Is Bali Safe? A Complete Tourist Guide for 2025

Published: Updated: 9 minutes read

How Safe Is Bali Right Now?

So, is Bali safe for your trip in 2025? It’s a crucial question. Your Instagram feed shows a perfect paradise, but news headlines can tell a different story. As an analyst by trade, I look at the data and my on-the-ground experience. The reality is that Bali is a safe destination for the vast majority of the millions who visit each year. The risk profile here isn’t about violent crime; it’s about situational awareness. This guide is based on my two personal trips totaling four weeks, combined with analysis of 2024-2025 local crime reports and official government travel advisories.

According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Indonesia has one of the lowest murder rates in the world — just 0.3 per 100,000 inhabitants. That’s roughly 92% lower than the global average, putting it among the safest nations statistically when it comes to violent crime. This aligns with my own experience: safety concerns in Bali are rarely about violence, but rather about situational risks like road safety and petty theft.

The common misconceptions revolve around sensationalized stories. The actual risks are more mundane and largely avoidable. The top three things to actively manage are: traffic safety (especially on scooters), petty theft (like phone snatching), and health concerns (hello, “Bali Belly”). I got a heavy case of Bali Belly during my second trip in September 2025 most likely from a restaurant in Ubud. It taught me a valuable lesson: only eat at places that are busy and look clean. But even then you can be unlucky I guess. For a great planned bali vacation, you just need a simple system to manage these risks.

Two people wearing helmets standing next to a white scooter on a sunny street in Southeast Asia, surrounded by shops and parked motorbikes.

Where to Stay — and Where to Be Cautious

Your safety and experience in Bali are directly tied to the neighborhood you choose. A resort enclave in Nusa Dua is a world away from a bustling street in Kuta. Choosing the right base is your first and most important safety decision.

Area Vibe Best For Watch Out For
Ubud Spiritual, wellness, jungle, cultural heartland. Yoga retreats, families, cultural tourism, foodies. Uneven sidewalks, aggressive monkeys at the Monkey Forest, occasional petty theft.
Canggu / Seminyak Trendy, digital nomad hub, surf culture, nightlife. Solo travelers, surfers, young couples, social butterflies. High scooter traffic, phone snatching by drive-by thieves, nightlife-related risks.
Nusa Dua Luxury resorts, gated communities, pristine beaches. Families with young children, honeymooners, resort-focused travelers. Isolation from local culture, higher prices, limited authentic experiences.

Think of your location as setting your “difficulty level.” In Nusa Dua, you are in a secure bubble, safety is managed for you. We stayed there in the Conrad Hilton for a night. In Canggu, you’re in a dynamic, crowded environment where you need to be constantly aware of your bag and your phone, especially at night. Kuta has a rough reputation, but during my last visit in the daytime, I found it was more about dealing with persistent street vendors than any real physical threat. The safety concerns there are heavily concentrated late at night.

Travel Tips for a Safe Bali Trip

Safety isn’t just about avoiding bad things; it’s about having the right systems in place so you can relax. Here are my non-negotiable rules for any bali vacation.

  • Transport: Use ride-sharing apps like Grab or Gojek. They give you a fixed, upfront price and track your journey. This eliminates 99% of taxi scams. For scooter rentals, always take a detailed video of the bike’s condition before you leave the shop to prevent false damage claims. And always, always wear a helmet.
  • Money: Only use ATMs located inside a bank or a well-lit convenience store like Circle K. ATM skimmers are the most common financial scam. I never use a standalone ATM on a dark street. I also carry a backup credit card and notify my banks of my travel dates before I leave.
  • Health: Do not drink the tap water. Ever. Use bottled or filtered water, even for brushing your teeth. The CDC’s travel page for Indonesia is a great resource. Get comprehensive travel insurance; it’s non-negotiable.
  • Etiquette: Local respect goes a long way. Dress modestly when visiting temples (cover shoulders and knees). My girlfriend always keeps a lightweight sarong in her daypack. It’s come in handy for spontaneous temple visits — and it always earns her a few appreciative smiles from locals.

Natural Disasters: Earthquakes and Tsunamis

Let’s be direct: Indonesia sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire. Earthquakes are a real, though unpredictable, fact of life here. I was on the island during the 7.0 magnitude earthquake that hit neighboring Lombok in 2018. I once experiences a bigger earthquake in Tokyo, Japan which was really scary.

