Wondering how to spend 10 days in Bali? Well, you landed on the right page! Our 10 days in Bali itinerary makes planning your trip to the Islands of the Gods a breeze.
Bali often tops the wishlist of those searching for a tropical island holiday. We came in search of paradise but got so much more than just beachy vibes and coconuts. We fell in love with its verdant landscapes, delicious food, friendly people, vibrant culture, excellent snorkelling and fantastic beaches.
We’ve been to Bali three times and can’t wait to go back for more Bali magic. Ten days is the perfect amount of time to immerse yourself in the beauty and culture of Bali while relaxing at the same time.
Please note: This post may contain affiliate links. This means I may earn a commission if you make a purchase by clicking a link (at no extra cost to you). As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Learn more.
10-Day Bali Itinerary at a Glance
Our 10-day Bali itinerary is ideal for those seeking a relaxing holiday while exploring the island’s top attractions.
Begin your Bali trip in Amed on the East Coast to mellow into the Bali lifestyle and enjoy the best snorkelling in Bali. We start this trip at the farthest point from the airport on purpose. Doing this allows you to cover the longest driving distance on your first day and get it out of the way.
Next up, head inland to Ubud to explore the cultural attractions, food, and shopping of central Bali, and even more relaxation.
End your trip to Bali by heading south to Uluwatu for excellent beaches, surf and boho-chic vibes. On the last day, Ngurah Rai International Airport is less than an hour away, allowing for a short and hopefully stress-free transfer for your onward flight.
- Days 1-4: Arrive at Ngurah Rai International Airport and transfer to Amed. The drive takes about 3 hours. Check in at the stunning Aquaterrace and get over that jetlag in the sublime infinity pool.
- Day 5-7: Head inland to Ubud, check into the Ubud Green or The Satya Villa, both stunning private pool villas surrounded by rice paddies and explore the cultural heart of Bali. We stayed here on several of our trips to Ubud and loved them both.
- Day 8-10: It’s beach time again! Transfer from Ubud to Uluwatu and check into the Padang-Padang Inn, which has a huge pool near Padang Padang Beach. Enjoy the last few blissful days on the stunning beaches of southern Bali.
For convenience, you can book your transportation all around Bali here on Klook or ask your accommodation to recommend a driver.
Why Visit Bali?
Bali is many different things to many different people. People come to Bali to ride some of the best waves on earth. Some simply to relax on the beach or self-indulge in pampering and massages at the excellent spas of Bali. Sightseers will find many of Indonesia’s famous landmarks to visit.
Others come on a spiritual journey or do yoga to care for their minds, bodies and souls. Foodies are in for a treat, as are shoppers and those looking for vibrant nightlife. All of these make Bali one of the best places to relax in Southeast Asia.
We love Bali for all these things. But two things make us return again and again.
Value for money– Bali offers unbeatable value for money. Everything from accommodation, food, and shopping to activities and transportation is affordable.
Accommodation in Bali especially offers exceptional value for money. You can often find a private pool villa or boutique hotel for the same or better price than what you’ll pay for a standard hotel in Thailand or Malaysia.
We always return from Bali with a healthy and happy soul and bank balance.
Friendly Balinese: The other reason we love Bali is for its people. The Balinese welcome their visitors with open arms and take immense pride in sharing the beauty, customs and culture with us.
While Indonesians all across the country are some of the friendliest we’ve ever met, the people of Bali stand out just a bit. Their unforced smiles and upbeat outlook on life will rub off on you, making you feel like a different person after your visit.
Considering all of these, Bali offers something for everyone. One visit to Bali is often all it takes to convert anyone into becoming a lifelong fan.
Tips for this Bali Itinerary
- SLOW DOWN: Please, please, please don’t rush through Bali trying to see and do too much. Bali is not the place for that. You are here to relax and enjoy the island’s sights, culture and food.
While many Bali itineraries squeeze in much more than ours, we think that will be an insult to Bali. Spend three nights in each location for an enjoyable Bali trip. - GET A SCOOTER: The best way to get around Bali is by scooter. Scooters are cheap to rent (about RP 60,000) per day and give you the freedom to go where and when you please.
Traffic, especially in Ubud, will eat up a lot of your time when travelling by car. If you don’t know how to ride a scooter, Bali is not the place to learn. If you can’t ride a scooter, get a Gojek ( a scooter with a driver-like Uber on two wheels). - GOING TO LOMBOK NEXT? Lombok and the Gili Islands are an excellent add-on to our Bali itinerary if you have more than 10 days. If moving on to Lombok, do our itinerary in reverse and catch a ferry to Lombok from Padang Bai near Amed.
Bali 10-Day Itinerary
Day1-4: Amed
Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport is in Denpasar on the west coast. We recommend booking an airport transfer online to avoid dealing with airport taxis, especially after a long flight, to take you to Amed on the east coast.
