If you want a quieter and more spiritual holiday and nightlife where you can relax and enjoy Southeast Asian sensibilities, Ubud town in Bali is an excellent alternative to the parties in Kuta and Seminyak.
The nightlife in Ubud is more laidback than everywhere else in Bali, but that does not mean it’s less active and less appealing. Traditional dance and music performances in Ubud town are widespread, and the classier establishments are popular with more distinguished travelers.
Ubud, Bali, previously a relatively tranquil “hippie” resort for tourists interested in yoga, healthy cuisine, and fresh air, has evolved into one of Bali’s busiest and most popular attractions.
The book “Eat, Pray, Love” by Elizabeth Gilbert, and the 2010 film of the same name propelled Ubud to the forefront of the tourist radar.
Where To Party In Ubud?
Ubud isn’t exactly known for its wild nightlife. But if you know where to go, you’ll discover an increasing number of fashionable drinking places (as well as a few old favorites) strewn about town for the after-hours crowd.
C P Lounge, located just south of the football field on Monkey Forest Rd., is the spot to go for a late night out. It’s popular with tourists and locals and an excellent place for lone travelers to meet and make new acquaintances.
Unlike other Bali towns with coastal attractions, Ubud is about 8 km from the nearest beach, but its wealth of cultural points of interest and alternative nightlife activities attracts travelers from all around.
You may enjoy a traditional dance performance at Ubud Palace, a drink or two at Bar Luna, a wine-tasting tour at Bridges Bali, salsa at the Laughing Buddha Bar, a movie at Paradiso, or a night spa at the Dragonfly Sauna in Dragonfly Village.
Ubud Nightlife & Safety Tips
Ubud town is relatively safe; however, it is always prudent to exercise caution when walking about town late at night. Secure your possessions in tourist areas, and remember to act as you would in your home country.
If you want to go out and drink until the early morning hours, keep in mind that stringent municipal legislation restricts public music until 11 p.m. In Indonesia, the legal drinking age is 21, unlike most other nations with an 18-year-old drinking ban policy.
Although drinking in public is prohibited, Ubud, like the rest of Bali, has permissive drinking laws, so you can drink publicly just as long you don’t bother anybody,
How Expensive Is It To Party In Ubud?
A 7-day vacation to Ubud costs an average of $1,819 for a single traveler, $3,267 for a couple, and $6,125 for a family of four.
Ubud hotels range in price from $11 to $275 per night, with an average of $58, while most vacation rentals range in price from $110 to $510 per night for the complete property.
Prices in Ubud is as affordable if not cheap just as in the rest of Bali, in comparison to most US, European cities, and other tourist destination. Here’s a price list of things you might spend on a night out in Ubud town.
Meal, Inexpensive Restaurant 25,000.00 Rp
Domestic Beer (0.5-liter draught) 50,000.00 Rp
Imported Beer (0.33-liter bottle) 70,000.00 Rp
Monday Nightlife
If you don’t miss the raging parties in Kuta and Seminyak, it’s easier to fit in, find a seat and relax in the nightlife of Ubud town.
Instead of dance clubs, Ubud town offers more experience in lounges and bars offering cultural and more feel-good nightlife activities.
The best bar in Ubud on a Monday – Room 4 Dessert
Room 4 Dessert is where you’d go for an ultra-chic dessert and cocktails place run by award-winning NYC chef Will Goldfarb.
The contemporary industrial appearance of this Bar is a perfect place for hipsters and artists to enjoy and get a feel of inspiration.
This cafe is the real deal, with amazing desserts and some of the most excellent beverages on the island. The five-star tipples here, shaken, swirled, crushed, and swilled, make it a must-visit for late-night boozing after dinner.
The best lounge on a Monday – CP Lounge
There is just one spot in Ubud where you can dine, drink, swim, and dance in the early morning: CP Lounge!
CP Bar, located discreetly on Ubud’s famed Monkey Forest Road, includes a big open-air lounge next to a brand-new tropical swimming pool and a late-night dance club with pool tables, live bands, and DJs.
Ubud Nightlife on a Tuesday
The best bars in Kuta on Tuesday – Laughing Buddha Bar
The Laughing Buddha Bar, located just above the Ubud Monkey Forest, is well-known for its weekly live music performances on its tiny stage.
Jazz, blues-rock, freestyle acoustic, fusion, and world music are all performed by various bands. Throughout the week, anticipate salsa evenings and unique activities.
Walking to this location from any of the hotels or guesthouses in ‘downtown’ Ubud is a breeze. Their ‘happy cocktail hours’ run from 4 to 7 p.m., with specials including 2-for-1 mojitos and daiquiris.
The best clubs on a Tuesday – Night Rooster Bar
The Night Rooster is a cozy pub in Bali inspired by the restaurant Locavore, with a colonial, plantation-planter ambiance.
The 10-item cocktail menu at the bar offers something for everyone, and the resident alchemist utilizes several of his own handmade secret ingredients to give the cocktails a kick.
Wednesday Party
The best bar in Ubud on Wednesday – Hujan Locale
Hujan Locale is a quiet and refined bar at one of Ubud’s best eateries. Its overall treatment and aesthetics are a nod to the traditional Batavian café culture of years gone by.
