For many people who come to Bali, Indonesia for a holiday, the beach, the nightlife as well as the shopping are the major attractions. But after a few days, the question of what else the island might offer arises. If you would like to take a look at another side of Bali, at unspoiled beaches and incredibly beautiful rice terraces up in the volcanic mountains, that is all certainly here and it’s closer than you might think.

The first step is to find yourself a driver with a car-this is easy enough, in fact he’s probably going to find you first. Taking tourists on day trips is a major industry in Bali, and while you can go through a company, there are many friendly freelancers who speak good English with air-conditioned taxis who will be happy to drive you wherever you would like to go for a fixed price. Depending on the car and how many people are in your party, expect to spend roughly 400,000 rupiah for a full day. You will have to bargain to get this price, but be firm, as the first price that the prospective driver will throw out will be higher. Also, you can rent a car and drive yourself, but you won’t save a whole lot of money doing this, and you might find it more relaxing to simply have a driver take you so that you can sit back and enjoy the scenery.

And where to go? You’ll certainly want to head up into the hills and take a look at the gorgeous Balinese countryside that lies around every turn. Rice farming is still practiced in Bali and you will see plenty of rice farmers working their fields. Then, head up to the mountains to the Bedugul area, a string of small villages located among three high mountain lakes. It’s a wonderful area to stop for lunch and wander the fruit markets. It’s much cooler up here and the variety of fruits and vegetables grown in the area will amaze you. Be sure and buy some to take back to your hotel with you.

Another great place to visit is the Lovina Beach area. Located on the still-unspoiled northern coast of Bali, this area is really like a step back in time, with sleepy little beach towns, cheap hotels and restaurants featuring plenty of reasonably priced seafood. Lovina is a place that might even have you changing your holiday around a little bit, and maybe sending your driver back to Kuta to kick back at a Lovina hotel up on this quiet coast for a couple of days.

The Bali tourist areas are a good time of course, but you can be sure that if you’d like to slow the pace down a little bit and get out into the amazing natural surroundings that Bali offers, it’s very easy to do.