Tirta Empul

General Info

• Ticket price: IDR 50,000 (IDR 30,000 Domestic or visa Kitas)

• Parking fee: FREE

• Suitable for kids: ✅

• Number of steps: <10

• Popularity: 🧡🧡🤍🤍🤍

• Difficulty: Low

Tirta Empul is the most popular of the water temples and one of the many temples in Bali, designed, among other things, for the Melukat ceremony - ritual purification. It is located in the Tampaksiring village, Gianyar district, about 30 minutes north of Ubud. The exact GPS position can be found here. The temple dedicated to the god Vishnu was built in 962 AD on a large natural spring. The temple is listed as a cultural heritage by UNESCO as part of the Subak irrigation system.

When you arrive at the indicated location, you will see a spacious parking lot, which is free of charge. You can park your scooter directly opposite the main entrance gate. Tickets to the site cost IDR 50,000 (USD 3,4)/person or IDR 30,000 (USD 2) for locals and Kitas visa holders. After entering, you will walk through a small park towards the gate to the Hindu temple itself. On the right-hand side of the entrance, you will be lent a compulsory sarong for a voluntary fee.

If you choose the left gate to enter the temple, you will be taken to a pond with hundreds of koi carp that you can feed with food purchased from the adjacent restaurant. The activity is very popular with younger visitors.

From this section, you will walk to the central area of the temple. On your right, you will enter the site with two Petirtaan pools with crystal clear sacred water flowing from 30 purifying springs. There are usually queues of locals and tourists performing the Melukat purification ceremony. According to the rules, one starts praying at the leftmost spring and proceeds through all of them to the rightmost one. The last two springs are reserved for the purification ceremony for the deceased.

💡 Tip: For the Melukat ceremony, if you don't have your own, you will get a special green sarong and red waist sash anteng/selendang for IDR 10,000 (USD 0.7), and there is also a changing room available with locker for additional IDR 15,000 (USD 1). You cannot change your clothes anywhere else in the sacred temple area. You should also bring a small offering as a part of the ceremony, which you can also buy on the spot for about IDR 10,000 (USD 0.7).

The last part of the temple, the inner part, is for prayers, and you will find several colorfully decorated shrines dedicated to the main Hindu gods.

There is also a large pond with fish in the temple courtyard, where underground water springs up with an interesting effect. This spring is the water source for the purification pools used for ceremonies.

Above the temple on the hill to the left, you can see a large modern villa, which was built on the occasion of the visit of the first Indonesian President Sukarno in 1954. The building remains a resting place for important government guests and politicians.

On your way out of the temple, follow the exit signs to the left, where the path is lined with dozens of small stalls selling handicrafts, clothing, and other souvenirs. Alternatively, you can take the shorter route to the right, which leads directly to the car park and avoids the stalls.

💡 Tip: You can combine your visit to the temple with a visit to the other nearby Gunung Kawi Temple.

The temple is worth a visit for its importance and lovely location. However, for the Melukat ceremony, we recommend choosing another less famous temple, where you can experience a more intimate atmosphere more suitable for a purification ceremony.

For a list of temples suitable for the Melukat ceremony, see the Temples Guide.

Entrance Rules

• You need to wear decent clothes

• Prohibited from the entry with short or long pants

• Long hair must be tied up for both men and women

• Women must not menstruate

• Prohibited from the entry in swimsuit

• Prohibited from climbing on holy buildings

Pros

+ Temple with a peaceful atmosphere

+ Interesting pond with water coming out of the ground

+ Pool with Koi carp (great for children)

Cons

- Too long queues for those interested in the Melukat ritual