The Mountain Temples Around Ubud That Travellers Overlook

Ubud draws thousands of visitors each year who come for the rice terraces, the yoga studios, and the famous monkey forest, yet the sacred highland sanctuaries tucked into the ridges above the town remain surprisingly quiet. While tour buses line up at Tirta Empul and crowds squeeze past the carvings of Goa Gajah, smaller temples built into the cliffs and river valleys wait patiently for anyone willing to climb a few extra stairs. Many of these sanctuaries hold the spiritual heart of Bali, and they reveal themselves only to travellers curious enough to wander past the obvious stops.

For Australians in particular, Ubud feels almost like a second home. Direct flights leave from Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane to Denpasar every day, the rupiah stretches the Aussie dollar further than almost anywhere else in Southeast Asia, and the local café scene serves flat whites that would not look out of place in Fitzroy or Newtown. This familiarity can tempt visitors to settle into a familiar routine. The mountain temples offer a way to break that pattern, rewarding anyone who swaps a beach club afternoon for a morning climb into the mist.

What makes Ubud's highland temples different

The temples built into the hills around Ubud were never designed for casual sightseeing. Most were founded between the eleventh and fourteenth centuries by Javanese and local Balinese dynasties who chose their sites for spiritual reasons, carving shrines into living rock, positioning bathing pools above spring-fed rivers, and aligning courtyards with the volcanoes considered the dwelling places of the gods. The result is a landscape where architecture and geology merge, and where every footpath rewards careful attention.

Lower-lying sites such as Ubud Palace and Saraswati Temple attract thousands of visitors a day, partly because they sit within walking distance of the main drag. The mountain temples require more effort, usually a scooter ride, a short walk through rice paddies, or a steep climb up stone steps, but the trade-off is solitude and the chance to watch real worship happen. Locals come to bathe, bring offerings, and pray, and they share these spaces with visitors who arrive quietly and dress modestly.

Pura Pusering Jagat and the riverside shrines

A short walk south of Ubud's main street brings visitors to Penestanan, a village where artists live in converted bungalows and small galleries dot the lanes. At the edge of the rice paddies stands Pura Pusering Jagat, a small compound dedicated to the goddess of fertility. Most guidebooks mention it in passing, and the surrounding terraces stay blissfully quiet even during peak season.

The temple itself rewards a slow visit. Stone carvings depict scenes from Balinese cosmology, a sacred spring bubbles up through carved spouts, and the inner courtyard contains a small pavilion where offerings are left each morning. Visitors who arrive before nine o'clock often share the space with a single family performing a ritual, while those who come later can still find a quiet bench to sit and listen to the water. Compared with the crowds at Tirta Empul further north, the atmosphere feels almost meditative.

Gunung Kawi Sebatu and the springs of the north

Further north, near the village of Sebatu, sits one of the lesser-known Gunung Kawi temples. Unlike the famous rock-cut shrines of Tampaksiring, this sanctuary is built around a natural spring where clear water emerges from the earth and flows through mossy carvings into bathing pools. Balinese pilgrims come here to perform melukat, the ritual purification that involves standing beneath the falling water while a priest offers prayers.

The setting feels distinctly Balinese, with ferns growing out of every crevice and dragon statues leaning over the pools. Because most tour groups head to Tirta Empul instead, the Sebatu temple remains gentle and uncrowded. A sarong and sash are provided at the entrance, and small donations keep the grounds maintained. Travellers who want a deeper experience of Balinese spirituality often describe this place as the highlight of their Ubud visit.

I learned a great deal about Balinese spirituality during my first weeks in Bali, and the temple at Sebatu is where I found my own rhythm after years of rushed holidays back home.

Goa Gajah and the forest shrines above Sayan

Goa Gajah, or the Elephant Cave, ranks among the most visited archaeological sites on the island, yet most travellers rush through in thirty minutes and miss the atmosphere that unfolds around it. The carved entrance alone, a gaping mouth surrounded by demon faces and trailing roots, deserves more time than the average queue allows. Once inside, the small cave contains lingam and stone relics that predate the Majapahit era.

Beyond the main complex lies a quieter world. A stone path descends through rice paddies to a small river, and from there a short walk reaches Pura Dalem Pingit, also called the Hidden Temple. Few travellers ever find this place. Stone guardians stand watch over mossy steps, and a single priest tends the shrines on most days. Reaching it requires careful steps and modest dress, but the reward is one of the quietest religious sites in the region, well worth the extra effort for those who feel the temples around Ubud have lost their magic to tourism. For those with only a long weekend to spare, a simple Ubud itinerary can group the lesser-known sites together so they fit into a single morning or a slow afternoon.

Practical suggestions for visiting Ubud's mountain temples

The dry season between April and October suits most visitors, and the early morning light catches the carved stone of the mountain temples at its most flattering. Rainy season brings emerald terraces but slippery steps, so walking shoes with real grip make a difference. Many of these sites also lie within easy reach of day trips from Ubud, and several pair naturally with a coffee stop in a nearby village.

• Leave central Ubud before sunrise to reach the mountain temples when the air is cool and the grounds are empty.
• Rent a scooter rather than relying on driver-only tours, which often skip the smaller sites in favour of commission-paying stops.
• Carry a sarong and a small sash for every visitor; most temples lend them, but bringing your own saves time at busier shrines.
• Bring small notes for donations, as the smaller temples rely heavily on visitor contributions to keep their grounds clean.
• Hire a local guide for one temple only; their stories add depth that guidebooks cannot match, and the cost supports the surrounding village.
• Avoid visiting during major religious ceremonies unless invited, as the temples close to outside visitors or require traditional dress on those days.
• Combine a temple visit with a meal at a nearby warung, since the rice paddies around Sebatu and Sayan produce some of the freshest food in the region.

Australians heading to Bali for a short break often pick up useful saving on stays before they go, especially those travelling from Adelaide or Perth where direct routes to Denpasar remain limited.

The mountain temples around Ubud offer something the busier sites cannot: a chance to witness Balinese spirituality without the soundtrack of tour groups and selfie sticks. Most travellers return from Bali remembering only the famous places, but the smaller sanctuaries in the hills above Ubud leave a quieter, longer-lasting impression. Walk past the obvious stops, climb a few extra stairs, and these temples will share the Bali that locals still call home.