The stone path across the lotus pond to the temple gate at Pura Taman Saraswati, the Ubud Water Palace, Bali

Temples

Updated September 2026

Ubud Water Palace, Pura Taman Saraswati

The lotus pond temple in the middle of Ubud used to be a free walk-in. It now has a ticket, a cap on numbers and a different dance every night except Friday.

Tickets and hours Tonight's dance

The Ubud Water Palace is the name everyone uses for Pura Taman Saraswati, a temple to the goddess of learning set behind a lotus pond on the main road through Ubud. It is not a palace, and it is not the same place as Ubud Palace two minutes down the road.

It is also no longer free. Most of what is written about it still says you can walk in past the cafe for nothing. You now pay 65,000 IDR at a gate, numbers inside are capped, and the evening dance is a separate ticket.

A fountain in the lotus pond at the Ubud Water Palace in the late afternoon, with the temple gates behind

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Ubud tours that include the water palace

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Ubud Water Palace entrance fee and tickets

How much it costs to enter, from the palace's own price list, and why the figure you read elsewhere is probably out of date.

What you pay for	Detail	Order of magnitude
Adult, foreign visitor	Entry to the outer grounds, sarong lent at the gate	65,000 IDR (≈ $4)
Child, foreign visitor	Same access as the adult ticket	50,000 IDR (≈ $3)
Adult, entry plus one printed photo	The palace photographer takes the picture on the bridge	100,000 IDR (≈ $6)
Photo package, three prints	Optional, on top of any ticket	100,000 IDR (≈ $6)
Evening dance performance	Every night except Friday, on the stage by the pond	100,000 IDR (≈ $6)
Indonesian residents, adult	On showing an Indonesian ID card	40,000 IDR (≈ $2.50)

Is Ubud Water Palace free?

For years the pond was one of the free things to do in Ubud: you walked down the path beside Cafe Lotus from the main road and nobody asked for anything. That has ended. The site is now managed as the Ubud Water Palace, with a ticket office at the entrance, an online booking system and a limit on how many people are inside at once, which the palace says is there to protect a sacred place from the crowds.

Guides written before the change still say free, and several written since quote 60,000 IDR. The figures above are the ones the palace itself publishes. The ticket buys you the outer grounds, meaning the path across the pond, the gardens and the view of the gates, with a sarong lent for the visit.

Do you need to book Ubud Water Palace tickets in advance?

Booking online fixes a date and a time, and the ticket is non-refundable and valid once. The palace advises booking because of the cap. It is worth doing for a busy slot in July or August, or if your only free hour is fixed. If there is space you can also buy at the gate, by cash, card or QRIS.

Visitors on the far side of the lotus pond at the Ubud Water Palace in late afternoon light, a fountain in the foreground — Late afternoon at the pond, with the temple gates on the right.

Ubud Water Palace opening hours

Saraswati Temple timings: 8am every day, late on Fridays, closed for Nyepi and ceremonies.

What time does Ubud Water Palace open and close?

The grounds open at 8am every day. Closing time depends on which page of the palace's own website you read: its FAQ says 6pm, its footer says 7.30pm. Plan on the grounds closing around 6pm. The evening performance runs later on the stage by the pond.

Friday is different. There is no dance, and the palace stays open until 9.30pm instead, which makes it the one evening you can see the pond after dark without an audience sitting in front of it.

When is Saraswati Temple closed?

It closes on Nyepi, the Balinese day of silence, when the whole island shuts, and during private ceremonies. The main one is the temple's anniversary, its piodalan, which comes round every 210 days on the Saturday of Tumpek Landep in the Balinese calendar.

If you happen to be in Ubud that day you may see part of it from the road: offerings, gamelan and people in white and gold going in to pray. You will not be let into the ceremony, and you should not expect a normal visit.

Ubud Water Palace dance show: schedule and tickets

A different Balinese dance six nights a week, none on Friday. Tonight is selected for you.

Monday

Joged

From about 7.30pm, 100,000 IDR (≈ $6)

A social dance: a solo dancer flirts with the audience and pulls people up to dance with her, to a bamboo gamelan. Light, funny and very participatory.

Who it suits: Anyone who wants an easy, cheerful evening. Sit near the aisle only if you are happy to be picked.

Programme as published by the palace in September 2026. It can change around temple ceremonies, so confirm with the palace on the day if one particular dance is the reason you are going.

What time is the Ubud Water Palace dance show?

The stage sits at the edge of the pond with the three temple gates lit up behind the dancers, and it is the best setting for a dance in Ubud. The ticket is 100,000 IDR and the show starts at around 7.30pm. Arrive twenty minutes early for a seat with a clear view of the gates.

Can you watch the dance from Cafe Lotus for free?

Cafe Lotus, the restaurant along the pond, has tables facing the same stage. Several guides report that you can watch from a table there without the dance ticket as long as you spend a minimum on dinner, around 200,000 IDR a head. The palace does not publish that arrangement, so ask when you book the table.

