Bali East Coast

When the wet season starts around November, the East Coast is offshore for the next 5 months

Best time to travel:

January

February

March

December

Sri Lanka

Serangan is the most popular wet season wave for intermediate level surfers. A great right and left reefbreak, just 20 minutes from Kuta, now accessible by car due to the filling in of Benoa Harbour. Works all day, on all tides, on all size swells. Consistent so therefore very crowded. But this means Nusa Dua is not so crowded these days, especially on big days.

Lee Wilson, Keramas tube. Photo Nobu Fuku

Rivermouth beach break with boiling hot black volcanic sand. Best at high tide up to 6 feet, depending upon sandbars. Beware of polluted river water and board breaking shore dump. Gets fairly crowded with Japanese surfers and Sanur locals. Hard to find, so hire a local driver to take you.

Serangan, the most reliable reef in the wet season, also closest to Kuta. Rights and Lefts, good on all tides. Photo Tim Hain

Hyatt Reef is a very long way from shore (2 Kms) so hire a jekung boat to take you out and wait while you surf. There have been reports of a huge shark that is said to cruise the break often, but that may just be the locals trying to scare us off a good but fickle wave.

A couple of fun right and left reefbreaks in front of the classic Tanjung Sari Hotel and the Sanur beach markets. The right can get awesome at dead low tide with a big swell (wear your reef boots). It offers a very long and fast ride at low tide, but at high tide it tends to break into sections and is therefore rarely ridden by tourist surfers.

These days lots of the local Sanur kids learn to surf here on the small days, so if you paddle out practice your Indonesian on them and make friends.

Tipi Jabrik, Sanur Reef, first big swell of May. Photo Tim Hain

One of the world’s best right reef breaks when over 8 feet. But unfortunately fickle Sanur only breaks about 20 days a year, because it needs a very big swell from the right direction. Only a few days each year get over 10 feet. Nusa Dua is far more consistent and reliable, so surfers rarely stay at Sanur.

Keramas lineup, Photo Hilton Dawe Thanks to Billabong

Golden Monkey was a well-kept secret for 20 years, but a new road changed all that. A world-class hollow right, peeling off over a black lava ledge, a bit like Off The Wall. Gets very crowded with hot locals and visiting pros. There are a couple of beach breaks on the walk in to avoid the crowds.

Lebih

About 1 hour’s drive from Kuta. Black Magic Point is a very sucky right lava-bottom ledge, on a black sand beach. Needs a big swell. At high tide it only closes out half the time - at low tide you’d be crazy to even try. A tube junkie’s delight. The east coast still has unexplored surf potential, so maybe try driving down any road heading to a beach, or hiring a boat to cruise around the bays. Good luck! And keep it secret.

Padang Bai

Rumours of a good right hand point break peeling into the mouth of the harbour. But it needs a giant swell to even break, and you could be driving past excellent 8 foot Sanur or Keramas to get it at possibly 4 feet? However you might also be the only surfer there! About a 3 hour drive from Kuta. The harbour water can get quite polluted with oil and diesel, so bring soap and shampoo to wash off after surfing here.

SUP Bali’s Pete Cox on a typical day for Nusa Dua - overhead, thick and powerful 200 metre rides. Photo Trevor Murphy

Nusa Dua is Bali’s most consistent right reef break, rarely under 4 feet. Often the only place breaking for weeks, so it does get crowded (60+ surfers over 3 peaks). Breaks about 1 Km offshore, so hire a jekung ride out and back (around $10) from Surfer’s Beach, just past the Nusa Dua Golf Course and turn left at the Aman Nusa Resort. Look for the Surfer’s Beach sign, or as always it is better to hire a local driver.

This is what you dreamed Bali would be like - living right on the sand of a quiet, palm-fringed beach! Nusa Lembongan’s beaches have no paved roads or cars to detract from the peaceful idyllic lifestyle enjoyed by the local fishermen for centuries. You can really relax and slow down here, beach combing for hours as you wait for the tide to come in and the surf to start pumping.

It's definitely worth the $5 a day for TRAVEL INSURANCE to avoid having to pay $50,000 for an Emergency Flight if you get badly injured on the sharp coral reefs or crazy roads.

Get the best value Travel Insurance here

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Top Travel Tips

Indo Surf & Lingo Checklist

OK! So you're amped up, ready to go right now eh? But there's still lots of planning to do before you can enjoy paddling out into your first surf in Indonesia.

The Book has a handy Checklist of some of the things you'll need to think about before you're ready to board your airplane. It's by no means a complete list, but it's a good start.

One of the best things you can take along with you on your first overseas surf trip is A Good Attitude...

Bali East Coast

Bali East Coast

Bali East Coast

When the wet season starts around November, the East Coast is offshore for the next 5 months

Sri Lanka

Padang Galak

Serang, Turtle Island

Hyatt Reef

Tanjung Sari

Sanur Reef

Keramas

Lebih

Padang Bai

Nusa Dua

Nusa Lembongan

Our #1 Recommendation for Bali East Coast

It's definitely worth the $5 a day for TRAVEL INSURANCE to avoid having to pay $50,000 for an Emergency Flight if you get badly injured on the sharp coral reefs or crazy roads.

Regions

Top Travel Tips

Indo Surf & Lingo Checklist