Often our adventures take us to places and put us in situations in which we are not quite comfortable or are at least apprehensive and the Ubud Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary was certainly in this category. While we were in Bali we experienced many beautiful and interesting things like the Tegalalang Rice Terraces, coffee plantations, and vibrant markets but there was one experience that stands out as the most challenging and boundary-stretching. To clarify, only one of the Hedgers found this adventure to be at all challenging, but I’ll sympathize and avoid implicating a certain someone being terrified of monkeys.
While it’s true that one of us is an animal enthusiast at heart, monkeys are seen as sneaky, conniving, and to be held with the highest contempt. Despite these apprehensions and trepidation, both of us ventured into the Ubud Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary with eager excitement. Experiencing the Monkey Forest was always on one of our bucket lists and both of us greatly enjoyed our time there. The Sanctuary is a massive enclosed fortress of primate leisure with over 600 monkeys (crab-eating Macaques), abundant vegetation, and Hindu temples from the 14th century.
Despite the mounting heat of the day, we explored the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary until we were in desperate need of shaded rest and a cold beverage. Before leaving the forest we made sure to let monkeys climb on me, watched mini-bandits rifle through the backpacks of unsuspecting tourists, and we enjoyed some of the most nervous and awkward people watching that we’ve ever been fortunate enough to behold. People interacting with monkeys is just as hilarious as watching the tiny primates.
Ubud’s Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary is certainly an interesting place to visit if you make your way into Bali’s mountainous interior and we highly recommend a visit to anyone who feels comfortable doing so. The monkeys are fascinating and, in general, comfortable around people. If you follow the rules about food and belongings, this monkey forest is a spectacular display of wildlife at close quarters. In general we are against a lot of tourist traps with animals as their main attraction, but a trip to the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary is to be surrounded by happy and well-cared-for Macaques in a beautiful and spiritual setting.
Enjoy our photos below of our time spent in the area!
Ryan
( That monkey eyeing Stephanie though . . . )
It looks like Stephanie faced her fear! Good job! I made the ignorant tourist mistake of buying bananas… Not only did I not know it’s frowned upon, but I had alpha male monkeys chasing me and trying to rip off my clothes! Hahaha
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[…] and certainly challenging. We've described this monkey sanctuary in length for our In Focus post (FOUND HERE), so head over there for more pictures and storytelling. If you enjoyed the video, please let us […]