The Best Hidden Beaches in Bali

• Nikhil Rana
• June 30, 2026
• Travel
• Beaches in Bali
• 0 Comments

Bali is famous for its iconic beaches like Kuta, Seminyak, and Nusa Dua, but the island is also home to many hidden coastal gems waiting to be explored. Tucked away behind limestone cliffs, lush forests, and winding paths, these secluded beaches offer crystal-clear waters, soft white sand, and a peaceful escape from the crowds. Whether you’re looking to relax in solitude, swim in turquoise lagoons, capture breathtaking photos, or enjoy world-class surfing, Bali’s hidden beaches have something for every traveler. In this guide, we’ll take you through the best hidden beaches in Bali that deserve a spot on your travel itinerary for an unforgettable island adventure.

Nyang Nyang

I do not even want to tell you about this place. Not because I am being strange. I am just actually scared that someone will build a bar there and the place will be ruined forever. The place is really pretty. It is so pretty that it is almost silly. The kind of where you feel embarrassed, about every single photo you have ever taken of yourself in your whole life. The place is that pretty.

But here’s the thing. Getting there sucks. Like really sucks. Like why-did-I-leave-my-hotel sucks. You park at the top of a cliff. Pay like nothing. Then you look down and see this huge stretch of white sand and blue water and you think oh wow. And then you see the stairs. So many stairs. In the heat. In your flip-flops that have no grip. Carrying your bag of water and snacks and your towel that’s already wet because Bali is just like that.

I almost turned back so many times. Like three times at least. A local guy selling water just looked at me and smiled. He didn’t say anything motivational. He just smiled. Like yeah, everyone thinks about turning around. but you won’t.

He was right. But I was so annoyed the whole way down.

Here’s what no one tells you though. As you wheb finally get down. When your legs are shaking and you’re sweating and you kind of want to cry a little. You look around and there’s like five people. Maybe none. The sand is soft. The water is that crazy blue that doesn’t look real. Like someone edited real life and made it better. And no one is trying to sell you anything. No music. No yelling. Just nothing.

I sat down and laughed. Because I was so mad on the stairs. So why did I do this to myself. And then I was there and I understood.

This is one of the great beaches in Bali.. Most people never get to see the beach in Bali because they do not want to climb the stairs. That is their loss. The beach, in Bali is your win.

Just bring water and snacks and a hat. There’s nothing there. No food. No bathroom. No shade. I forgot a hat once and my face was red for three days. It hurt. Learn from me.

When you’re lying on that sand with no one around, you’ll get it. The nothing is the whole point.

Gunung Payung

This one confused me so much. You drive up to what looks like a random parking lot next to a temple. No real sign. No real ticket thing. Just a path and a bunch of confused tourists standing around like “is this it?” Yeah. This is it. I stood there for like five minutes watching other people be confused before I just started walking.

You walk down stairs through the jungle. Monkeys everywhere. Just sitting on the rails looking at you. Judging your life choices. There’s roots all over the steps. You hear the waves before you see anything. And then the trees open up and you’re just standing there with your mouth open. I said “oh wow” out loud to myself. No one was even there. Embarrassing but whatever.

The beach is a little cove. Soft white sand. Calm water because the cliffs block the waves. And the local families at the bottom selling coconut water are so nice. They don’t bother you. They don’t follow you. They just smile and say “slowly slowly” while you try to breathe again.

I sat there for four hours once. Just reading and swimming and watching clouds. Didn’t take a single photo. And I take photos of everything. My phone is full of garbage photos of nothing. But that day I just didn’t. And I remember that day better than any day I spent taking pictures.

That’s what the best beaches in Bali actually feel like. Not a photo shoot. Not a checklist. Just a good day where you forget what time it is and you don’t even care.

Okay this next one hurts to talk about.

Bias Tugel

It’s near Padang Bai. You know Padang Bai is a place where ferries leave for the islands. Everyone rushes through there. They get off the boat grab some food and then leave. They have no idea what they’re missing.

If you walk fifteen minutes down the coast past the harbor and the boat yard where they’re painting boats blue and green you’ll find Bias Tugel. The paint is dripping. It smells like diesel and salt. Someones cooking something amazing.

Bias Tugel is really small it is a hundred meters of sand. You can walk around the thing in two minutes. The water at Bias Tugel is so clear that you can see your toes when you are chest in the water at Bias Tugel. It is like swimming in a pool. It is better because it is the ocean at Bias Tugel. The water at Bias Tugel is warm. It feels like it is holding you when you are in the ocean at Bias Tugel.

