Pura Goa Lawah is one of Bali’s most unique temples, not because of the architecture or temple structures, but rather because of what it was built around: a bat cave! Although the temple is one of Bali’s most important temples from a spiritual and cultural perspective, the main draw for tourists is the large cave that is home to thousands of bats, which is also the main feature behind the temple’s name: Goa (cave) and Lawah (bat). Although you are not allowed to enter the cave, you can still get pretty close to admire these creatures of the night. Even if it wasn’t our farovite Balinese temple, the bat cave definitely made it a worthy stop along the road to the Tirta Gangga and Taman Ujung Water Palaces. To help you plan your visit and get the most out of your time here, we put together this Temple Visiting Guide for Bali’s Pura Goa Lawah.
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You might also be interested in these pages (coming soon):
Best Things to See and Do in Bali
Best Things to See and Do in the Gili Islands
The Perfect Three-Week Bali Itinerary
Everything You Need to Know About Visiting Bali
Pura Goa Lawah: Temple Location & Map
Pura Goa Lawah is located in Bali’s Klungkung regency, along the island’s southeastern coast (link to Google Maps), a short drive south of Sidemen There is a large car park right next to the temple.
How to get to Pura Goa Lawah
Drive times can be highly variable depending on the traffic conditions.
Distance from Ubud: 30 km // Average Drive Time: 1h – 1h20
Distance from Kuta: 45 km // Average Drive Time: 1h20 – 1h40
Distance from Canggu: 45 km // Average Drive Time: 1h30 – 1h50
Distance from Sanur: 35 km // Average Drive Time: 1h – 1h20
Distance from Sidemen: 20 km // Average Drive Time 40 – 50 minutes
In our opinion, the three best transport options to reach Pura Goa Lawah are: renting a scooter (moped), joining a group tour that hits several nearby attractions within a day or a half-day, or hiring a car and driver (which really isn’t as expensive as it sounds).
You can also use Bali ride-hailing apps such as Gojek or Grab, and make use of local taxis, but these options will typically cost more, especially if you plan on visiting several sites and attractions on the same day. Also, Gojek or Grab are not authorized to pick up people in certain locations where local taxi unions limit their services, including Canggu, Sanur, and Ubud. For more information on getting around the island and the different available options, check out our guide on How to Best Get Around Bali.
Regardless of your chosen transportation method, you are likely to enjoy the ride there. The road leading to the waterfall is very scenic. You will pass small villages and beautiful rice fields.
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Getting to Pura Goa Lawah by Scooter: Once you get to Bali, you’ll quickly realize that scooter rental operators are everywhere. Although most street-side vendors will regularly be the cheapest option, they come short in several other aspects compared with more reliable and established vendors. For instance, most won’t offer roadside assistance or insurance that covers theft, nor do they regularly sanitize the helmets or have their scooters undergo regular maintenance. For this reason, we highly recommend using Bikago for your scooter rentals. Renting from them might be slightly more expensive (but still can be rented for as low as 12-15 US$/€ per day) but you get great peace of mind as among many other perks, all scooters undergo extensive quality checks.
What you get with your Bikago rental:
-Helmets
-Full tank of petrol and unlimited mileage
-Free Delivery and Collection at your Hotel
-24/7 Roadside Assistance and First Aid Medical Kit
-Charging Mobile Phone Holder
By Car and Driver hire: Hiring a car and driver to explore Bali can be a practical and cost-efficient way to experience a full day of sightseeing. Although this option is more expensive than renting a scooter (typically 40-60 US$/€ per day), you don’t have to worry about navigating the Bali roads and traffic, Also, most cars are modern and air-conditioned, which is welcome in Bali’s humid heat, and the local drivers always know the best routes to take and can optimize your ideal itinerary. Here are some of the best options to choose from:
By Group Tour: Group tours can be a great option to lower costs and reduce the hassle of having to plan an efficient itinerary. Their main downside is they might not exactly be tailored to your specific interests and preferences. But if you are mostly interested in hitting the main sights and attractions, there are these great tour options that can pick you up in multiple towns and visit places including Pura Goa Lawah:
Pura Goa Lawah – Temple Ticket Price and Operating Hours
Temple Entrance Fee
The Goa Lawah Temple entrance fee is 50,000 IDR per person (2025), which roughly amounts to 3 US$/€. This fee helps maintain the temple and its surrounding grounds.
