Benoa (Nusa Dua) Area in Bali

Benoa (Nusa Dua) is one of the calmest and most prestigious areas in Bali. It is located in the south-east of the island, on the Bukit Peninsula, just 25–30 minutes’ drive from the airport via the scenic expressway Bali Mandara Toll Road.

The area was developed specifically as a resort zone: there are many luxury hotels, expensive restaurants, stunning white-sand beaches, wide roads, and green parks. 

Nusa Dua is an ideal place for people who enjoy a relaxed beach holiday and those who prefer to have everything they need within walking distance. It’s also a great place for families with children. 

If you’re staying at a hotel in the resort part of Benoa and don’t plan to travel to the other areas, you don’t need to worry about renting transport. Along the coastline, you can get around by bicycle, which hotels rent out. In addition, most resorts run free shuttles to Nusa Dua’s main shopping complex, Bali Collection. If you only need to go somewhere occasionally, you can use ride-hailing taxis (Grab, GoJek) or Blue Bird Taxi. 

If you live in the non-touristy part and are planning to stay long term, it’s better to rent a scooter or a car.

It’s become common to refer to the Benoa area as Nusa Dua. But Nusa Dua is only a small part of it. “Nusa” in Indonesian means island. “Dua” means two. The name comes from two small peninsulas on Bukit.

The history of Nusa Dua began in 1973, after research by the World Bank and the Indonesian government, which was trying to create a sustainable, integrated model for tourism.

As a result, the Bali Tourism Development Corporation (BTDC) was established to manage the future Nusa Dua complex.

Now, more than four decades later, Nusa Dua is an area with hotels, the Pasifika Museum, the Bali Collection shopping centre, and the Nusa Dua Bali Theatre, conference centres (Bali International Convention Centre,  Bali Nusa Dua Convention Center), and the BIMC Nusa Dua medical centre. 

Over the past decades, Nusa Dua has hosted kings, presidents, and ministers attending international high-level meetings. It has hosted the UN Climate Change Conference and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit. In autumn 2022, it welcomed the leaders of the G20.

In the area often marked on maps as BTDC (named after the corporation), there is a park that attracts tourists with its well-kept look: wide palm-lined paths, tropical gardens, grand statues, and fountains. It’s a fully gated resort zone linking hotels and beaches, where you can walk, cycle, or simply relax. The area is guarded, with checkpoints at the entrances, which is why the ITDC park looks much cleaner and more tidy than most other areas of Bali. Outside its boundaries, everyday Balinese life is in full swing. 

Nusa Dua is home to luxury five-star beachfront hotels with soft beige sand. Among the most recommended hotels are The St. Regis Bali Resort, Samabe Bali Suites & Villas, Merusaka Nusa Dua, The Ritz-Carlton, Mulia Resort Nusa Dua, Ayodya Resort Bali, Hilton Bali, and The Apurva Kempinski Bali.

They are located right on the beachfront and are ideal for a beach holiday, as this part of the area is hardly affected by shallow water at low tide.

A bit further north, there are hotels where the sea becomes shallow at low tide: The Royal Santrian Luxury Beach Villas, The Laguna, The Westin Resort Nusa Dua, Bali, Nusa Dua Beach Hotel & Spa, Paradisus by Meliá, Sofitel Bali Nusa Dua Beach Resort, Grand Aston Bali Beach Resort, Bali Tropic Resort & Spa, Conrad Bali, and Grand Hyatt Bali. They are known for good service, but you’ll need to plan swimming around the tide schedule. The optimal water depth for swimming is under two metres (1.6 m). 

Almost all hotels are open to visitors: you can book a table at a restaurant and take a walk around the grounds at the same time. Also, some resorts offer a day pass (day ticket)—use of the pool, beach, sun loungers, and sometimes the gym and kids’ club, even if you’re not staying there.

Besides staying in luxury hotels, you can also find affordable guesthouses here. Most of them are located on Tanjung Benoa. If you’re looking for a guesthouse from IDR 350,000 per night, consider: Puri Clinton Bali, Frangipani Homestay, Palm Garden Bali, Kubu Garden Suites & Villas Nusa Dua, d'Mell Bali. Don’t expect five-star luxury or that the sea will always be deep enough for swimming. But these are some of the best budget guesthouse options in Benoa near the beach.

