Description: Winding our way through the lush green countryside of Central Bali, Butar/Kintamani is approximately 1¼ hours' drive north of Ubud (2 hours from Denpasar) and sometimes a slower drive if you get stuck behind an old truck.
The roads leading to Kintamani are dotted with a multitude of fresh produce stalls, near Pujung and Peludu, offering an assortment of locally grown produce. From bananas and oranges to tomatoes. The produce on all the stalls was beautifully arranged in buckets so that they resemble a patchwork of vibrant colour. We stopped the bemo and bartered for some of the delicious morsels.
There also are many small villages near Tegallalang, just outside Ubud, along the length of the road and seem to merge to form one larger village. Situated in this area are a wide array of shops and stalls selling a variety of items such as:
- wood carvings,
- stone carvings,
- beautifully crafted furniture,
- textiles and fabrics, and
- artworks.
I would have loved to have stopped and done a spot of shopping – maybe next time.
Butar/Kintamani are perfect places to view Mount Batur and Lake Batur, as they have the advantage of being situated at a elevation on a par with the mountain but at a higher elevation than the lake below, giving the viewer a beautiful, full panoramic view of the surrounding countryside. Great for photos.
There are numerous restaurants situated along the hillside, overlooking this magnificent scenery, all fully glass fronted so as not to distract from the view. Most, if not all, the restaurants offer buffet style dining – all you can eat for approximately 100,000 Rupah (A$13) each. The buffets offer you a selection of traditional Balinese foods and western foods. From nasi goren, prawn crispe and rice to bacon, sausages and eggs, etc. Desserts (fruit, jelly and cakes) and beverages (some juices, coffee and tea) are also available. Anything ordered that is not on the buffet is charged as an extra.
We made sure we sampled everything on the buffets. We were bursting by the time we left. Burhan, our driver, also had a plate piled with food - yum, yum.
There are also arranged tours that people can venture on to this area of the island. These are available at the many tourist kiosks dotted around the main centres and include but are not limited to:
- Early morning hikes up Mount Butar to reach the summit in time to catch the sunrise.
- Day hikes through the area.
- Four wheel drive treks.
- Whitewater rafting.
We were happy just taking the scenery in from a distance and would recommend it to anyone.
After devouring a feast fit for a king and enjoying the beautiful countryside we all, reluctantly, climbed back into the bemo, with Burhan, to wind our merry way back down the slopes to Ubud for a second attempt at getting to the art markets and monkey forest.
Close