Just a 20 minute taxi ride from the airport and the island’s party epicentre: Kuta, one might expect Canggu to present a similar picture. However, this hipster town is distinctly calmer and more gentrified offering middle class, bohemian vibes. Originally, Canggu had scenic views of paddy fields and coconut groves but these are rapidly being replaced with private villas favoured by millennial Western expats looking to settle here due to the beautiful beach landscapes, decent nightlife and endless brunch opportunities . While relaxing and pleasant to walk around, I found that Canggu lacked authenticity and is a town developed for tourists that could feasibly be situated in many places around the world . However, during our trip, we stayed in the very touristic centre and it’s possible other areas have more personality.

When staying in a hostel or hotel in Canggu, you are almost guaranteed to have access to a pool and you’d be forgiven for wanting to join the many guests lounging in the sun for the day, only breaking their tanning session for a refreshing swim or suncream top up. However, the hotel pools pale in comparison to the beach clubs that line the shore. In these beautifully designed resort areas, you can order food and drinks while relaxing on sun beds, in cozy seating areas or in the stunning pools that often offer a view of the sea. Many of the beach clubs have an entry fee although the free ones such as …. are also very beautiful. Slightly beyond the resorts, the actual beach is really nice and you can visit many of the beach bars and restaurants and sit on comfy beanbags on the sand. As the evening draws in, the atmosphere becomes more lively and as the music volumes increase and the drinks start to flow, the beach clubs become party hubs where people dance and take photos overlooking the dark ocean horizon.

When you’re ready to break away from the poolside, Canggu has plenty of shopping opportunities to enjoy. You’ll be shocked by the amount of yoga and surfing shops there are. Both activities are clearly very present and clearly very popular in Canggu which provides a bit of a haven for surfers and yoga enthusiasts alike. If you’re not already a pro, there are plenty of classes available so it may be fun to have a go while you’re there. Otherwise, you’ll find Instagrammable streets of countless boutiques selling all manner of jewellery, clothes and homeware. If you happen to be in Canggu on a Sunday, the Gypsy market in La Laguna is a wonderful place to browse unique souvenirs and fashion pieces. One of the biggest joys of Canggu is the range of cuisine options. You should save sampling authentic delicious Indonesian food for other parts of the island and in Canggu, fill up in fabulous restaurants with food from all over the world. There are plenty of gluten free options along with vegan and vegetarian choices whether you’re looking for breakfast, brunch, dinner or dessert. My favourite place in Canggu was a delicious vegan chocolate shop called Ubud raw – they serve taster plates of chocolate in many unique and delicious flavours and give hot chocolate in shots which become incredibly addictive.

Canggu is all about the relaxing, laid back holiday lifestyle so, as you might expect, there are plenty of spas available for massages, skin treatments and mani pedis. I didn’t personally have time for a spa day, but some friends we made said that recuperating with a day in the spa after a few days at the beach was incredible. Once pampered, you could go and see one of my Canggu highlights – a traditional Balinese dance at Hotel Tugu. Entry is free and you can sit amongst the hotel guests with the option of ordering food and drinks. The show is wonderful and I highly recommend a visit. Characters are portrayed with varying costume, masks and dance styles to tell traditional Balinese stories. You can film and take photos at will and the hotel and the surrounding bars is a great place to spend an evening.

Possibly the best attraction near Canggu is Tanah Lot – one of the seven sea temples around the Balinese coast. The best way to get there and back is by taxi. Entry to the site is 60,000Rp. After paying you’ll find yourself on a market street with batik clothing stands, souvenir shops and a few restaurants. Beyond the market street, you’ll come to the rocky shore from which you can see the beautiful Tanah Lot standing out to sea. The idea is to walk through a stretch of sea to get to the temple and receive a blessing – currently, the temple is a site of Hindu pilgrimage. The route across the water is marked out by friendly sea people who are there to help you cross if needed. The temple is a sea temple for worship of Balinese sea gods. It is the work of Dang Hyang Nirartha who rested on a beautiful rock out to sea. After fisherman saw him and brought him gifts, he instructed them to build a shrine on the rock for the sea gods. The tide was low when we walked across the sea and out to the temple and at the base we saw a black and blue snake swimming in the water – despite being a little freaked out, it was cool to see one of the venomous sea snakes said to guard the temple from evil spirits and intruders. You can’t enter the temple of even climb up the stairs but on the lower ground you can drink water from a spring and get blessed with some rice on your forehead and a base of rock, venomous sea snakes ti guard against evil sprits ans intruders. Cant go up into the temple, half of it has been redone. But you can get blessed with rice on your forehead and a frangipani flower in your ear. The tide moves fast and even though we weren’t on the rock very long, by the time we made our way back across the sea, the waves were much higher and the sea helpers were greatly appreciated.

Getting around Canggu is the same as in the rest of Bali. Most places are walkable but there are many taxis around if needed. Gojek scooters are an incredibly fun and cheap way to get between places but make sure you aren’t in a taxi zone when you order them or you’ll be at risk of aggravating the taxi mafia and putting the scooter driver in danger. We were unaware of this and kept ordererng scooters until an incident where some taxi mensurrounded and threatened our scooter driver. After speaking to a taxi driver, he explained they are just trying to keep taxi business to loacal Balinese as gojek drivers come from villages further away.

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