National Parks and Nature Reserves in Bali

Taman Nasional Bali Barat, the only national park on the island, covering roughly 190 square kilometres of the far northwest across savanna, mangrove, monsoon forest and reef. Its importance is out of proportion to its size: this is the last wild habitat of the Bali starling, one of the rarest birds in the world, and the breeding programme is here. Menjangan Island inside the park has the best diving in Bali, on a wall that drops steeply just offshore. A permit and a guide are required for the land trails, arranged at Labuan Lalang or Cekik. It is three to four hours from the south, so it is an overnight rather than a day trip.

A sacred temple forest of about 12 hectares in Padangtegal, holding three Hindu temples and a wild population of several hundred Balinese long-tailed macaques. The distinction that matters here is that these are wild animals in their own habitat rather than a captive collection: they are not enclosed, fed on schedule for shows, or handled. Which is also the warning. Keep sunglasses, phones, bags and water bottles out of reach, do not carry visible food, and do not feed them or make eye contact. Bites do happen. Go at opening, before the coaches, when it is quiet and cool.

A privately run bird park at Singapadu rather than a protected area, and it earns a place here because it is the one visit that puts Bali's birdlife in front of you in an afternoon. The collection runs to hundreds of species across walk-through aviaries, and the park breeds the Bali starling, which is critically endangered and reduced to a very small wild population in the west of the island. There are scheduled bird presentations through the day, including free flight, so if that is not something you want to support, check the programme before booking. The reptile park alongside it is a separate ticket.

The second highest mountain in Bali at 2,276 metres, and the largest remaining stretch of rainforest on the island, protected as a reserve rather than a park. It is far wetter and greener than Batur and almost nobody climbs it, which is the appeal: the trail up from Pura Luhur Batukaru is a hard six to eight hour round trip through cloud forest, with no view at the top because the summit is wooded. The temple at the base is one of Bali's nine directional temples and is worth the drive on its own. Guides are arranged in Wongaya Gede. Leeches after rain are normal.

A caldera about 13 kilometres across containing an active volcano and Danau Batur, the largest lake in Bali, and designated a UNESCO Global Geopark in 2012, the first in Indonesia. That designation is about geology and community rather than wildlife, which is why it belongs on this page rather than a wildlife one. The standard visit is either the viewpoint at Penelokan, which needs no walking at all, or the pre-dawn hike up Gunung Batur for sunrise above the cloud. Guides for the climb are effectively compulsory and are organised through a local association.

The largest botanic garden in Indonesia, about 160 hectares on the slope above Lake Beratan at 1,250 metres, which is why it is cool and often in cloud. It is a research and conservation institution rather than a park: the collections are orchids, ferns, bamboo, roses and, most notably, the ceremonial plants used in Balinese Hindu ritual, which is a collection you will not find elsewhere. It is quiet, large and easy to walk. The Ulun Danu Beratan temple and the Candikuning market are both a few minutes away, so the three make one morning.