If you only have one evening, Tuesday's mixed programme gives you several dances in one sitting. For what each style actually involves, and where else in town it plays, see the Ubud Palace dance guide.

Dancers of the Chandrawati Ladies Orchestra troupe in gold costumes on the evening stage at Pura Taman Saraswati, Ubud — The Tuesday troupe on stage, with the temple gate lit behind them.

Is Ubud Palace and Ubud Water Palace the same?

No. Three places share the words "water" and "palace", and search results mix them up all the time.

Place	What it is	Where	Entry
Ubud Water Palace	Pura Taman Saraswati, a temple behind a lotus pond	Jalan Raya Ubud, centre of Ubud	65,000 IDR
Ubud Palace	Puri Saren Agung, the royal family's residence	The main crossroads, two minutes east on foot	Free by day
Tirta Gangga	A real royal water palace with stepping stones and fountains	Karangasem, east Bali, about two hours away	Separate fee

The confusion comes from the English name. The Ubud site was never a palace: it is a temple built for the royal family of Ubud, and "water palace" is the name given to the gardens and pond in front of it. Ubud Palace itself is the royal residence on the crossroads, a different compound with no pond at all.

The places people photograph on stepping stones between fountains are in the east of the island, at Tirta Gangga and at Taman Ujung nearby. If a tour itinerary says only "water palace", ask which one before you book: one is a two-minute walk from your hotel, the other is most of a day.

What is inside Saraswati Temple Ubud?

A lotus pond, a path, three carved gates, and a temple you look at from outside.

You come in from the main road and the lotus pond opens up in front of you, split down the middle by a stone path lined with carved guardian figures. At the end of it stand three red-brick gates, the kori agung, covered in carving so dense it looks like lace. That view, from the start of the path, is the one on every postcard.

The temple was built in 1951 and 1952 for the royal family of Ubud and designed by I Gusti Nyoman Lempad, the sculptor and temple architect behind much of old Ubud. Many of the statues around the pond are his work. It is dedicated to Saraswati, goddess of learning, music and the arts, which suits a town that has lived off its painters, carvers and dancers for a century.

What you cannot do is go through the gates. The inner temple is reserved for people coming to pray, and the palace's own rules say it is closed to all visitors. You see its shrines over the wall. That is why half an hour is enough, and why people who expected a palace to walk around are sometimes disappointed.

The carved red-brick kori agung gates of Pura Taman Saraswati with steps leading up to the inner temple, Ubud, Bali — The kori agung gates. Visitors stop at the foot of the steps.

The thatched pavilions of Cafe Lotus along the lotus pond at the Ubud Water Palace, Bali — Cafe Lotus runs along the side of the pond, with the pavilions on the right looking straight at it.

Cafe Lotus at the Ubud Water Palace

The restaurant along the pond has been there since the early 1980s and is the reason the temple became famous with visitors in the first place. It is part of the same complex, is where the site's restrooms are, and serves Balinese and Indonesian food, including a royal rijsttafel.

It is not cheap for Ubud, and you are paying for the view. Lunch on a quiet weekday with the pond in front of you is a nice way to spend an hour. Dinner on a dance night is the busiest table in town, so book it.

What is the dress code for Ubud Water Palace?

Shoulders and knees covered, sarong lent at the gate. It is a working temple, and the rest of the rules are short.

What to wear at Saraswati Temple

Cover shoulders and knees, and put on the sarong you are handed at the entrance. It is included in the ticket, so there is nothing to rent and nothing to bring. The sarong covers most sins, but a top that covers your shoulders is on you.

Saraswati Temple rules and etiquette

Stay on the paths, do not climb on the statues or the walls, and leave offerings alone, including the small ones on the ground that are easy to step on. Keep your voice down near the gates. Women who are menstruating are traditionally asked not to enter Balinese temple grounds; nobody checks, and it is left to you.

Best time to visit Ubud Water Palace

Early for photographs and open lotus flowers, late afternoon if you are staying for the dance.

Ubud Water Palace in the morning or the evening?

At 8am, when the gate opens, the pond is quiet and the light comes in low across the water. Tour groups arrive from mid-morning and the path fills with people waiting for the same photograph. Late afternoon is softer and busier, and it sets you up for the dance at 7.30pm.

When do the lotus flowers bloom at Saraswati Temple?

The lotus flowers are what most people come for, and guides disagree about when they bloom. Some say the dry season, some the wet. The flower in the photograph was open in late August, in the middle of the dry season. The more useful rule is the time of day: lotus flowers open in the morning and many have closed by mid-afternoon, so an early visit gives you the most colour whatever the month.

If the flowers are the whole point, look at recent visitor photos from the week you are going before you plan the morning around them.

