On this page
In Brief
Eco-lodges in Munduk are highland stays that describe their own work for the land and the village, from organic farms to waste banks. Seven are listed here, five in and around Munduk and two by the twin lakes.
For the original, choose Puri Lumbung Cottages, where old rice barns became guest cottages and the village takes part in running the place. Munduk Moding Plantation at Gobleg is a larger resort built on an organic coffee plantation. Sanak Retreat is small and plastic free, set among rice fields with a village waste bank.
Munduk Tentrem is a hilltop stay with a farm tour and tree planting, and Munduk Cabins by Desa Hay has six cabins on a Munduk hillside. Closer to the lakes, Girihill Farmhouse at Wanagiri sits on its own organic farm, and Alamu Eco Lodge offers glamping at Lake Buyan.
Northbound found no outside environmental certification on any of their sites. Each entry reports what the lodge itself says and links you to it.
Munduk Eco-Lodges at a Glance
- Where: Munduk village and neighbouring Gobleg, Kayuputih nearby, Wanagiri and Pancasari by the lakes
- Climate: cool. Puri Lumbung gives Munduk's height as 500 to 1,200 metres and daytime temperatures of 20 to 25°C
- What "eco" means here: organic kitchen gardens, waste sorting and recycling, local staff, village programmes, and rooms that need no air conditioning
- From Lovina: roughly an hour by road
- Stay: two nights at least, so you get a morning on the trails and a morning at the lakes
- Rates: on each lodge's own site. They change, so they are not printed here
Which Lodge Suits Which Traveller
| If you want... | Stay at |
|---|---|
| Village life and classes, in a simple rice-barn cottage | Puri Lumbung Cottages, Munduk |
| A comfortable resort with private pool villas on a coffee plantation | Munduk Moding Plantation, Gobleg |
| To see how the money you spend reaches a village | Sanak Retreat Bali, Kayuputih |
| Farm activities within the resort, for families and couples | Munduk Tentrem Resort, Gobleg |
| A smaller, more private place than a resort | Munduk Cabins by Desa Hay, Munduk |
| A farm stay with a view over both lakes | Girihill Farmhouse, Wanagiri |
| A night under canvas by the lake | Alamu Eco Lodge, Lake Buyan |
| A villa on the coast before or after the hills | Palm Living's villas, around Lovina |
Each lodge is on this list because it describes its own environmental or community work. The entries below give that work in the lodge's own words, with its site, Instagram feed and map pin, so you can judge for yourself.
Munduk Has Hosted Guests in Its Cool Air Since 1908
The village sits among clove, coffee and cocoa gardens, with rainforest, rice terraces and a string of waterfalls within walking distance.
Puri Lumbung's history of the village records that the Dutch used Munduk as a mountain retreat from their capital at Singaraja. They opened the first guest house for officers here in 1908, and brought coffee, cocoa, cloves and vanilla as export crops. The cool air is the reason people still come up.
Cloves drying on the roadside in Munduk. Photo: tinofrey / Wikimedia Commons (public domain)
The lakes are the other half. Tamblingan and Buyan lie just below the ridge, and the twin lakes guide covers the temples, canoes and forest trails there. For the village itself, see the Munduk guide.
Five Eco-Lodges in and Around Munduk
Puri Lumbung Cottages
Puri Lumbung is in Munduk village, with views over rice fields, clove gardens and valleys to the coast. The name means "rice barn palace".
The compound follows the traditional Balinese plan modelled on the human body. Shrines stand at the head, guest rooms at the heart and other facilities at the foot.
Best for: travellers who want village life and classes, in a simple cottage.
In their words: Puri Lumbung calls itself the first of its kind in Bali. It describes itself as "an eco-tourism project" dedicated to the discovery, conservation and enhancement of the area around Munduk.
The lodge found several disused lumbung, rice granaries about 80 years old, and adapted them into simple cottages. It held a ritual first, to return the rice goddess Dewi Sri to the fields. There are also villas along the mountainside, and the lodge says the air is cool enough that fans and air conditioning are unnecessary.
Villagers work at the lodge and take part in activities that maintain the rainforest and protect water. Young villagers are encouraged to keep up traditional dance, music and crafts. Village children come for a dance class several times a week, which guests may watch or join.
