Sanur is known for being one of the most quiet and family friendly areas of Bali Indonesia, but there are also plenty of good things to do there.

Families will love the laid back atmosphere and chill restaurants at Sanur Beach, and the sunrise views here are some of the best you can find anywhere in Bali.

This sleepy seaside town on the southeast coast of Bali was one of the original birthplaces of tourism on the island, and it’s still popular for its nice hotels, shopping, breakfast, massages, and easy access to the Nusa islands.

Without further ado, here’s our complete travel guide for what to do in Sanur!

Best Things To Do In Sanur Bali

1. Watch The Sunrise

Sanur Beach may not rank up there with some of the best beaches in Bali, but it certainly shines (no pun intended) as one of the best sunrise spots on the island.

The combination of a cool morning breeze, birds chirping, fishermen wading out on the reef, the Mount Agung volcano in the distance, and the overall sunrise display here is just plain magic. Sometimes you can even see the distant outline of Mount Rinjani in Lombok.

Sunrise on the beach is definitely one of the best things to do in Sanur! It’s a great way to start the day.

Sunrise at Sanur Beach is always special

Drone picture of Sanur Beach from above

2. Stroll The Boardwalk

Sanur Beach has a very long coastline of around 7 kilometers, and there’s a paved foot path all the way, so it’s perfect for a morning walk, jog, or bicycle ride.

It’s a nice scenic path lined with fishing boats, hotel gardens, and beach restaurants, and you can occasionally get views of the Mount Agung volcano in the distance.

The whole public beach area is free to enter, and sunbeds or bicycles can usually be rented very cheaply along the boardwalk.

For yoga lovers, there’s a free morning yoga class every day at Pantai Karang that starts at 7:30 AM. Everyone is welcome, so just join in with a mat or towel.

Since 2023, the whole walking path at the beach has been renovated to make it wider. This is welcome news because the boardwalk can get pretty busy in the mornings.

Beachfront at the Tandjung Sari Hotel. One of our favorite spots in Sanur.

3. Visit The Beach

To be honest, Sanur can’t compete with the nicest beaches in Bali, because there’s a fair amount of seaweed along the shore and the sand is not really white or special.

There are a few exceptions, but most parts of the beach are just average. However, Sanur is great for families, and that’s why so many expats and Balinese locals like to come to the beach here.

Calm sea waves and shallow water protected by a reef make it an ideal place for kids to swim, and there’s a fantastic breeze in the summer months of May to August.

4. Go To A Balinese Festival

The Sanur area is home to a number of fun seasonal festivals. These are free to visit and it can be a great activity for families and anyone wanting to see Balinese arts and culture.

Here are the main festivals you should check out:

• Bali Kite Festival (July/August). This is a yearly festival held in Sanur where hundreds of creative kites fly the skies in a fun sort of competition. During the dry season in Indonesia (May through September), Bali gets nice strong winds from the east, so Sanur has perfect weather for kite flying. The main event of the festival is usually held in July or August, and you can see all kinds of gigantic and quirky kites, sometimes up to 100 meters long!
• Sanur Village Festival (July/August). This is another yearly festival celebrated in Sanur Beach since 2006, featuring Balinese arts, food, and culture. There’s even a traditional boat show and competition with the colorful ‘jukung’ fishing boats.
• Bali Arts Festival (June/July). Also known as PKB or Pesta Kesenian Bali, this is Indonesia’s longest-running arts festival, which started in 1979. It’s celebrated yearly, and the festival lasts for an entire month in Denpasar city, just a 10 minute drive from Sanur. The highlight of this festival is the big parade on the opening day of the festival, which features all kinds of amazing Balinese costumes and music.

Bali Arts Festival (PKB) parade

5. Release Baby Sea Turtles

If you’re lucky, you can sometimes join a sea turtle release at Sanur Beach, although it’s not as common as the turtle release at Kuta Beach.

Olive ridley sea turtles still like to lay their eggs at Sanur and the other Bali beaches from time to time, so they have to be picked up to keep them safe from predators and people walking on the beach.

When the babies hatch, you can release them to the ocean with a donation. It’s a fun activity for families, and it benefits sea turtle conservation, which is important in Bali.

This activity comes from the Turtle Conservation and Education Center (TCEC) on nearby Serangan island, which is supported by the WWF and has been working on sea turtle repopulation and education in Bali since 2006.

There are usually batches of baby sea turtles released somewhere on Sanur Beach at least once or twice a month. Turtle releases are more common during the mid summer months (June through August), but they can happen at any time of year.

If you want to join, your best bet is to ask around with Genius Cafe or Byrdhouse, and they can probably tell you when the next turtle release is happening in Sanur.

6. Visit The ICON Mall

The ICON Mall just opened in northern Sanur and it’s the biggest mall in Bali, with dozens of shops and restaurants, cultural shows, an IMAX theater, and plans for a butterfly park and beach club.

A lot of people have been upset about this mall coming to Sanur, which is understandable because this has always been known as one of the quiet sides of Bali, and it seems inevitable that the mall is going to bring more traffic, noise, and tourists to this area.

I have mixed feelings about the mall. I like it, but I wish it wasn’t in Sanur. It belongs in Kuta or Denpasar. But it’s here to stay, so we might as well make the most of it. It looks like a nice mall, and it should be great for families with kids. Once the novelty wears off, I’m hoping it doesn’t have a huge impact on traffic either. I guess we’ll see.

The ICON Mall had a soft opening on June 7, 2024, and some things are still a work in progress. More info and pictures will be coming soon.

© Icon Mall — the new mall at Sanur Beach

7. Relax At A Beach Club

The Sanur area isn’t really known for beach clubs (yet), but a few good ones have started to pop up, such as Byrdhouse.

There was also the Artotel Beach Club, but it closed down during Covid, and it remains to be seen if it’ll be renovated and reopened.

The way a beach club works is you pay an entrance fee, and then you get a food and beverage credit along with access to a pool, playground, and beachfront lounge with WiFi and sunbeds.