A pink lotus flower open above the leaves in the pond at Pura Taman Saraswati, Ubud, in the morning — Photographed at 8.40 in the morning, in late August.

Is Ubud Water Palace worth visiting?

A good short stop, and a better evening.

Who the Ubud Water Palace is worth it for

Yes, for half an hour. The pond and the gates are beautiful, the carving is some of the best in town, and it sits on the road you will walk down anyway. At 65,000 IDR it is no longer a free bonus, but it is still cheap for what it is.

Yes, very much, for a dance night. Watching a dance with the lit gates behind the stage is the best version of the place, and it is the reason to plan around it rather than just drop in.

Probably not if you are short of time and have already seen the photographs. You cannot go inside, and the visit is exactly what the pictures show.

How long should you spend at Ubud Water Palace?

Half an hour covers the grounds; allow two hours if you stay for the dance. It fits into a morning walk around the centre with no transport: the water palace at eight, then Ubud Palace two minutes east, the art market opposite, and on down Monkey Forest Road to the Sacred Monkey Forest. Do not drive: the centre of Ubud is gridlocked by mid-morning, and cars park at Ubud Central Parking on Jalan Suweta.

For more temples around Ubud, Goa Gajah and Tirta Empul are both within half an hour, and the Bali temples guide sorts them by what they are worth your time for.

Water palace on Maps

Ubud Water Palace: common questions

What people ask before walking down Jalan Raya Ubud to the pond.

How much to enter Ubud Water Palace?

65,000 IDR for a foreign adult and 50,000 IDR for a child, which is about four and three US dollars. A ticket that includes one printed photo taken on the bridge costs 100,000 IDR. Indonesian residents pay 40,000 IDR with an ID card. The evening dance is a separate 100,000 IDR ticket. The palace takes cash, cards and QRIS.

Is Ubud Water Palace free?

Not any more. For decades you could walk in from the main road past Cafe Lotus without paying, and many guides still say so. The site is now run as a ticketed attraction with a daily cap on visitor numbers, and every foreign adult pays 65,000 IDR at the gate or online.

Is Ubud Palace and Ubud Water Palace the same?

No. Ubud Palace, Puri Saren Agung, is the royal residence on the main crossroads, free to walk into during the day and known for its evening dance in the courtyard. The Ubud Water Palace is Pura Taman Saraswati, a temple with a lotus pond about two minutes' walk west along the same road, and it charges an entry fee. Tirta Gangga in east Bali is a third place, a genuine royal water palace about two hours away.

How long should I spend visiting Ubud Water Palace?

Twenty to thirty minutes covers the grounds: the path across the pond, the three gates, the carvings and a few photographs. Visitors cannot enter the inner temple, so there is no more to see than that. Add an hour and a half if you stay for the evening dance.

What is the dress code for Ubud Water Palace?

Shoulders and knees covered. The sarong for your legs is lent at the entrance and included in the ticket, so you do not need to bring one, but a top that covers your shoulders is up to you. The evening dance has no dress code beyond ordinary clothes.

What are the Ubud Water Palace opening hours?

From 8am into the early evening every day, and until 9.30pm on Fridays. The palace's own website gives 6pm in one place and 7.30pm in another, so plan on the grounds closing around six and the later hour applying to the evening crowd. It closes on Nyepi and during private ceremonies.

Is Ubud Water Palace worth visiting?

Yes, as a short stop, and it is best in the evening with a dance. The lotus pond and the carved gates are lovely, and it sits in the middle of town, so it costs you almost no time. It is not a half-day attraction: you cannot enter the temple itself, and the grounds take half an hour. Combine it with Ubud Palace and the market on the same walk.

What dance is on at Ubud Water Palace tonight?

It depends on the day. Monday is Joged, Tuesday the Ladies Orchestra and Dance Troupe, Wednesday the Ramayana Ballet, Thursday Barong, Saturday Legong and Sunday Janger. There is no performance on Friday. Shows start around 7.30pm and cost 100,000 IDR.

Do I need to book Ubud Water Palace tickets in advance?

The palace advises it, because it caps the number of people inside at any one time. If there is space you can buy at the gate, which is the safer bet outside July and August. Online tickets are for a set date and time, non-refundable and valid once, so only book ahead if your day is fixed.

What is the most famous temple in Ubud?

Pura Taman Saraswati, the water palace, is the one almost every visitor sees, because it sits on the main road in the centre of town. Goa Gajah, the Elephant Cave a few kilometres east, is the oldest, and Tirta Empul, twenty-five minutes north, is the one people go to for the purification ritual.

Around the centre of Ubud

Ubud Palace

Two minutes east: the royal compound, free by day, with its own dance in the courtyard at night.

Ubud

What to do in and around the town, and which part of it to stay in.

Sacred Monkey Forest

Fifteen minutes' walk south, and what the macaques will try to take from you.

Tirta Gangga

The other water palace, in east Bali: stepping stones, fountains and a long drive.