Ubud Guided Walking Tour: Historic Landmarks & Palace Access

Learn Ubud's history at four landmarks most visitors miss the context for

A guided walking tour of Ubud covering Ubud Palace, Puri Lukisan Museum, Campuhan Ridge Walk and the Prince's private compound, led by a local English-speaking guide over three hours. The tour includes museum entry and exclusive access to a traditional Balinese royal residence. Uneven temple stairs and steep gradients mean you'll need to be comfortable climbing and walking on patchy sidewalks. The guide will call if weather turns severe enough to delay the start.

Step-by-step itinerary

Stops and time spent at each

1. Campuhan Ridge Walk20m · entry included
2. Puri Lukisan Museum45m · entry included
3. Ubud Palace15m · entry included

Explore Ubud's cultural landmarks

• Visit Ubud's oldest temple
• Walk across Dutch colonial bridge
• Tour Ubud's oldest art museum
• Break for refreshments
• Explore Ubud Royal Palace courtyards
• Visit palace of Prince Tjokorde Gede Raka Sukawati

The experience

The tour opens at Ubud's oldest temple, where your guide explains how Hinduism arrived in Bali and what the temple's architecture tells you about community life. From there you walk to the Campuhan Ridge Walk, a modest bridge from the Dutch colonial era that marks a shift in the itinerary: here the focus moves to Indonesia's colonial history and how the Dutch East India Company's presence eventually brought the first tourists to Bali. The bridge itself is the hinge between two stories: spiritual Bali and the Bali that tourism built.

At Puri Lukisan Museum, Ubud's oldest art space, you'll see pre-World War II Balinese pieces and learn how 20th-century Balinese and Western artists collaborated in ways that established Ubud as an arts center. The museum visit includes a short break for refreshments. After that, you move to the outer courtyards of Ubud Palace, where the guide covers the historical and modern roles of Balinese royalty, palace architecture and traditional cremation rituals. The final stop is exclusive access to the compound of Tjokorde Gede Raka Sukawati, the Prince of Ubud, who shaped the city into what it is and co-founded the Pitamaha Foundation. Inside his palace you'll see how traditional Balinese compounds are laid out: a detail most visitors never encounter.

The walk covers three hours total and moves through an urban environment with uneven surfaces. Bring a reusable water bottle. The tour operator is working to reduce plastic in Bali's rivers and will refill it along the way. The guide operates rain or shine, though severe weather may delay the start time: consider that part of the adventure. There's no pickup from your accommodation, so you'll make your own way to the meeting point. Public transportation options are available nearby.

What’s included

• Local English-speaking guide.
• museum entry to Puri Lukisan.
• exclusive access to the Prince's private compound.
• water refills at a reusable bottle station along the route.
• local discounts at participating vendors.

Before you book

Days and timesEvery dayDepartures at 08:30 and 14:00

Book up to11h before

AgesAdult (10 and older) · Child (under 10)

GroupUp to 8

Live guideEnglish

Meeting point and pickupNo hotel pickup: you go to the meeting point. Ends at a different place from where it starts.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.

Prices and times updated 2 days ago

Good to know

Low physical effortPets welcomePublic transport nearby

Operated by Ubud Story Walks

Is this one for you?This is a shared group tour led by a local guide, so you're walking with other travelers and following a set route and schedule. Choose it if you want the context and stories behind Ubud's landmarks (the colonial history, the art world's role in the city, how royalty shaped it) rather than just seeing the buildings themselves. The three-hour pace and fixed itinerary mean the day is structured for you. You show up and the guide handles the narrative and the access to places like the Prince's compound that you couldn't reach on your own.

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Top questions

Can children come?

Yes. Ticket types: Child (under 10).

What is the Campuhan Ridge Walk and why does the tour stop there?

The Campuhan Ridge Walk is a modest bridge dating from the Dutch colonial era. The tour stops there to discuss Indonesia's colonial history and the Dutch East India Company's role in bringing the first wave of tourism to Bali. It's a physical marker of how Bali's story shifted from purely spiritual to also commercial.

Do I need to be fit to do this walking tour?

You'll walk for up to three hours around an urban environment with uneven temple stairs, steep gradients and patchy sidewalks. You should be physically capable of climbing steps and comfortable with those conditions. The operator notes the tour is suitable for all fitness levels, but the terrain itself cannot be altered.

What's included in the museum visit at Puri Lukisan?

Puri Lukisan Museum entry is included in the tour price. You'll explore the pre-World War II Balinese art collection with your guide and learn about the collaboration between Balinese and Western artists that made Ubud an arts center. There's a short refreshment break during the museum stop.

What is the Prince's palace compound and why is it exclusive access?

The Prince's palace is the private compound of Tjokorde Gede Raka Sukawati, the Prince of Ubud and co-founder of the Pitamaha Foundation. Access is exclusive to this tour. You'll see the traditional Balinese compound layout and learn how the Prince shaped Ubud's identity as a cultural center.

What happens if the weather is bad on the day of my tour?

The tour operates rain or shine. If conditions are severe, such as an intense downpour, the operator will call you before the start to discuss timing. Minor rain won't stop the tour. The operator treats weather as part of the Bali experience.

How do I get to the meeting point?

The tour does not include pickup from your accommodation. Public transportation options are available near the meeting point in Ubud. You'll arrange your own transport to get there.