Dreamland Beach - Laid Back Flair and a Great Surf

Dreamland Beach, Bukit Peninsula
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Before we actually visited Bali I have heard of a supposingly beautiful place called Dreamland Beach twice. An Australian classmate at University mentioned once that the beach is the best she has ever seen. Well I thought that this judgement definetely depended on personal preferences; but if someone from Australia, a country which has thousands of kilometres of coastline, talks about a beach in Bali, it must be somehow special. And then a colleague at work, who was actually born in Bali, mentioned that place again. Those two recommendations were reason enough for us to find and visit Dreamland Beach, whenever we would get to Bali.

Surfers at Dreamland Beach
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Dreamland Beach is located on the west coast of the Bukit Peninsula in South Bali and therefore only a short ride from Bali's major tourism spots. To access the beach you have to pass a gate which leads to a private Villa Park and passed the failed Pectau Graha developments. An investor confiscated local land and intended to build several hotels, private properties and a golf course. Somehow the government stopped the development and today there are numerous unfinished structures on all sides of the road.  

Beach Bars at Dreamland Beach
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After a short drive on a bumby road our cab driver parked the car. We were surprised to find this place quite crowded and a number of surfers passed us on their motorbikes. People were gathering at the beach to watch the sunset from one of the many local bars and restaurants. We had to walk down a path and stairs to reach the beach. You could spot hundreds of surfers in the water from the top of a hill waiting for the next big one. Eventhough I have tried surfing a bunch of times in Australia before and I have really enjoyed it, it did not go for a surf in Bali. Dreamland Beach is really beautiful and the azure blue water looks quite inviting, nevertheless swimming is just impossible due to the strong currents. Locals rent beach chairs for a couple of dollars and try to get you into their establishments. Eventhough Dreamland Beach was crowded at that time of the day and the stretch og beach is actually relatively short, you still got the impression that this is a totally laid back and special hangout spot for surfers and backpackers from all over the world, who happily intermingled with the locals. People just gathered to watch the surfers, have a beer and a chat and watch the sunset and the ocean. As we were still heading for the Uluwatu temple on the same evening, we unfortunately did not have more time to spend at this particularly special spot.