What is there to do and see in Canggu Bali

What is there to do and see in Canggu Bali

Decades ago, the first area in South Bali that was developed for tourism was Kuta. From then onwards, tourism expanded along that coastline both towards the north as towards the south.

Northwards (or up) from Kuta first came Legian, then Seminyak and now the most recent addition is Canggu. (pronounce: Tsjang-goo).

Why should you visit this new hotspot? What is there to do and see in Canggu?

Rice paddies, private villas, beaches, surf dudes and hipsters

Canggu is an 8 km long coastal stretch with black sand beaches north of Seminyak and south of the famous Tanah Lot temple.

This small village lies still largely in a rural area with beautiful rice paddies (take a ride along the northern end of Jalan Pantai Pererenan), but it’s being developed fast.

Private villa, street art and rice field.

Beaches

The beaches are not particularly good for swimming, but are popular amongst surfers (Surf Canggu). Beach tips: Berawa (also for swimming), Nelayan (watch the local fishing fleet, great sunset photo opps), Echo Beach (for surfing and partying), Batu Bolong Beach (lively) and Pererenan (quiet).

Private villas

Since the area is not fully developed yet, prices are still low, compared to e.g. Seminyak. That’s one of the reasons that Canggu is popular with many expats who choose to live there. A large number of the villas here are owned by overseas nationals.

Many villas are advertised as having rice paddy views. See the villas on the edges of the rice fields?

At the moment it is a good location not too far away from the hustle and bustle from neighboring areas like Seminyak (20 minutes away) and Kuta (45 minutes away), yet providing a more laid-back lifestyle and pastorale scenery.

In Canggu you still have a chance to observe the daily rythms of Balinese village life.

Warm snacks delivered door to door by scooter in Canggu.

Mobile household wares shop;-).

If you are interested in renting or maybe even buying a villa, check out the following websites:

• Balivillasales
• Booking.com

I sure considered it, but I changed my mind, as I explained here.

Transportation

Since the roads in Canggu are not well interconnected, getting from one place to the other may involve quite some detours. That’s why walking along the beach can go way faster.

The roads that are there are narrow, filled with potholes, busy (scooters!), hilly and sometimes they are just sort of goats roads cutting through rice paddies.

We walked quite a bit in Canggu, which was not that nice. First of all it was excruciatingly hot and secondly there was no designated footpath anywhere.

Taxis can be hard to find in this area, so most travel tends to be by private car or motorcycle. There are (more expensive) fixed-price taxis available though. Or you can try Uber, ofcourse.

But make no mistake. Even though distances are not big (if you were able to travel in a more or less straight line), the underdeveloped infrastructure in Canggu plus the traffic jams along Bali’s South coast, make travelling by car a hassle. No problem if you are there just for a day or a week, but if you stay longer, please take this into account.

On this screenshot from my iPhone you can see clearly that roads in Canggu are not that well interconnected, making it hard to get from one place to the next.

We did not rent a scooter, but traveling by scooter probably goes way smoother. Just be careful in traffic!!!!

Activities

As said, this area is popular amongst surfers. It’s also a hipster haven. That means that it will not be difficult in Canggu to get your yoga-, meditation or massage-cravings fixed.

There’s a golf course nearby (Nirwana Bali Golf Course in Tanah Lot). And there are stables in the area that can set you up for some horseback riding along the beach.

Street art and temples

If you pay attention, you can spot quite a lot of street art in Canggu.

For culture buffs: there are several temples in the Canggu area or nearby:

• Tanah Lot Temple
• Pura Batumejan
• Pura Dalem Perancak

Canggu’s hotspots: where to eat, drink, chill and shop

• Deus Ex Machina - Temple of Enthusiasm (motorcycles, surfboards, lunch, coffee, burgers)
  

  Deus Ex Machina is located in a huge barn-style building.

  

  Deus Ex Machina makes customized motorcycles.

• Echo Beach House (bar, beach, surfers)
• Cloud 9 (hangout, surfers, health food)
  

  We stumbled upon Cloud 9 while walking through Canggu and were happy to take a break there and cool down.

  

  Cloud 9 is located amidst rice fields. It’s a nice, relaxed place to hang for a while.

  

  My face is red, since I got overheated from our walk.

  

  Cloud 9 clearly has a surfer-hipster vibe going on in it’s decor.

  

  I love the blue-tire-washbassin in the bathroom!

• Old Man’s (beach, lunch, cafe, beer)
• Cafe Canggu
• Warung Agung Kayu Putih (watch the sunset on the beach)
• Monsieur Spoon (French Bakery Cafe, garden)
• Betelnut Cafe
• El Jefe Jose Cubanos (cafe, burgers)
• Bungalow Living (shop and cafe) - see my blogpost about shopping in Bali
• Hungry Bird (coffee, cafe)
• La Laguna (bohemian gypsy-style restaurant-bar and hangout) - separate blogpost coming up soon
• Pretty Poison (bar, skaters)
• Crate Cafe (breakfast and coffee)
• Canteen Cafe Canggu
• Grocer & Grind (restaurant)
• 707 Beachberm (beach cafe)
• Lacalita (Mexican food)
• Nalu Bowls (healthy breakfasts)
• Black Shores (bar)
• La Dunia (restaurant-bar)

Read more

It does not take a genius to see what’s happening in Canggu. It’s not the question wether the gorgeous rice paddies will survive the development of the area. No, the only question is when exactly they will have disappeared completely.

This article talks about those concerns.

Check out Curly Traveller’s Island Guide of Bali to find all the ‘places-to-be’ in Canggu.

Visit this website to get another overview of shops, restaurants and hangouts in Canggu.

Have you visited Canggu? Any other cool places to add to my list?

What is your favorite area on Bali?