You cannot predict when one will happen, but you must have a system for what to do if it does. If you feel a strong tremor, here is your immediate action plan:

  • Indoors: Drop, cover, and hold on. Get under a sturdy table or stay in bed, protecting your head and neck with a pillow. Stay away from glass windows.
  • Outdoors: Move immediately to an open area away from buildings, trees, and power lines.
  • Near the Coast: Once the shaking stops, move to higher ground immediately. Do not wait for a siren or an official tsunami warning.

As a practical preparatory step, I install the official Info BMKG app on my phone before every trip. It provides real-time alerts directly from the Indonesian government. Having official data pushed to your phone is far safer than relying on panic and rumors on social media during an actual event.

Bali’s Animals

Let’s be systematic about the local animals, as your approach should differ for each. The risks aren’t about being attacked; they’re about specific, manageable health and safety issues.

Your main concerns are dogs and monkeys. The rabies risk from stray dogs is low but has a 100% fatality rate if untreated, so my rule is non-negotiable: any dog bite, no matter how small, means you go to a clinic for a rabies shot immediately. Monkeys, especially in places like the Ubud Monkey Forest, are a different problem. They are not a documented rabies threat, but they are clever thieves. I watched a monkey try to snatch a hat right off my head in Ubud; hold onto your belongings tightly.

For mosquitoes, malaria is not a concern in Bali (see Indonesia Rolls Out National Roadmap for Malaria Elimination and Prevention), but dengue fever is. Use repellent in jungle areas and sit near a fan at open-air restaurants. Finally, you will likely never see a snake unless you’re hiking off-trail. For the average tourist, it’s a non-issue.

Gotchas You Shouldn’t Ignore

  • Money Changer Scams: Avoid small, unofficial-looking money changers offering unusually high rates. They are experts at short-changing you using sleight of hand. In general try not to use money exchange at all and use your credit card.
  • Phone Snatching: This is most common in Canggu and Seminyak. Thieves on motorbikes snatch phones from people who are walking on the side of the road while texting or navigating. Local expat forums report this happening daily. Keep your phone out of sight when you’re near a busy road, or step well away from the curb to check it.
  • Local alcohol: This is a real but rare danger. Unscrupulous bars can mix cheap, locally-made spirits with methanol, which can be fatal. This is not a widespread issue in reputable establishments. To be 100% safe, stick to sealed drinks like Bintang beer or canned cocktails, or stick to the high-end cocktail bars.

Dinner setup on the beach in Canggu, Bali, with two Aperol Spritz cocktails, a pizza, and appetizers on a wooden table during sunset, people relaxing in the background by the ocean.

How We Gathered This Information

This guide is a synthesis of hands-on experience and objective data. The recommendations are based on my personal travels to Bali in 2019 and 2025.

What This Means for You

So, is Bali safe? The answer is a confident yes, provided you act as a prepared traveler, not just a tourist. The island’s safety depends less on external threats and more on your personal choices. By choosing the right area, using safe transport, and being mindful of common scams, you can almost entirely eliminate the major risks. A safe and incredible bali vacation is about preparation, not paranoia.

FAQ

Is it safe to drink the tap water in Bali?

No, it is not safe to drink tap water in Bali. Always drink bottled, boiled, or filtered water. Most hotels and villas provide complimentary bottled water or a large filtered water dispenser. It’s a standard and expected practice.

What vaccinations do I need for Bali?

Routine vaccinations should be up to date. Specific recommendations can change, so it’s best to consult an official source. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) provides the most current health information for travelers to Indonesia.

Is Bali safe for solo female travelers?

Yes, Bali is widely considered a safe and popular destination for solo female travelers. The key is to take the same precautions you would in any other country, like not walking alone in unlit areas late at night and not leaving your drink unattended.

Is the local alcohol in Bali safe?

The local beer, like Bintang, is perfectly safe. The real risk comes from the local spirit as unregulated batches can contain methanol, which is extremely dangerous. My system is simple: I only drink cocktails at reputable hotel bars or stick to sealed drinks like beer. This means I avoid suspiciously cheap 2-for-1 cocktail deals at beach shacks and will buy a sealed bottle of an international brand from a proper store if I want spirits at my villa.

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