Canggu
Where to lay your head
Where to lay your head
With literally hundreds of places to stay in Canggu, it is all about cutting the wheat from the chaff and we’ve broken our pick of the crop out into selections for hostels, surf stays, yoga camps, flashpacker/midrange choices, family options and a clutch of higher-end digs.
Just because you’re after a comfy dorm bed doesn’t mean you need to forgo a turquoise swimming pool and perhaps a ricefield view. Here are our pick of the many hostels in Canggu.
Veiled behind a rustic street-front cafe on busy Jalan Raya Semat, The Project Hostel oozes charm by the bucketload. Cute Javanese wooden Joglo- and Gladak-style antique houses edge a terrific decent-sized pool which takes up most of the open grounds. The three four-bed, mixed, air-con dorms are smallish but plenty roomy enough that you won’t be tripping over each other. Sturdy wooden bunks... Read our full review of The Project Hostel and Cafe.
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On the quiet side of Canggu, Ehomestay offers island vibes in a breezy bamboo and wooden structure. Behind a sliding blue wooden gate with “Trojan horse” wheels a small grassy courtyard, guarded by barking, but friendly watch dogs (we’re informed they don’t bark once they get to know you), EHomestay is home to the open double-storey structure that houses a dorm upstairs and the... Read our full review of EHomestay.
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The somewhat quirky Farmer’s Yard Hostel started life not as a hostel, but as a community permaculture garden project, and that remains its prime purpose. “Putting an end to carless tourism” is their motto, and the idea is that if you stay here, you’ll be prepared to do a bit of work in the garden, and become part of the local Balinese community (even for a little while)—it... Read our full review of Farmer’s Yard Hostel.
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In the midst of Balinese bucolic beauty, overlooking (hopefully not the last of) Canggu’s rice fields, The Farm Hostel, offers social spaces and chill zones, a clean and comfy rest, swimming pool and walking encyclopaedias of local knowledge, AKA the staff. This “boutique hostel” (read pricier than a cheap homestay) is housed in a large open-plan Joglo (antique Javanese house), and at... Read our full review of The Farm Hostel.
The large leafy garden at The Hideout Hostel is the perfect sanctuary to, well, hideout and swing in a hammock, have a stretch in the yoga sala or just chill with the other guests in one of the assorted lounges at this easy-going hostel after your day in the surf. Sheltered in a suburban side street, but only about a kilometre to the beach, The Hideout Hostel occupies a converted house with... Read our full review of The Hideout Hostel.
Like Kuta and Legian further south, Canggu attracts a significant segment of the surfer set, who’ve been tempted by Canggu’s slightly less crowded waves and a comfortable social scene. While many places to stay offer board hire, the following were some of our favourites.
Ayok Stay and Surf is a simple, stylish family-run guesthouse, minutes walk to the beach—word is Ayok and his dad are top blokes, and patient and funny surf instructors too (surf lessons 350,000 rupiah for two hours), but we only met the very friendly staff. The double-storey guesthouse is enclosed in a tiny private garden next door to the family home. There’s no pool, but really the sea... Read our full review of Ayok Stay and Surf.
Just a short stroll to some pumping waves, Berawa Beach Surf Stay is a mellow and friendly homestay, perfect for post surf chilling. A mix of comfortable three-bed “shared rooms” (we’d call them dorms), twins and doubles, two appealing swimming pools plus a terrific communal lounge and rooftop deck entice you to kick back and let the worries of the world disappear like an ebb tide. Run... Read our full review of Berawa Beach Surf Stay.
Surf all day, but want a relaxing comfortable and clean base? Mote Surfstay offer a range of smart and neat rooms surrounding a grassy garden and sparkling swimming pool plus a terrific communal chill space perfect for meeting other travellers. Tiled rooms are clean and fuss-free, spacious with super comfy beds available with basic amenities in the standard rooms, and adding TV, DVD player,... Read our full review of Mote Surfstay.
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Want to surf? Want to stretch? Solid Surf House offer package deals for bed-and-breakfast, surfing (for beginners and all levels), and yoga. So if you’d like to stay in their lovely rooms, you’ll have to sign up for the whole deal. Minimum is for five nights, though shorter stays are sometimes available (but you’ll miss out on the included airport transfer), and maximum is 21 nights.... Read our full review of Solid Surf House.