In the southern part of Benoa, closer to Savangan Beach, you can find private houses for rent about 5–15 minutes’ drive from the beach. If you want budget long-term accommodation in Benoa, try looking in Kampial Residence, Taman Mumbul, and around Jl. Kemuning. 

The most popular with our fellow nationals are the Plagoo Holiday Hotel and residential complexes Royal Garden Residence, Mumbul - Nusa Dua,  Global Village, and Putra Bali Hill. These are gated, guarded complexes with private houses, a shared leisure area, and a swimming pool. 

Plagoo Holiday Hotel offers one- or two-bedroom apartments; the price includes breakfast and access to the gym. There is also a nursery on the hotel grounds, as well as a small outdoor playground. 

Long-term rentals (at least one year) are much cheaper. Prices start from IDR 11 million per month. 

Nightlife in Nusa Dua isn’t very well developed. There are only a few places with a nice atmosphere and club-style music, where you can have a cocktail or go on a romantic date, but dancing is unlikely (Le Bleu by K Club, Manarai Beach House). 

For clubs and parties, it’s better to go to other areas, such as Kuta, Seminyak, or Uluwatu. 

That said, there are still plenty of things to do in Nusa Dua: cultural events, water sports, surfing, and shopping.

Bali Nusa Dua Theatre runs a theatre-and-dance show four times a week dedicated the history and culture of Indonesia: “Devdan Show: Treasures of the Archipelago”. 

If you enjoy water activities, then besides surfing you can try water rides—banana boats, jet skis, underwater walks in a helmet, and flyboarding above the water. You’ll find all of this in the Tanjung Benoa area, in the northern part of Benoa.

Thrill-seekers can go paragliding above some of the most beautiful beaches and enjoy views of the turquoise Indian Ocean. MyBaliTrips offers “Paragliding with an instructor”, weather permitting.

Nusa Dua Park on the Peninsula Island (Peninsula Island) is one of the area’s most interesting sights. In the evenings you can take a stroll and admire the grand statues, and at high tide you can visit the Waterblow attraction—a reef where strong waves crash. The splash can reach 8 km in height, creating the effect of an underground geyser or fountain. 

On Fridays from 18:00 to 19:00, the park amphitheatre hosts a traditional Balinese Kecak dance performance (Kecak and Barong Dance The Nusa Dua).

Every day, locals come to the park for a run, and at weekends they have picnics on the lawn. 

From the park, you can walk along the promenade in either direction. Along the way, you’ll come across various small restaurants, surf spots, lounge areas, and beach clubs. On the beach by The Westin, there is an outdoor sports court called Beach Workout Westin Beach Workout. It’s a multi-purpose fitness centre right on the oceanfront and is open to everyone. While the kids swim and play in the sand, you can work out. 

All the equipment is made from eco-friendly materials—wood, leather, and cotton. Available: dumbbells, kettlebells, ropes, barbells, rings, balance boards, and benches, as well as a climbing wall. There are also six wooden barrels with cool water, where you can refresh yourself after a workout. 

Benoa is home to the Five Religions Square (Puja Mandala), where, within a relatively small area, you can find active places of worship for Indonesia’s five officially recognised religions: a mosque (Masjid Ibnu Batutah), a Hindu temple (Pura Jagatnatha), a Buddhist temple (Vihara Buddha Guna), a Protestant church (GKPB Bukit Doa), and a Catholic church (Gereja Katolik Maria Bunda Segala Bangsa). 

The Puja Mandala project was opened in 1997 and funded by BTDC—the same company that created the Nusa Dua complex. All temples on the Puja Mandala site are active, but they are not always open to visitors—access is according to a schedule.

Pasifika Museum has assembled a collection of Balinese painting masterpieces, from the classical era of traditional works to the present day. It features works by both foreign artists who moved to Bali and made it their home, and Balinese masters. There is also a rich collection of ancient Indonesian religious and everyday artefacts.

You can find more detailed information on the museum’s website. 

You can visit the Hindu temple Pura Geger (Pura Geger Dalem Pemutih) if you’d like to see a non-touristy, everyday Balinese temple. What’s more, it’s located very close to the luxury hotels of Nusa Dua.

The temple is located on a cliff and faces the calm blue ocean waves. The sound of the waves, the temple’s silence, the ocean breeze, and the scent of flowers from the offerings will bring you a sense of balance.

