Uluwatu Temple Fire Dance and Sunset Bali Indonesia
It is hard to decide which of the two is more famous: the Uluwatu Temple or the Kechak Dance performed there every day at 6pm. Two years back in 2017 the crowd seemed huge and in 2019 when I went again the crowd at Uluwatu Fire Dance seemed even bigger!
Entire crowd is there to witness the dance because tourists are not allowed inside the Uluwatu Temple complex. Obviously that had to be because the setting of the dance performance against setting sun seemed magical!
Uluwatu Temple History
Uluwatu Temple is dedicated to Acintya, also called Sang Hyang Widhi Wasa, the God Almighty! Location of the temple is mesmerizing. It is at the edge of a 70m high cliff in the tip of Bukit Peninsula of Bali jutting into Indian Ocean. Uluwatu Temple is popular for the Kechak dance conducted every evening in the open auditorium facing the sea.
Present temple is believed to be expanded over a previously existing smaller temple by a Javanese sage, Empu Kuturan in the 11th Century. Tourists aren’t allowed inside the temple. We saw locals wearing white clothes enter the temple premises to offer prayers.
Uluwatu, the name consists of 2 words; ulu meaning edge and watu meaning rock. Thus Uluwatu translates to rocky edge.
Uluwatu Temple on cliff
Uluwatu Beach Bukit Peninsula Bali
Sights around Uluwatu
A beautiful pathway runs along the edge of the cliff. The sights from this pathway along Uluwatu cliff edge are mesmerizing! You get to see white frothy waves crashing against the cliff. They looked like white carpets to me! This was one place and one moment when I wished time would stand still! Why do we rush around?! Views are somewhat similar to that you can capture with a drone.
There is a large statue on the hillside near Uluwatu Temple (Pura Luhur Uluwatu) on the Bukit Peninsula. Tour time along the edge and temple complex can take more than an hour. So I suggest you arrive early to have the complete experience.
Uluwatu Cliff Bukit Peninsula
Monkey Menace at Uluwatu
While all seems so good in Uluwatu you tend get oblivious of the surroundings. Beware! That is when the money strikes. Thankfully only one monkey attacks at a time and they don’t decide to attack as a group.
Monkeys of Uluwatu seem to be more attracted to sunglasses and cameras. Once any monkey there snatches it from your hands/eyes it is hard to retrieve the objects back. The trick is to trade your stuff with some fruits.
The monkeys here have been subject of research for their peculiar behavior of snatching items from tourists and then returning the items in exchange for fruits or other edibles. They passed on the bartering skills to the younger monkeys and to any other new monkey joining them.
I failed to understand why the monkeys play this kind of prank here. Does it have anything to do with role played by Hanuman among the audience of Kechak dance? Let me know what you think of it after you see the dance.
Dress for Uluwatu Temple
All tourists are expected to cover up well when they are within the temple premises, meaning no bare shoulders. Sarongs are available at entry points free of cost. You can use them while on tour of the place and return while exiting.
Fire Dance in Uluwatu Temple
Balinese dance is an ancient tradition; there are various categories of dances in Bali, wiki mentions 9 of them! It is said dancers learn the craft as children. Even in the womb they are played Balinese music and taught to dance with their hands before they can walk! Their dance form usually expressed through bodily gestures; with fingers, hands, head and eyes.
Kechak Dance is a form of Balinese Hindu dance and music drama. It is based on the Hindu mythological story of Ramayana. Interestingly, since its inception in 1930s Kechak dance was performed by only men. It was in 2006 when for the first time women too began to perform this dance.
Kechak Dance at Uluwatu Temple
Twice I have seen this chak chak dance in Uluwatu Temple and both the times they enacted the same scene from Ramayana. The part of the drama when Hanuman makes entry, it becomes hilarious. He jumps from the wall enters the crowded audience and makes funny acts. Everyone seemed to enjoy that.
In the story Hanuman is captured by Ravana’s men and his tail is put on fire. Hanuman jumps around with his burning tail and all other performers who are Ravana’s men try to put out the fire. Somehow this dance came to be known as fire dance because of this!