The appealing designer beach-house style and laid-back ambiance at The Chillhouse certainly taps into the idea of the “tropical lifestyle retreat” they market themselves as—the emphasis is on surfing, but mountain biking, yoga and spa packages are all up for grabs, made even more desirable with good food, a comfy bed and the opportunity to socialise and make new friends. The Chillhouse... Read our full review of The Chillhouse.
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Surf, party, chill, repeat. Layday Surf Hostel kicks in with all that, plus a comfy spot to lay your head (or pass out). If you’re after a quiet hostel, look elsewhere, this is a sociable party place ideal for solo travellers who are looking to make some awesome new friends. Ten six-bed dorms (8 mixed, two female-only) line the length of the longhouse block facing a small yard with not one,... Read our full review of Layday Surf Hostel.
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While plenty of places offer some options for yoga, here are three places to stay in Canggu that are truly dedicated to yoga.
Samadi describe themselves as a “centre for radical wellbeing and self-empowerment” and translated from New(age)speak we believe that means they do yoga, practice alternative therapies, serve healthy food and search for the meaning of life and happiness—they also offer some rather delightful accommodation. This popular centre has expanded to Samaditoo up the road, with more rooms and a... Read our full review of Samadi.
Desa Seni abounds with charm and authenticity with a fairytale village collection of restored and refurbished antique Indonesian houses sourced from all over the archipelago interspersed with yoga pavilions, vegetable gardens, a welcoming tea room, restaurant, spa, gift shop and salt-water swimming pool. Their central focus is sustainability, yoga and wellbeing and room rates include daily... Read our full review of Desa Seni.
Long established as an eco-friendly yoga-focused guesthouse, Serenity Eco Guesthouse offer a range of rooms from fan-cooled dorms and budget singles with share bathrooms, to air-con twins, doubles and “villas” built around a permaculture garden and 14 metre swimming pool. Yoga, massage, and meditation pavilions, chill spaces and a heath focused restaurant, Alkaline, pepper the somewhat... Read our full review of Serenity Eco Guesthouse.
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Not fussed about downward-facing dog or when high tide is, but happy to spend enough rupiah to dodge a dorm? Here are our picks of the many midrange and flashpacker options in Canggu.
Stylish and functional shabby-chic rooms, lovely serene garden and the terrifically accommodating hosts at Papaya Guesthouse make this one of our top midrange picks in Canggu. Eight spacious rooms occupy a double-storey block, designed in a way that rooms have no adjoining walls with wide balconies and verandas overlooking the swimming pool, leafy garden and greenery beyond. Hosts are a... Read our full review of Papaya Guesthouse.
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Less than a kilometre from the beach along Jalan Pantai Berawa, Puri Ayu Bali is a stylish and warmly welcoming family-run guesthouse. Within the family compound, various buildings house five rooms; a generous communal area which includes a living and dining room plus a kitchen; open bales to relax; a swimming pool as well as the family home. ###9331 Elegantly decorated with a style that... Read our full review of Puri Ayu Bali.
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Secluded in the serene mini-jungle that is Rimba Bird Guesthouse, ears filled with birdsong, and it’s hard to believe you’re in the busy part of Canggu. Tucked down a laneway off Jalan Raya Semat, beyond a parking area, a moss-covered gateway opens to a smallish, but splendid swimming pool. Edging the car park and extending to the pool, a long, narrow open-air white-tiled building houses... Read our full review of Rimba Bird.
If you’re quick, you may be among the first guests at A7 Guesthouse as it hadn’t quite opened the doors when we had a look-see in late February 2017. Just a stone’s throw from the sand and waves, A7’s seven rooms occupy a double-story block, and we’d give them an A too. A rooftop deck and interior courtyard pool offer more reasons to consider this beaut little guesthouse. Interiors... Read our full review of A7 Guesthouse.
For the some of the most charming and cosy budget rooms in Canggu, look no further than Canggu Stay. It’s pretty much room only—the sole facility is a share kitchen, there’s no garden, no pool, and no frills, but this is far from primitive. For a single traveller on a budget not into the hostel scene this is the best deal in town, although you’ll probably have to hang out at cafe’s... Read our full review of Canggu Stay.
We were impressed with the sweet cottages and welcoming staff at Come Back Guesthouse when we first popped in in February 2017, but disappointed to find they were fully booked—a good sign as they were newly opened in late 2016. Simple solution—we had to do as the name commands and come back. Near the start of a small lane off Jalan Pantai Berawa, Come Back Guesthouse hides behind a high... Read our full review of Come Back Guesthouse.