Please follow the temple visiting rules if you decide to go there. 

Within Nusa Dua, there is the Bali Collection shopping centre with clothing, accessories, and souvenir shops, as well as a wide range of restaurants, massage and spa salons.

It includes the Sogo department store with clothing and accessories, surfing and travel goods, three jewellery shops, a spa, the Seis optician, souvenir shops, Uncle supermarket, two currency exchange counters, Guardian pharmacy, and many restaurants and clothing stores (Levi's, Billabong, Quicksilver, Nike, Polo, 69 Slam, Uluwatu, Roxy, and others). For children, there’s a sweets, snacks, and excellent ice-cream shop, Sweetocean Gelato & Snack, with rocking horses at the entrance.

Outside Nusa Dua, in Benoa, there is a souvenir market just beyond the checkpoint gate. Prices at the market are not fixed, so don’t forget to bargain. Sometimes you can get the price down by 4–5 times.

On the way to Geger Beach, you’ll find Coco Supermarket Siligita Coco Supermarket Siligita, with a wide selection of groceries, souvenirs, and a surf clothing section. 

On Jl. Kuruksetra, there are budget grocery shops with household goods and children’s items: Ithon Mart,  MR.DIY, CLANDYS NUSA DUA. 

There are also several Pepito grocery stores. Prices are slightly higher than elsewhere, but the selection of imported products is larger: Pepito Nusa Dua (Pepito Market / Bread & Honey Cafe - Nusa Dua) and Pepito Siligita (Pepito).

Many of the area’s most expensive and luxurious restaurants are located inside five-star hotels.

Besides hotel restaurants, you can find plenty of interesting places in the Bali Collection shopping complex. It features cafés and restaurants with cuisines from around the world. The highest guest ratings go to: the Mediterranean restaurant Nusa By/Suka, the coffee shop DUA Kafe, the seafood restaurant Sapa Seafood & Grill - Nusa Dua, the Italian restaurant Rustic Bali Restaurant, the French restaurant JARD'OR French Restaurant, and the Indonesian restaurant Laguna Garden Restaurant. 

In many venues, there is live music in the evening. If you plan to have dinner here, it’s best to book a table in advance—for example, after 18:00 there are almost no free tables at Nusa by Suka. This restaurant stands out for its high-quality food and service. 

On Siligita Street (Jl. Siligita), there are many places to eat. There’s an entire food court, FOOD PARK SILICON, with affordable warungs: the Turkish place Tasty Turkish Nusa Dua, the Italian place Ke Pizza, and many others, as well as standalone restaurants such as Green Wood and Secret Cafe Nusa Dua. 

There are some very atmospheric spots with scenic terraces, good food, and a relaxed vibe: 

BROOK RESTAURANT is a panoramic restaurant with a kids’ room, a rooftop, and views over Bukit. There is shisha, and sometimes they host movie nights. It’s a great place for a romantic date or spending time with family. 

Signa Cafe combines a stylish interior with an unusual menu: Norwegian salmon soup, crab cakes, and courgette fritters. It’s perfect for a quiet chat, meeting friends, or a family dinner. 

Savory is a popular European bistro among expats, with a terrace on the third floor. The café has a calm atmosphere, so many people come here to work or hold business meetings.

Nusa Dua is known for its beautiful beaches, which are cleaned regularly. However, on most of them you can feel the impact of tides (use the tide chart). The beaches least affected by tides are Savangan, Geger, and Mengiat. 

On the beaches, you can not only swim and sunbathe, but also rent SUP boards, pedal boats, kayaks, and snorkelling gear. 

For example, at low tide at Geger Beach, you can swim out to the nearest reefs and see schools of colourful fish. 

During the winter months, Nusa Dua beaches get great waves, which, however, don’t prevent swimming. There are lifeguards on the beaches. 

Surfing in Nusa Dua becomes popular during the rainy season. This is because wind direction changes, currents change too, and in winter the spots on Bali’s east coast become more attractive for surfing. 

It’s worth noting that, in addition to everything mentioned above, Benoa has one of the most favourable climates in Bali. Thanks to its proximity to the ocean, it’s drier here and there is less rain than in the central part of the island. 

Every year the area develops rapidly: new interesting places appear, restaurants with tasty food, gyms, padel courts, massage and beauty salons, and shops. 

You will definitely find everything you need here for a comfortable holiday and everyday life.