I recently went on a weekend getaway to Bali with three friends. I wanted to take Instagram-pretty pictures so we decided to book a TripGuru Bali Instagram Tour.

TripGuru Bali Instagram Tour

Our driver, Dawa, picked us up from Novotel Bali Ngurah Rai Airport Hotel at 6am in a black six-seater SUV. He was wearing a bright green TripGuru t-shirt and answered our questions with broken English.

We picked up a Filipino lady who was joining us on this Bali Instagram Tour.

Tegallalang Rice Terraces

Our first destination was Tegallalang Rice Terraces which was 2-hour ride away (hence the early pick-up).

We reached Tegallalang Rice Terraces at 8am. Entrance fee was 25000IDR per person.

The air at Tegalalang Rice Terraces was so fresh in the morning, and the lush green rice terraces look like paradise on earth.

It was still early so there were no other tourists. We had the whole place to ourselves and we took many beautiful pictures.

Our driver-cum-photographer, Dawa, has apparently been doing this for a long time. He knows all the Instagram-worthy spots and the right angles to take the best pictures.

We stopped on the way to Goa Rajo Waterfall to try some local durian, mangosteen and rambutan. The durian was pretty watery and there was flies everywhere which made the whole experience even more unpleasant.

Goa Raja Waterfall

Our next destination was Goa Raja Waterfall. Entrance fee was 20000IDR per person.

After walking down a downhill street of restaurants with colorful entrances, we have arrived at the entrance of Goa Raja Waterfall. We walked down many steps and crossed a few wooden bridges before finally emerging to a pool filled with spring water.

The water is icy-cold, perfect for a dip after all the walking. Many tourists were soaking in the pool, clearly enjoying themselves.

To reach the secret waterfall, you will need to take out your socks and shoes. Walk on the pebbles to the right of the pool and walk all the way in, you will soon see a huge waterfall with a thunderous roar.

You will inevitably get wet as the waterfall sends water flying everywhere. There is a huge rock to the right of the waterfall which is perfect for taking dramatic pictures.

Lereng Agung Restaurant

Drawing from my experience with Kota Kinabalu Day Tour, I was expecting crappy lunch at a dismal-looking restaurant. When we asked our driver, Dawa, what we were having for lunch, his reply “a simple meal” didn’t sound too promising either.

Imagine our surprise when Dawa pulled up outside Lereng Agung Restaurant. Not only does this restaurant serve a good buffet spread, it offers incredible view of rice terrace.

The buffet costs 150000IDR and it comes with free-flow tea and coffee.

The pork are a little tough but I loved the spring rolls and fried bananas. I also got to try salak, the fruit with skin of a snake. It tastes like over-ripe apple.

Lia Swing (Optional)

As we were having lunch, we saw an Indian lady in a sexy red dress with a long train posing for pictures in a birdnest-like structure. We were laughing that people nowadays would do anything for an Instagram picture.

It turned out this is Lia Swing, one of the many Bali swings that flooded Instagram. Rental of the sexy flowy dress with swing is 300000IDR while the swing itself is 200000IDR so it’s is 500000IDR for the whole set.

Once you have made payment, you will be shown to a changing room where you can pick the dress you want. There are so many colors to choose from, I had a hard time deciding. I really wanted a white dress but someone has already taken it, so I settled for a dark red dress instead. An experienced Indonesian lady will be inside the changing room to help you wear the long dress.

The staff are obviously very experienced, they will instruct you on how to pose for the most striking pictures.

The swing itself was scary but exhilarating. The staff will strap you in and ask you how high you want the swing to go and I chose medium. The guy really jumped up to give me a good swing, each swing got me higher and higher. I was screaming my lungs out but the view of the rice terraces was amazing.

Besides the swing, you will also get to take many Instagram-worthy pictures at the hanging egg nest and egg nest on the floor.

Tirta Gangga Water Palace

Tirta Gangga was a former royal palace in eastern Bali. The small garden is named after the sacred river Ganges in Hinduism. It is famous for the Karangasem royal water palace, bathing pools and Patirthan temple.

Entrance fee was 55000IDR per person.

The most popular form of activity was feeding of koi fish, all the shops along the way sold fish food for around 5000IDR a bag.

Our driver-cum-photographer Dawa has probably been here a thousand times and he knows all the best spots for Instagram-worthy pictures. He throw pieces of bread to draw the koi where he wants them and quickly instruct us where to stand and pose. We finished taking pictures for the four of use in various locations in about 40 minutes.

Lempuyang Temple

Lempuyang Temple is a scared Hindu temple standing among the lush hills of Karangasem. The name of the temple is believed to be taken from the words “lempu” and “hyang”. “Lempu” means light, while “hyang” is a designation for God. Therefore, Lempuyang Temple means “a God that shines a bright light”.

The part of Lempuyang Temple that attracts thousands of tourists is not the temple itself, but the Gate of Heaven directly opposite the steps leading to the Hindu temple.

This “Gate of Heaven” is perfectly aligned with the magnificent Mount Agung in the far distant, creating the perfect backdrop for beautiful stiletto pictures. The masterful photographer seats in his chair and with the aid of a small mirror positioned under the camera, creates the mirror effect. Sadly, it was misty by the time we took our pictures so we didn’t get Mount Agung in the background but the pictures still look pretty awesome.

Your ticket comes with tickets for the Gate of Heaven photoshoot, but you will have to wait for your ticket number to be called. The wait can be anything from one hour to four hours.

At entrance of Lempuyang Temple, you will encounter many “tour operators” trying to sell you a package where they bring you to a secret location and help you to take lots of Instagram-worthy pictures.

This “secret place” is actually The Heaven Garden. Don’t bother getting their “packages”, it’s just a 5-minute walk further up the same slope that brought you to Lempuyang Temple. The entrance fee is 30000IDR per person (and they were charging 100000 IDR per person!). The kind staff can help you to take photos with the boat, King Kong paw, heart-shaped nest and heart-shaped bamboo enclosure. They know how to create the mirror effect too, and the pictures turned out perfect!

Conclusion

I honestly think TripGuru Bali Instagram Tour is one of the best tours I have done since Halong Bay Cruise. We took tons of stunning Instagram-worthy pictures that would not have been possible without our skilled driver-cum-photographer Dawa.

TripGuru Bali Instagram Tour costs S$45 per person which I think is pretty reasonable.

You can check out the rest of my pictures on my Instagram.

Klook also offers Klook Bali Instagram Tour but I can’t vouch for it as I have not personally tried it.