Ubud is Bali's green middle: jungle, temples, rice fields and a healthy-food café on every street. My saved list only had the terraces and waterfalls around it (they're in the Bali guide), so the town itself is added on the advice of travel guides, mainly 34travel. Here are two places for a walk, three cafés that work all day and a bar for the evening; the descriptions are put together from Google Maps reviews.
Prices are Google's average spend per person; entrance fees are as reported by visitors. Valid as of 7 October 2026. Rate: 100,000 IDR ≈ $5.60.
In short
- Monkeys and temples: the Sacred Monkey Forest right at the 9:00 opening, before the tour groups; entry about 130,000 IDR (≈$7).
- A free walk: the Campuhan Ridge Walk, about 2 km along a hilltop ridge, best early in the morning or towards sunset.
- Coffee: Seniman Coffee opens at 7:30, handy before a day trip, and does tasting flights.
- Healthy food: Clear Cafe in the centre and vegan Alchemy in Penestanan, both open from morning to night.
- Evening: cocktails built on local botanicals at Night Rooster, the Locavore team's bar, 17:00 to midnight.
What to see
Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary
Ubud, Padangtegal · monkey forest & temples · entry about 130,000 IDR (≈$7) · daily 9:00–17:00
Google Maps · website · Jl. Monkey Forest
According to Google Maps reviews (4.5 from 59,900+): a protected forest right in Ubud, with giant trees, shady paths, mossy temples and hundreds of macaques living free. The grounds are well kept and staff keep an eye on things; children pay about 100,000 IDR, and cards are accepted. The monkeys mostly get on with their own business, but they grab food and anything loose, so put away sunglasses and phones. A photo with a monkey on your shoulder costs about 50,000 IDR extra, and not everyone likes that the animals are lured with food. 34travel recommends it too (guide).
Campuhan Ridge Walk
Ubud, Campuhan · walking trail · free · open 24 hours
Google Maps · Jl. Raya Ubud
According to Google Maps reviews (4.3 from 18,300+): Ubud's most popular walk, a paved path along a ridge between two green valleys, past small temples, about 2 km each way. It's easy enough for children, but partly uphill with little shade, so go early or towards sunset; walking north to south is mostly downhill. There's a café at the top, and you can loop back through the village in about two hours. The downsides: it's busy, and the view is more modest than in the photos. 34travel recommends it too (guide).
Coffee and food
Seniman Coffee
Ubud, centre · coffee shop · 50,000–150,000 IDR (≈$3–8) · daily 7:30–22:00
Google Maps · website · Jl. Sri Wedari, 5
According to Google Maps reviews (4.6 from 5,100+): a popular retro-style coffee shop that roasts its own beans from different regions of Indonesia. People praise the presentation, the cold brew tasting flights and the cascara, lemongrass and rosella tea flight, and the turmeric latte; there's a bakery and a record shop alongside, and across the street they sell beans and brewing gear, decaf included. It opens early, so it works before a day trip. Outside it can get stuffy in the hot season, and the pastries are rated as just fine.
Clear Cafe
Ubud, centre · café · 75,000–200,000 IDR (≈$4–11) · daily 8:00–22:00
Google Maps · website · Jl. Hanoman, 8
According to Google Maps reviews (4.3 from 4,500+): a café behind a carved round door, with a fish pond along the entrance and a very unusual interior. A huge menu of healthy, fresh food; people like the relaxed mood that makes it easy to lose track of time, and there's a spa on site too. Downstairs is prettier, upstairs is quieter, though reviewers say service there is slower. The floor by the pond gets slippery in the rain. 34travel recommends it too (guide).
Alchemy Bali
Penestanan · vegan café · 75,000–200,000 IDR (≈$4–11) · daily 7:30–21:30
Google Maps · website · Jl. Penestanan, 75
According to Google Maps reviews (4.5 from 3,400+): a vegan café some guests have been coming to since 2015, once known for its smoothie-bowl buffet and salad bar. Reviewers praise the jackfruit wrap, the rosella chai, the miso soup with zucchini noodles and the desserts; it's calm enough to sit with a laptop, and there's a health-food store next door. The downsides: tourist prices, many dishes are served cold, and the hot ones are on the heavy side. 34travel recommends it too (guide).
Evening
Night Rooster
Ubud, centre · cocktail bar · from 250,000 IDR (≈$14) · daily 17:00–0:00
Google Maps · website · Jl. Goutama Sel., 5
According to Google Maps reviews (4.7 from 340+): a small upstairs bar from the team behind the Locavore restaurant, dim, with warm wood, vintage armchairs and art on the walls. The cocktails are built on local botanicals, infusions and ferments, each with its own story on the menu, and some guests call it one of the best bars they've been to. The bar snacks are small and cheap; reviewers rate the pulled pork bitterballen, smoked duck sausage and sandwiches. 34travel recommends it too (guide); their guide has an old address, and the bar is now on Jl. Goutama.
One last thing
Give the mornings in Ubud to walking: Seniman opens at 7:30, the Campuhan Ridge is coolest before the heat, and the Monkey Forest is best right at the 9:00 opening. Sit out the midday heat at Clear Cafe or Alchemy, then walk to Night Rooster in the evening; it's in the centre, not far from Seniman. Ubud is also the easiest base for the Tegallalang terraces and the waterfalls nearby.
More on Bali: what to see, Canggu and Seminyak.