Picking the Right Canggu Beach
The Canggu area is a neighborhood of villas with views of rice field terraces leading down to beaches and the endless horizon of the ocean. The southwest side of Canggu, bordering the ocean, is about five kilometers long. In the five kilometers of coastline in Canggu, there are five distinct beaches, each with its own character, offering something for everyone. Starting in the southeast, closest to Semiyak and Kuta and moving northwest, you will find Berawa Beach, Nelayan Beach, Batu Bolong Beach, Echo Beach, and Pererenan Beach.
Berawa Beach has surfing waves. The bottom is part sand, part flat rocks. Depending on how big the waves are, it can be ok for swimming and wading. There are not many bars and restaurants directly on the beach, but there is a moveable bar and a couple food vendors and someone renting lounge chairs and surf boards and boogie boards. You can walk to Berawa from other beaches or reach the beach on Jalan Pantai Berawa or Jalan Batu Belig. If you walk a hundred yards or so from the road in either direction you can have a pretty big stretch of beach to yourself most days.
Walking to the northwest from Berawa for about 500 meters you will reach Nelayan Beach. Nelayan beach has almost no development and still has a small active fishing fleet. There are rarely waves here and less current than on the other beaches, so Nelayan is the best beach in Canggu for wading and swimming.
Continuing to the northwest for another kilometer you arrive at Batu Bolong Beach. Batu Bolong has a big parking lot with several good, cheap warungs (local style restaurants) serving a mix of Indonesian and western food. There is a big temple on the south end of the beach. The best secret in Batu Bolong is the temple behind the warungs. It is small, but filled with intricate details. You cannot enter, but you can see plenty walking around the outside.
Passing Batu Bolong beach, you come to Echo Beach. Echo Beach is the worst beach in Canggu for swimming or wading. It has heavy surf, reef bottom, and a breakwater. Atop the breakwater there are several popular restaurants offering a great view of the expert surfers charging the reef break near the shore. This is the most upscale beach in Canggu and a great choice for sunset drinks or dinner.
Proceeding to the northwest again, you arrive at the last beach in Canggu, Pererenan beach on the other side of a small river which you can cross 100 meters inland on a small bridge. Pererenan beach has heavy surf and some current and rocks on the bottom in places, so it is not a great choice for swimming and wading. There are some warungs in front of the surf breaks where you can grab a beer and a snack. If you walk to the northwest you can find an empty stretch of beach.
Whether you want to surf or be a spectator, swim or wade, people watch or be alone, grub out on cheap grinds or enjoy an elegant ocean side dining experience, Canggu beaches have
something for everyone. You might also want to check out our other articles on Things to Do in Canggu/Echo Beach area, our Canggu map and area guide, and our guide to surfing Canggu.
