17 Amazing Things to Do in Amed, Bali [2024 Guide]

With the beautiful and slightly imposing Mount Agung looming over it, Amed is the hub of tourism in Bali’s northeast.

More laid-back than Canggu, less hippie than Ubud, and utterly incomparable to the hustle and bustle of Kuta, Amed is one of the few places in Bali where I feel I could live.

Amed is quintessentially Balinese in a way that hasn’t been hurt quite as much by mass tourism. Yes, it’s true that the fishing village is now more of a tourism hub than anything else, but that doesn’t mean it has lost its charm.

Traditional fishing boats still make their daily journeys, local warungs serve delicious Balinese food, and there’s a genuine sense that you’re in Indonesia, not a Westernized digital nomad hub that could be anywhere.

I spent a few weeks in Amed in November 2023 and returned to the Amed-Tulamben area in May 2024 because I loved it that much!

I also have the unique perspective of someone who first visited Amed in July 2015 on my first-ever trip to Bali (and Southeast Asia in general). As a result, I have a good idea of how much Amed has changed compared to Ubud, Uluwatu, or other popular Balinese destinations.

After three trips to Bali’s northeast coast, here are my top picks!

The Best Things to Do in Amed, Bali

Go scuba diving around Amed’s many dive sites (or get certified!)

The main reason why people come to Amed is for its marine life that is easily accessible from shore, whether you’re diving or snorkeling.

And let me tell you, I’ve dived all over the world and you absolutely won’t be disappointed by all the incredible diving you can do in Amed!

I actually wrote a complete post about diving in Amed and its best dive sites here, on my dedicated dive blog, so I’ll just summarize it quickly here instead.

Amed is mostly shore diving, meaning you gear up right on the beach and just swim out to the dive sites! This gives you a lot more flexibility than other dive destinations where you are limited to certain boat departures and locking yourself into their boat schedule.

It’s also nice to not have to do a surface interval on the boat, but more comfortable on shore where you can get a nice hot tea, rinse yourself and your dive gear off, etc.

Plus, if you want to learn underwater photography, Amed is a great place to start your photography journey!

In general, the waters around Amed (especially when you do shore dives) are calm, making it easy to dial in your buoyancy and work on your photography skills without challenging water conditions distracting you.

If you’re not yet certified to dive, Amed (and Bali in general) is one of the cheapest places to fix that! Because you can shore dive all over Amed, prices for dives are quite cheap here since you can avoid the expenses associated with boats for most of the dive sites.

In general, dives in Amed can cost as little as $20-30 USD per dive when you buy packages. I recommend both Amed White Sand Divers (locally run, highly personalized but still very affordable) and Dive Concepts (several dive shops around Bali, offers the cheapest prices).

Expect to pay about $250-350 USD for Open Water Certification; Dive Concepts offers a 2-day certification course for 3,800,000 IDR (about $250 USD) which is probably the cheapest you’ll find!

Snorkel the Japanese shipwreck or Amed’s other great snorkel spots.

Don’t worry if you aren’t certified to dive yet… or if you just don’t want to be!

If diving’s just not your thing and you prefer to snorkel, there are several places in Amed with excellent snorkeling.

The best is hands-down the Japanese Shipwreck, located within easy swimming distance from shore. I snorkeled it back in 2015 before I was able to dive and I was so impressed by how much you could see even just snorkeling!

You can see all sorts of incredible marine life making its home in the Japanese shipwreck, like moray eels making homes in the crevices, all sorts of colorful nudibranchs, and leaf scorpionfish.

Besides the Japanese shipwreck, you can also go snorkeling from the shore from Amed Beach, Jemeluk Beach, and Lipah Beach.

If you don’t have your own snorkel gear, it usually costs about 50,000 IDR per day (about $3 USD) to rent it at the beach.

Go out on a traditional jukung to catch fish with a local.

The dive industry has revitalized Amed and given it a big boost in tourism dollars; however, at its heart, Amed is still a traditional fishing village, and that’s how many locals still earn their money.

