There are two types of people in this world, monkey friends and monkey foes, and nowhere is this distinction made more clear than at the Sacred Monkey Forest in Ubud. For some, the idea of strolling through this wild animal sanctuary is a fun and educational way to see primates in their natural habitat. For others, the mere thought of being surrounded by monkeys with nowhere to run and hide is the making of a nightmare.
The team here at Villa-Bali.com is split: are the monkey forest inhabitants…
Anyone in the ‘conniving’ camp will argue that there are clearly dark undertones to those sneaky Crab-eating Macaques. It probably doesn’t help that by now, the Monkey Forest has earned its reputation as a place where you should hold on tight to your belongings and be weary of irritating these tree-swinging friends of ours. To have a story with soundbites (no pun intended) like, “we were such good buddies until it bit me on the arm” or “he even stole my earring and ran off with it!” is somewhat of a rite of passage amongst Southeast Asian travellers today – you haven’t truly experienced Bali until you have your own Monkey Tale to tell.
The first time I visited the Monkey Forest I was young and naive, not aware of just how feisty these wild animals were known to be. Stupidly, I bought the bananas they sell to you in the front entrance for you to feed the monkeys inside the sanctuary. “Cool, it’ll be like feeding breadcrumbs to ducks in a pond,” I remember thinking to myself. I’m pretty sure the movie scene that played in my head starred me as the queen sharing her banana wealth with all of her monkey friends, as each one politely stood in line and waited their turn. Oh, how foolish I was. Of course, the first monkey that got a whiff of that delicious yellow fruit was all over me like white on rice. Literally. He/she/it charged me so fast I never saw what was coming until the entire bundle of bananas was being ripped from my hands and the monkey had jumped from the ground to my chest and back again in a matter of seconds. The best part was that everybody around me witnessed this ‘hilarious’ encounter, which in turn prompted a complete stranger to grab my shoulders a moment later as if it were the same flying monkey coming back for round two. Like I said, ‘hilarious’.
Other evil monkey tales go somewhat like the sequence seen here:
But this would be a biased post if I didn’t include the ‘cute’ opinions of our team members. It appears that some of us are dignified “Monkey Whisperers” and react to the forest inhabitants with an affectionate “awwww” instead of a terrified “agghhh!”. The ability to actually interact with the monkeys instead of just watching them behind zoo bars is said to be the highlight for many, including the majestic setting of the Monkey Forest itself. Set in the middle of Ubud’s city center, the sanctuary is home to a holy temple, towering trees dating back hundreds of years and winding paths taking you to all corners of the park. This plus the baby monkeys running around do contribute significantly to the ‘cute’ factor of the forest I suppose.
All jokes aside, the Monkey Forest is truly a fascinating place to witness a spectre of nature up close and personal, regardless of your predisposed feelings towards wild animals. Yes the monkeys can be aggressive, but in most cases it is because they are provoked by us in some way, shape or form (or they can smell your fear…). Our best advice: give the Monkey Forest a stroll for yourself, leave your valuable belongings behind and find out whether you’re a monkey friend or monkey foe. Whatever happens you’ve been warned!
Opening hours: 8:30am-6:00pm
Entrance fee: 30,000 rp. (adult) and 15,000 rp. (child)
Distance from Seminyak/Kuta: 1 1/2 hours
Looking for more things to do in Ubud? Try checking out Goa Gajah Temple, Campuhan Ridge Trek, the plethora of organic cafes and rainforest villas in the area or get a group together for a cycling day trip. Happy exploring everybody!
