Bingin Beach, or Pantai Bingin as it’s called in Bahasa Indonesia, is a very popular white sand beach in Uluwatu, Bali. It’s the sort of place that picture postcards of tropical paradise come from.
It’s where our hotel, Little Bingin, will be found, and this is our guide to the place that we help to turn into your home away from home in Bali.
Where Can You Find Bingin Beach, Bali?
Bingin Beach is on the Western side of the Bukit Peninsula, right next to the town of Uluwatu and not far from Jimbaran, Kuta, Pecatu, Ungasan and Nusa Dua.
The official address of the beach is Jalan Pantai Bingin, Uluwatu, Bali, Indonesia.
How Do You Get To Bingin Beach, Bali?
If you’re coming from anywhere on the Bukit Peninsula and particularly if you’re based in Uluwatu, then we’d recommend using Grab or Gojek, the local ride-share services, to get to Bingin Beach.
They are cheap, safe and efficient and they will save you having to fiddle around for small change to pay the parking fee here.
For those coming from further afield, you may choose a private car and driver for the day. The advantage of this is that they can help you see more than Bingin Beach and take you all over the peninsula.
It does cost a little more than a ride-share to hire a private car and driver, but you will find it’s much more convenient, and it’s the best option for long, convoluted journeys.
We will note that you can also hire a scooter easily in Bali, but we never recommend that you do, that’s because it’s hard to be road legal here (you need a current driver’s license which MUST bear a motorcycle endorsement, a car license won’t cut it AND you need a current International Driver’s Permit or IDP).
If you’re not road legal, your insurance is worthless, and if you have an accident, you could face bills of thousands or even tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Our recommendation is always to pay a little more to get to Bingin Beach and to do so safely.
When Should I Visit Bingin Beach, Bali?
There simply isn’t a “bad time” to visit this island. Sure, the dry season is a little cooler, and there’s less chance of rain, but it does rain in the dry season.
And in the wet season, it’s cheaper to fly here, cheaper to stay here, and there are fewer queues at the tourist attractions and we still get an average of 8 hours of sunshine a day!
So, pick a time to come to Bingin Beach that suits the needs of your life, and you’re pretty much guaranteed to have an amazing time all the same.
Do I Need To Pay An Entrance Fee At Bingin Beach?
No, Bingin Beach, unlike some of the other beaches in Bali, doesn’t levy an entrance fee, and you can walk directly onto the beach.
If anyone should try and extract a fee from you, don’t get into an argument, just politely decline ti pay and walk away. There won’t be any trouble.
However, you should be aware that if you need to park at Bingin Beach, there is a fee for that, and as we go to press, that’s a mighty 5,000 IDR (about $0.30 USD or $0.50 AUD). For that, your parking area is fairly secure, and you will be able to leave your vehicle there all day if you want to.
What To Expect At Bingin Beach
Once you’ve parked up or been dropped at the parking area, look for the path down the edge that leads to a flight of stairs to the beach.
In the middle of the stairs, you get to a bunch of different paths and stairs, and you can take any of them; they all end up on the beach.
We need to stress, though, that if you have mobility issues, there’s no way to safely tackle this route in a wheelchair or on crutches.
What To Do At Bingin Beach
You can find plenty to do at Bingin Beach, including:
Renting A Surfboard
If you’ve got the skills, you can tackle the breaks here without anything more than a surfboard, and you can rent one of those from the shacks on the beach.
The going rate is about 50,000 IDR for a couple of hours, and as long as you don’t break the board, they won’t ask for a damage deposit.
Surfing Lessons
There are plenty of surf schools in this area, as well as old pros who will be only too happy to earn a little extra cash hanging around the surf shacks.
You won’t need to spend an arm and a leg to get the surfing education you need here.
Surfing: A Shallow Reef And A World-Class Surf Break
There is a shallow reef here, and the break creates an extremely large fast left-handed barrel that can be surfed all day long.
If you want to catch it at its easiest, come in the dry season when the wind runs from the East and the swell is heading Southwest.
There is a surf cam online where you can watch the weather conditions at Bingin Beach.
Sunset Watching
There is no better sunset in the world than the Balinese sunset, and Bingin Beach offers a fine view of that sunset.
Take a walk hand-in-hand with someone special or just sit and soak in the light show.
Swim In The Indian Ocean
You can swim here, but not at high tide. Make sure to follow the flags and be back over the reef before the tide reverses.
Have A Seafood BBQ On The Beach
A fish BBQ on the beach is a real Bali pleasure, and there are plenty of warungs and restaurants to enjoy just such a BBQ on Bingin Beach.
Walk The Beach (At Low Tide)
If you love abandoned beach shacks and finding shells, then walking this beach at low tide is a great idea.
