Relax at one of the finest beaches in laid-back SanurSanur is a very relaxed place, it lacks the hustle and bustle of Kuta and is not so uptight as the strips of hotels in Nusa Dua. It has one of the biggest and finest stretches of beach on Bali and has a nice palm-fringed pathway along the beach for jogging, cycling or strolling for miles on end. Together with Nusa Dua, Sanur is one of the most suitable places in Bali for disabled travellers because of the neatly paved pavements and boulevard. In this section I'll introduce you to this laid-back fishing village on the beach, how to get around, what to do, where to eat and where to sleep...  handy phone numbers... Sanur has been an exotic place for decades and has attracted the Belgian artist and aristocrat Adrien Le Majeur de Merpres in the 1930’s. He fell in love with the place and with one of Bali’s greatest Legong Dancers, Ni Polok, who became his wife and the subject of many of his paintings. Le Majeur was different than the Dutch colonists because he loved to wear a sarong and walk bare feet, much to the dislike of the Dutch who complained about his behaviour and wanted him of the island.
She asked the colonist to leave him alone and Le Majeur continued painting on the beach for more than 25 years. Ahhhh it sure helps to be a royal, doesn’t it…? His house on the beach is now a museum and can be found next to Bali’s first tourist resort, the Grand Bali Beach Hotel. This Miami-styled hotel was built in 1966 by ex-president Sukarno with repatriation money from the Japanese government. It has 9 stories, a bowling alley, nine-hole golf course and a huge swimming pool. Sukarno even trucked in golden coral sand to cover the black sand, which had formed from the volcanic shores over centuries. To keep the sand in place a breakwater was built with a helicopter-pad at the end.
On the other side of the Grand Bali Beach Hotel you can find the Pura Dalem Kedewatan temple. Here colourful ceremonies and offerings take place throughout the year. Most of the beautiful decorated hotels are owned by local Balinese families through a cooperation and this gives the area of Sanur a relaxed atmosphere where you can spend a well-deserved tropical holiday far away from home. Getting aroundIt’s very easy to find your way in Sanur. The only two main streets to remember are Jalan Danau Tamblingan which runs into Jalan Mertasari after the crossroad and the perfect walk path along the beach. That is all you need to know when you are in Sanur, so no struggle with maps or asking directions.Sanur stretches itself out along the 5km beach and faces a stunning sunrise every morning on the east-coast with a view on Nusa Lembongan, Nusa Penida and the majestic volcano Gunung Agung. If you are an early riser and like to do some jogging or cycling, the walk path along the beach provides the ideal way to get to know the area.
The only high rise hotel on Bali, the Grand Bali Beach Hotel is situated at the northern end of this walk path together with the small harbor at Jalan Hang Tuah where fishermen come ashore every morning after a night out fishing. Parallel to the beachfront hotels runs Jalan Danau Tamblingan with on one side the hotel entrances with restaurants and across the street more souvenir shops, boutiques, tour agencies and bars with live music. There are plenty of cash machines along Jalan Danau Tamblingan and you can also find them at the entrance of Hardy’s supermarket, which is situated near the Hyatt Bali Hotel on the same road. If you don’t feel like walking through the village there’s a choice of bemos, bicycles, taxis, private drivers and motor scooters. The bemos are mini-buses that can take you through Sanur from one end to the other for Rp2000/3000. It’s the favorite mode of transport for the locals so you might make some new friends too. Bicycles are cheap too and renting one costs up to Rp30.000 a day but with some bargaining you can rent one for Rp15.000 around the corner of the hotel or on the main street. It’s an ideal way for getting around Sanur and allows you to bicycle through Sanur’s side streets and watch the beautiful Bali life go by.
