Guide · The sea temple

Uluwatu Temple, the sea temple on the cliff

Uluwatu Temple stands high above the Indian Ocean: when to arrive for the kecak, what the gate charges, how to handle the monkeys and where to stand as the sun goes down.

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Editorial team, balitempletour.comUpdated October 24, 2026Reading time 6 min43 sources

On this topic: the tour Bali: Full-Day Private or Shared Uluwatu Highlights Tour 4.7 (1,075 reviews) 2 to 9 hours from$23 Check availabilityFree cancellation until 24 hrs ahead of the start

In brief

01Opening hours: Daily from 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM, the temple management says.¹
02Entry: IDR 50,000 for a foreign adult; sarong and sash are provided at the gate.² ³
03The kecak: Every evening at 6:00 PM, with a ticket of IDR 150,000 for adults.¹ ²
04The setting: A sea temple on a limestone cliff about 70 m above the ocean.⁴ ⁵
05Watch out: About 650 macaques live here; keep glasses, hats and phones secure.⁶ ⁷

A guardian temple at the southwest tip

Uluwatu Temple, Pura Luhur Uluwatu in Balinese, sits at the very tip of the Bukit peninsula, where the island ends in a wall of rock above the surf. Its management calls it a sea temple, established to protect Bali from negative spiritual forces coming from the ocean.⁵ The Ministry of Tourism counts it among the Sad Kahyangan, the main temples believed to keep the island's spiritual balance.⁴

It is old. An ancient split gateway on the site carries a chronogram for the year 808 in the Balinese Saka calendar, 886 AD, so the temple dates back at least to the 9th century.⁸ Its management also connects it with the priest Danghyang Nirartha and explains the name: ulu means head and watu means stone.⁹ The temple is dedicated to Shiva Rudra.¹⁰

Look closely at the walls. The Ministry describes the buildings as made almost entirely of white and grey blocks of petrified coral, which is why they look so pale against the green of the forest.¹¹ The shrines are small and plain compared with the stone carving of the gates, and that restraint is part of the point: the cliff and the sea are the real architecture here.

An evening at the cliff

From the open gate to the last chant

7:00 AM

The temple opens

The gates open for the day; mornings are the quiet time.¹
4:00 PM

Kecak gates open

Seats in the amphitheatre fill from here.¹
Around 5 PM

The crowd peaks

One operator warns of crowds and few free photo spots.
6:00 PM

The kecak begins

The chorus starts as the sun drops into the sea.¹
7:00 PM

Show ends, temple closes

The Ministry gives the show as 18:00 to 19:00; the temple closes at 7:00 PM.¹² ¹

Opening hours, tickets and the sarong at the gate

The temple management gives opening hours of 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM every day.¹ The Uluwatu Temple entrance fee it lists is IDR 50,000 for international adults and IDR 30,000 for international children, with IDR 30,000 and IDR 20,000 for domestic visitors.² The kecak is a separate ticket, bought on top of the temple entry.²

Not every official page gives the same figure. A Ministry of Tourism page lists Rp60,000 for foreign adults and Rp40,000 for children, and one kecak ticket seller tells buyers to bring 60,000 rupiah in cash for the temple counter.¹³ Fees change, so treat the lower figure as the official minimum and carry a little more in small notes.

You do not need to bring your own temple dress. Visitors must wear a sarong and sash, which are provided at the entrance, and the management asks everyone to cover shoulders and knees.³ Drones may only be flown with permission, a rule worth knowing before you unpack one on the cliff path.¹⁴

What guests say

Ratings of the Uluwatu listings

of 5

Average ratings as each GetYourGuide listing shows them; the ticket-only listing has the most reviews behind it.

