Is Bali Worth Visiting? How to be a Better Traveler in 2023

After our second trip to Bali, we’ve been contemplating whether or not to write this blog post: Is Bali still worth visiting?

We don’t like to be the judges of where people should or shouldn’t travel because we’re firm believers that all places have something great to offer!

And Bali does have a lot of great things to offer.

However, something’s been gnawing at us since our last trip. It’s like we’ve seen two sides of Bali, and we feel like sharing what we’ve experienced.

So in this blog post, we’ll go in depth with why Bali is still worth visiting. But we’ll also write about some bad things that we’ve experienced as travelers. There are some things about Bali that we just think are wrong, and we feel like us travelers bear the responsibility because we are partly at fault.

Therefore, we’ve decided to write this blog post about why Bali is still worth visiting, and how we travelers can visit Bali in a better way in 2023! That way this blog post hopefully benefits you as a traveler but also the Balinese people in the long run.

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5 great reasons why Bali is worth visiting

Why is Bali worth visiting in the first place? We want to start this blog post on a positive note and share our top 5 reasons why you should travel to Bali.

You can also read our blog post: Interesting facts about Bali, if you want to learn more about the island before your visit. Anyways, let’s get to it. Here are 5 reasons why you should visit Bali in 2023.

1. Balinese culture is interesting

First of all, the Balinese culture is amazing!

There is always a Hindu ceremony somewhere on the island – it’s almost a daily occurrence. Everyone gets dressed up in their beautiful traditional clothing and bring their colorful offerings to the temple. Did you know that there are actually more than 20.000 temples in Bali?!

Apart from the religious side of the Balinese culture, it’s also interesting to learn about how the Balinese people live their lives on the island.

There is a big difference to whether you live in the city or in the countryside. We would recommend you to visit both cities and local villages if you really want to experience the overall culture of Bali.

2. Balinese people are very kind and giving

While the Balinese people in the cities are often more business-oriented, we learned that the Balinese people in the countryside were very hospitable! (Not to say that you can’t be nice and hospitable if you live in a city).

We’ve been sharing stories and traditional palm wine with our new Balinese friends in the small local villages. Even though there is a language barrier, it’s somehow super easy to communicate with the local people in Bali. The local villagers are just so kind and giving towards us travelers.

We were even invited to a karaoke night with our guesthouse owner one night – It was so much fun!

3. The nature on Bali is incredible

Most people see beautiful rice terraces and exotic beaches when they think of Bali. And while we find the rice terraces very beautiful too, we do feel that the volcanoes are what makes Bali’s nature incredible!

During our last trip, we stayed in this small apartment above a local coffeehouse, which had an amazing view over Mount Agung.

It was so magical to wake up to this picture-perfect sight of the volcano. If you really want to explore the nature in Bali, then we can 100% recommend staying in Sidemen village. Here you’ll find outdoor activities such as hiking in the rice fields, nearby waterfalls, and a lot of peace and tranquility.

The nature and the scenery in Bali is definitely one of the best reasons why we think that Bali is worth visiting!

4. Balinese food is different

If we have to be completely honest, then we don’t think that the Balinese food can compete with other Southeast Asian cuisines such as Thailand or Vietnam.

That being said, the food is still a legit reason to why you should visit Bali. There are some dishes which are very common to the Balinese Cuisine such as Babi Guling, Nasi Campur, and Gado Gado. You should try some of these as you most likely won’t find them anywhere else (Only Gado Gado is vegetarian).

You can find these dishes at the local warungs. Eating side by side with the locals is a great cultural experience in itself. So, it’s definitely worth it to check out the food if you are visiting Bali.

5. Bali is an affordable destination

Lastly, another reason why Bali is still worth visiting is that your money will go far (unless you eat at fancy restaurants every night and have your own private villa with a pool).

Bali is still a pretty affordable destination to visit if you’re on a budget. You can find good accommodation and eat very cheap at the local warungs. So your biggest expense as a traveler will probably be transportation.

