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A bicycle in Bali farmland with palms and green fields behind it.
Land Tour

Kintamani Downhill Cycling

Twenty-five kilometres, almost all of it downhill

Duration
9 hours door to door
Distance
About 25 km, mostly descent
Difficulty
Easy · a van follows you
Minimum age
9 years, or a tandem seat

The trip

What You're Signing Up For

You start on the Kintamani ridge at about fourteen hundred metres, with the Batur caldera behind you, and you roll downhill for most of the next twenty-five kilometres. There are maybe three short climbs in the whole route and a support van behind you for every one of them.

It is the trip we recommend to families more than any other, because it looks adventurous and is genuinely easy. Nine-year-olds do it. So do people who have not been on a bike in a decade.

Highlights

Why People Pick This One

  • Twenty-five kilometres of it downhill, from the ridge to the rice fields
  • A support van the whole way, so nobody gets left behind on the climbs
  • Villages and family compounds, not just roadside viewpoints
  • Coffee and clove plantations where the crop is actually being worked
  • Genuinely family-friendly: nine and up, or a tandem seat for smaller ones

Full description

The Whole Thing

The route drops off the ridge through coffee and clove plantations, then into villages where the road is barely wide enough for the van, then out into open rice terraces around Tampaksiring.

Itinerary

The Trip, Stop By Stop

Timings are typical, not fixed. Your guide reshapes the day around your pace and the conditions.

  1. Hotel pickup

    Canggu, Seminyak, Kuta, Jimbaran, Sanur, Ubud

    Early enough to be on the ridge before the heat and the cloud.

    Included

  2. Kintamani ridge

    Breakfast looking into the Batur caldera, then bikes, helmets and a safety briefing.

  3. Down through the plantations

    Coffee, cloves and cacao, and the first long descent of the day.

  4. A village compound

    How a Balinese family house is laid out, and why the shrine faces the mountain.

  5. Rice terraces

    Open country around Tampaksiring, flat enough to ride side by side and talk.

  6. Lunch

    Balinese food at the finish, with the ridge you started on in the distance.

  7. Drive home

    Bikes on the van, you in the car, back the fast way.

    Included
Trip stop Pickup area Pickup is from your own accommodation inside these areas. Route is indicative, not the exact road taken.

The price covers

What's Included, And What Isn't

Included

  • Hotel pickup and drop-off across South Bali, Ubud and Canggu
  • Private air-conditioned car with English-speaking driver
  • Mountain bike, helmet and gloves in your size
  • Cycling guide and a support van for the whole route
  • Breakfast on the Kintamani ridge and lunch at the finish
  • Village, plantation and rice terrace stops along the way
  • Drinking water throughout the ride

Not included

  • Penglipuran village entrance, if you choose to add it
  • Coffee and tea you buy at the plantation
  • Personal spending, tips and anything you buy on the day

Before you book

Who This Trip Isn’t For

We would rather talk you out of the wrong trip than take your money for it. If any of these apply, message us and we’ll suggest something that fits better.

Anyone who has never ridden a bike

Downhill is easy but it is not a lesson. You need to be able to balance, brake and steer already.

Anyone wanting a hard ride

This is a descent with a van behind it. If you want climbing, tell us and we will find you a proper route.

Anyone travelling in the wet afternoon

We start early for a reason. A late start means riding in rain, and we would rather move the day.

Come prepared

What To Bring

Closed shoes

Trainers. Pedals and flip-flops go badly together, and the van will not have spares in your size.

A light long sleeve

It is cool on the ridge at the start and sunny by the rice fields. One layer covers both.

Sunglasses

For grit and low sun on the descent as much as brightness.

Sunscreen

Three hours in the open at altitude burns faster than the same time on the beach.

On the trip

What It Looks Like

Tap a photo to enlarge

Before you book

Questions About This Trip

Anything not covered here? Message us. We'd rather answer first than have you book the wrong trip.

Is it really all downhill?

Almost. There are two or three short rises over twenty-five kilometres, and the van picks up anyone who would rather not do them.

Can children come?

From about nine on their own bike, and younger on a tandem seat behind a parent. Tell us their ages and we will size the bikes before you arrive.

What if I get tired?

You get in the van. It is following you the whole way and people use it without any fuss.

Are the bikes any good?

Serviced hardtail mountain bikes with working disc brakes, sized on the ridge before you set off. Tell us your height when you book.

What happens if it rains?

Light rain we ride. Heavy rain and we move you to another day or refund you; wet descents on village roads are not worth it.

Pairs well with

Other Trips Guests Interested In

All trips

Ready When You Are

Tell us your dates and how many of you there are. We'll confirm availability, pickup time and the total, usually within the hour.