Tickets

Temple entry and the kecak, by visitor

Ticket	Adult	Child
Temple, international	IDR 50,000	IDR 30,000
Temple, domestic	IDR 30,000	IDR 20,000
Kecak	IDR 150,000	IDR 75,000

As the temple management lists them; one Ministry page gives the temple at 60,000 and 40,000 for foreign visitors.² ¹³

Three ways to go

Full day, sunset trip or temple only

This page's pick

South Bali day

Beaches, the temple, kecak

Hours: 2 to 9
Reviews: 1,075
Price: from $23

See the tour

Bali Sunset: Uluwatu Temple, Kecak Dance and Jimbaran Bay

Most reviewed tour

Sunset trip

Kecak ticket, Jimbaran Bay

Hours: 6 hrs
Reviews: 3,215
Price: from $40

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Bali: Uluwatu Temple Tour with Optional Kecak Dance Ticket

Shortest

Temple visit

Optional kecak ticket

Hours: 2 to 6
Reviews: 462
Price: from $16

See the tour

Decision helper

Which kind of Uluwatu visit suits you?

Match the visit to how you want to spend the evening

I want the dance with the sunset I want quiet cliff paths I want a full day in the south I already have a driver I want dinner by the sea after

Arrive by 5 PM

Gates open at 4:00 PM, the show starts at 6:00 PM, and crowds build from around 5 PM.¹

Come in the morning

The temple opens at 7:00 AM, hours before the crowds.¹

The highlights day

Beaches and a cultural park first, then the temple and the kecak.

Kecak ticket only

From $9; the temple fee is paid separately.

The Jimbaran trip

A 6-hour sunset trip that ends at Jimbaran Bay.

The performance climaxes with Hanoman's fire dance, where he burns down Rahwana's palace

Uluwatu Temple management (official website)Source 15

How the kecak works on the clifftop stage

The kecak dance at Uluwatu Temple is held every evening in an open amphitheatre near the entrance. The Ministry of Tourism lists the gates opening at 16:00 local time and the performance running from 18:00 to 19:00.¹² It recommends arriving about an hour early for a seat, and warns that tickets can sell out faster in busy season.¹⁶

The kecak is young by Balinese standards. Its management credits Wayan Limbak, a Balinese artist, and Walter Spies, a German painter and musician, with shaping it in the 1930s.¹⁷ It grew out of sanghyang, a trance dance meant to ward off harm.¹⁸ There are no instruments at all: a large male chorus keeps the rhythm with its voices, and a circle can hold as many as 150 performers.¹⁹ ²⁰

The story is from the Ramayana, and the climax is Hanoman's fire dance, when the white monkey warrior burns the palace of Rahwana.¹⁵ On the temple's own price list the dance is IDR 150,000 for an adult and IDR 75,000 for a child.² If it rains, the show moves to a smaller stage, and some ticket sellers hand out raincoats.

Map

Where the temples stand on Bali

First the whole island with the temples on this site, then the slopes of East Bali around Lempuyang, then the river valley north of Ubud.

Map of Bali with Lempuyang, Tirta Gangga, Besakih, Tirta Empul, Goa Gajah, Ubud, Taman Ayun, Ulun Danu Beratan, Uluwatu and Kuta — The island

Map of East Bali with the Lempuyang gate, the summit temple of Lempuyang Luhur and the Tirta Gangga water palace — East Bali

Map of the valley north of Ubud with Tirta Empul, Gunung Kawi, Goa Gajah and Ubud Palace — Near Ubud

1
Lempuyang gate
The lowest of seven temples on Mount Lempuyang, where the split gate frames Mount Agung on a clear day.²¹
In Google Maps ↗
2
Tirta Gangga
A water palace built in 1948 by the King of Karangasem; a 1-hour stop of the site tour.²²
In Google Maps ↗
3
Besakih
The mother temple, on the slope of Agung at about 1,000 m, a complex of 23 temples.²³ ²⁴
In Google Maps ↗
4
Tirta Empul
A spring temple founded in 962 AD, with 30 showers fed by the spring.²⁵ ²⁶
In Google Maps ↗
5
Goa Gajah
A carved cave about 27 km from Denpasar, named in a text of 1365.²⁷ ²⁸
In Google Maps ↗
6
Ubud Palace
Meeting point of the site tour's group options in Ubud.
In Google Maps ↗
7
Taman Ayun
The royal water temple of Mengwi, part of the UNESCO subak landscape inscribed in 2012.²⁹ ³⁰
In Google Maps ↗
8
Ulun Danu Beratan
A lake temple in Candikuning, Tabanan, about 1.5 to 2 hours from Denpasar.³¹ ³²
In Google Maps ↗
9
Uluwatu
A sea temple on a 70-meter cliff, with the kecak at 6:00 PM.³³ ¹
In Google Maps ↗
10
Kuta
Central Parking Kuta, the other group meeting point of the site tour.
In Google Maps ↗
11
Lempuyang Luhur
The highest of the seven temples, at about 1,175 m, 2 to 4 hours there and back on foot.³⁴ ³⁵
In Google Maps ↗
12
Gunung Kawi
Ancient shrines cut into a rock cliff above the Pakerisan River.³⁶
In Google Maps ↗

