Yoga, art, vegan food, meditation and nature frequently take turns on the top five when we ask travellers what the reasons they come to Ubud are. However, Ubud is more than just a place to finding inner peace and quieting our mind. Certainly, when we talk about Ubud's nature, the village is literally teeming with jungles, rice terraces, gardens and rivers that surprisingly offer you the exciting outdoor activities, that keeps you refreshingly energized. In the west side of Ubud, Ayung river flows into one of the rafting favorite locations. This river is fairly suitable for beginners, as the rapids are classified as medium to moderate.

Let's begin the adventure by descending the hundred stairs to the bank of the river, where some rubber boats were parked, each being guarded by a rafting instructor.

Before entering the water, the instructor taught us everything about rafting equipment, like how to wear a life jacket properly, how to sit properly balanced on the rubber boat, and safety instructions.

“If I say paddle forward, please paddle from front to back. If I say backwards, please paddle from back to front. If I say stop, please put the oar on your thigh. And the most important thing, if I say hungry, please give me food!” Said our humorous instructor on how to paddle the boat.

Each boat has the capacity to carry six people. We were going to wade roughly around twelve kilometers of Ayung river, approximately for two hours. While we were busy paddling and naughtily splashing water into our neighbouring boats, we enjoyed the beautiful panorama of the river bank and the melodious sound of the birds. Even more further down our path, you might see a beautiful stone-carving at the black rock forming alligators, elephants, monkeys—depicts the story of Ramayana.

The river trip got more fun when the guide allowed us to play around under a small waterfall at some point on the river banks. After an hour of boating, we made a rest stop at the bank which has food stalls and toilets. It's a perfect moment to sip a fresh coconut!

However we suggest you not to eat much at this rest area, considering at the finish point, they provide a more comfortable place to rest, equipped with dressing rooms, bathrooms, towels, and a delicious buffet lunch—it's generally included in the rafting package. We'd say, it's a happy ending!

Notes:

There are some trusted water sports providers around the village with varying prices, starting from Rp 350.000 ($24) / person.

Tour recommendation: Payung rafting, Sobek Rafting, Bali Adventure Tours Ubud Rafting.

Pick up time from Ubud: around 9 - 9:30am

End time: around 2pm

All personal safety equipment including the helmet, life jacket, and paddle are provided.

For your convenience, please wear a T-shirt, swimming trunks, mountain flip flops (for the long walk), use fabric that does not absorb water as the wetness during rafting will significantly drain your stamina—in that case, please bring spare clothes.

Bring a waterproof camera, a zip lock bag for your gadget, a plastic bag to wrap your wet clothes, leave your jewellery at home, and always follow your river guide instructions.

If you need more adrenaline-rush activities in challenging rides, rafting on Telaga Waja could be your go-to option. Telaga Waja, known as a major white water river in Bali, has the longest rafting line among all of Bali's rivers. (16 kilometers, takes about 2.5 to 3 hours)

Its rafting grade level is between class II(novice) and class IV(advance), with a rapid flow through a nearly five-meters derivative with a fifty-degrees slope.

Level two began at the start point until the first thirty minutes—relatively easy for beginners. When we were breaking in the level three, the river flow was moderate, yet there was a possibility of injury from falling off the boat. For those who cannot swim, don't worry as the rescue team are always ready.

During the forty-fifth to seventieth minute of rafting, we finally entered level four, which was a high-speed stream flow. So exciting! We cheered when the guide crashed the boat into the river wall to slow the boat speed. We wanted more!

Once we reached the finish point, we had an Indonesian buffet lunch at a riverside restaurant.

Being involved in the river adventure, exploring the beauty of natural scenery along the Telaga Waja River of rice fields, cliffs, and mountains, was such an unforgettable enjoyment.

Notes:

Tour recommendation: Alam rafting, Sobek Rafting Telaga Waja, Bali International Rafting.

Telaga Waja rafting's starting point is located at one and a half hour drive from Ubud. Don't worry if you booked alone, you will be grouped in with other participants. We wouldn't advice Telaga Waja Rafting for children nor senior people. If your kids are aged 5 to 7 years old, please select Ayung river rafting. At Telaga Waja river, most of the rafting operators allow children with minimum age of 9 years old.

Well, is that all we got? We are still craving for the big splashes! How about floating down a river in a rubber donut?

The donut is made from an inner tube, and we have two options of riding it: tandem or single tubing. On another day, we strolled through the rice field, then walked down twenty minutes to the starting point at the side of Ayung River. The tubing ride took about three hours, through eleven kilometers of long trek. The ride was more relaxing than rafting, as the waters are relatively shallow and move slowly.

It's one of the easiest water sports you can try—and surely super fun!

Notes:

Alternative spots for river tubing:

-Tubing in Penet river at Tanah Wuk-Sangeh. 35 minutes drive from Ubud. Normal float time is about 1,5 - 2 hours, along 3,5 km.

-Pakerisan River at Village Tampaksiring. Normal float time is about 1,5 hours, along 4,5 km.

Some tour operators provide hotel transfers, personal safety equipment like knee/elbow protectors, waterproof bags, towel, shower—toiletries, buffet lunch, insurance.

Please bring spare clothes, rubber slippers, sun screen. Flip Flops are not recommended as they easily slip, slide and float away while riding tubing.

Images are author's own*