No need to look for a taxi driver, he will find you with the sound of his horn, even when you are just looking at the many souvenir shops beside the road. Sanur is so small that you don’t need a taxi really but for trips to Denpasar or Ngurah Rai Airport they come in handy, just make sure the taxi meter is switched on. If you like to make a day tour around the island or watch a dance performance in Ubud your best option is a private driver that will take you wherever you want to go for up to Rp350.000 per day including petrol. The private drivers always hang around the hotel entrances and yell “transport, transport yes”. The best cars are the Toyota Kijang and the Suzuki APV especially when your day tour involves the mountains but for trips to Ubud or Kuta a white Mitsubishi van will do just fine. Lots of places in Sanur also rent out motor scooters and these cost up to Rp60.000 per day including insurance and helmet. If you like renting one for a couple of days you can get one for Rp30.000 per day. Important Addresses and Handy Phone NumbersIf you like to send a package or postcard to your family and friends you can find the Post Office on Jalan Danau Buyan. Open from Monday-Thursday 8am-3pm, Friday and Saturday till 11.30am, closed on Sunday.If something happens to you and you need a doctor head over to the Hyatt Bali hotel. This classy hotel has a medical clinic (tel 361-288271). The other Medical Clinic (tel 361-282678) can also be found not far away on Jalan Danau Tamblingan and runs a 24-hour medical service. The Police Station (0361-288597) is located on Jalan Bypass Ngurah Rai near the Golf Course. There isn't a Governmental Tourist Office in Sanur but there is a Tourist Office (0361-7915251) with brochures and tours across the street from Picaddilly Restaurant and Circle K mini-mart on Jalan Tamblingan no. 54. Here you also rent electrical and standard wheelchairs. Things to doEven though Sanur is a very laid-back village there are still a lot of things you can do.The blue lagoon of Sanur is protected by a reef against the high waves. It’s ideal for snorkelling and windsurfing or for taking a ‘jukung’, a traditional fishing boat. On the walk path along the beach you’ll run into the jukung boat men who love to sail you around on their colorful boats to the reef, around the lagoon or to Benoa harbour. Here you can laze on board in the sun and shoot some fantastic pictures of Bali’s coastline and go all the way up to the turtle island Serangan. If you want to snorkel around the island of Lembongan, the former prisoner island of Nusa Penida you should arrange a faster boat.
On the beach you can also arrange other water activities such as water skiing, deep sea fishing, para sailing, windsurfing, sea kayaking, jet ski or diving. Most of the hotels are happy to organize a trip for you. The fastest way to Lembongan Island is by the Scoot II boat, (+62 361-285522) and this trip takes about 30 minutes. The boat leaves from Sanur beach at the Jalan Hang Tuah fishermen harbour at 9.30 am (also 1.30 pm but during the peak season only) and 4.00 pm. It departs from Lembongan Island at 8.30 am (also 11.30 am but during the peak season only) and 3.00 pm. Lembongan Island costs around US$59 per person and includes a hotel transfer, boat ride, island tour with a visit to the mangroves, seaweed farms, beaches and a beach side lunch. Hotels can be arranged upon arrival or through the travel agency in Sanur. Another option to Lembongan Island is with Bali Hai cruises (+62 361-720331) on a 64ft luxury sailing catamaran from Benoa harbor. It leaves at 9.00 am and returns at 6pm.
The Seawalker is a helmet supplied by oxygen that enables you to walk underwater with your glasses on. You go down the stairs to the bottom of the sea where experienced Seawalker instructors are there to help you out even if you can’t swim. Surfing: Surfing is also possible but here the best season is during the rainy season when the winds are offshore. There’s a good surf break coming from the right side in front of the Grand Bali Beach hotel and there’s another one in front of the beach market coming from the left side. A couple of kilometres at sea in front of the Bali Hyatt hotel there’s another perfect break to surf. I haven’t surfed at Sanur yet since I’m still a beginner but I’ve seen several surfers renting a boat man from the Jalan Hang Tuah harbor to bring them to the reef. Swimming: The beach of Sanur is the perfect spot to read a book under your parasol and swim during high tide. Not every part of the beach is perfect for swimming due to sea weed but luckily in front of the major hotels such as the Hyatt hotel or the Mercure hotel they have cut away the plants to make way for soft sand.