And you can support the local economy while having a super cool, ultra-local experience by organizing a fishing trip with a local… best experienced at sunrise!

Your hotel will be able to help you organize a jukung excursion and negotiate the best price. The price I found online was about 1,000,000 IDR (about $60 USD) but I’ve always found that negotiating through my hotel gave me better prices.

Go to Tulamben to dive the USAT Liberty.

While Amed itself has a lot of great dive sites, there’s one special dive in particular that’s a short drive from Amed and absolutely worth the slight bit of extra effort or cost required — every dive shop in Amed will organize these trips though, so don’t worry!

You simply can’t miss the opportunity to dive the USAT Liberty wreck near Tulamben, which is about a 20-minute drive west of Amed.

This wreck has a fascinating history! It was hit with a torpedo in WW2, but that’s not when it sank! It was first brought on shore, scuttled of all its valuable parts, and then left on the beach.

It wasn’t until Mount Agung erupted in 1963 and knocked it into the water that it would become Bali’s most famous wreck dive!

Over the last 60+ years, the USAT Liberty has become absolutely covered with corals and marine life. It’s an incredibly vibrant artificial reef to the point where in some places, it’s hard to see where the ship ends and the coral begins!

Admire stunning views of Mount Agung at Lahangan Sweet.

One of my favorite things I did in Amed was visit Lahangan Sweet, which is about a 30 minute drive from Amed via car or motorbike.

It makes an easy pairing with Pura Lempuyang which is pretty close by, about 2 miles away, if you want to do both in one day which is what I did.

Admission to Lahangan Sweet costs 30,000 IDR (about $2 USD) and parking costs 5,000 IDR (about 50 cents) but then there are some additional fees you may (or may not) end up paying.

For example, you can take a Jeep up the dirt track road for an additional 50,000 IDR ($3 USD) roundtrip. It was nice and cool when I visited so I didn’t mind the walk, about 600 meters in each direction with a little bit of an uphill stretch at the end. If it’s really muddy, you’d probably want to take the Jeep.

You can also pay an extra fee to take a swing photo for 100,000 IDR ($6 USD), where they’ll harness you into a swing set and take photos for you.

The staff there will also offer to help you take mirror photos at the split gate and also at the treehouse-style viewpoints seen above. They won’t charge you a set fee, but tipping them is appropriate.

I suggest tipping at least 10,000-20,000 IDR (about $1-2 USD) as a gesture of kindness because they will really take their time helping you get memorable photos.

Take in the rice paddy and volcano views at Bukit Cinta sunrise spot.

Another great place to visit as a side trip from Amed is Bukit Cinta, which is about a 40-minutes away by car or scooter. I don’t drive a scooter (I’m terrified of getting in an accident), so I arranged a driver via my hotel.

We organized a half-day sunset trip at Bukit Cinta, a visit to Taman Ujung, and Tirtta Ganga water palace for 500,000 IDR (USD 31). 

If you just wanted to visit Bukit Cinta, I’m sure the price would be a lot cheaper, but I think it makes sense to bundle some of the best East Bali sites together and make a morning of it.

There’s really not a ton to do at Bukit Cinta except for take photos, as there’s no infrastructure built up around this spot, so I suggest combining it with other nearby attractions.

Watch the sunset at Amed Sunset Point.

I first visited Amed when there was barely any tourism there, and Sunset Point was just a hilltop where locals gathered with Bintangs and guitars.

But things have really changed in Amed, and now this prime real estate is a pricy beach club-style spot with an infinity pool overlooking the volcano and Jemeluk Bay.

They have a minimum spend of 125,000 IDR (about $8 USD) that you pay up front to enter, and that amount can be deducted from your final bill (but you won’t get any money back if you spend less than that).

The food here is pretty terrible, to be honest. I had heard bad things and I just ordered French fries… and even those were quite bad. I’d stick to drinks like fresh juice, coconuts, or beers, and just enjoy the sunset views here!