Depending on traffic, expect to arrive in Amed in about three hours. Spend the rest of the day getting over the jetlag and get your body back into the right timezone.
Located on Bali’s east coast, Amed is a stunning seaside village where traditional fishing village culture lives alongside comfortable holiday accommodations, yoga classes, dive schools and delicious eateries. Fringed by healthy coral reefs, it’s the best place for snorkelling right off the beach in Bali.
It’s the perfect place to get with the program and slip into the Balinese way of life.
Here are some of the highlights in Amed
Jemeluk Bay: Lying in the shadow of Mount Agung, Jemeluk Bay, with its black sand beach, chilled beach bars and warungs, is the perfect place to spend time. There is excellent snorkelling here, and the underwater temple is a quirky underwater sight to check out.
Check out our guide to all the beautiful Amed beaches to find out where to swim, snorkel and relax.
Japanese Shipwreck: Another amazing snorkelling spot right off the beach. Shipwrecks are usually the sole domain of divers, but this shipwreck lies literally a stone’s throw from the beach. Besides the shipwreck, there are fantastic coral and an array of marine life.
A little warung under large trees has strong coffee and snacks for those after-snorkelling munchies. It’s my favourite place for snorkelling in Amed.
Sunset Point: Before sunset, head to Sunset Point for the best sunset view in Amed. Order something cold with a kick, sit back and enjoy the show. The view toward Mount Agung and Jemeluk below as the sky sets on fire is perhaps the best sunset view in Bali.
Life in Amed: Our favourite place to eat in Amed has us coming back for ridiculously yummy food, chilled vibes and hospitality. They also have a yoga shala with a sea view offering various retreats for body, mind, and soul. For other tempting restaurants, check out our guide to the best places to eat in Amed.
Tirta Gangga: This holy water temple, is about 30 minutes from Amed on the way to Ubud. It’s a temple complex of exquisite ponds filled with enormous koi fish, making great photos. You can come here on an excursion from Amed, or ask your driver to stop here for an hour or so on the way to Ubud.
Where to Stay in Amed
We stayed at the immaculate Aquaterrace and LOVED it! It was so good that we came back a year later for more.
It was the perfect retreat, and the infinity pool overlooking the beach below quickly became one of our favourite spots to relax in Amed. You can enjoy amazing in-house massages and treatments, and their bistro serves tasty Indonesian and Japanese food.
Days 5-7: Ubud
It’s about a 2-hour drive from Amed to Ubud. Several agencies in Amed can book a car and driver for you, so arrange this the day before.
Ubud is blessed with an incredible setting. Surrounded by verdant rice paddies and lush rainforests, Ubud is like the garden of Eden.
Ubud is the cultural heart of Bali and the best place to experience the best Balinese culture. Over the next three days, explore the vibrant art and culture scene while still relaxing and unwinding.
Between temple hopping, shopping and gorging on fantastic Ubud food, make sure to spend some quality time in a pool or pamper yourself with a relaxing spa treatment to embrace the essence of Bali.
Best Things to Do in Ubud
Monkey Forest: A lush forest full of cheeky macaques, shrines and temples. It’s a lovely place to wander around in nature and the most beautiful place for us in Ubud. Don’t miss it.
Ubud Market: Situated in the centre of Ubud, this market is the best place to pick up some unique Bali souvenirs. Local specialities like T-shirts, Bali bags, batik, natural cosmetics, paintings, coffee and spices are among the most popular with travellers.
Babi Guling: Hindu Bali is the best place to pork out on nice, juicy pork, as the rest of the country is predominantly Muslim. And man, do they know how to do pork! Babi Guling, a spit-roasted Balinese suckling pig with its crispy skin and juicy meat, is sure to be a hit.
But man can’t live on Babi Guling alone (sometimes I beg to differ), so look at our best places to eat in Ubud to stop hunger in Bali.
Kecak Fire Dance: Seeing a cultural performance is a must when in Ubud. The Kecak Fire Dance is the most famous, and it’s a spectacular show. Pura Dalem temple puts on a mesmerizing performance on Mondays and Fridays. It’s a spectacle with a troupe of monkey-men chanting cak- cak, cak-kecak non-stop with lots of real fire flying around.
Tegalalang Rice Terraces: One of the most beautiful spots in Ubud, these rice terraces nestled between coconut groves are drop-dead gorgeous. Take to one of the famous Bali swings and soar over the spectacular landscape of green below. Come here early in the morning to avoid the crowds.
Tirta Empul Temple: A holy, Hindu water temple with exquisite Balinese architecture and fishponds to admire. You can also join the locals to bathe in the holy waters. This private tour takes you to the Tegalalang Rice Terraces and Tirta Empul, as well as other sights around Ubud.