It’s a great spot to settle into cocktail hours, with its lazy music pouring from the speakers, perfectly complementing the beautifully crafted signature cocktails.
The best club in Ubud on Wednesday– Ubud Royal Palace
Ubud Royal Palace is a primary cultural site in Ubud. The palace is known for holding nightly cultural shows, with dancers in their most extravagant costumes supported by a live gamelan orchestra. It is centrally positioned across from the community center, where traditional Balinese dances are routinely practiced.
The cultural presentations in the palace usually begin at 7.30 p.m. and last about an hour. Tickets can be purchased at the door.
If you want the finest seats, you should arrive early. Legong and barong dances are among the repertoires.
Thursday Ubud Nightlife
The best bar in Ubud on Thursday – Laka Leke Restaurant
Laka Leke Restaurant in Ubud provides an excellent dining experience with a spectacular Balinese supper and regular cultural night entertainment.
The restaurant’s outdoor environment, replete with Balinese-style thatch-roofed pavilions situated among rice paddies, enhances your Balinese dining experience. The performances also include a variety of traditional Balinese dances.
The Kecak dancing performance takes place on Monday nights. On Wednesdays, the barong and kris dances are performed.
Thursdays include the enjoyable and participative jogged dance, while Saturdays feature the hilarious ‘frog dance’ performed by children.
A buffet line mainly serves Indonesian food, although an ala carte menu includes specialty dishes such as nasi campur mixed rice, crispy fried duck, and various delectable satays.
The best lounge on a Thursday – XL Shisha Lounge
XL Shisha Lounge is a cozy bar and lounge with a Middle Eastern-style décor with silk-draped ceilings evocative of a Bedouin tent.
Their shisha pipes were flown in from Dubai, as was the Al-Fakher tobacco. If you want a Middle Eastern ambiance in Ubud and the most incredible unique water pipes in town, XL is the place to go.
Shishas are available with 1 to 4 hoses, and you may mix and match flavors to your liking. If you’re hungry, XL’s menu offers worldwide options like tasty, traditional Dutch food, steaks and burgers, and a variety of tapas and Indonesian specialties.
Friday & Saturday Ubud Nightlife
Best bar on Friday & Saturday – The Melting Pot
The Melting Pot is a western-style saloon in Ubud where you may play popular bar games with your friends while enjoying cold beers, pizzas, and Tex-Mex meals.
Pool tables, electronic dartboards, ping pong tables, and foosball are available. It intends to be a gathering place for people from all over the world, with a complete wall above the bar covered with flags from every country where you may climb up and sign your name.
It hosts the annual Great Texas Chilli Cook-Offs in Ubud, where chefs compete in an open-air kitchen to produce the best Texas-style hot chili.
Expect terrific vintage classic American rock tracks or live international sports streams on enormous screens on regular evenings.
Best lounge on the weekend in Ubud – Casa Luna
Casa Luna is an Ubud restaurant well-known for its Balinese cooking workshops. In addition to a fantastic range of Balinese and Mediterranean meals and a breezy ambiance throughout the day, as an evening visitor at Casa Luna, you’ll be treated to a terrific setting with jazz variants to enjoy.
Brazilian jazz typically dominates the air on planned weeknights, and the musicians usually begin performing around 7.30 pm. Relax to the smooth, sultry sounds while sampling a variety of tapas and cocktails.
Sunday Nightlife
Best bar on Sunday – Fly Cafe
Fly Café is an Ubud informal eating establishment with a friendly, open-style atmosphere. It is located on Jalan Ray Lungsiakan, on the northern outskirts of the main Ubud center.
The café provides regional, international, and vegetarian fare, such as BBQ ribs, gourmet pizzas, and succulent fish off sizzling grills.
Warung Fly, located next to the café, serves freshly cooked, authentic spicy Indonesian food such as entire grilled fish and spicy fried red rice.
While exploring the island’s uplands, you may ‘fly’ in here any day of the week for a fantastic value dinner in Ubud and free email and online access.
In the evenings, join in on the excitement with their free Friday Night Quiz and Saturday Night Quiz, and a Night Live Music sessions.
Best Lounge on Sunday – Siam Sally
Siam Sally is a Thai restaurant on Ubud’s Jalan Hanoman that is also known for its live nightly jazz entertainment.
The jazz evenings feature acoustic bass, vocals, and sax, with different musicians performing weekly. All of that jazz generally begins at about 8 p.m.
Band members will frequently mingle with the audience and attempt to liven up the mood; they will also often take song suggestions.
You may expect different genres on different days and in no particular sequence throughout the week. After your hefty meal of pad thai, you may get down and hit the dance floor if you still want to have a good time.
Ubud, Bali Nightlife Summary
Nightlife in Ubud town is not what you would expect if you were looking for raging parties and flashy shindigs. Ubud town offers more feeling- under the skin and laid-back experience through cultural performances, and live music performances.
What’s more, you can enjoy the richness of Indonesian tradition through its cuisine and signature cocktails. It is nightlife tailored for the more reserved and artistic tourist seeking to feel peace and relaxation.