Where to stay in Ubud

The square mile between Ubud Palace, the art market and the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary holds most of the town's restaurants, cafés, spas, galleries and shops. Monkey Forest Road and parallel Jalan Hanoman are lined with places to eat, and the lanes that branch off them hide surprisingly quiet homestays.

You can walk to the palace, the Saraswati water temple and evening dance performances. The trade-off is daytime traffic and scooter noise on the main roads, so a room down a side lane is worth looking for.

West of the centre, across the bridge where two rivers meet, Campuhan is the starting point for the Campuhan Ridge Walk and home to the Blanco Renaissance Museum. Penestanan, up a long flight of steps, has villas and guesthouses among rice paddies and a strong yoga and wellness scene.

Further west, Sayan sits on the edge of the Ayung River gorge, where many of Ubud's best-known resorts look over the valley. It's peaceful, but you'll rely on a driver or scooter more than in the centre.

South and south-east of the Monkey Forest, these villages are residential and calmer, with homestays, guesthouses and small hotels between rice fields. Peliatan has a long tradition of dance and gamelan, Pengosekan is home to the ARMA museum and close to the Yoga Barn, and Nyuh Kuning is a neat traditional village just beyond the forest.

Central Ubud is a short scooter or taxi ride away, and some places are within a longer walk. Goa Gajah, the Elephant Cave temple, lies a few kilometres to the east.

North of town, the road to Tegallalang passes craft workshops before reaching the famous stepped rice terraces at Ceking, one of Bali's most photographed views. Staying out here means early mornings on the terraces before the coach groups arrive, and nights that are properly quiet.

Allow for a drive of around 20 to 30 minutes into central Ubud, more in heavy traffic.