The Best Bali Hotels And Hilltop Accommodations Near Pantai Bingin
There are some nice places to stay near Bingin Beach, too, including:
- Little Bingin – that’s us, by the way, and while we’re not open yet, when we are, it’ll be the best boutique hotel in the area. We guarantee it.
- BoHo Bingin Beach Bali – an attractive bed and breakfast with a year-round outdoor pool and a pleasant garden area. There is a bar where guests can enjoy a drink after a day in the Bali heat.
- Legends Beachfront Resort – a clifftop resort with panoramic views out over the ocean. There’s an onsite spa and a great pool. The breakfast is supposed to be excellent.
- Sal Secret Spot – a shabby-chic vibe is what they’re going for at this near “secret” resort, which is just 7 minutes from the beach.
- Mahi Mahi Beach Shack and Suites – this is a private villa-style arrangement with amazing ocean views. It’s not cheap but if you’re looking to splurge, you’re going to love it.
The Best Bingin Beach Restaurants
There are some very nice restaurants around this area, and some of our favourites include:
- Cashew Tree Collective – they do breakfast, lunch and dinner at this spot, and the smoothie bowls are a great way to start the day. But hit them on a Thursday night for the live bands and reasonably priced drinks, and you’ll be very glad that you did.
- Kelly’s Warung – Kelly’s Warung is practically a local institution with cheap buckets of beer sitting on ice all day long. The chicken teriyaki bowl is the stuff of legends, and the sunset views from this point are amazing. When you clear the beach at high tide, Kelly’s Warung is likely to be your first port of call.
- Lucky Fish Lounge – Lucky Fish is the ideal spot for a fish BBQ, and the fries they serve here are an excellent accompaniment to the catch of the day. Be warned, the service at Lucky Fish can be so laid back that it’s horizontal, but those who stick it out say that it’s a great place to eat.
- The Sun & Surf Stay – as the name suggests, this place is also a hotel but they serve a wonderful all-day breakfast that’s open to non-residents and a decent selection of reasonably priced drinks that you can enjoy on the ocean-facing verandah here.
- Chela – the architecture at Chela is amazing, and the food here is definitely aspirational and beautifully presented. The attention to detail in every dish is impressive, and the papaya stalk straws are a super eco-friendly touch too.
Things To Do Near To Bingin Beach
Uluwatu Temple And Monkeys
The Uluwatu Temple is one of Bali’s most famous tourist sites, and there’s no doubt that this clifftop temple is an impressive sight.
It’s also full of the world’s most larcenous monkeys, which not only steal from tourists but then try to sell their goods back to their victim, and yes, they know an iPhone is worth a lot more than a water bottle.
This behaviour is entirely unique to the monkeys at this spot in Bali, and it can be quite charming to witness, as long as it doesn’t happen to you.
Kecak Fire Dance
When the sun begins to set at the Uluwatu Temple, you want to find yourself in the amphitheatre watching the Kecak Fire Dance display.
This dance performance is a dramatic retelling of a Hindu epic and the sunset provides a dramatic backdrop for the first part of the performance. Then, the fire comes out, and things get wild!
Balangan Viewpoint
You can see in a few different directions from this viewpoint, and they’re all very impressive.
If you want amazing photographs, you can find them at this local viewpoint, but you should know that the local wedding photographers use this spot too, and there may be a queue to get those perfect shots for your Instagram.
Garuda Wisnu Kencana Cultural Park (GWK)
You can see the Garuda statue, Indonesia’s tallest statue, at this cultural park as you come into land at Denpasar Airport. It’s an impressive sight.
Well, it’s even better when seen from close up and you can enjoy cultural performances and street stalls with some tasty local food at this spot too.
Paragliding At Timbis Beach
If you’re in the mood for a daring day out, why not try jumping off some limestone cliffs and going paragliding at Timbis Beach?
This is an activity not for the faint-hearted, but we hear it’s a lot of fun.
Other Beaches On The Bukit Peninsula
Some of our favorite beaches down in this area include:
Balangan Beach
This wonderful white sand beach has a full 200 meters of soft sand to deliver amazing views out to sea. It’s also a great spot for surfing.
Dreamland Beach
Dreamland Beach is a secluded beach with world-famous limestone cliffs and an incredibly rugged coastline. It looks great in photos.
Suluban Beach/Blue Point Beach
This isn’t a great place for sunbathing because you’ll find that it’s in the shade all day long, thanks to the shape of the local cliffs. But if you love to surf, the breaks here are amazing.
Padang Padang Beach
This beautiful little beach is considered to be a world-class surfing destination, and it looks clean and fresh all year round.
