FamilyPrivate car
Bali Zoo, Monkey Forest & Tegenungan Family Tour
- Bali Zoo
- Ubud Monkey Forest
- Tegenungan waterfall
$100 / personDetails
Ubud Monkey Forest, Bali
A real forest at the south end of Ubud — giant trees, mossy temples, a river gorge and several hundred long-tailed macaques who own the place.
What is the Monkey Forest like, and is it safe?
The Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary is a walkable patch of old forest with three temples and a troop of about a thousand macaques that live wild but are used to people. Paved paths loop through it in an hour. It's safe if you follow the rules — nothing in your hands, bags zipped, no feeding, don't stare or touch — and it's the stop children remember. It's at the bottom of Monkey Forest Road in Ubud, so it fits any Ubud day.
- RegionCentral Bali · Ubud
- Best forFamilies, the forest itself, monkeys
- From central UbudWalking distance
- How long1 hour
- Best timeOpening at 09:00, or after 15:00
- CrowdsHeavy mid-morning
On the ground
Better than its reputation. The forest is genuinely old — banyans with hanging roots, a gorge with a stream, temples with moss-covered dragons — and the paths are paved and shaded. The monkeys are everywhere: grooming on the walls, sitting on the statues, watching your bag.
The rules are simple and they work: no food, no plastic bags, no dangling sunglasses, no eye contact, no touching. Staff with slingshots (never fired) keep the boldest monkeys off visitors. Bites happen to people who break the rules; they're rare and the clinic is next door.
The Pura Dalem Agung temple in the forest is the finest in Ubud town, and almost nobody looks at it because of the monkeys.
What to see in the Monkey Forest
The banyan gorge
The oldest part of the forest, with a bridge over the stream and the dragon-carved temple below.
Pura Dalem Agung
The temple of the dead, with Rangda statues and children on the walls — look up from the monkeys.
Feeding time
Staff feed the monkeys sweet potato mid-morning; the troop gathers and it's the best time to photograph them.
Tegenungan, 25 minutes
A waterfall to cool down afterwards, on our family routes.
Entrance fees are in the price of our set routes; on a car + driver day they are paid at the gate, and your driver tells you the amounts the evening before.
What to do
Set routes that stop at Ubud Monkey Forest
2 of our routes pass through.
FamilyPrivate car
Breakfast with Orangutans, Monkey Forest & Tegenungan
- Breakfast at Bali Zoo
- Ubud Monkey Forest
- Tegenungan waterfall
$120 / personDetails
Or make it a driver day
Ubud Monkey Forest plus wherever else you like, at your pace — up to ten hours, priced per car, your route.
Before you go
How long should you stay? An hour is right; the loop is short. It's a stop on our two family routes and easy to add to any Ubud day.
Best time to visit. At opening or after three, when it's cooler and the coaches have gone. Rain empties it and the monkeys don't mind.
| Tickets | Per person at the gate; children reduced; weekend surcharge |
|---|---|
| Opening hours | 09:00–18:00 |
| Dress | Anything; nothing loose or dangling |
| Walking | Easy paved paths and steps; 45–60 minutes |
| Food | None inside; cafés on Monkey Forest Road |
| Toilets | At the entrances |
| Rules | No food, no feeding, bags closed, no touching |
Questions
Asked in the car
Will the monkeys bite?
Only if you break the rules — food in hand, a grab at a monkey, cornering one for a photo. Keep calm and empty-handed and they ignore you. If a bite happens, wash it and see the clinic; rabies vaccination is standard advice.
Is it good with small children?
From about five, with hands held and a talk beforehand. Under-fives find the monkeys frightening close up; Bali Zoo is the calmer option.
Monkey Forest or Sangeh?
Ubud's is bigger, busier and more dramatic; Sangeh is a quiet nutmeg grove with a temple and calmer monkeys, 40 minutes west. Both are on our routes.
Nearby, with our photos
Monkeys, then a waterfall
Both family routes stop here after the zoo; add it to any Ubud day.