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From the mountain to the sea.

A green-and-white outrigger fishing boat (jukung) lying on the wet sand at low tide at Sanur, its reflection in the shallow water and the sky orange before sunrise.

Sunrise, a calm lagoon and the harbour

Sanur

The east coast: sunrise over water, a reef-calmed lagoon and a path along the beach.

Altitude
3 m, Sanur beach
How long to stay
Two nights
Best time of day
Sunrise

The place, in short

Sanur faces east, so the sun comes up out of the sea. A reef keeps its lagoon shallow and calm, a paved path runs along the beach, and the harbour is where boats leave for Nusa Penida.

On the beach, at sea level.

Who it suits

  • Families and older travellers, for the calm water and the flat path
  • Early risers
  • People who want a gentle base at either end of a trip

Not for: Surfers and nightlife. The lagoon is calm by design, and the evenings are quiet.

What to do

  1. Walk or cycle the beach path at sunrise

    A paved promenade runs the length of the beach, about 5 to 7 km depending on whom you ask. Be out by 06:00.

  2. Watch the jukung

    Outrigger fishing boats lie on the sand and float off on the tide. At very low tide the lagoon drains to wet sand and the boats lean over.

  3. Visit the Le Mayeur Museum

    The seaside house of the Belgian painter Adrien-Jean Le Mayeur de Merpres, who came to Bali in the 1930s, and one of the reasons Sanur began to draw visitors.

  4. Take a boat across

    Fast boats to Nusa Penida and Lembongan leave from Sanur and take 30 to 45 minutes. The manta day starts here.

How long, and when

How long to stay: two nights

Two nights at either end of a trip: a gentle place to arrive and a gentle place to leave, with the boat day to Penida on the doorstep.

The best time of day: sunrise

The sun rises over water around 06:00; the path is cool and the fishermen are out. By midday it is a hot, still lagoon.

In the year. Works in every month. The reef keeps the lagoon calm even when the west coast is rough.

Good to know

Each fact was checked on the web on the date shown. Where one source stands alone, we say so. Advice, such as how long to stay, is ours.

East-facing
Sanur faces east, so the sun rises over the sea, and a reef protects a shallow lagoonChecked 6 Oct 2026. Source: BugBitten, Bali Advice and Tripatrek guides (agreeing)
The path
A beachfront promenade of about 5 km by some counts and 7 km by othersChecked 6 Oct 2026. Source: Explorient and Alike guides (they differ)
Le Mayeur
The Belgian painter Adrien-Jean Le Mayeur de Merpres arrived in Bali in the 1930s; his seaside house is now a museumChecked 6 Oct 2026. Source: Greener Bali and Wikipedia, Sanur
A first resort
The Bali Beach Hotel, the island's first major international hotel, was built here in the 1960s, after smaller hotels in the 1950sChecked 6 Oct 2026. Source: NOW! Bali, A Brief History of Sanur
Boats to Nusa Penida
Fast boats take 30 to 45 minutesChecked 6 Oct 2026. Source: Direct Ferries, SB Excursion and Bali Ferries (see Across the water)

Photograph credits are on the credits page.

Photograph 1 of 2

A reef manta ray gliding over coral in hazy blue water at Manta Bay, Nusa Penida.

A reef manta ray gliding over coral in hazy blue water at Manta Bay, Nusa Penida.

A day that starts here

  • A reef manta ray gliding over coral in hazy blue water at Manta Bay, Nusa Penida.

    Ocean · Nature · Adventure

    Manta snorkelling day, Nusa Penida

    A morning on the water with reef mantas, and the rules that keep them coming back.

    Time
    Full day
    Group
    Small group, up to 10
    Fitness
    Moderate
    Meeting
    Meet at Sanur beach

    fromUS$115per person

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