Where to Stay in Ubud
Satya Villa, surrounded by rice paddies, is just a short scooter ride from Monkey Forest Road and its cafes, bars, nightlife and shopping. It’s the perfect retreat for those seeking the luxury of a private pool villa on a budget.
Staying at Satya Villa was a truly rejuvenating and relaxing experience. We will definitely be back.
The owner rents out scooters, which you will need during your stay.
Day 8-10: Uluwatu
Head down to southern Bali’s rocky peninsula, The Bukit, for three days in Uluwatu. Uluwatu is, in many ways, the Bali people envision before coming here.
Picture stretches of sandy beach, cranking waves, monkeys clambering on clifftop temples, swoonsome beach clubs, beautiful food, and HAPPINESS!
Uluwatu is cool without trying with its unpretentious, barefoot luxury living- we’re sure you’ll love it as much as we did.
Ngurah Rai International Airport in Denpasar is just over 20 km from Uluwatu, and a taxi should get you there in about 40 minutes at the end of your trip.
What to do in Uluwatu
Uluwatu Temple: One of Bali’s holiest temples has a fantastic clifftop setting. The views from the cliff to Bali’s famous surf waves below are magnificent, and hordes of macaques are entertaining to watch. Come here for the best sunset in Uluwatu. It also has an incredible Kecak Firedance performance with an equally impressive backdrop of the sun setting over the ocean.
Beach Hopping: Get yourself a scooter and beach hop your way around the Bukit from one dazzling beach to the next. Our favourites are Padang Padang Beach, Dreamland, Thomas Beach and Nunggalan.
Eat beautiful, healthy food: The food in Uluwatu is just gorgeous! Don’t cut corners with the food; eating is a highlight when in Uluwatu. We loved Sugar Rock, Nau Tapioca House and The Place With No Name. Also, check out Mana Uluwatu for a swanky sunset dinner and drinks.
Jimbaran Fishmarket: Half an hour by scooter north of Uluwatu is Jimbaran Bay, the best place for seafood in Bali. At sunset, tables are set on the beach, and you can indulge in scrumptious seafood right on the sand.
For a real foodie experience, continue walking past these tables until you get to the large warehouse by the concrete pier. This is the real Jimbaran Fishmarket, where you can buy fresh seafood by the kilo and then carry them out to one of the many small kitchens in the area which will prepare it for you. We think it’s much more fun than sitting at a fancy table on the beach.
Where to Stay in Uluwatu
We stayed at Padang Padang Inn, right on Uluwatu’s main drag. It’s right by Padang Padang Beach, and there are many cool restaurants, bars, cafes and entertainment in the area while still being quiet. The enormous swimming pool alone is reason enough to stay here.
Check availability at Padang Padang Inn
If You Have More than 10 Days in Bali
Lucky for you, if you have more than ten days in Bali!
From here, you could go up to Canggu or Seminyak, the young and hip part of the island. We stayed in the heavenly Umalas Retreat a few years ago, and this is the absolute best place if you’re looking for a family pool villa. This 2-bedroom luxury villa is like heaven on earth and even comes with your own butler!
Umalas doesn’t have a beach but is within 15 minutes from Fin’s Beach Club in Canggu and Double Six Beach in Seminyak.
Or take a look at these 15 areas in Bali if you want to see more of Bali.
Or you could continue south to the Nusa Islands (Nusa Penida, Nusa Lembongan and Nusa Ceningan) for more beach vibes and bliss.
If you wish to combine this trip with the Gili Islands and Lombok, do this itinerary in reverse, and catch a ferry to Lombok from Amed.
On a previous trip to Bali, be flew from Denpasar to Labuan Bajo on Flores for 5 days for an incredible Bali and Komodo trip. Snorkelling in Komodo National Park and seeing the Komodo dragons is the perfect balance between adventure and relaxation.
Looking for more culture? Take a short flight from Denpasar (or loooooong bus and ferry) to Yogyakarta on the island of Java. Yogyakarta is the cultural heart of Javanese culture and home to the stunning Borobudur temple.
Or you can just stay put. Order one more drink. Crack open another coconut and simply stay put and be happy in Uluwatu!
Bali in 10 Days-Any Questions?
We are sure that you’re going to love Bali as much as we did. If you have any questions about our Bali itinerary, drop them in the comments below, and we’ll try our best to help.
Now, go buy your sunscreen and pack those bags!
How I Shot This Guide
Every photograph in this article was taken with the exact same gear I carry on every journey. It is a setup refined over years on the road to keep travel light without compromising the final image.
- Camera: Sony A7 V
- Lens: Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 DG DN Art.
- My cheap underwater camera: AKASO EK7000
- Storage: SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD
- Software: Adobe Lightroom Classic
- My Indonesia travel essential (trust me): Ray-Ban Wayfarer