Our first port of call on our trip was Bali. After talking with many of our friends who’d been before, Ubud seemed a good place to start. Ubud is a bustling tourist town set into the mountainous jungles in central Bali. It’s famous for its ornate temples, monkey forest and beautiful surrounding scenery. It’s also a bit of a bottle neck for a lot of traffic - mainly scooters - which luckily we had been forewarned about. For the first couple of days we opted for a homestay in the centre to give us the chance to explore the sights and restaurants of Ubud.

Town Centre

Our first stop was the Saraswati Temple located in the heart of Ubud. We wandered around the beautifully intricate stone carved statues and pillars trying to avoid selfie sticks and insta models as we went.

After the temple we wandered up Ubud Market to browse the many street stalls selling handicrafts and clothing. As it was really hot and humid we then opted for the Folk Pool & Gardens to relax and cool off away from the busy main streets.

Sacred Monkey Forest

The following day we were served a tasty breakfast on our balcony in our peaceful homestay. To avoid the heat of the day, we decided to visit the sacred monkey forest, a tourist attraction that we had heard mixed reviews about. As expected, it was pretty busy with lots of people taking selfies and being hounded by monkeys attempting to take snacks from people’s bags! We managed to get some nice shots of monkeys, and it was interesting to see their human-like behaviour and territorial nature as we walked around the shady paths and bridges.

West Villa at Taman Bebek

The accommodation we were most looking forward to in Ubud was the West Villa. Located in the Taman Bebek resort in Sayan, a town just west of Ubud, the villa was beautifully designed, with tasteful interiors, our own balcony and hammock surrounded by jungle plants and animals. Better still, the resort had an incredible view of the surrounding valleys, with a refreshing infinity pool perfectly positioned to take in the sunset. It really was a dream to stay in!

Rafting on the Ayung River

Rafting is a popular thing to try in Ubud being close the the Ayung River. We booked through our accommodation, and were picked up and driven to a lunch spot where we met another couple and geared up for the rapids. We headed down the steep steps to the river, and after a quick briefing we started paddling downriver. The rapids themselves were fairly tame, but the surrounding jungle that towered around us was stunning, and it was great to get in the cool water away from the heat.

That evening we decided to treat ourselves to the nearby Four Seasons hotel, which was literally next door to our villa (although without the epic view!). The architecture and design was very grand and extravagant compared with many of the surrounding resorts, but we did enjoy the excellent service and fancy surroundings just for an evening.

The Sayan House

We were recommended The Sayan House from our AirBNb, and definitely weren’t disappointed. Perched on the top of the rainforest, with stunning views of the palm-filled jungle valley below, the setting couldn’t have been more perfect. Nice ambiance, attentive service and really good Japanese-Mexican fusion food. It was a perfect place to watch the sun set too, and being walking distance from Taman Bebek we knew we’d be back to sample more of the delicious dishes!

We had heard good things about Gelato in Bali from our good friend and talented Gelato maker Sophia, so we had no choice but to sample all the flavours! Luckily not far from our villa was Gaya Gelato - arguably one of the best places for Gelato in Bali. Pavlova, Panna Cotta and chocolate flavours were standouts. Naturally we visit this place more than once during our stay!

Campuhan Ridge Walk

On our penultimate day we decided to take advantage of the pool one last time and wait for the heat of the day to pass to do the nearby Campuhan ridge walk. After a 20 minute walk through some nearby towns from our villa, we took the short hike up the mountain to the ridge where we were eventually met with beautiful views of bottle-green rice fields. We ended at for a sun set view and beers at Karsa Cafe before jumping in a local buggy back to Taman Bebek to rest up before our next stop - Canggu.