Lovina is a beach resort in northern Bali in Indonesia. The very mention of the word Bali to any traveler conjures up images of beaches, parties, paradise and alcohol. However here in Lovina, life takes on a slightly more relaxed mode, despite the fact that it’s a town that remains lively at night. Lovina is the name of the village/town, with the central area taking on the funky title of Kalibukbuk. Basically a few of these beach side villages make up the town known as Lovina. Here’s an overview of the time I spent there!
Down by the seafront at Lovina – a quiet place as it happens!
Where to Stay in Lovina?
Well for a start, the place we stayed in was perfect, so I’d have to recommend it. I was travelling with my Brazilian mate Rodrigo and we stayed at the Puri Bali Hotel. It’s more of a resort.
The swimming pool at the Puri Bali Hotel in Kalibukbuk, Lovina. It includes a swimming pool, a bar and breakfast. We shared a twin room for a cost of 180,000 Rupiah per night.
A temple in Lovina – down near the main beach.
So once you’ve arrived in Lovina, you can relax and do the sightseeing, locally the above temple is the only real cultural or historical aspect to Kalibukbuk, but I’ve done a top 5 below!
What is there to see and do when staying in Lovina?
1. Dolphin watching
Get up early to go dolphin watching in Lovina, Bali!
Dolphin watching is easily arranged through the hostel – get them to waken you up and you head out on a boat around 6 am to see dolphins. You can negotiate the price although it must be noted that dolphins are not always guaranteed. Snorkelling and diving is also an option.
2. Relaxing
This was one of my most relaxing holidays for years – lounging by the pool in Lovina!
Head to the beach and relax, or simply relax at the resort! This is not normally what I do when I travel by the way – I’m normally either out sightseeing, in the bar or typing my travel notes . However on this trip I found time to relax in Lovina, by the pool, on the beach and sitting on a seat with a book and a beer.
3. Day Trip to Singaraja
For a day trip, head to the bigger city vibe of Singaraja – worth a trip!!
Once the capital city of Bali, Singaraja is described as being “quirky” and that it was – Rodrigo and I enjoyed a day trip to it, which is reached by getting a ‘Blue Bemo’. We ended up getting lost in Singaraja but enjoying its odd charm. I’ll post separately about Singaraja at some point! It’s totally the opposite of Lovina by the way – few English speakers, NO tourists, a busy smoky city and difficult to relax in.
4. Tour of North Bali
Ulun Danu – Temple on the Lake in Bedugul, north Bali
OK, so there are loads of things to do in Bali, but while in Lovina you should do the local circuit which is North Bali. We hired a driver for a day trip, and this entire day out included the following, very busy and worth doing:
- A visit to GitGit Waterfalls and rice fields
- A visit to the impressive Ulun Danu Temple (temple on the lake – rather dreamlike)
- A visit to the market at Candikuning (plenty of souvenirs and fruit to be bought)
- A stop off for a view of the mountains and valleys where you can see LOTS of monkeys
- A morning stop for coffee which includes a visit to a coffee plantation including Luwak Coffee!
- A spontaneous stop off to visit a Pizza Man Statue in Banyu Atis (we actually requested this stop having missed out seeing the Pizza Man Statue while we were in Jakarta
- A visit to a Hot Springs
- A lunch at the hot springs
- A visit to Brahnavihara Temple
5. Drink!
Kalibukbuk in Lovina is great for drinking! Happy Hours and Pub Crawls!The last point on this post and probably the most important one is that Lovina is a great place to relax with a drink. Indeed every night Rodrigo and I stayed there we did a mini pub crawl, including Happy Hour Bintang beers, live music and good food. This is probably the real highlight of Kalibukbuk in Lovina. Happy Hour starts at sunset and when we were there, this was around 7pm, head to the bar and join the crowd. Live music was a feature and we must have visited about 10 bars in Kalibukbuk over the 3 nights we were there!
Jonny Blair is a self confessed traveling nomad who founded and blogs at Don’t Stop Living. He sees every day as an adventure. Since leaving behind his home town of Bangor in Northern Ireland ten years ago he has traveled to all seven continents, working his way through various jobs and funding it all with hard work and an appetite for travel. Don’t Stop Living, a lifestyle of travel’ contains over 1,000 stories and tips from his journeys round the globe. He wants to show others how easy it is to travel the world, give them some ideas and encourage them to do the same but most of all he aims to constantly live a lifestyle of travel. He is currently based in Hong Kong and on Twitter @jonnyblair.
