Route #4: South Bali + Uluwatu

First on the tour itinerary, after battling through urban traffic, is Pura Tanah Lot, one of Bali's geographic icons, beautifully situated on a rock, with its name interpreted as “land in the sea.” This site, providing spiritual protection for Bali from the sea, was founded in the 16th century by the monk Dang Hyang Nirartha, who became famous for spiritual journeys during the Hindu renaissance on Bali. During high tide, the temple is inaccessible on foot.

Next we visit Kuta, once a fishing village and home to the largest slave market, which became the premier mecca of mass tourism on Bali, flourishing from the 1970s onward, attracting hippies and backpackers. The greatest modern-day catastrophe on Bali unfolded in October 2002, when terrorists in Kuta's entertainment district blew up 2 nightclubs, claiming the lives of 200 people.

We drive to Kedonganan, a town located below I Gusti Ngurah Rai Airport on Jimbaran Bay, famous for its wet fish market. Various kinds of fresh fish and seafood catches are brought there, which then make their way to nearby restaurants as dishes served for lunch or dinner.

We continue south to the limestone plateau of Bukit Peninsula, a very barren and infertile area, transitioning from gentle slopes into steep cliffs. Long ocean waves breaking along the southwestern coast create the best surfing conditions. Right in the center of this peninsula operates the Garuda Wisnu Kencana Balinese cultural park, featuring a monstrous 122-meter-tall monument. This statue brings together 2 key mythological figures: Garuda (also the emblem of the Republic of Indonesia) as the vehicle of the god Vishnu, a member of the sacred triad of Balinese Hinduism.

In the late afternoon, a brief stop at the Karang Boma cliffs, from whose most protruding precipices you can breathlessly admire Bali's most beautiful, unforgettable sunsets, the boundless semicircle of the ocean, and even spot the outlines of volcanoes on Java on the horizon.

To end the excursion, we head to Bali's most protruding headland, the equivalent of a pole — Uluwatu, which in Balinese means stone wilderness. Pura Luhur Ulu Watu located there represents one of the most important sanctuaries in the pantheon of divine places and elements of the Balinese compass, forming a spiritual protective shield around Bali. A tiny three-tiered pagoda stands firmly on the edge of a precipice dropping 70 meters down to the ocean.

Finally, in the exceptional, dramatic setting of the “end of the world,” an entertainment performance of Kecak, the most famous Balinese dance, will be staged. The characters presented in the fire dance and the overall scenario derive from the ancient Hindu epic Ramayana. The dance is performed by a group of several dozen half-naked dancers, as if in a trance, with brilliantly synchronized choreography, without musical accompaniment, solely through rhythmic chanting of cak cak cak.

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