Which one to choose in Ubud
Pura Taman Saraswati vs Tirta Empul
Two temples in Ubud. Pura Taman Saraswati has 3 tickets and tours to book; Tirta Empul has 39 tickets and tours to book. The table and the two notes below put them side by side; the full pages have what to see, the ticket and the timing for each.
Ubud, Indonesia
There is nothing to buy to see Pura Taman Saraswati. The lotus ponds and the front courtyard are open to anyone walking along the main street of Ubud, and the only payment you may meet is a donation box or a request to rent a sarong if you go further in. The evening dance performances held on the stage in front of the temple are a separate matter: tickets are sold the same day by sellers on the street or at the gate, and you pay in cash.
Online, the temple appears inside half-day and full-day tours of the Ubud area rather than on its own.
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Ubud, Indonesia
Most visitors reach Tirta Empul on a driver-led day out from Ubud, Denpasar or the southern beach resorts, because the temple sits in the hills near Tampaksiring, about 15 km north-east of Ubud, and public transport is thin. The simplest booking is a private car with driver for half a day, which normally pairs the spring with the rock-cut royal tombs of Gunung Kawi, the Tegalalang rice terraces or a waterfall such as Tibumana or Tukad Cepung. Full-day versions push on to the Kintamani volcano viewpoint or the traditional village of Penglipuran.
The second kind of product is built around the purification itself.
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