Island Guide
Bali completely lived up to the image I had of a dream workation destination. I combined a two-week holiday with two weeks of remote work, one in Ubud and one in Canggu. This guide brings together what I learned there and the practical information you need to plan your own Bali workation.
Best for
Remote workers who want to combine work with a long-haul trip
Best months
April to October (dry season)
Time difference with CET
+7 hours in winter, +6 hours in summer
Cost per day
Roughly €55–€120 including a good private room
Internet
Fast in the main remote work areas; slower in rural spots
Less suited if you have many meetings in the European afternoon. With a seven-hour difference, those land in your evening.
I started with two weeks of holiday, backpacking through Bali, Gili Trawangan, Lombok and Nusa Penida. Then I returned to Bali for two weeks of work: first a week in Ubud, then a week in Canggu.
Splitting the trip into a clear holiday part and a clear work part made both better. Instead of alternating a few days off with a few days of work, I could fully enjoy the holiday and then settle into a strong base for work without moving around too much.
Read the full story in my Bali trip report.
Before this trip, I had read so many stories about how good Bali is for remote work that my expectations were high. It quickly proved itself as a genuinely practical workation destination: I could enjoy good breakfasts, go out for coffee, explore a bit during the day and still keep up with work.
Internet in Indonesia is on average slower than in Thailand or Malaysia. In practice, the main remote work areas (Canggu, Ubud, Seminyak) are well served, with fast internet in most coworking spaces and newer stays. Rural villas and parts of the Bukit peninsula can be less reliable.
Always ask a stay for a recent speed test, and keep mobile data as a backup. An eSIM gets you online as soon as you land. Read my guide to eSIMs for workations.
I worked a week from Ubud and a week from Canggu. Here is how the main areas compare, with where to work and where to stay in each, followed by the stays I list there.
Coworking day passes in Bali usually cost IDR 150,000–300,000 (about €7–€15). Dojo Bali in Canggu and Hubud in Ubud, once the island's most famous coworking spaces, have both closed.
Best value🌿 Nature · 🏛️ Culture · 🏝️ Island
Best months
Most popular🏖️ Beach · 🏝️ Island
Best months
🏖️ Beach · 🏝️ Island · 🌿 Nature
Best months
Lively enough to keep things interesting, but calmer and more grounded than the coast. A great place to settle in and focus.
Where to work
Outpost in Penestanan and Nyuh Kuning (day passes around $15), or your stay; Clan Living had a coworking area by the pool and a real desk and office chair in my room
Where to stay
Central Ubud, where I stayed, for walkable cafés and restaurants; Penestanan and Nyuh Kuning for quieter village life
Bali's remote work hub, with the most coworking spaces, cafés and community events, a few hundred metres from the beach.
Where to work
BWork (from around IDR 250,000), Outpost (around $15), Tropical Nomad and Kinship Studio; Tribal Bali has a full coworking space on site
Where to stay
Batu Bolong for social life, Berawa for a bit more polish, Pererenan for calm; I stayed at Tribal Bali Coworking Hostel, the best workation stay I can name
Uluwatu and the Bukit peninsula have beautiful cliffs and surf, but are spread out, with patchier internet outside the main stays. Sanur is a calmer, older beach town on the east coast, close to the airport and the ferries to Nusa Penida.
A rough week for one person, excluding flights:
Stay
€250–€650
For a private room or small villa with a desk
Food
€70–€160
Coworking
€35–€65
For five day passes, unless your stay includes a workspace
Transport
€20–€60
On Grab, Gojek, drivers or a scooter
Also budget for
With a seven-hour difference in European winter (six in summer), your mornings are free and the European workday starts in your afternoon.
Apr–Jun
Dry, green and not yet peak season, a great time for a workation
Jul–Aug
Dry and busiest; book early
Sep–Oct
Still dry, fewer crowds
Nov–Mar
Rainy season with heavy afternoon showers, quieter and cheaper
Nyepi (Day of Silence), usually in March
The island shuts down for 24 hours, including the airport
Bali's international airport is Ngurah Rai in Denpasar, with connections through the big Asian and Gulf hubs. Traffic around the airport, Canggu and Seminyak can be slow, so plan transfers outside rush hour.
Grab and Gojek are cheap and easy, although some areas restrict app pick-ups. Private drivers are affordable for day trips and transfers between areas. If you rent a scooter, you need a motorcycle licence and an international driving permit with the motorcycle category; police checks are common.
EU citizens can get a 30-day visa on arrival or e-VOA (IDR 500,000), extendable once for 30 days. Bali charges a separate tourism levy of IDR 150,000 per visit, and all travellers must submit the free All Indonesia arrival card within three days before arrival.
Visitor visas do not allow local employment, and remote work on them is a grey area. For longer stays, look into the remote worker visa (E33G).
Watch the sunset at Uluwatu Temple or a Canggu beach club
Hike Mount Batur for sunrise on a weekend
Walk the Campuhan Ridge in Ubud
Take the fast boat to Nusa Penida or the Gili Islands, as I did during my holiday
Take a surf lesson in Canggu
Yes. With the right stay and reliable internet, it is one of the easiest long-haul workation destinations.
Ubud for calm and focus, Canggu for beach and community. I worked a week in each.
Thirty days on a visa on arrival or e-VOA, extendable once by 30 days.
Seven hours ahead in European winter, six in European summer, so the European workday lands in your afternoon and evening.
I would split them: holiday first, then work. It made both parts of my trip stronger.
Dive deeper with my Ubud and Canggu guides, read my Bali trip report, or compare Bali with Thailand. For more destinations in the region, see my Southeast Asia workation guide.
