EZTrip.com International Destination Guide and Hotel Listings

Bali's capital city, DENPASAR (formerly known as Badung, and still sometimes referred to as such), has lost some of its charm to the roaring motorbikes and major traffic congestion that now dog much of south Bali. However, it remains a pleasantly small-town city at heart, dominated by family compounds grouped into traditional banjar (village association) districts, with just a few major shopping streets crisscrossing the centre. It feels nowhere near as hectic as Kuta but, as there's no nightlife (and no beach), few tourists spend long here.

Denpasar's central and most convenient landmark is Puputan Square, marking the heart of the downtown area. Overlooking its eastern edge on Jalan Mayor Wisnu, the Bali Museum (Tues-Sun 8am-3pm; Rp750; turquoise Kereneng-Ubung bemo route) is Denpasar's most significant attraction, prettily located in a series of traditional courtyards. The Main Building, at the back of the entrance courtyard, houses items from Bali's prehistory, and upstairs, there's a fine exhibition of traditional household utensils. The compact First Pavilion displays Balinese textiles, the Second Pavilion, which resembles an eighteenth-century Karangasem-style palace, contains all manner of religious paraphernalia, and the Third Pavilion exhibits theatrical masks and puppets.

The biggest and best of Denpasar's traditional markets is Pasar Badung , which stands at the heart of the downtown area, set slightly back off Jalan Gajah Mada, in a three-storey covered pasar beside Sungai Badung. Trading takes place here 24 hours a day: clothes, batik and ceremonial gear are on the top floor. You may get landed with one of the market's official guides, who hang out around the entrance. Across on the west bank of the narrow river, also a few meters south off Jalan Gajah Mada, the four-storey Pasar Kumbasari is dedicated to handicrafts, souvenirs and clothes, many of them much cheaper than in the shops of Kuta and Ubud.

In the eastern part of town, on Jalan Nusa Indah, fifteen minutes' walk from the Kereneng bemo station, or direct on a Sanur-bound bemo, the Taman Budaya Cultural Centre (daily 8am-3pm; Rp250) houses a moderately interesting art museum covering the development of Balinese painting and woodcarving. From mid-June to mid-July it also hosts the annual Arts Festival.