Open the map in Google Maps

Checklist

Before an evening at the cliff

Bring

Cash for the temple and the kecak
Water for the warm seats
A cord or case for your glasses

Mind

Keep food out of the monkeys' sight
Be seated well before the show
Let worshippers pass at the gates

Cost calculator

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Video

The kecak dance at Uluwatu, full performance

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Watching the light go down over the ocean

The provincial tourism office describes the cliff as an ideal place to watch the sun set, and that is the reason most people come in the late afternoon. Sunset at Uluwatu Temple is also the busiest time: one tour operator warns of crowds from around 5 PM and few free photo spots. The kecak stage faces the sea, so the show and the sunset happen at the same moment.

If you want the cliff views without the press of people, come earlier. With the gates open from 7:00 AM, a morning visit gives you the paths along the cliff top nearly to yourself, and you can come back for the dance in the evening.¹ Morning light also suits the view south along the cliffs, where the white surf line is easier to photograph.

Bring water and something to sit on, because the stone seats get warm in the afternoon sun. A light layer helps once the sun has gone and the wind picks up off the ocean. After the show, the car park empties slowly, so either leave a few minutes before the end or wait until the queue for the cars has cleared.

Living alongside the temple's macaques

The Uluwatu Temple monkeys are long-tailed macaques, and they are part of the place. The management counts about 650 at the temple and around 50 at Labuan Sait Beach nearby.⁶ Balinese see them as guardians of the sacred site, and their health is watched with the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of Udayana University.³⁷

They are also skilled thieves. The management asks visitors not to feed them and to secure sunglasses, hats and phones.⁷ If one takes something, do not chase it: report it to the temple staff, who are trained to get lost items back.³⁸ Glasses on a cord, a zipped bag and empty hands on the cliff path are the simplest defence.

Children often find the monkeys the highlight of the visit, and they are best watched from a short distance. Keep food out of sight, avoid staring games, and do not crouch down to their level for a photo. A calm walk past is all it takes; the trouble usually starts when someone holds out a hand.

What is closed to visitors, and why

Uluwatu is a working temple first. The provincial tourism office says only Hindu worshippers may enter the second, smaller temple inside, so you see the main shrines from the courts and the cliff path.³⁹ The forest around the temple, Alas Kekeran, is part of the sacred area as well.⁴⁰

Under local custom, women who are menstruating may not enter the temple area.⁴¹ It is a rule of the temple, not a tourist regulation, and it is applied quietly; if it concerns you, the cliff paths outside the gate still give you the view and the sunset.

The temple has its own festival calendar. Its anniversary, the Piodalan, comes round every 210 days by the Balinese Pawukon calendar, and on such days worshippers fill the courts.⁴² Visitors are usually still welcome around the edges, but expect more closed areas, more traffic on the narrow road and a far more beautiful atmosphere.

Getting there and the tours that include it

From Ngurah Rai airport the drive takes about 45 minutes to an hour, and from Ubud about 1.5 to 2 hours, the Ministry says.⁴³ Traffic on the peninsula builds towards the evening, so allow more time if you plan to reach the kecak.

The tour on this page is a full south-Bali day that stops at Nusa Dua Beach, the Garuda Wisnu Kencana Cultural Park and Melasti Beach before 40 minutes at the temple and the kecak. It has 1,075 reviews averaging 4.73 and starts from $23. A shorter sunset trip of 6 hours includes the kecak ticket and ends at Jimbaran Bay, from $40.

If you only want the temple, a guide meets visitors at the north entry gate on a 2 to 6-hour visit with an optional kecak ticket, from $16. A kecak ticket on its own costs from $9 and does not include the temple fee.

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