Pura Gunung Kawi Sebatu is a very scenic temple complex located in the heart of Bali, north of Ubud. It’s filled with relaxing koi ponds, pools and fountains designated for purification rituals, and several photogenic shrines. The temple complex, which was built into a dip in the ground, is surrounded by high stonewalls on three sides and by a lush jungle on the other. It’s also located near the town of Tampaksiring, where you’ll three other fantastic temples, including the famous Tirta Empul, making it easy to see all 4 temples within a single day trip from Ubud or Sidemen. 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 Gunung Kawi Sebatu.
Note that one of the temples in Tampaksiring goes by the name of Gunung Kawi Tampaksiring, which is a different temple than Pura Gunung Kawi Sebatu, which is presented in this guide and located in the neighbouring town of Sebatu.
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Pura Gunung Kawi Sebatu: Temple Location & Map
Pura Gunung Kawi Sebatu is located in Bali’s Gianyar regency (link to Google Maps), north of Ubud and the Tegalalang Rice Terrasse. There is a large parking lot next to the temple.
How to get to Pura Gunung Kawi Sebatu
Drive times can be highly variable depending on the traffic conditions.
Distance from Ubud: 15 km // Average Drive Time: 30 – 40 min
Distance from Kuta: 50 km // Average Drive Time: 1h45 – 2h
Distance from Canggu: 40 km // Average Drive Time: 1h45 – 2h
Distance from Sanur: 40 km // Average Drive Time: 1h30 – 1h45
Distance from Sidemen: 45 km // Average Drive Time 1h25-1h45
In our opinion, the three best transport options to reach Pura Gunung Kawi Sebatu 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 Gunung Kawi Sebatu 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 Gunung Kawi Sebatu:
Pura Gunung Kawi Sebatu – Temple Ticket Price and Operating Hours
Temple Entrance Fee
The Gunung Kawi Sebatu 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: 5,000 IDR for scooters and 10,000 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. To our knowledge, there are no ATMs in the vicinity of the temple (though there are several in the nearby town of Tampaksiring).
Temple Opening Hours
Pura Gunung Kawi Sebatu is open daily from 8 am to 6 pm.
Temple Facilities
Very basic toilets (donation requested) 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.
About Pura Gunung Kawi Sebatu and its History
The temple is primarily dedicated to Lord Vishnu, the protector and preserver in Hindu tradition, and was constructed as a tribute to Bali’s water deities, symbolizing the island’s close ties with natural elements, especially water. Indeed, Pura Gunung Kawi Sebatu is built on a natural spring, which feeds a series of ponds and pools within the temple complex.
Pura Gunung Kawi Sebatu was established during the reign of King Udayana in the 11th century, as a place of worship for Hindus in the Sebatu area. At that time, this temple was called Pura Pucak Penulisan and was used as a place to worship Sang Hyang Widhi, the main god in Hinduism.
Pura Gunung Kawi Sebatu – What to Expect
The temple complex looks like it was built into a large hole that was dug out of the ground. You will get great overhead views of the temple from the road that wraps around the temple’s southern side. Pura Sebatu is intricately designed and features tranquil ponds, flowing springs, and elaborate stone carvings. The combination of all the greenery with the water features gives Gunung Kawi Sebatu a calm and peaceful atmosphere.
The temple’s design is deeply rooted in the Tri Mandala concept, which divides the temple grounds into three distinct areas, each with its own spiritual purpose:
The largest outer courtyard is home to a large koi pond filled with lotus flowers, which is located next to a large open-air pavilion (Bale Gong). The pond is centred by a statue of Dewi Saraswati (which is surrounded by 4 small frog statues), and visitors can feed the fish in the pond with the food bought a vendors within the temple.
As you make your way into the inner courtyards, there are several notable attractions, including bathing pools used for purification rituals (Melukat), several shrines that showcase the island’s masterful temple architecture, including the grand Padmasana shrine dedicated to Lord Vishnu, which itself is surrounded by intricately carved stone figures and statues of deities.
There’s also a very scenic island shrine, backdropped by a lush wall of vegetation.
How Long Do You Need at Pura Gunung Kawi Sebatu
Pura Gunung Kawi Sebatu is a medium-sized temple complex – you can probably walk around the entire complex in less than 10 minutes. You should plan to spend about 30 minutes here to get a chance to appreciate all the sites, but you might want to linger a little bit to enjoy the serene atmosphere.
Best Time to Visit Pura Gunung Kawi Sebatu
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
Pura Gunung Kawi Sebatu, compared to other temples, gets an average number of visitors. It’s neither overly popular nor is it one where you might find yourself alone when visiting. We generally recommend arriving as early as possible when visiting a temple, but since there are more popular temples nearby, such as Tirta Empul, we recommend starting with those first if you intend on visiting several nearby temples on the same day.
Other Nearby Temples
As we mentioned earlier, there are three temples located in the nearby town of Tampaksiring: Pura Tirta Empul, Pura Mengening, and Gunung Kawi Tampaksiring. We highly recommend visiting all 3 along with Pura Sebatu as part of the same day-trip excursion.
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 Gunung Kawi Sebatu
Other than the three temples mentioned above, the nearest attraction is the Tegallalang Rice Terrace (Ceking Rice Terrace), less than a 10-minute drive south of Pura Sebatu.
A 30-minute drive east is Penglipuran Village, a famous tourist destination and traditional village that offers a unique and well-preserved blend of culture, history and nature. Slightly east of Penglipuran, you’ll find other attractions such as Pura Kehen and three fantastic waterfalls: Tukad Cepung, Yeh Bulan, and Goa Raja.
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 Gunung Kawi Sebatu
In our opinion, the best place to stay is in Ubud, whose location makes it a great base from which to explore several nearby temples including Pura Gunung Kawi Sebatu. 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
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Photography Gear
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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 Kehen and that it will prove useful for planning your trip.
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