3 not-so-nice things about Bali

Now that we’ve praised Bali with all the good things that it has to offer, it’s time to talk about some of the bad stuff.

While we don’t really like to talk negatively about destinations on this blog, we just cannot keep silent anymore. There are some things that we find completely wrong with Bali – and the biggest one is created by us travelers. That’s why we feel like writing this. So we travelers can become better.

So here are the reasons to why we even ask this question in the first place: Is Bali still worth visiting?

1. Influencer hell on Instagram

One of the things that we find fundamentally wrong, yet we’re somehow part of it, is the way Bali is portrayed by influencers.

While we don’t call ourselves influencers, we’re well aware that we do influence people with this travel blog and our youtube channel Worldwide Walkers.

But we feel like there’s a fine line that we “influencers” have to walk in order to not hurt the destinations we travel to. This line has been crossed when it comes to Bali.

There are more than 70 Million #Bali posts on Instagram. Scrolling down, the only thing we see are bikini babes on drone footages from amazing villas with enormous pools, or someone sitting on a swing overlooking the rice fields of Ubud, and not to mention the many Açai smoothie bowls and other fancy meals that has nothing to do with Balinese food culture.

There is even a temple called Pura Lempuyang in which people take “fake” pictures.

We tried to go there and check it out, but our scooter broke down on the way, so we never got to see what the fuss is about. But tourists apparently go here to stand in line for a picture, then someone puts a mirror under the camera so it looks like there is a reflecting lake. It looks super beautiful – but it’s all fake. Check out the #gatesofheaven on Instagram.

We can’t help but think, is this really what we want to show the world about Bali?

Did you know that you can actually do Instagram tours on Bali now? So you pay a guide to take you around all the best photography spots on the island, and then you get to take the same picture as all the other influencers. I mean, what happened to being creative?

And what happened to curiosity? Isn’t traveling about actually exploring new places? Not making sure other people see that you are indeed busy exploring.

It seems like a lot of people just travel to Bali to promote themselves and their perfect lives on Instagram. But nobody is perfect, and you’re definitely not unique when you take the same pictures as everyone else. Don’t get me wrong. I’m no saint either! We’ve also done this – going around with the camera and trying to take the perfect pictures while ignoring the incredible surroundings.

But we’re becoming better. We’ve learned how to take a step back and experience the place we’re in first. Then we can always take some shots later.

So dear fellow travelers, stop missing out and being so obsessed with getting the perfect pictures. Instead of going on an Instagram tour, then why don’t you go hiking in the rice fields or visit a local Balinese village? I’m sure that’ll create some beautiful memories of a lifetime.

2. The big cities in Bali are overrun by disrespectful tourists

It’s fine that Bali is a really big tourist destination. Tourism supports the Balinese economy and puts food on the table for a lot of Balinese families. So it’s not like we’re against all the tourists in Bali. However, we do have a problem with some of them.

We’re sick and tired of the big tourist spots in Bali.

Back in 2016, when I was on my first solo trip, I was harassed by both drunk Australians and the locals in Kuta. It was honestly very uncomfortable being a 20-year old woman, traveling solo, and being harassed from every angle.

I’m always trying to be respectful around other cultures. I always have a scarf around me or in my bag so I can cover up if I feel like I show too much skin for what’s appropriate. I never walk around in a bikini unless I’m on the beach because I find this very disrespectful.

Yet, I felt so vulnerable walking around in Kuta. I felt naked by the way some people looked at me and harassed me on the street.

I didn’t feel unsafe at any point – just very uncomfortable as a woman traveling solo. It really made me wonder whether or not Bali was worth visiting at all. Funnily enough, I was never harassed this way when I visited some years later with Glenn. It was (sadly) only when I was a solo female traveler.

But as soon as I got out of the city and into the countryside, I met the nicest local people who were genuinely curious about me and wanted to be friends. In the countryside, there also aren’t any “party”-tourists. There are only tourists who actually want to experience the beautiful and authentic side of Bali.