Uluwatu Trip for Kechak Fire Dance
Sunset at Uluwatu
Meanwhile the sun sets just behind the gallery where the dance drama is on. It can be distracting as the sky reflects beautiful colors. In that twilight moment you can get silhouettes of the performers if you are seated at the positions right in front of the gate.
Sunset in Uluwatu Bali
Tips to visit Uluwatu Fire Dance
- Follow the dress code for Uluwatu Temple. No bare shoulders. Cover yourself with scarf/ sarong provided at entry.
- Arrive early. There are just around 700 tickets for the gallery to watch Kechak dance. Since group tickets are sold the tickets sell off fast. This reminded of tickets for Alhambra in Granada Spain.
- Don’t feed the monkeys. Keep your mobiles, cameras, and sunglasses safely. Monkeys are bold to snatch them.
- Washrooms are available.
- Ample parking space.
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Amazing. These are breathtaking scenes and you got to experience being there!
Gorgeous!
I wish I went to the performance when we were there. I visited the temple during the day only. Lovely views.
Have the very best of 2020.
This must have been an amazing experience! This is complete guide for uuwatu and those pics are beautiful..thanku for sharing the tips.
I was just in Bali earlier this spring and am so bummed out I didn’t get to experience this as our trip was super short. Love the story behind the fire dance and it must’ve been such an incredible spectacle. I hear Uluwatu has the best views for sunset so that must’ve been quite the distraction! Great tip about the monkeys too hahaa. They’re sneaky little fellows!
What a fun time Indrani! I saw Kecak at Uluwatu and also at a sleepy Balinese village outside of Ubud. I preferred the quiet village because the Kecak was more intimate and about 200 less tourists LOL.
Ryan
Uluwatu beach looks spectacular! Reminds me of the White Cliffs of Dover. Kechak dance would be something I really want to witness. It would be trance to witness Hanuman jump from the crowds and run around with fire in his tail!
Thanks for the tip about being early due to the number of tickets, being careful with monkeys, being respectful of local traditions with clothing etc.
I have also heard lots about the Uluwatu Temple and the Kechak Dance and it is really hard to guess which one is more famous. I think both are worth and both are equally famous. Good to know that it is performed there every day at 6pm as previously I was thinking it is held in specific months or festival time only. Uluwatu Beach Bukit Peninsula in Bali looks splendid and very photogenic.
Haha, that’s a good warning about the monkeys at Uluwatu. I wouldn’t want to be taken by surprise attack! It’s always a great cultural experience to see traditional dances. I have never heard of the Kechak Dance. It’s interesting that women have only been performing the dance since 2006. Good to know about getting there earlier, I am sure this is a popular event!
Mom is leaving for Bali next week and I really wish I would have booked the trip with her. Super jealous, and this has made it worst. Watching a fire dance, exploring temples and hanging out next to the water sounds perfect. I would love to see the monkeys but I have witnessed them get angry at Rock at Gibraltar and it was scary!
There is so much more than just beaches and resorts in this beautiful destination I must say and posts like these help us find these amazing places. What an amazing location right at the edge high cliff jutting into Indian Ocean. I have seen a few videos of the dance and have always wanted to experience it myself and this post only wants me to visit it sooner. This is a perfect place for photographers as well and I would not want to miss a perfect sunset shot. Thanks for a great post and your visuals compliment it.
We learned a valuable lesson when we visited Uluwatu. We took an Uber to the site. It was quick and cheap. But after we got dropped off, we could not get a ride back. We waited for almost an hour to jump into a cab just as people were leaving. We were so stressed out, we did not get to see the Kechak Dance. But we did get to encounter the crazy monkeys. They really tried to steal my sunglasses! Definitely plan to go back to Bali and try Uluwatu again.
That must have a been amazing experience and something which I would like to do in Bali. I can understand why people flock to see this performance, I would be there straight away. And the temple is in an ideal position, I would just go to see the temple and the sunsets from there but as an added bonus, a performance. I make sure I remember about this when I eventually get to Bali hopefully next year 🙂