Rediscovering Bali In Peaceful Pemuteran

15th June 2017

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Pemuteran is another sleepy fishing village located in North Western Bali. Miles away from the bustling, honking Seminyak and far away from the traffic of Ubud, Pemuteran remains largely untouched by hoards of tourists which to me, is absolutely perfect.

The drive up to Pemuteran remains one of my favourite things to do in Bali, ever. We took the route straight up through Ubud, past Lake Bratan, along the most stunning road down to the coastline, and all along to Pemuteran. From Denpasar airport, it can take a good 5 hours. But trust me, once you get there, it’s worth it.

Before you do, make sure your driver stops along Wanagiri for you to take a look on top of the mountain. One side is the sea, and the other is Buyan Lake. The popularity of these places has exploded and there are so many ‘Bali swing’ type business opportunists, but you can still find a peaceful corner to take in the view.

Once we reached Pemuteran, I stayed in Amertha Bali Villas in a private pool villa, which was as utterly peaceful and dreamy as I expected. The resorts grounds were actually really large, they also had a few dogs and cats to add to their homey vibe.

There are many things to do in Pemuteran, which mostly involve taking in the beautiful scenery and listening to nature. There are several popular hiking routes, many dive shops or you can simply spend your days leisurely snorkelling and eating local food which is what I did. I did do a day snorkelling trip to Menjangan Island, which I wrote about here.

One of the main things I love about life in North Bali, is the amount of fresh fish you can eat. I love the really simple but popular Balinese meal of pepes ikan, which is fish cooked in a banana leaf, accompanied by white rice and sambal matah, an Indonesian raw spicy shallot salsa. I could eat this morning, afternoon and night. I absolutely love it. I ate frequently at two warungs, Warung Prapat Sari and Warung Tirta Sari, both of which I hope are still in action!

Before they start work on the rumoured second airport in Northern Bali, I would encourage you to explore this wonderful part of the island. The hospitality and relaxation will be like nothing you’ve experienced in Southern Bali, which makes me a little sad at how gentrified the rest of Bali has become.

If you like relaxing, taking in beautiful green scenery, eating local Balinese food and spending your days snorkelling and lying by the sea with minimal other people, Pemuteran is your place, for now.

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