Bukit Peninsula

After doing a loop around Bali a bit faster than we originally expected, we were back down south with a couple of weeks left on our hands. We decided to head to the Bukit Peninsula, famed for its little beaches nestled against steep cliffs on the southern west coast. The vegetation is arid, the terrain is inhospitable, but world-famous surf breaks entice hoards of surfers to the area. We settled for Bingin as a base to explore the peninsula, due to its central location and good reputation.

The scenery in Bingin is superb, with dramatic cliffs dropping down in steep steps through small restaurants to the white-sand beach. View points with vistas of the surrounding beaches, surfers, or the sunset are easily found on the way, to stop and catch your breath. We stayed in a lovely family bungalow with flowery gardens and sociable communal table dotted with pillows and hammocks. The food was excellent, affordable and in generous portions, so we ended up eating most of our meals there.

Pondok Indah Guesthouse in Bingin 

During the day, we explored the famous surrounding beaches on foot as we enjoy a good hike, but most people use scooters to travel around the peninsula. You could walk around the area along the coast at low-tide, but high-tide only left a thin strip of sand to lie on. Using the main road was usually safer instead of relying on the ocean.

Balangan

We had a nice stroll from Bingin beach to Balangan at low tide one day, and it was a great, slippery coastal walk. About halfway, we got to Dreamland, more like a bad dream for us, packed with Chinese tourists and one huge outdated hotel complex. We continued around the cliff and found Balangan beach, long and white, adorned by umbrellas, with a more upscale touristy vibe. Although the beach is wider and more restaurants options were found, we were glad not to have chosen to stay there.

Padang Padang

About 3km South of Bingin is the small cove of Padang Padang, busy but beautiful. We got there by walking on the main road. Entitled Balinese macaques populate the beach and aren’t afraid to get inside sunbather’s bags to steal food. The beach got progressively nicer as the low-tide arrived, since everyone was a bit on top of each other at high-tide.

The Bukit Peninsula attracts experienced surfers to its turbulent waters. Professional photographers are hired to take shots of the sportsmen in action. For us, it was quite impressive to sit back and watch the action. We spent more than a week catching sun rays, devouring local food and jogging up and down the hills along the coast – a great workout! It was a truly lovely way to end our two months in Indonesia. We made sure to enjoy the blistering heat of the Balinese sun because our next destination was sure going to be different…