Spitting distance from Echo beach, Echoland B&B offers a range of small, simple and stylish rooms surrounding a decked swimming pool and a terrific rooftop restaurant / bar / yoga space in a two-storey block (plus the roof). Rooms are air-con or fan-cooled (the same room, just at different rate) and deluxe rooms are a little more spacious than the somewhat compact standard rooms. We didn’t... Read our full review of Echoland B&B.
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If being close to the beach is not as important as a good deal and a fabulous view, Grandpa Resort is worth a gander as it’s one of Canggu’s best value guesthouses and besides, it is just a 15 minute ride to the surf. It’s actually the location that gives Grandpa Resort the edge, the imposing triple-storey block is, to be honest, a blot on the landscape and sticks out like the... Read our full review of Grandpa Resort.
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Tucked at the end of a rutted lane off Jalan Pantai Berawa, Bali View Homestay offers four spacious rooms in two face-to-face brick duplexes with furnished terraces, a shared kitchen and plunge pool in an enclosed courtyard garden. The long, narrow rooms offer comfy twin or double bed options with plenty of room for cat-swinging and provide both air-con and ceiling fans. Rooms are rather... Read our full review of Bali View Homestay.
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Lie in bed and watch the crashing waves from the top floor rooms at Pondok Nyoman Bagus Guesthouse, or just listen to them from the ground floor, either way, you’re as close as you’re going to get to the ocean in this price range in Canggu. Plus you can imbibe even more of the sensational sweeping view from the rooftop infinity pool and bar. Housed in a double-storey block, all rooms face... Read our full review of Pondok Nyoman Bagus Guesthouse.
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While many families opt for private villas and residential rentals in Canggu, there are some excellent guesthouses and boutique hotels that may appeal—and they need not break the bank.
Bursting at the seams with character, Roemah Peranakan is a delightfully appealing small boutique hotel featuring a row of five unique antique Javanese-Chinese houses each with its own distinctive original decor, two shared furnished gazebos and a swimming pool. Three two-bedroom (one double-storey), and two one-bedroom houses are air-con cooled and each contains a small kitchen and some form... Read our full review of Roemah Peranakan Bali.
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The quintessential Robinson Crusoe desert island paradise is what awaits at The Calmtree Bungalows: dense tropical foliage; driftwood, bamboo and thatch huts; romantic mosquito-netted beds and an archetypal blue lagoon (ok, that one is a swimming pool). Five double-, one twin- and two family-bungalows that sleep four and six arc around the pool facing on open-air restaurant pavilion. We... Read our full review of The Calmtree Bungalows.
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After good value villa-like accommodation, but your budget is more midrange and beachside isn’t a priority? Pick a colour. United Colors of Bali offer cute and colourful two-bedroom thatched-roofed bungalows in private bamboo-fenced gardens edging a communal swimming pool and manicured lawn. Located to the north of Jalan Raya Canggu, a fifteen minute drive to the beach (or a decent hour-long... Read our full review of United Colors of Bali.
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Canggu is none too shabby when it comes to the high end—you can easily spend thousands of dollars a night if you’d like, but you know what? You don’t need to. Here are three outstanding upper range places to stay in Canggu, each with its own character.
Lavish antique-filled and sublime, the opulent beachfront Hotel Tugu Bali is our top pick in Canggu. One of several Tugu hotels and restaurants around Indonesia, this is by no means a cookie-cutter chain, but the lovingly acquired private collection of Anhar Setjadibrata and his family whose passion and love for Indonesian and Asian culture and history are evident in the theme-park-like... Read our full review of Hotel Tugu Bali.
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Tucked away on the quiet side of Canggu a stone throw from Pererenan Beach, luxurious Lautan Kupu Kupu Villa offers grandeur in and intimate boutique hotel setting, a delightful surprise hidden behind a plain wooden gate. A cavernous L-shaped room with soaring ceilings, houses the lobby and communal living and dinning areas that skirt a 19-metre swimming pool. Copious lounges and seating... Read our full review of Lautan Kupu Kupu Villa.
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You might need a coat at The Slow, it’s so cool (metaphorically only, the air-con is fine), an arrow piercing the heart of Canggu’s hipstaville since it opened in December 2016. The style is paradise-meets-urban-industrial or as they describe the aesthetic, “tropical brutalism”, which continues from the excellent street-front restaurant (go, eat!) and into the sophisticated suites... Read our full review of The Slow.
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