot at Mick’s Place has been completely razed. All those unique, bohemian Indonesian warungs, bars, and cliffside hangouts are just gone.
I don’t know the official reason behind it yet, but I have a sneaky suspicion that some massive, sweeping luxury resort is destined to pop up on that hillside overlooking the ocean. It’s a real shame to see that raw, authentic vibe get paved over.
To get around to the other beaches, your options are taxis or scooters. We opted to rent a scooter. I’ve become super comfortable riding these things now, and they are a blast because you get to see so much. I knew I had to pull the trigger on a scooter eventually—they are the primary mode of transport all over Southeast Asia and its beaches. If you don’t ride one, you genuinely deprive yourself of a ton of freedom. (And don’t worry, we always wear our helmets!).
Update 2026:
Flash forward 10 years and my opinion on driving these scooters around SE Asia has completely flipped. The “Southeast Asian Tattoo”—those brutal road-rash scrapes wrapped in white medical gauze—is practically a rite of passage for too many tourists, and it’s rarely worth the risk. When you add a decade’s worth of skyrocketing traffic, crowded roads, and inexperienced drivers to the mix, it changes the calculus entirely. No longer will we ever rent them again.
We took the scooter over to Padang Padang Beach with Barbie on the back. It was a cinch to get to, and the beach was fantastic. It highly reminded me of those wild Hawaiian beaches in Northern Kauai, like Haena and Ke’e, just packed with travelers.
I have to say, it’s amazing how advanced technology is today. On my last six-month journey around Southeast Asia back in 1996, I had to carry old-school paper maps everywhere we went. Now, I’ve got Barbie on the back of the bike navigating with Google Maps on the iPhone. It’s a breeze—even if she did manage to screw up a few times and blamed it on Google!
When you’re flashpacking around, the iPhone is an incredible travel tool. Between reading reviews on the fly and booking accommodations or airfare, these apps take a huge amount of hassle and thinking out of the equation. Travel was much tougher back in ’96.
Another day, we visited Finn’s Beach Club, which is attached to a super luxury resort (I believe it’s called the Semara Resort). The resort itself is really nice, but honestly, we prefer staying at smaller guesthouses with like-minded travelers where we can actually interact with the locals or like minded travelers. Staying at those expensive, sanitized resorts just can’t offer you the true flavor of local life, so we stay as far away from them as possible.
That said, Finn’s Beach Club right on the ocean was very cool. You pay a nominal day rate to get in, and then you just chill on bean bags by the water, eating and drinking all day. It makes for a great day out. Brand new fancy beach clubs pop up along the beaches of this peninsula every year. What is popular now will be displaced with newer beach clubs so make sure to check the internet.
Next Stop: Ubud
I am so glad we started this trip with a solid stint at the Bali beaches. Nothing decompresses us quite like beach life.
Now, we are off to the cultural center of Ubud for a few days. I’m a little concerned about how built-up it might be compared to when I visited ten years ago, but I need to see it for myself before I make any judgments.
Big Doug & Barbie Drop Out of Society 