What you can do:
- Treks with English-speaking guides, and mountain bikes
- Daily yoga and the Arathi spa
- Classes in Balinese cooking, offerings, weaving, bamboo instruments and loloh, the village's herbal drinks
- The chance to take part in harvesting rice, honey and cloves
- Tours to the lakes, the waterfalls and the old village of Pedawa
Contact: purilumbung.com · Map · Puri Lumbung Cottages on Instagram
The garden at Puri Lumbung Cottages, Munduk. Photo: Eric Bajart / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Munduk Moding Plantation
Munduk Moding is a nature resort in a working coffee plantation at about 1,200 metres. It lies in the village of Gobleg, near Munduk, and looks across Bali's central mountains to the distant sea.
Best for: a comfortable resort stay with private pool villas and a plantation to walk through. The Munduk coffee plantations guide covers the wider coffee story.
In their words: The story began in 2007, when the owners turned a five-hectare abandoned coffee plantation into the resort. The Balinese architects Popo Danes and Era Anastasia designed it, and an entirely Balinese team runs the resort and plantation.
The owners name Tri Hita Karana, the Balinese philosophy of harmony between people, nature and the divine, as their guide. The resort describes its own practices:
- The plantation grows coffee, fruit, herbs and vegetables without chemicals.
- The resort runs a plastic recycling centre and a waste bank.
- Its buildings use natural materials and open-air design, to disturb the land as little as possible.
- Its coffee arm, Munduk Coffee, roasts the plantation's own Arabica and works with neighbouring farmers to grow organic coffee.
- A share of coffee sales goes back to Gobleg and Munduk through the resort's Munduk Foundation.
What you can do: The resort offers trekking, cycling tours and horse riding. It also has yoga, a spa and several restaurants, including Warung Bongkot.
Contact: mundukmodingplantation.com · Sustainability page · Map · Munduk Moding Plantation on Instagram
Sanak Retreat Bali
Sanak has eleven wooden bungalows and a three-bedroom pool villa among rice fields. It stands at Banjar Dinas Menagung in the village of Kayuputih, which Sanak places near Munduk. The bungalows, it says, were designed for simple living.
Best for: travellers who want to see how the money they spend reaches a village.
In their words: French philanthropists founded Sanak after they met a Balinese rice-farming family on their first trip in 2011. They set it up so that the Indonesian owner, Pak Gusti, and his family could run it in the years ahead.
Sanak says it is plastic free, with glass bottles and water refill stations. For the community, it says it has built a recycling and sorting station and a "bank sampah". At this waste bank, villagers are paid market price for sorted recyclables. Staff, guests and school children make ecobricks from plastic that cannot be recycled.
Most of its staff come from the villages around it, and most of its food comes from the immediate neighbourhood. It also supports the local primary school and a girls' rejang dance group.
What you can do:
- Village walks to rice fields, coffee and cacao gardens and a waterfall
- A walk to a holy spring, where a Balinese healer offers water blessings
- Yoga, and a spa using the family's own small-batch scrubs
- Classes in cooking, dance, drawing, offerings and ecobrick building
Contact: sanakbali.com · We Care page · Map · Sanak Retreat Bali on Instagram
Munduk Tentrem Resort
Munduk Tentrem is a hillside resort at about 1,300 metres on Jl. Raya Asah Gobleg, overlooking mountains and rainforest. Tentrem, the resort says, means a feeling of peace and tranquillity.
Best for: families and couples who want farm activities within the resort.
In their words: The resort's organic farm supplies ingredients to its kitchen. A local horticulturist leads tours where you can harvest ingredients for your next meal. Guests can also plant a tree on the farm with the resort's gardener, which the resort presents as a contribution to reforestation in Bali.
What you can do: Guides lead jungle treks and waterfall walks. The resort also offers a jamu-making session, a cooking class and yoga, with an infinity pool and a fire pit for the cold evenings.
Contact: munduktentrem.com · Map · Munduk Tentrem Resort on Instagram
Munduk Cabins by Desa Hay
Six cabins stand on a hillside on Jl. Pura Puseh, Munduk, each facing north-west over jungle, the sea and the volcanoes. They share a pool, a hot tub and a fire pit. The restaurant, Ulekan, serves Indonesian family recipes with a view running out to Lovina.
Best for: couples and small groups who want a smaller, more private place than a resort.
In their words: The cabins pair traditional Indonesian architecture with modern comforts. On the environment, the site keeps it short. The owners manage water use responsibly, work to reduce waste of every kind, and support local initiatives on the island.
Contact: mundukcabins.com · Map · Munduk Cabins on Instagram
Two Stays Closer to the Twin Lakes
The road from Munduk runs along the ridge above Tamblingan and Buyan to Wanagiri, then drops to Pancasari and Lake Beratan.
