CANDIDASA BEACH

Candidasa is an integrated tourist object consisting of temple, hill, pond and beach Situated in Karangasem Regency about 13 km West of Amlapura, 64 km from Denpasar. The area is an integrated tourist object consisting of temple, hill, pond and beach.

Continuing east another 7 km, past the villages of Ulakan and Sengkidu, the main road enters Candi Dasa just after the Tenganan turn-off. The name Candi Dasa was originally applied just to two small temples. one for Siwa and the other for Hariti, that overlook a beautiful palm-fringed lagoon by the beach, Hariti is mainly worshipped by childless parents who pray for children.

Toward the end of the 1970s the first bungalows appeared by the beach here. From 1982 onwards a building frenzy set in and is still continuing so that new hotels, shops and restaurants seem to open almost weekly. As a result Candidasa is now encroaching on the Buitan area to the west site of several luxurious bungalows hotels which specialize in snorkelling and diving trips.

Candidasa today is a bustling seaside resort with the full range of hotels, homestays, disco-bars, moneychangers, shops and restaurants. How long the development will continue is an open question, as the beach is oding quickly and the once-spectacular view across the sacred lagoon to the beach is now blocked by two-storey bungalows.

Dance and music performances for visitors are being developed, but these do not seem to be of high quality. The main attraction of the area is as a base from which to visit the neighboring village of Tenganan, some 5 kms away. Swimming is only more or less possible at high tide. Despite these disvantages, Candidasa enjoys cool breezes and is a good resting point for trips to the east and north.

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