Our next stop in Bali was Canggu (pronounced Chan-goo). Located just north of the party destination in Kuta, its a relaxed surfer town with plenty of trendy restaurants and bars stretching outwards from the 3 main beaches - Echo, Batu Bolong and Nelayan. Naturally the main things to do are eating, drinking and surfing. Being exposed to the strong swells of the north pacific ocean make it a perfect spot for surfing, bringing with it the relaxed beach bars and restaurants that make Canggu a popular spot for tourists and holiday makers. We stayed in an Airbnb called LILA Boutique, a few hundred yards from Samadi Bali yoga studio and with a few decent restaurants and cafes nearby.

For the first few days we attempted to get around on foot, with most places being around 20-30 minutes walk away. We quickly realised this is not the done thing - scooters and taxis dominate the area, with little to no pavements for pedestrians, and so we treated ourselves to the very reasonably priced taxis to get around, instead of braving scooters after a few sunset beers!

Echo Beach & La Brisa

Being home to world-class waves, Canggu is a popular surfer hangout in Bali. With 3 spots to choose from (Echo Beach, Old Man’s and Batu Bolong) the beaches are always packed with surfers of all levels. We opted to sit the waves out as they were big and pretty powerful –not for the likes of us foam-board newbies – it was fun watching the pros boost big airs and make it look easy from the safety of our beanbags!

The beaches of Canggu are best experienced in the evening, when the temperature cools a bit and the lower sun creates a warm glow on the normally dirty-looking black sand beaches. A great spot for a sunset drink and a bite is La Brisa - an eco-friendly beach bar with shipwreck themed huts made from reclaimed wood and fishing boats. Most of the best spots in La Brisa have a minimum spend of 1 million Rupia (about £50-£60) and so we opted for the bean bags overlooking the beach. The cocktails were great, and were made better by the incredible sunset that quickly dipped past the horizon from 6pm leaving the bar illuminated by festoon lighting.

Batu Bolong & The Lawn

One of the other popular beach bars is The Lawn, overlooking Batu Bolong beach. Its a more social space with a pool right on the beach, and a decent selection of food and cocktails. We realise getting there early on a Saturday is essential as tables book up (even out of the high season), but on week days the 2-4-1 cocktail pitchers we really good value and pretty tasty.

Spa, Massage & Yoga

One very attractive perk to Indonesia is the cheap massage and beauty treatments, and Canggu had many places to choose from. From the super reasonable hour long, full body Aloe Vera massage for 100,000 IDR (£7!) in the local parlours to the more upmarket, western choices, we treated ourselves pretty much daily. We decided one day to spend a full day at AMO Spa where we used the huge jacuzzi, sauna, steam rooms, ice baths as well as booking in for a full body relaxation massage, as well as a mani-pedi and haircut - the whole day costing around £100. To say we were feeling well looked after in Bali was not an understatement!

Having joined and enjoyed a Yoga session in the infamous Yoga Barn in Ubud, we were keen to do more. A popular yoga spot in Canggu happened to be a few minutes walk from our apartment, Samadi Bali, so every morning we joined the Ashtanga class. Even though beginners were welcome, the class was filled with pretty experienced, expat locals, which was a bit intimidating and by ‘beginners welcome’ they properly meant beginners to Ashtanga, not to yoga in general. However, it was a gorgeous open air studio and a great way to start the day.

Restaurants & Cafes

Being a foodie hot-spot, we were spoilt for choice with good restaurants in Canggu during our week long stay. We found the standard of food and the attention to detail in interior design and presentation was excellent. We found the service in Bali in general was first-class (particularly in comparison to many British places) - we’ve never felt so looked after! Listed below are a few of our favourite places we sampled during our stay.

Mason is a trendy bar and restaurant offering a tasty selection of small plates in a stylish and buzzy setting. Being a really hot climate we found that sharing small plates was the best way to sample food generally, which luckily for us was a common theme in Canggu area restaurants. The Mediterranean style of food was complimented nicely with the clean, minimal design details and friendly service.

LIFESCRATE is a popular brunch spot in a spacious industrial-chic shelter with concrete walls and floors and wooden crate tables. The breakfast selection was excellent, with decent coffee and a relaxed Aussie vibe. Queues can be out the door at peak times but the portions are generous and the food is really tasty.

The Mocca is another great breakfast spot about 5 minutes walk from the beach. It’s a quieter spot and offers quality breakfasts and the typical rustic style interior design. The top deck was a nice cool place to hide away from the heat of the day before heading to the nearby shops and beach bars.

The Slow was probably our favourite restaurant in the Canggu area. Offering amazing Japanese-Balinese fusion food, the service, presentation and flavours were excellent. We had to come back again to sample more of the tasty small plates they had on offer. The restaurant was always buzzy and the interior design had lots of nice touches and details.

Fishbone Local is a seafood restaurant and bar located near Batu Bolong beach. The setting was great, with a nice chilled atmosphere in the garden area at the back. We ordered the gyoza and fish tacos which were both very good, and was nice to had a Bintang beer on draft for a change as many places only offer bottles.

Overall we really enjoyed our time in Canggu. It wasn’t exactly a cultural experience or a romantic honeymoon getaway, but we found after a couple of days we settled into the laid back atmosphere, fantastic restaurants and epic beach sunsets each evening. After 6 days we were ready to move on, but definitely felt we had relaxed a level further and now had plenty of energy for our next destination - the northern Borneo jungle.