Dawn on Lake Tamblingan, dugout canoes in the shallows. Photo: Made agus devayana / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Stays here are closer to the water and to the Bedugul side. For what is nearby, see Wanagiri Hidden Hills and Bedugul.
Girihill Farmhouse
Girihill's villas are on Jl. Wanagiri, in the Sukasada district, with views over Lakes Buyan and Tamblingan.
Best for: a farm stay with a lake view, handy for the Wanagiri viewpoints.
In their words: Girihill describes its villas as blending sustainability with modern comfort, set on a 15,000-square-metre organic farm. Dishes are cooked with ingredients from the farm, and the farmhouse runs cultural workshops and cooking experiences for guests.
Contact: girihillfarmhouse.com · Map · Girihill Farmhouse on Instagram
Alamu Eco Lodge
Alamu has glamping tents beside Lake Buyan, near Pancasari.
Best for: a night under canvas by the lake.
What to know: Alamu describes itself on Instagram as glamping and a restaurant at Lake Buyan. Its own website was not reachable when Northbound checked in September 2026. Use its Instagram and map listing to see it and confirm it is open.
Questions Worth Asking Any "Eco" Lodge
The word "eco" is used freely, and Northbound found no outside environmental certification on the sites of the lodges above. A few questions show quickly how much is behind it:
- Where does the water come from, and where does the waste go?
- How much of the food comes from the lodge's own garden or the village?
- Are the staff from the surrounding villages?
- Does the lodge support anything in the village you can see or visit?
The lodges that answer these on their own sites, like Puri Lumbung, Munduk Moding and Sanak, are linked above so you can read the detail yourself.
How to Fit It In
Two nights is the working minimum. Give one morning to the Munduk waterfall trails and one to the lakes or a coffee plantation walk.
Munduk pairs well with the coast. Come up from Lovina for the hills, then go back down for the dolphins and the Banjar hot springs. Several of these lodges also offer yoga, covered in yoga retreats in north Bali.
For the rest of the trip, Palm Living's villas are around Lovina on the coast, roughly an hour below Munduk. The where to stay in north Bali guide compares the areas.
Practical Notes
- Getting there: from Lovina, the road climbs through the hills to Munduk. From the south, most people come over Bedugul past the lakes. See getting to north Bali.
- Pack layers. Evenings and early mornings are cool, and the rooms in the older lodges have no heating.
- Rain: the wet season brings cloud and slippery trails. Walk early.
- Book direct. Every lodge above has its own site or account, and booking direct lets you ask the questions above.
- Refill your bottle. Sanak has refill stations and is plastic free, so bring your own bottle.
FAQ
What is the best eco-lodge in Munduk? It depends on what you want. Puri Lumbung Cottages is the long-established village eco-lodge with rice-barn cottages and classes. Munduk Moding Plantation is a larger resort on an organic coffee plantation. Sanak Retreat is small and plastic free, with a village waste bank.
Are there eco-lodges near Lake Tamblingan and Lake Buyan? Yes, two. Girihill Farmhouse at Wanagiri has villas on an organic farm with views over both lakes, and Alamu Eco Lodge offers glamping beside Lake Buyan.
How cold does Munduk get? Puri Lumbung gives daytime temperatures of 20 to 25°C for the village. Evenings and early mornings feel cooler, so bring a light jacket.
How many nights should I stay in Munduk? Two nights at least, with one day for the waterfalls and one for the lakes or a plantation walk.
How far is Munduk from Lovina? Roughly an hour by road. Many people stay on the coast and spend two nights in Munduk as part of the same trip.
Do Munduk lodges have air conditioning? Many do not need it. Puri Lumbung says the mountain air makes fans and air conditioning unnecessary. Check each lodge's room details before booking.
Sources
- Puri Lumbung Cottages, home page, about (rice barns, eco-tourism project, village history, altitude and temperature) and activities, read September 2026
- Munduk Moding Plantation, our story and sustainability, September 2026
- Sanak Retreat Bali, home page, the Sanak story and We Care, September 2026
- Munduk Tentrem Resort, home page, organic farm and tree planting, September 2026
- Munduk Cabins by Desa Hay, home page and cabins, September 2026
- Girihill Farmhouse, home page, September 2026
- Alamu Eco Lodge, Instagram, September 2026
Read next: the twin lakes of Buyan and Tamblingan, Munduk waterfalls and hiking, where to stay in north Bali.
_-_panoramio.jpg){kind=link}
_-_panoramio.jpg){kind=link}
