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IndonesiaDescription and is it worth a visit
Tirta Gangga Water Palace is definitely one of the top attractions in Bali and a place worth visiting, one of the most photographed. If you like beautiful selfies, then you will definitely like it here. However, it is inconvenient that it is located far from the main tourist areas in the northeast of the island. Therefore, it is better to combine a trip here with other interesting places along the way. For example, you can visit the traditional village of Tenganan Pegringsingan (Tenganan Pegringsingan Village), observation points on the volcano Agung, Lake Batur, rice terraces, and so on. What you can visit along the way, you can see on our map, where points for the navigator are downloaded from.
The palace complex is small, but very beautiful, so there are always a lot of tourists here. If you want to take beautiful photos without people, you need to come here early in the morning for the opening, until large excursion groups have pulled up. There are several pools with fountains on the territory, which are fed by spring water. Everything is decorated with sculptures of mythical creatures, there are gazebos for relaxation. A special highlight is a large swimming pool with a walkway right on the water, this is the most favorite place for visitors. Fish swim in this pool – Japanese golden carp can be fed with special food for 5,000 rupees. Everything is done in Balinese and Chinese architecture. Completely unnoticed during a walk, an hour or more will disappear here.
However, for the sake of fairness, it is worth noting that this place is more just for photographing, walking and admiring the beauties than a historical landmark shrouded in legends or significant events of the past. In addition, everything you will see here today is a replica, the result of restoration, since the palace was badly damaged by the eruption of Mount Agung in 1963. Nevertheless, we still think that it is definitely worth a visit.
History of the palace
The Tirta Ganga Water Palace was built between 1942 and 1946 by the ruler of the Karangasem region, Raja Anak Agung Anglurah Ketut. It is believed that it originated on the site of the holy spring, which beats at the base of the Banyan tree, and this source continues to exist today. This is a unique case in history when a high-ranking politician himself actively participated in the construction of his residence. Ketut was known for his passion for architecture, and according to legend, his inspiration for this complex came from a trip to France, to Versailles.
The name of the palace consists of two parts: "Tirta", which translates as "sacred water", and "Gangga", which refers to the sacred river Ganges in India. However, the water palace has no connection with India. The Ganges is deeply connected with the Hindu religion; according to legend, this river flowed through heaven in the past until God Shiva brought it down to earth. Thus, the name of the palace could be translated as "sacred waters of the Ganges River".
You can also find another name – Tirtagangga Water Palace. This name appeared later and was invented to make it easier for English-speaking tourists to navigate.
🕐 Working hours
From 06:00 to 19:00, seven days a week.
💵Entrance fee / ticket price
The entrance fee is 70,000 rupees (3.92 USD), fish food – 5000(0.28, USD), Parking - 5000.
🚶 How to get there
The Tirta Gangga Water Palace is located in the northeast of Bali, 80 kilometers from Kuta, the airport and other tourist areas (palace on the map). This is quite a long distance by local standards: it takes almost two hours to drive by car, and you will spend almost 3 in one direction on a motorbike. It is much closer to go here from Ubud, Padang Bai, and Chandidas is very close. In any case, wherever you go, we advise you to include other places in your visit along the way. You can upload points of interest from our Bali map to yandex.navigator and use them to navigate and create a route.
If you do not rent a transport, then you can get here with a private guide or a ready-made excursion. It is easy to find private guides with their own car in Bali at a hotel or any travel agency. Yes, they will find you themselves and will offer trips along standard routes or as you want. The price is negotiable, for a day trip you can negotiate for $ 50 for the whole car, not for each person.
There are also ready-made excursions to the east of Bali with a visit to the palace or special "Instatures", they can be bought on the street in agencies or online. You can book them on the websites sputnik8, tripster.ru or trip.com, there are options there.
Also see the Bali excursions with reviews available for online booking on these verified sites: