Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: BATUBULAN AND AROUND
By bus and bemo
Batubulan's bus and bemo station runs services across Denpasar and to
destinations around Ubud, as well as to east and north Bali. It's at the far southern end of
town and has clearly signed bays for each destination, including Amlapura via Candidasa,
Kintamani, Nusa Dua, Padang Bai, Singaraja (for Lovina) and Ubud. All services run every
30min or so; after about 2pm services are sporadic at best; travel as early in the day as pos-
sible. Note that for rucksacks and other bulky baggage there's an extra charge on bemos;
sometimes Rp5000-10,000, sometimes double the fare.
Destinations
Amlapura (2hr 30min); Bangli (2hr 30min); Candidasa (2hr); Celuk (10min);
Gianyar (1hr); Kintamani (1hr 30min); Klungkung (1hr 30min); Mas (35min); Nusa Dua
(1hr); Padang Bai (for Lombok; 1hr 40min); Peliatan (45min); Semarapura (1hr 20min);
Singaraja (Penarukan terminal; 3hr); Sukawati (20min); Tegalalang (1hr 15min); Ubud
(50min).
East of Ubud
Slicing through the region immediately
east of Ubud
, the sacred rivers Petanu and Pakrisan
flow down from the Batur crater rim in parallel, framing a narrow strip of land imbued with
great spiritual and historical importance. This 15km-long sliver has been settled since the
Balinese Bronze Age, around 300 BC, and now boasts the biggest concentration of antiquities
on Bali. From the stone sarcophagi and Bronze Age gong of
Pejeng
to the eleventh-century
rock-hewn hermitage at
Goa Gajah
and fourteenth-century
Yeh Pulu reliefs
, these relics all
lie within 7km of Ubud; Goa Gajah is crowded, while Yeh Pulu is often deserted. Access
to this area by bemo is easy from Ubud - take any Gianyar-bound service - and similarly
straightforward by bike or motorbike. This area also combines well with Tirta Empul and
Gunung Kawi, 11km further north, and direct bemos connect the two.
Goa Gajah
3km east from Ubud's Jl Peliatan • Daily 8am-5pm • Rp15,000, children Rp7500, including sarong rental
Thought to have been a hermitage for eleventh-century Hindu priests,
Goa Gajah
(Elephant
Cave) is a popular tourist attraction largely because of its proximity to the main
Ubud-Gianyar road. Besides the cave itself, there's a traditional bathing pool here and several
ancient stone relics.
Descending the steps from the back of the car park, you get a good view of the elegant rect-
angular
bathing pool
. Such pools were usually built at holy sites, either at the source of a
holy spring as at Tirta Empul or, like this one, near a sacred spot, so devotees could cleanse
themselves before making offerings or prayers. The pool is now maintained for ornamental
purposes only.