Modest additional costs are required for parking: 2,000 IDR for scooters and 5,000 IDR for cars.
Having the exact change or small bills to pay for all costs is preferable as many temple sites don’t accept credit cards and they may not have enough change for large bills.
Temple Opening Hours
Pura Goa Lawah is open daily from 8 am to 6 pm.
Temple Facilities
Very basic toilets (2,000 IDR) are available on-site.
Temple Dress Code
As with all Balinese temples, it’s important to dress modestly and to ensure your shoulders and knees are covered. The entrance fee includes a sarong (a traditional wrap-around cloth) and sash (belt) rental if you don’t have your own.
It’s best to ignore touts/locals offering guiding services (unnecessary) near the entrance, and if someone asks your name, try to avoid giving it or when you exit the cave you might be presented with a ‘gift’ with your name on it and told you have to buy it.
About Pura Goa Lawah and its History
Although the area has a long religious history that began with the worship of bats, mountains and sea in the megalithic era, Pura Goa Lawah was established in the 11th century by Mpu Kuturan, who was one of the early priests to introduce Hinduism to Bali. The temple’s construction marked a significant milestone in the island’s religious landscape, serving as a sacred site dedicated to worshipping Hindu deities and ancestral spirits.
Today, Goa Lawah is considered one of the “six sanctuaries of the world”, which are among the holiest places of worship in Bali. According to Balinese beliefs, they are the pivotal points of the island and are meant to provide spiritual balance to Bali.
Goa Lawah is also one of the nine directional temples of Bali, which mark the eight cardinal directions (along with a central point); Goa Lawah temple marks the southeast direction. Built at strategic locations, the directional temples are meant to protect the island and its people from evil spirits. These temples belong to every Balinese on the island (as opposed to the other temples, which are the property of the village or town in which they sit).
According to local Legend and folklore, the bat cave leads all the way to Pura Besakih, a distance of 19km. Few would ever want to try this underground route, however, as another local legend is that the bats are there to provide sustenance for the legendary cave-dwelling giant serpent, Naga Basuki.
Pura Goa Lawah – What to Expect
Even if Goa Lawah is composed of several small courtyards, overall it is not a very not large temple complex – you can easily walk around the grounds in less than 5 minutes (with the exception of a surprise second temple complex atop the hill, which we will get to in a second).
As you walk through the courtyards, there are several shrines, some with impressive and photogenic multi-tiered Meru Towers, and several gates with intricate stone carvings.
But the main draw here is the infamous bat cave. You can’t walk into the cave or go directly under it, as this section of the complex is reserved for the temple priests. But there is a good viewing area about 10-12 feet from the cave entrance. Even in the middle of the day, the bats are generally quite active, where at any given moment several of them will fly from one side of the cave to the other at full speed.
The bats here are mainly nectar bats (Eonycteris Spele) which means they eat fruit and are not a threat to people. The bats tend to stick to the cave, and none flew anywhere near us (though this might be different as you near sunset, where many might head out in search of food).
We didn’t expect this, but while visiting the temple we became aware that there is a second temple complex atop the hill (above the bat cave). To reach this temple (Pura Puncak Sari on Google Maps), head left from the bat cave, and instead of exiting the temple, continue a few feet until you see a staircase that curls around the hillside. It’s about a 2-minute walk up the staircase to reach Pura Puncak Sari. You’ll also notice how you can see Nusa Penida in the distance and the Bali Sea.
Finally, when you are finished with the temple, you can cross the street towards the sea. There are several shops, snack bars, interesting statues and access to a black sand beach (with distant views of Nusa Penida).
Why You Should Visit Pura Goa Lawah
– Ancient Shrines: Some of the temple structures are some of the oldest in Bali.
– Ocean Breeze: After visiting the temple, you can cross the road to enjoy one of Bali’s black sand beaches.
– The Bat Cave: There’s no Batman here, but the bats put on a good show nonetheless and provide one of the most unique temple experiences in Bali.
– Easy itinerary add-on: You are likely to pass by Goa Lawah on your way to Taman Ujung or Tirta Gangga Water Palace.
Why You Might Not Want To Visit
– Not the most scenic temple: Other than the bat cave, we didn’t find the temple complex itself to be that appealing or interesting, at least when compared to several other Bali temples.