RestaurantsOn Sanur’s main road, Jalan Tamblingan and along the walk path of the beach there are many restaurants, cafés and bars serving delicious food and drinks from early in the morning till late in the evening.The restaurants at the beach have taken the advantage of the pleasant sea breeze by creating terraces where people can eat and drink in de open air under large parasols. Some restaurants have even set their tables right on the beach resulting in the most romantic place to have dinner while overlooking the sea. We have been to many places along the beach and eating right on the beach with white sand between our toes makes Sanur one of those unique places in Bali to have lunch or dinner. The restaurants along the street are also just as great as they have managed to create beautiful terraces under mature trees providing natural shading. In the evening, when the candles are lit on the tables these trees give an extra special feeling to the whole atmosphere. Sanur is one of the tourist places in Bali where beautiful upscale resorts are found along the beach and looking at the choice of restaurants, it seems like the quality and the prices are focused on a similar crowd. This has resulted in a large number of excellent restaurants for a small village like Sanur. There are restaurants that offer Western and Indonesian food in a modern look setting while in other restaurants you can have mouthwatering dishes in a Balinese styled restaurant.
Nightlife in Sanur is a little less crazy compared with Kuta. However there are several bars which are packed every night. Just cruise along Jalan Tamblingan and you will immediately spot them. Hotel resorts also offer evening entertainment, mostly live music such as acoustic Spanish guitars, a singer accompanied by a live band or Balinese Legong dancing. HotelsSanur is Bali’s first tourist resort village and the hotel style with bungalows set between trees with colorful flowers, statues and verandahs has been copied throughout the rest of Bali.It's very popular among older European travellers and this explains the clean, quiet streets and the relaxed atmosphere. Here are the most popular hotels in Sanur that I’ve come across on my travels...
Budget Accommodation in Sanur Even though Sanur is a place mainly popular with older European travellers and package tourists who love to stay in luxury resorts, it still has some good budget hostels to choose from.
They are often located on the side streets of Jalan Tambligan in the residential areas and offer more value for money than the budget accommodation in Kuta or Legian. Return from Sanur to Bali Travel Life Homepage
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Fortunately for Le Majeur his cousin was the King of Belgium who talked to the Dutch Queen Wilhelmina. 
Now Sanur beach has several breakwaters to trap the sand and here you have a good view on the waterfront activity with a fleet of colourful fishermen boats, snorkellers, parasailers and surfers.
When you’re on the walk path along the beach you’ll notice the souvenir shops, the “hey mister-you-want-massage-massage” ladies, the restaurants with lots of atmosphere and the many beautiful beachfront hotels which have their own stretches of beach with parasols and comfortable beach chairs.
Snorkelling around the island costs US$85 per person and also includes hotel transfer, boat ride, bbq-lunch at the Bali Hai Beach Club, guided tour on the island with a visit to seaweed farms, beach/pool games, children activities, sea kayaks, banana boat ride and a semi-submersible coral viewer.
If you don’t feel like taking a boat trip to the island or getting your hair wet there’s always the Seawalker experience by Club Aqua (0361-281 408) in the lagoon in front of the Puri Santrian hotel where you can get face-to-face with tropical fishes for US$75. 
Kite flying: Flying the kite is a favourite pastime for the Balinese and Sanur is the perfect place to buy one in the souvenir stalls or on the upper floor of Hardy’s supermarket if you don’t feel like bargaining. Between July and September there are even kite competitions among the Balinese in the rice fields around Sanur.
Shopping:Along Jalan Tambligan and Jalan Mertasari there are lot of souvenir stalls selling wooden masks, sarongs and photo albums made of banana leaves. The seller mentions a price at least 50% higher than the original value so bargain hard; it’s all part of the game. Along these streets you’ll also find boutiques with so called ‘fixed’ prices and offer good value for money.
La Taverna hotel: This hotel is one of the oldest Balinese owned hotels and is located right on the beach with bungalows in a park like setting. The beach front restaurant is a good place to hang out and watch life go by...
