Where to stay in Denpasar

Bali's working capital — markets, the state museum and the best-value food on the island, with none of the resort polish. Central for getting anywhere else.

Denpasar is where Bali actually lives, and travellers usually see it only through a car window on the way somewhere else. What is here is a working city: the Bali Museum and Pura Jagatnatha on the old square, the Bajra Sandhi monument in the green government quarter at Renon, and Pasar Badung, the island's biggest market, busiest before most visitors are awake.

It suits budget travellers, anyone who wants to eat properly for very little, and people who need to be central for onward travel. It suits holidaymakers poorly: there is no beach, the traffic is the worst on the island, and very few places are set up for tourists.

Sanur is twenty minutes east and the airport about the same south, so a night here is rarely a compromise on logistics. The food is the argument — this is where the warungs the south copies actually are.

115 places to stay in Denpasar · Things to do in Denpasar

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