Uluwatu Temple, Bali
One afternoon we kicked off the beach early and took a ridiculously cheap Uber Black Car over to Uluwatu. Our ride came to 71,500 Rupiah, or about $5.25 USD for the one way. With the hotel wanting about $100 USD for a hotel van and guide for 4 hours through the tour desk, this was a steal! We got out the door at about 4:30 PM, which was probably about 30 minutes too late for my liking. Our driver picked us up and took us the 20 KM and 60 minutes over the island to Uluwatu which is the water temple that overlooks the sea between Bali and Java.
The area was quite packed with tourists, and there was an evening dance show that was also on between 6-7 PM that we didn’t partake in. Uluwatu was a place that I really wanted to get the opportunity to see, since I’d given it a miss on my last trips to Bali. It’s not exactly convenient to get to, and I’d always previously stayed up in Seminyak when my travels took me through here. Bali regulars will know that Seminyak is really no where near Uluwatu.
Uluwatu is a temple that over looks the water. It’s unique since it’s high up on a cliff. There is a side near the open air cultural auditorium, and there is another side closer to the temple. Each side had their own small crowds.
Since the area is west facing, it’s an area known for it’s sunsets.
My son found it to be pretty cool. You can just tell when kids are engaged and learning by the size of the smiles on their faces. No boring posed family photographs today; we’re doing something that you haven’t seen before.
We also had our Bali first encounter with wild monkeys here. My son found them absolutely fascinating and interesting to see and look at. They were a bit of a nuisance variety- turning over trash bins, ripping of people's water bottles and snatching sunglasses away from unsuspecting tourists and running up onto buildings with them. It was really interesting for an 11 year old to see and watch.
It was neat to see the views off the cliffs and the sounds of the surf coming up.
We didn't make it down to the beach level, nor super far on the cliff top pathways. We had a nice, but cloudy sunset and left a little bit wiser.
Our driver was kind enough to wait around for us for a very cheap separately negotiated $5 and we took an Uber ride back with him at Uber rates. He was super professional and kind. Unfortunately, we didn’t get the opportunity to use his services again on this trip. Overall, this side trip to Ulutwatu from the hotel using UberBlack was $15 USD round trip including the wait fee. It was a totally worthwhile expense and a nice addition to a stay in Nusa Dua.