Visit the beautiful, but busy, Tirta Gangga Water Palace.

Another day trip worth taking from Amed is to Tirta Gangga Water Palace, a former royal palace turned water temple. This place gets bustling, so I suggest going as early as possible.

There’s a 50,000 IDR entry fee (about $3 USD) to visit, which is quite reasonable given how popular this spot is now becoming.

You can pay more to feed the fish in the koi pond, take photos in one of the boats, etc. if you want a particular style of Instagram photo.

Personally, even visiting as early in the day as I did and in the off-season, I found this place to be kind of a zoo — I can’t imagine it at other times of the day or in high season.

Pay a visit to the less-visited Taman Ujung.

The Taman Ujung Water Palace is a really unique piece of architecture in East Bali and there’s really nowhere quite like it, so it’s definitely worth paying a visit while you’re staying in Amed.

It was commissioned by the King of Karangasem (the region of East Bali) in 1909, and the one-of-a-kind design is the result of the combined efforts of a Dutch, Chinese, and Balinese architect working together to create a special palace for the king’s family.

It wasn’t finished until 1921, but it had only about 40 years of peace before being nearly destroyed by the massive eruption of Mount Agung in 1963 and then, a dozen years later, a highly destructive earthquake in 1975.

It was renovated in 2001 and now is an emerging hidden gem of the East Bali tourism scene.

Learn free diving at one of the best freediving schools in Asia.

If you want to learn free diving, Amed is the place to try it!

I had every intention of learning how to free dive at Apneista Freediving School during my stay… but I simply fell too love with the landscapes that were available to me when I was scuba diving and all the photos I could take.

If you’ve been wanting to tick learning to freedive off your bucket list, though, you can take a course here!

Enjoy a beach day on one of Amed’s beaches.

There are many beaches along the Amed coastline that are worth sprawling out on for a bit of time under the sun.

The largest beach in Amed is Amed Beach, where you’ll find most of the beachside restaurants and day beds. 

You can rent a daybed for typically around 50,000 IDR (about USD 3) per person daily — one place where you can rent daybeds is at Barracuda.

And yes, you’ll probably want a daybed if you plan to hang out at the beach.

Note that on most of the beaches in Amed, the sand is not very fine-textured because it is composed of volcanic pebbles that are (very slowly) eroding into sand over time. The sand is definitely a lot finer than in Tulamben, though, where the beaches are practically made of boulders!

Another place where you can spend some beach time is on Jemeluk Beach, where you can snorkel in Jemeluk Bay right in front of you. The area to the left hand side of the bay has interesting shallow artificial reef structures and statues that are really fun to dive down and see more up-close and personal!

Another worthwhile beach to visit in Amed is Lipah Beach, located further east of the main village.

This is probably the nicest sandy beach in Amed because the sand is finer, but it is a little lighter in color, somewhere between a yellow sand beach and a black sand beach.

Treat yourself to a spa day.

One of my favorite things to do in Bali is treat myself to some spa time, and I tried a few different places in Amed during my trips there.

While you can get a good Balinese massage almost everywhere, I especially liked Alala Amed Spa, just across the street from Rimba Café.

The garden area where I got my foot massage was amazing and the prices were competitive with other spas in the area while offering a better overall ambiance and great masseuses.

Wait for a photo with ‘the gate to heaven’ at Lempuyang Temple.

Personally, I refuse to wait multiple hours for a simple photo. However, this is the Bali Instagram photo for many people, so many people decide to go.

First things first, in case you don’t know — there is no pool of water in front of the gate. It’s purely a trick of the camera, which is done using a phone camera and a specially placed mirror.

I decided to visit Pura Lempuyang to see if I thought it was worth the hype, and my opinion was no. I did enjoy seeing some of the temple, which you don’t have to wait for, but I didn’t end up waiting for my name to be called for the photographs and just settled for a selfie.