How Long Do You Need at Pura Goa Lawah
Pura Goa Lawah is not a very large temple complex, you can probably walk around the entire complex in less than 5 minutes. If you would like to visit the second temple complex and spend some time admiring the bat cave, you might want to plan for about 30 minutes at Goa Lawah.
Best Time to Visit Pura Goa Lawah
Best Time of the Year
Although we visited during the dry season, there’s no bad time of year to visit the temple. There’s a higher risk of rain during the wet season (November-April), but that shouldn’t discourage you as there are likely to be fewer other tourists around.
Consider off-peak months like May-June or September-October for a more personal experience with fewer crowds.
Best Time of Day
Although we have heard that Goa Lawah occasionally gets overcrowded, this definitely wasn’t our experience. We visited the cave during midday when only 4 other people were there. Perhaps there’s an occasional rush when a tour bus arrives, but we didn’t notice any large arrivals and stuck around the temple for at least half an hour. We typically suggest arriving as early as possible when visiting Bali’s most popular temples, but in our experience, this might not be necessary for Goa Lawah.
If there are a lot of people, however, we can see how this could be annoying more than elsewhere, as almost everybody would likely be around the bat cave (the true attraction of this temple), limiting your access to it.
Other Nearby Temples
There are no other major temples in the immediate vicinity of Pura Goa Lawah. The nearest of interest is Kertha Gosa in the town of Semarapura, 15 minutes to the west. Although not necessarily close to them, Goa Lawah is along the main road to Tirta Gangga, Taman Ujung and Lempuyang, making it an easy stop either on your way to or from those temples.
To discover more of Bali’s temples, be sure to check out our guide on Bali’s Best Temples to Visit.
Other Sights and Attractions near Pura Goa Lawah
Other than the temples mentioned above, the nearest attractions are Kanto Lampo Waterfall, Gembleng Waterfall, and our favorite town in Bali, Sidemen, which is surrounded by lush green landscapes and beautiful rice fields.
For a more complete list of attractions that you can visit from Ubud, check out our guide on the Best Day Trips from Ubud.
Where to Stay Near Pura Goa Lawah
In our opinion, the best place to stay in the area is in Sidemen, whose location makes it a great base from which to explore East Bali’s waterfalls and temples. These are two of the best mid-range hotel accommodations that are set in a beautiful location amongst the rice fields.:
If you are looking to splurge, Wapa di Ume Sidemen is simply fantastic and is located on the same street as the other two accommodation options above:
Another great base in Bali is Ubud. It’s a bit further from Pura Goa Lawah, but it’s well-located to visit several other fantastic attractions throughout Bali. All of the following are some of the best mid-range hotel accommodations located within walking distance from the city center:
Komaneka at Rasa Sayang Ubud Hotel
Planning a Trip to Bali?
You might be interested in these pages: (coming soon)
Best Things to See and Do in Bali
Best Things to See and Do in the Gili Islands
The Perfect Three-Week Bali Itinerary
Everything You Need to Know About Visiting Bali
We also highly recommend these guidebooks:
Bali: The Solo Girl’s Travel Guide
Lonely Planet Bali, Lombok & Nusa Tenggara
Photography Gear
If you like our photography, you might be interested in some of the gear we use to shoot our travel and hiking destinations.
Camera Body – Nikon Z 6ii Fx-series Mirrorless Body
Main Lens – NIKON 24-120mm F/4G ED VR AF-S
Zoom Lens – Sigma 745-306 150-600mm f/5-6.3
Polarizing filters – Urth Circular Polarizing (CPL)
Camera Tripod – K&F Concept 64-inch Camera Tripod
Mini-tripod – Lammcou Flexible Camera Tripod
Camera/hiking backpack – Vanguard Alta Rise 48 Backpack
Universal Travel Adapter – VYLEE Universal International Power Travel Plug
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Car Rentals
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Transfer from Airport
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Kiwitaxi is another private transfer service – we haven’t tried it yet, but it’s currently available in a few more countries (102 as of 2024).
Hotels and Accommodations (coming soon)
Photography Prints
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Well, that wraps it up! We hope you enjoyed our guide on Bali’s Pura Ulun Danu Beratan and that it will prove useful for planning your trip.
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