Thomas Beach
Thomas Beach gets fewer visitors than most beaches on this list, but the white sands and blue waters are worth the effort of getting to them.
Green Bowl Beach
This is one of the absolute best beaches on the Peninsula, and yet, it rarely gets many visitors due to the steep steps down to the sands. If you do visit, it’s an amazing place for snorkelling.
FAQs
Is Bingin Beach Good?
Yes! We wouldn’t have built Little Bingin in this area if we didn’t believe that Bingin Beach was one of the best beaches in Bali.
If you’re a surfer, you won’t be able to resist grabbing a board from one of the surfboard racks at the local stores and testing your mettle against one of the best breaks on Earth. Intermediate surfers, in particular, will love to stay in Bingin.
There are stunning views at sunset hours from Bingin cliff, the white sand is lovely underfoot, and a fresh fish BBQ after the sun sets can’t be beaten. The fresh catch at the best restaurants in this area is the best way to try the local food possible.
Is Bingin Beach Safe?
Yes, Bingin Beach is safe. However, if you want to tick all the boxes for safety, you will have to put some effort into it yourself.
As with all beaches in Bali, there are no lifeguards on duty, so if you want to swim, you should ensure you take into account the warning flags on the sands and have someone around who can help if things get sticky.
Surfers should look at the wind direction before tackling the break, too.
Most of all, the narrow path along the limestone cliffs should be taken carefully to avoid any slips and grazes.
And as with every public beach in the world, don’t leave anything of value unattended, while petty crime isn’t rife in this area, it’s not unknown either.
What Is The Prettiest Beach In Bali?
Bingin Beach is certainly a beautiful sandy beach, and if you stay in our boutique resort, we know that you’ll leave with amazing memories of this stretch of our little paradise island.
However, there are other pretty beaches here in Bali, and some would argue that Nusa Dua Beach and Thomas Beach, in particular, might rival the beauty of Bingin Beach.
The good news is that both of these beaches are not far away from Bingin Beach, and you can spend a few hours on both of them while sipping a cold beer when you stay in accommodation near Bingin Beach.
Is Bingin Beach On The Indian Ocean?
Yes, Bali is entirely surrounded by the Indian Ocean, and all of its beaches are thus on that ocean too.
We should stress that waves, currents, etc., vary from beach to beach, and you shouldn’t assume every beach is going to be as easy to access and relax on as Bingin Beach.
Is Bingin Beach Swimmable?
Yes, you can swim at Bingin Beach, but we need to stress that you must take safety precautions. Because the water can really swell here due to the break, it can be very hard to exit the water, and in addition, the shallow reef (the coral surface) is very slippery under your feet.
That means your best bet for swimming safely in this part of Bali, Indonesia, is to wait for low tide. This gives you shelter from the swell (which reduces in intensity) and provides a series of small coves in front of the beach where you can climb out of the water.
If you do attempt to swim on this beach other than at low tide, we strongly recommend that you have someone on the shore who can help you if you run into trouble. Tourists often expect access to lifeguards, and there are none present in this area.
What Is The Most Beautiful Beach In Uluwatu?
We think Bingin Beach is a very beautiful beach in Uluwatu, but you could argue for Green Bowl Beach or Thomas Beach too. They’re both very attractive spots, but somewhat more challenging to get than Bingin Beach.
Is Bingin Beach Close To Uluwatu?
Yes, in fact, Bingin Beach is in the heart of the Uluwatu area and on the West Side of the Bukit Peninsula. It’s bordered by the beaches of Pantai Padang Padang and Pantai Balangan.
You should be aware that this area is quite spread out, and it may be too far to walk from one destination to another.
To get around this you can hire a scooter (but don’t forget you need a current driver’s license with a motorbike endorsement AND an international driver’s permit or IDP to be road legal – and if you’re not legal, your insurance is worthless) or you can use Grab or Gojek the local ride-share services.
Fortunately, ride-share here in Bali is very cheap, and if you’re used to inflated taxi fares in the West, you’ll be amazed at how low-cost things are here.
Is Bingin A Good Area To Stay In Uluwatu?
Yes, the area around Bingin Beach and the Little Bingin Resort is lovely. There is plenty of accommodation, restaurants and bars, and you can enjoy a walk on one of the most beautiful beaches in the world. You can go swimming, surfing, and much more in this area.
Final Thoughts On Why To Visit Bingin Beach Bali
Bingin Beach or Pantai Bingin is one of the nicest beaches in Bali, and a visit to this beach is always going to be a highlight of a visit to the island.
The Bukit Peninsula has become ever more popular as a destination in recent years and has grown from a world-class surf spot into an area that always has something for you to do.
We hope that when you visit Bingin Beach, you’ll choose to stay here in Little Bingin, your home away from home.