Green Bowl Beach, in Bali, is a very quiet, small tucked away surf beach in the Ungasan region of Bali.

It doesn’t get that many people to it at any one time most likely due to it being situated down one of the largest amounts of steps of any of the beaches in the Uluwatu area. And not looking that obviously like the parking lot will lead to anything great.

Green Bowl Beach Bali

Getting There | The Beach | Attractions | Restaurants | Surrounding Area | Where to Stay | Where Next

Getting There

Green Bowl beach is well signposted on the drive there. And I’m assuming you’ll be driving there as there’s nowhere close enough by that you’d be able to stay.

You can either rent a scooter, not advisable if you haven’t driven one before though, get a taxi or hire a driver which is only about 800,000 IDR ($50 USD) for a day.

If you’re just doing a day trip from Canggu or Seminyak then hiring a driver for the day would be very advisable.

You’ll know you’re getting close when you start to find monkeys sitting in the middle of the road and at the end they’ll be a large parking lot. Parking costs 5,000 IDR ($0.30 USD) and can be paid as the kiosk as you drive in (don’t listen to the women who will surround your bike once in saying you need to pay more parking).

Be careful of the monkeys even in the parking area, they’re not the most friendly, but more on that later.

 

 

The Beach

Even before you start to walk down to Green Bowl Beach there are spectacular views at the side of the car park down onto the ocean. It’s a surf spot so you’ll see lines and lines of waves rolling on through. This is the best look at point to check the waves if you’ve just come to the beach to surf.

The beach itself is situated down about 300 stairs. It’s alright on the way down but not an easy one on the way back up.

There’s vegetation either side of you as you walk down and plenty of monkeys ready to take your stuff and cause mischief in them.

It is incredibly beautiful when you reach the bottom. Much more picturesque than Padang Padang beach which is a similar size but nothing much to look at in comparison.

On your left at the bottom of the steps are some rocks which you’ll frequently find people around the other side taking photos with no one in the background for once!

To your right is a small section of beach and at then end a cave.

Attractions

The only real attractions on the beach are the cave, surfing and vendors selling drinks and the odd snack.

You’ll spot the vendors first as they’ll be trying to sell you things from the first second you get to the bottom of the stairs, including beer even if it’s 9am in the morning.

Inside the cave, there are some temples therefore make sure you’re at least partially covered up out of respect if sitting in the cave or going to look at the temples. It’s not appropriate to wear a bikini in there.

Last time I went to Green Bowl we ended up having to retreat into the cave as, when we’d been sat just at the bottom of the cliff, some monkeys threw first a coconut shell off at my friend’s head. And then a couple of minutes later a rock. It landed just to the side of him.

BEWARE OF THE MONKEYS. THEY DO NOT PLAY NICE.

And seriously a few centimeters to the side and that rock could actually have killed my friend.

I, therefore, wouldn’t really recommend it as a beach for sitting about sunbathing on.

Green Bowl is a beach to see because it’s beautiful Not for relaxing chilled times, reading your book, and hanging out.

There are no facilities on the beach if you were to need them either.

But there is surfing. The surfing at Green Bowl is not for beginners (and honestly I don’t think anyone would make it down those stairs with a foam board).

It’s an intermediate spot.  And the best one to go to when waves are small elsewhere as it picks up more easily.

There are two breaks.

On the left, is the lefthander wave but the current there is something crazy at times. I have genuinely thought I might not manage to make it in from over there before.

On the right-hand side is mostly a right-hander wave (something of a rarity in Bali) but he occasional wave comes through where a left works on it.

There’s too much water to surf there at high tide so best to go around mid or coming up from low.

 

Restaurants

Unless you consider a bag of chips (sorry England, Crisps) and a Coke from a woman walking about with a tray of snacks a restaurant then no, there are no restaurants on Green Bowl beach.

There are at the top in the parking lot however.

The restaurants at the top of the stairs to Green Bowl beach are all local and work like a hybrid of a small convenience store and restaurant.  You can buy a range of snacks you’d find in local marts or they’ll cook you up some local food like nasi campur (fried rice) or mie goring (fried noodles).

If you’re looking for a larger meal, or foreign food, the closest restaurant is Wood Shack Well worth a visit.

Or you could head to one of the many beach clubs nearby afterwards for food.

 

Surrounding Area

Green Bowl beach is situated right down at the bottom of Bali in the bukit peninsula.

In that sense it’s a bit remote as you have to drive a way to get to anything else.

The closest next beach to it is Pandawa beach (also known as hidden beach and not at all hidden) which couldn’t be more different. Makes a good day out to spend half a day at Green Bowl and then go across to Pandawa.

Otherwise your best bet is to head back to Jalan Raya Uluwatu Pecatu and Jalan Labuansait where there are a lot more options of bars and restaurants to explore.

If you’ve done the little day tour I suggested of Green Bowl and Pandawa beach a lovely way to end the day would be to head over to blue point beach to watch the sunset from Single Fin at the top of the cliff.

 

Where to Stay

Budget

Uluwatu Made Guesthouse 250,000 IDR ($15 USD) a night. It’s not fancy but it’s got a pool, air con and bar area.

Mid–Range

Luz_ita Sunshine Villa is wonderful and one of the closest places you could stay to Green Bowl Beach. The rooms are large, you get your own kitchen in them and even a sofa. It’s secluded enough to feel calm and relaxing but still so quick to get back into the center of things.  Rooms are about 400,000 IDR ($25 USD) a night but they also do monthly rentals

Luxury

If you want somewhere a bit fancier and with your own privacy strap the hotels and rent a villa. There are a lot in the area that are actually really reasonably priced for what they are. It’s a good place to treat yourself.

You can stay at Bali Exclusive Residence in your own villa for 2,500,000 IDR ($160 USD). Or if there are a few of you you could stay at Villa Blimbing Sari Uluwatu which is 4,500,000 IDR ($300 USD) a night but sleeps 6 so if there are a few of you it could potentially cost just $50 a night each.

 

Where Next

As mentioned before Pandawa beach is just next door to Green Bowl so it makes perfect sense to visit next. Or you could head east over to Nusa Dua and even carry onto Benoa Harbour where fast boats go to the Gilis. Or head west and visit the other incredible beaches in Uluwatu like Thomas beach, Padang Padang, Balangan, Dreamland and Bingin.

 

What did you think of Green Bowl beach? Let me know in the comments below.