So, get out of the big cities if you want to experience authentic Bali. And if you stay in the city, then please, at least put a shirt on!

3. Taxi Mafia and other scams

We know that many places around the world are notorious for scams – it’s not just Bali.

But we sometimes felt like people looked at us like walking wallets in the big cities. While this is also the case in many other countries, I just think that it’s a bit extreme in Bali’s bigger cities.

Did you for example know that there is a taxi mafia scheme going on in many cities such as Kuta, Canggu, and Ubud?

This means that you can’t really leave these cities (or at least it’s very hard) unless you book at taxi directly from the city. We once drove with a GOJEK driver (just like Uber), and he told us how the drivers get their tires slashed by the mafia if they pick up tourists in these cities.

That’s just crazy.

This means you always have to get an overpriced taxi if you want to go anywhere from these cities. We really hate to support that!

The official taxi company in Bali is called “Blue Bird”. However, some illegal taxi drivers have painted their fake taxi blue with the “Blue Bird” sign and are now scamming people they pick up.

We really hate that it has to be this complicated and expensive to go anywhere in Bali. And we’ve learned that the best way to get out of these cities is to get your next hotel to arrange pickup or see if you can find a local bus.

How travelers can become better visitors in Bali

So now that we’ve told you the bad and good things about Bali, we’d like to address what we as travelers can do to preserve this island instead of destroying it.

We have to ask ourselves why we travel in the first place. Is it to sit in a luxury villa in Bali where we can tan by the pool, eat western food all day long, and go clubbing every night? Or is it to explore a new place where you can discover new experiences, connect with locals, and create new memories?

For us, it’s definitely the latter

Don’t get us wrong. We wouldn’t mind living in a luxury villa on a two-week vacation, and it’s not like we have anything against you if you do that. We’ve even tried it ourselves for a few days. We’re just tired of the way influencers are portraying Bali as just a luxurious vacation spot where you can do whatever you want – like that’s all Bali is good for.

Please, just go outside and explore this amazing island! Make your visit in Bali worth it.

Don’t go on an Instagram tour, instead go on a local tour in the rice fields. Eat at the local warungs and try the Balinese food. Visit the temples (appropriately dressed!) and learn about the Balinese Hindu culture.

Bali has so much to offer, yet a lot of tourists don’t learn much about the island while they’re here.

So let’s all be better travelers for Bali in 2023!

Go support the locals by eating at the warungs and try to get out of the luxury resorts in the cities and stay a night or two in the countryside. Experience the beautiful nature and the hospitality of the local people.

Put on a shirt when you walk around in the big cities, don’t get drunk and start harassing people in Kuta, be respectful of new cultures, and try to meet the locals eye to eye. Just be a better traveler!

Is Bali still worth visiting in 2023?

So, this takes us back to the main question – is Bali still worth visiting?

YES. 100%. Definitely.

But it really depends on what you want out of your travels.

We honestly don’t know when we’ll return to Bali. Maybe it’ll be a while because we would like to see a bit more of Indonesia first (remember Bali is only 1 out of more than 17.000 islands in Indonesia).

But when we do return to Bali, we will try to avoid the big touristic cities. We want to discover more of the awesome places in Bali’s countryside.

In all honesty, Bali is not even in our top 10 favorite destinations. Yet there is something so interesting about the culture, which we know will draw us back in the future. Bali can best be described with this one word: Unique.

So yes, Bali is definitely still worth visiting in 2023.

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We honestly hate being negative… And we know there is a lot of negative sentiment in this blog post since it’s about whether or not Bali is still worth visiting.

But we kinda wrote this with the intention to make people treat Bali better, and we also want the people who write off Bali from the bucket list understand that there are still so many great things to discover in Bali – you just have to go look for it!

We hope we didn’t tire you too much with this blog post… If you have any questions about whether or not Bali is still worth visiting – or how to be a better traveler – then please don’t hesitate to leave a comment.

Thanks for reading and happy travels!