A Blissful Day in Ubud: Healthy Eats, Morning Yoga, and Coffee

Most of youngsters, including me most of the times, go visiting Bali for the beach clubs, parties, boozes, and so on. But after days (or weeks!) full of those, life can be little bit too overwhelming even for party animals and you will feel a constant need for more peaceful slower-paced life where you can have more time to chill and be relaxed. Good thing for you, Bali has it all!

Bali has always been one of my most favorite islands of all time no matter the hushes saying that Bali is getting more and more overrated by time. Simply because I grew up not too far from Bali so it’s kind of being my ‘safe haven’, plus for me Bali keeps on developing into a better stage but still offers real authentic pictures and experiences just like years ago.

In this post, I’m going to tell you about one of my favorite places in Bali to unwind, Ubud. For you who are staying in busy areas such as Canggu, Seminyak, or Kuta, Ubud can be a perfect short getaway. You can rent a car with driver and head directly to Ubud, book a beautiful cottage or private villa for one or two nights, and then get ready to do some exploring to go back to your peaceful state of mind. So here are my favorite activities to do for a blissful day in Ubud!

08.00 – 09.30

Munching on healthy breakfast at Sage

I am not a full-time vegan but long days spent hopping on and off the beach clubs with countless shots of alcohols do make me miss cleansing and detoxing my body, so I love to head to one of healthy eating places in Ubud, Sage. The tagline for Sage itself is ‘vibrant vegan cuisine’, and they stick pretty true to this mantra as everything that comes out of their kitchen is made with animal-free ingredients. To be honest, the thing that I don’t really like from many vegan restaurants (sorry not sorry!) is that they all come with the same boring formulas in serving their foods – but Sage is little bit different. The foods here are actually pretty vibrant with colorful smoothie bowls topped with exotic local fruits, fresh salad bursting with rainbow-hued veggies and crunchy bites, and a few deep-fried dishes because we are still allowed to indulge a little in the middle of ‘clean eating’.

Sage is super homey with the unique architecture and plenty of cozy corners where you can chill out and enjoy your meal in peace. The staffs here are super friendly and nice and they are more than happy to help you if you need anything. I love Sage because their menu is far from boring – just say the Tempeh Buffalo Wings (IDR 40K) that consists of crispy corn-crusted tempeh fried until golden and served with a spicy buffalo sauce and a creamy ranch dressing on the side.

In short, the plus point is that this chilled out little spot has a good vibe going on and interesting vegan foods that breaks out of the usual raw veggies and cashew butter fare that so many other vegan places offer. In fact, even me the occasionally meat-eater doesn’t feel like ‘being forced’ to eat here and I happily take all the deep fried beans and veggies, no shame!

11.00 – 12.30

Morning yoga at The Yoga Barn

When it comes to unwind after days full of fun yet could-be-stressful activities, yoga is the first thing that comes to my mind. Nothing beats the peaceful and relaxing meditation atmosphere to keep a steady state of mind. The Yoga Barn is one of my favorite yoga places in Bali. This place was artistically built as a craft studio and retreat center. The Yoga Barn provides a lush and inspiring environment for the nourishing of body, mind, and soul right in the center of Ubud.

Featuring over 15 classes a day to choose from, the programming team at The Yoga Barn has created a diverse schedule of the highest quality. The Yoga Barn is accessible both for the beginners and the pros. The classes here fill up very quickly with the first-come-first-served basis, so the reservation or early-booking is recommended especially during the high season. For a day-hoppers, you can buy one class session for IDR 130K or buy few times class packages at once.

14.00 – 16.00

Visiting Tegalalang Rice Terrace (or joining the bike tour if possible)

Tegalalang Rice Terrace is one of the main tourist attractions in Bali and while it is widely-known by a lot of travelers and tourists from all over the world, I’m still going to recommend you to visit this place just because of the magical lush green scenery that is good for your mind. It is located North of Ubud in a beautiful valley and you can take an easy 20-minutes drive from the center of Ubud. Once you are here, you can enjoy the view from the top but it’s also possible to hike down and walk up on the other side again that I absolutely will encourage you to do. You will need anywhere from 30 minutes to 1.5 hours to explore every corner of the area so get your bottled water, comfortable slippers, and sunscreen ready!

16.00 – 17.30

Unique coffee-tasting at Bali Pulina

After a visit to the rice terrace, make sure that you pay attention to indulge on this unique coffee tasting experience at Bali Pulina, an agro tourism attraction that I highly recommend. In brief, here you will get an education about coffee-making process, from how to pick the right beans until how to properly roast your own beans so that you can get an authentic taste of coffee. Plus points of this coffee tasting place is that you get to do the experience and sip your cuppa coffee while staring at magnificent view of the plantations and series of rice terraces for FREE! No catch whatsoever, what could possibly be better than that?

19.00 – 20.30

Indulging on Balinese massage at local spa

After long day of exploring Ubud, one great thing to do is heading to local spa parlor and getting pampered of massage by your choice. One thing to remember so that your pampering time won’t be somewhat a hassle is to book your massage session in prior to secure your time. I might not be specifically mentioning my favorite spa place here but I had a pleasant experience at Jaens Spa, Ubud. Jaens Spa is decorated similar like any other spas in Ubud but they play a lot around the nuance of healing elements, such as bamboo, water, stone, natural light, and plants. Just what my eyes want to indulge while pampering my body.

All of the products at Jaens Spa are natural and handmade with recipes that will nourish your body, mind, and spirit. Enjoy being pampered while your five senses will be stimulated by the sound of trickling fountains, alluring traditional Balinese spa music, caring touch, a visually pleasing aesthetic, the scent of natural herbs, oil, and flowers, and the warm complimentary herbal tea after.

22.00 – 00.00

Ending the day with a romantic dinner at Mozaic Restaurant Gastronomique

Mozaic is an award-winning garden restaurant and lounge tucked away in a quieter part of Ubud on Jalan Raya Sanggingan, where you can enjoy fine dinners in a lush and romantic open garden setting with your loved ones, or in a spacious and cozy dining pavilion for big groups. Chef owner, Chris Salans, presents his fresh approach to French cuisine that incorporates local, exotic Balinese ingredients through a varying menu, combined with private dinner experience. The Mozaic Lounge also serves signature cocktails from its modest lounge bar, with some unique ingredients to spice up your evening a little bit more before you end the day. When you’re ready for dinner, you proceed along a stone walkway that leads you to Mozaic’s garden where candlelit tables are surrounded with rattan chairs and the gleaming fire torches glowing under an open star-lit sky. Mozaic’s menu is a regularly changing one as apparent in its four 6-course testing or is called ‘Discovery’ menus. For me personally, the dedication of the chef and all the staffs here leads to accolade for the overall fine dining experience.