Pro Tip: The staff at Lahangan Sweet have set up a similar gate where they’ll use the same mirror trick that they use at Lempuyang temple. You’ll get similar photos without the wait!

Eat at the cutest (and best) warung in Amed, Galanga.

When I spent two weeks in Amed I made the conscious choice to eat at as many restaurants as possible… but once I made the dangerous discovery of how delicious the food at Galanga was, it was hard to honor that promise to myself. I kept coming back!

This little restaurant is really cute, with a main dining room as well as some separate little tables that are elevated on bamboo slats, where you can sit cross-legged at the table, shoes off, and enjoy a meal in the shaded garden.

The food here is incredible, a rare example of fusion food done exactly right, combining the best of two worlds. The menu uses French techniques to put a spin on traditional Balinese ingredients and dishes and the result is absolutely fantastic.

While it may not be traditional to eat potato dauphinois with Balinese steamed fish and sambal… I can’t argue with something that works this well!

Enjoy a Western-meets-Bali breakfast at Rimba Café.

While most of Amed is made up of warungs serving Indonesian food, there are a few Western-style cafés serving up all the Bali Instagram favorite foods, like smoothie bowls and specialty coffee.

I mostly ate at traditional spots but I made an exception to check out the highly-rated Rimba Café to see if it was worth the hype and I can happily report back that the food is delicious!

While I love Balinese food, I tend to get tired of eating the same cuisine for every meal for a prolonged period of time. Balinese food has enough variety that it takes me a while to get burned out, but when I was craving something different, Rimba really hit the spot! 

Do some yoga at Blue Earth Village.

If you want to stretch out any kinks in your muscles after snorkeling or diving, there’s no better place to do so than Blue Earth Village, which offers yoga classes with an incredible view over Jemeluk Bay.

I didn’t get a chance to do yoga at Blue Earth because it conflicted with my insanely busy dive schedule (I packed something like 20 dives in two weeks, to the profound fright of my wallet) but given its location and great reviews, I can’t imagine it would be anything less than amazing!

Visit less-visited rice terraces.

While the rice fields around Ubud and especially Tegalalang Rice Terrace have become increasingly commercialized, there are still some beautiful rice terraces in Bali that retain the traditional charm.

You won’t find overpriced tourist attractions like the “Bali Swing” at rice fields like Berina Rice Terrace, but you will find a charming café where you can drink coffee, eat fried bananas (with their own local bananas!), and admire the views without a million people swarming for photos.

If you have your own scooter, you can drive around to different rice terraces or try to find your own secret spot. If you’re hiring a driver for certain places in the Amed area, you can simply ask them to make a stop at Berina or another rice terrace that interests you.

Do a sunrise trek to the top of Mt. Batur.

I have made so many trips to Bali, and I’ve still never done the sunrise trek to the top of Mt. Batur, but that’s because I’m pretty traumatized by my failed attempt to reach the top of Mt. Fiji.

Honestly, as I get older, the lower my tolerance for hiking gets. Plus, I spend so much time diving when I’m in the Amed area that I can’t really do any high-altitude activities.

With a height of 1,717 meters or 5,633 feet, you can’t do a hike on Mt. Batur without waiting at least 24 hours from your previous dive… so either do this at the beginning of your time in Amed or be sure to factor in time when you won’t be diving so you can do the hike safely.

While you can organize a trek of Mt. Batur from virtually anywhere in Bali, Amed is closer than many places to the starting point of the Mt. Batur hike, since you’re already in the far north of the country.

Allison Green

Allison Green is a former teacher who has been travel blogging since 2016. She has a Masters in Teaching and a B.A. in English and Creative Writing. Her blog posts merge her background as an educator with her experience traveling to 70+ countries to encourage ethical, meaningful travel. She has been a speaker at the World Travel Writers Conference and her writing, photography, and podcasting work has appeared in National Geographic, CNN Arabic, CBC Canada, and Forbes, amongst others. Now a full-time traveler, she has lived in Prague, Sofia, New York City, and the San Francisco Bay Area.