There is a food stall at Bias Tugel that is run by a grandmother. She makes the noodles that I have ever eaten at her food stall at Bias Tugel. I am not kidding, the noodles from her food stall at Bias Tugel are really that good. I live in a city that has a lot of food options it is a city with expensive food and even restaurants with Michelin stars.. I dream about eating a simple plastic bowl of noodles from the grandmothers food stall at Bias Tugel. The grandmother who runs the food stall at Bias Tugel does not speak my language. We were able to communicate with each other. She pointed at the food at her stall. I nodded my head like a fool and then she gave me a bowl of noodles from her food stall, at Bias Tugel. We just smiled at each other. That was it.

I told one person about this beach. One friend. And they posted it online. Just a story. Nothing big. And the next time I went, there were like twenty tourists taking mirror photos. People doing handstands. People with ring lights. People posing like they were in a magazine. I sat there feeling genuinely sad. Like I watched something good get killed right in front of me.

I know that sounds very dramatic. It’s just a beach. But it wasn’t just a beach to me. And now it’s everyone’s beach.

So please. If you go there, and I hope you do. Just be cool. Don’t post where it is. Don’t tag it. Don’t put a pin on your story. Just go. Be quiet. Put your phone away. Let it be what it is.

Okay one more. This one’s my favorite.

Amed

Amed is not one beach it is a long strip of black sand villages on the east side. People are aware of Amed. Amed is not a secret.. Most people visit Amed for the sunrise and the snorkeling and then they leave Amed. They do not stay at Amed. They do not just hang out. Do nothing at Amed.

I stayed at Amed for five days once. I spent five days in a fifty-dollar room at Amed with a shower and a gecko I named Gerald because I was lonely at Amed and it felt like the right thing to do at Amed. The shower at Amed was a pipe coming out of the wall. The bed at Amed was hard. The air conditioner at Amed sounded like a truck.. I loved every second of my time at Amed.

Every morning I woke up before the sun at Amed. Not because I am a morning person. I am not a morning person all. I am grumpy. I need coffee before I can be a real person at Amed.. The roosters at Amed start at like 4am.. Instead of being annoyed at Amed I just got up at Amed. I walked two minutes to the water at Amed. I watched the sun come up over the mountain at Amed. Every morning I was the person, at Amed.

The black sand gets hot. Like really hot. You can’t walk on it at noon without shoes. I learned that the hard way. I ran across it like a cartoon character yelling while a local kid watched me and laughed. Fair enough. I would have laughed too.

But in the morning, it’s cool and soft and weirdly sparkly. The black sand sparkles. I even didn’t know that until I went there. And the water is so calm you can just float. I floated until my fingers looked like raisins and my back got pink and I didn’t 🤔 ooabout work or money or anything at all.

I met an old fisherman there. Neither he speak English nor I speak Indonesian. But he pointed at the sunrise, then at me, and gave me this big toothless grin like can you believe we get to live here. And I couldn’t believe it. I just smiled back and we sat there. Two strangers. A sunrise. That was it. That was everything.

That’s what I learned about the beaches in Bali. They are not always the ones with white sand, cocktails, pools and fancy towels. Sometimes they have sand, a hard surface and a gecko named Gerald. You might even meet a fisherman who makes you think about why you left home.

Look if you read this and thought you’ve been going to the beaches in Bali feeling a bit let down don’t worry. It is okay. You did not do anything. Do not change your plans. Spend more money.

I made that mistake. I paid a lot to find beaches but they had gift shops. So be kind, to yourself.

We’ve been taught that the best beaches in Bali are the famous ones. The ones with the day clubs and the swings hanging over the water and the photo packages where someone takes your picture for you. They’re not. They’re just the loudest. They’re just the easiest. They’re just the ones with the best marketing.

The real ones take work. They take stairs. They take getting lost. They take driving past where Google Maps says you’ve arrived. They take being okay with no bar and no wifi and no one to impress and maybe no bathroom. They take being uncomfortable for a little while so you can have something real.

Just pick one thing. One small change. Maybe skip the famous beach and try Nyang Nyang. Maybe stay an extra night in Amed instead of rushing to the next place. Maybe put your phone in your bag and just swim until your fingers get all pruny.

That’s enough. That’s more than enough.

Now go book that flight. Don’t honestly it’s up to you. Go somewhere new. Stay home. I really don’t mind. Just stop going places just because others said you should. Go if you actually want to. Go if you’re curious about a place. Go if you’re okay with being a little uncomfortable for something

When you go, pack lightly okay? Bring shoes, ones that are comfy. Bring water than you think you’ll need. And don’t forget sunscreen the sun, in Bali can be really strong. Seriously don’t tell anyone about Bias Tugel. I’m of joking but also I’m not.

Your future self will appreciate this. I’m serious.

Now go relax have some coconut water and take a nap. You deserve it.