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Well, you’ve found yourself in Kuta, which is arguably the very heart of tourism on the island of Bali. There is plenty more on offer around Bali, but here you are to begin your journey. The first thing that you should notice is just about every business caters to tourists, so if you are one, congratulations, you’re in the right place. Here’s a general guide to the Kuta nightlife. From day to night we have the latest list of places to eat, go and where to hangout and have the time of your life.
During the day Kuta is all about going to the beach and shopping. It does have some of the best beaches and beach breaks on the island, which is the principal reason mass tourism first came to Kuta back in the 70’s. Surf and Sun. Kuta and Legian beaches run for kilometers with almost perfect white sand. In the dry season it can’t be beat with off-shore winds and beautiful clean blue water and waves. In the wet season it is less favourable with the onshore winds messing things up a tad. Shops of all kinds can be found along the busy streets of Kuta. You can find just about anything a tourist may require. Remember to haggle the price a bit just to keep them awake. If that’s not your style, Kuta also has fully air-conditioned shopping malls; Discovery Mall, Bali Mal Galeria and Beachwalk are the places with high-end, and also lesser branded gear for you to buy. The multitude of large, airport hanger style, knickknack craft stores just out of town on the main roads is also an option to find some bargains.
So after you have spent the day on the beach and in the shops, now it’s time to get into the Kuta nightlife.
First off, what should you wear now that day has turned into night? Well, one great thing about the general Kuta area and beyond is that beach wear is perfectly appropriate pretty much anywhere and at any time. Boardshorts, singlets, bikinis, thongs, it’s all good in this hood. You can also get dressed up, too. A pair of jeans is always a good option.
Your first priority before setting off into the Kuta nightlife should be getting a little food in your belly. Thankfully, Kuta is home to a plethora of dining options both for before you party and after.
Who doesn’t crave a fantastical nachos or burger at Hard Rock Cafe?
Dining in Kuta
There are many options for good food in Kuta. Head over to Beachwalk Mall where in addition to their excellent food court, you can check out the a number of restaurants including Johnny Rockets, Bon Chon Chicken, Dominoes Pizza, Dairy Queen, Burger King,and the more upscale Kitchenette, Tony Roma’s, Café Sardinia, and many more.
Poppies Lane also has some great choices. Kori is a little more up market and Alley Cat’s has gargantuan portions at reasonable prices. If Japanese is your thing, try Take which is considered one of the best Japanese restaurants on the island. If you head north up Jalan Legian, Mama’s has some delicious German food that emphasizes meat and Nero features tasty Mediterranean dishes. Another rock solid place is the Hard Rock Café which serves just about everything you would want. Don’t forget the 101 Legian, which offers excellent meals and hang out by the rooftop pool and also the front deck bar on the street.
If you’re seeking food in the Kartika Plaza area, Flapjacks has some descent breakfast food among others, Ryoshi is a great and affordable Japanese restaurant and Buppa Gump is an awesome bet for all prawn shrimp lovers. If Chinese is what you’re looking for, check out Golden Lotus at Bali Dynasty Hotel. They also have an awesome Irish bar called Gracie Kelly’s, which has now reopened in a brand new building on the street in front of the hotel. Al Dente is another great restaurant with excellent Italian food.
Vi Ai Pi club features top local DJs and great live music earlier in the evening.
The Kuta nightlife
Ok, so now you have food in your belly, let’s get something else in there and find yourself a new friend to join you in the Kuta nightlife. You can start at Alley Cats, which serves as a backpacker surfer type pre-game spot, one can casually mix and get your drink on. Another option is Crusoe’s and the variety of smaller establishments around it where cocktails are cheap and meeting people is easy. The Rooftop at the 101 is also a great place to get some more cocktails before heading out.
Once you’re really ready to party in the Kuta nightlife, if you’re in the Poppies area closer to Jalan Legian, then you’re at the heart of the famous Kuta nightlife. Vi Ai Pi features live music earlier, fashion shows on the weekends, then cranks up the bangers in EDM and urban vibes in the club room later. Empire club also has some great moments, with live music early, big name local DJs and their new gaming going on upstairs that has become very popular.
Empire on Kuta’s main drag fores up with sounds and games every night.
Sky Garden unfortunately has closed for the moment. If you’re feeling a little more roots, then check out Apache, where a more mellow rasta vibe with reggae music can be enjoyed. Keep walking up that road and you’ll also reach the Bounty Ship, which is has karaoke at the bottom and epic fun up top. Bounty and Paddies are classic Kuta style, low-end bars with girls hanging around and arak juice drinks. The new club in town called LXXY is well worth a look. They have two club rooms. One upstairs rooftop that plays house type music (it also has a pool and open all day and night, and then downstairs is for the EDM bangers from about 10pm. It does get busy.
If you’re closer to the beach, Hard Rock Café has resident bands playing live music every night and sometimes special guest performers, and Centerstage at the Hard Rock Hotel Lobby has nightly cover bands from 8pm. Grand Istana Rama’s 69 Bar has live music rock bands and pumping DJs too. If you’re into live music, check out our special page with the top venues for live music in Bali.
So now you’ve hopefully met a friend or two and the clubs are closing, what to do? Head over to Opera on Jl. Dhyana Pura is where the party doesn’t start till late and as they say, it goes till breakfast. You could also grab something to eat at the variety of burger or Padang joints on Poppies or the ever popular McDonalds by the beach.
Next stop? Go to sleep!
(SDW. 29 Jan 2020)
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