West Bali

The Best Surf in West Bali

West Bali

Level: Beginner – Advance
Best months: May – September

West Bali is home to many of the popular surf spots in Bali, from Kuta Beach to Old Man’s in Canggu, Medewi, and everything in between. You’ll find reef, beach, and point breaks, as well as long, lazy rides and hollow barrels. West Bali has something for every surfer – no matter their skill level.

Surfer at sunset Kuta Beach
Kuta Beach, Bali, Indonesia

Kuta Beach

Kuta Beach is a long stretch of white sand beach with many surf spots. It is separated into three main sections: Kuta, Legian, and Seminyak.

Kuta is the best place to learn how to surf in Bali. It has gentle waves, a soft sand bottom, and lifeguards.

It is a quality beach break that can produce fast, clean waves perfect for sharpening your surf skills. It is the most popular surf spot on the island.

The most popular break at Kuta is Halfway. It has been the training ground for some of the best professional Indonesian surfers.

Legian is a beach break similar to Kuta. North of Legian is Padma, a break with lefts that have long fun rides, and a right that barrels on a good swell.

Seminyak is north of Padma. The best surf spots are at Petitenget, Ku De Ta, and Double Six. On big swells, the waves at Seminyak can be double the size of Kuta. 

Kuta Reef

Kuta Reef is far out to sea and attracts more swell than nearby Airport Reef or Kuta Beach.

It was the first left hand reef break surfed in Bali. It was surfed before the reefs were discovered in the Bukit Peninsula in South Bali.

On big swells, it can be a world-class wave with long rides and hollow barrels similar to the Bukit Peninsula.

Surfer at Airport Reef in Kuta, Bali
Airport Reef | Photo: magicseaweed.com

Airport Reef

Airport Reef has two breaks, Airport Left and Airport Right.

Airport Left is a left hand break at the end of the airport runway. It is always bigger then Kuta Reef but not as hollow.

Airport Right is one of the few right hand breaks in Bali. On small swells at high tide, it can be fun for beginner and intermediate surfers. But on big swells with perfect conditions, it becomes a serious barrel for expert surfers only.

Canggu

Canggu is a black sand beach north of Kuta. This strip of beach and reef breaks has everything from soft and slow waves for beginners to fast and hollow barrels for experts.

Canggu surf spots stretch along five kilometers of beach, from Berawa near Kuta to Pererenan near the famous Tanah Lot temple.

The main surf spots are BerawaBatu Bolong, Old Mans, Echo Beach, Sandbar, and Pererenan.

a man driving his scooter past a row of scooters and shops near Berawa Beach
Berawa Beach, Bali, Indonesia

Berawa is a long stretch of beach breaks with a sand and flat rock bottom. It is an intermediate wave that is pretty fast, but not likely to barrel. The surf is not as powerful as Echo Beach but it is also not as crowded. It is best surfed from low to mid tide.

Batu Bolong is a reef break suitable for beginners. It is slow moving and breaks in deep water, so at mid to high tide there is no chance of hitting the bottom. The wave can give long rides, but it can also be crowded. Is it best surfed at sunrise at mid tide.

Old Man’s is in front of Old Man’s restaurant. The wave here is similar to Batu Bolong. It breaks slowly over deep reef and can have long rides. It is suitable for beginners and intermediates and can be surfed at a lower tide than Batu Bolong. At low tide the left break can turn into a fast barrel. The surf is far from shore, so save your energy and use the channel to paddle out to the break.

Echo Beach has a reef, sandbar, and river mouth break. It is the main break in Canggu and has well defined intermediate and advanced surf spots.

The first spot is Echo Beach, a left that breaks fast over shallow reef and can barrel on the right swell. On big swells, Echo Beach gets heavy and is for expert surfers only. It is best surfed from low to high tide at sunrise.

Sandbar is the next surf spot at Echo Beach. It has a right and left break that can be heavier than Echo Beach. It also breaks fast but on a sand bottom, which is a little safer.

The River Mouth is next surf spot. It is a right hand wave that you can ride almost to Sandbar.

Pererenan is the last surf spot in Canggu near Tanah Lot temple. It breaks over rock and sand. The reef is shallow on the inside so be careful where to enter and exit. Pererenan has a left and a right wave and is less crowded than other surf spots in Canggu.

Surfer on wave at Balian in Bali, Indonesia
Balian, Bali, Indonesia | Photo: magicseaweed.com

Balian

Balian is north of Canggu. It attracts a lot of swell and will have decent surf when the rest of Bali is flat.

Balian is a river mouth beach and rock break with great waves. It has two rights and a left that break at a river mouth over rocks and reef. The left is usually better than the right, but both will barrel on a good swell.

Balian breaks bigger than most beach breaks in West Bali. On big swells most surfers continue north to nearby Medewi, because the currents at Balian become strong and make it difficult to paddle out.

Medewi, Bali, Indonesia | Photo: magicseaweed.com

Medewi

Medewi is north of Balian in one of the least visited parts of Bali. It has a black sand beach with rolling waves much softer than the Bukit Peninsula. This long left hand point break is perfect for longboards, and on a solid swell can give one of the longest rides on the island. There are more beach breaks and river mouth breaks in both directions, so explore.

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East Bali

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Bukit Peninsula

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