Jimbaran beach is located just south of the Ngurah Rai International Airport (Bali Denpasar airport) and has one of the finest stretches of beach available on the island.
Originally Jimbaran is a fishing hamlet and if you're an early bird you can see fishermen coming ashore with their night's catch at dawn. These fish often end up on the grill of the many restaurants dotting the beach.
Besides fishing the main activity here is relaxing in one of the Jimbaran Bay hotels such as the Jimbaran Puri Bali, the Four Seasons, the Keraton Jimbaran Resort and many more.
Another popular way of spending your holiday in Bali is staying in one of the Jimbaran Bay Villas such as the Kayumanis Jimbaran, Villa Balquisse, Villa Hanani and other gems.
Most travellers stay in Jimbaran beach because it's such peaceful area far away from the hustle and bustle of Kuta (but close by if you want to), the zero tolerance for hawkers, the romantic Balinese setting and just being able to stroll the beach for miles on end without anybody disturbing you.
Finding you way around Jimbaran is easy since there's only one street of importance which is called Jalan Uluwatu. Here you find the daily market (pasar), shops, some boutiques, a couple of souvenir stalls and the other side of the hotels lining the beach.
There are not many independant restaurants operating in Jimbaran, except for the seafood restaurants on the beach. Most of the more fine dining restaurants are housed in the resorts such as PJ's at the Four Seasons or the Nelayan at the Jimbaran Puri Bali.
So what is there to do besides relaxing at one of the resorts and eating fresh seafood? There are a couple of interesting things to do in Jimbaran:
- The southern part of Bali is one of the best areas for surfing with Uluwatu being one of the most famous. For beginners and intermediate surfers Jimbaran beach is ideal but Balangan Beach and Padang Padang are also great locations for learning how to surf. You can contact Padang Padang Surf Camp on 081 999 283549 / 081 319 412470 to arrange some excellent days out not far from Jimbaran.
- You can also visit Jenggala Keramik Bali on Jalan Uluwatu. It houses impressive pieces of ceramic and glassware and also gives plenty of information about its designers. While enjoying several exhibitions you can drop off the kids at the paint-a-pot where they can create their unique pot, saucer, plate, bowl mug or cup. Open from 9am-5pm daily.
- For those in need of some action you can visit the Jimbaran Hills activity Valley, located between Jimbaran beach and Nusa Dua and here you can do some rock climbing, abseiling and even some paintballing. Here you can also improve your sharp shooting skills and loose yourself in war games.
- There are a couple of spas in Jimbaran worth visiting. Visit La Vie Spa just outside Jimbaran beach and get pampered by Balinese masseurs (female & male) who do not use any oils or creams but who will exceed your expectations with their popular 60-minutes Original Jimbaran Massage for US$20. You can find them at Jl.Kampus No.18L, Jimbaran or give them a call on tel: 0361 -9121133/9121144 Hours: 10:00 ~ 24:00, Open everyday. Other great spas are Aroma Talk on Jalan Raya Kampus Udayana 9 or the Kaimana Spa, Jalan Uluwatu, Gang Kelapa Buntu 2A, Kedonganan.
- At the southern end of the beach you'll find the Pura Ulun Siwi temple which was built in the 17th century by the Mengwi dynasty. This is the most important rice temple in Bali and rice farmers come here to honour Dewi Sri, the Goddess of Rice.