Sanur Beach (Pantai Sanur)

Sanur Beach is a popular base for travelers, particularly families who value its calm waters over the more turbulent surfing beaches of Bali’s west coast. Set back from the beach and the main tourist drags, the town’s back streets still maintain a villagey feel, with temples and traditional shops.

Sanur Beach tours tend to focus on water sports—in particular, snorkeling, diving, kitesurfing, and the Bali Seawalker diving experience, where adventurers don a surface-supplied helmet, so no knowledge of diving is required. Cycling tours of Sanur are popular as well—there’s even a romantic sunrise option.

• Older travelers and families with young children often choose Sanur as a base for its central location and villagey feel.

• Many of Bali’s dive centers are in Sanur and run tours that depart from here.

• There are plenty of food choices on the beach, from cool beach clubs to simple local cafés.

Sanur sits on Bali’s east coast, about 10 miles (16 kilometers) from Ngurah Rai International Airport. It has relatively good transport connections, both locally and around the island, thanks to the Kura Kura bus, which travels around south Bali and to Ubud, and the Perama shuttle bus, which connects to the north coast, Ubud, and key south Bali locations.

The weather in Sanur—and Bali overall—is at its most clement during the dry season, roughly May to September. As with all Bali beach resorts, plastic trash can be an issue on Sanur Beach during the peak of the rainy season (usually January and February), when the weather is also less friendly for a beach vacation.

When Mick Jagger and Jerry Hall got married in 1990, they chose to do so at a villa in Sanur. Other star visitors include Yoko Ono and Sting. And Sanur was a tourist destination long before surfers discovered the waves of Kuta, Seminyak, and Uluwatu. While the area’s glamour may seem faded, look behind the scenes and there’s still a beachy charm.