8 Amazing Underwater Sculptures and Gardens in Bali

Bali has amazing sunken gardens and underwater sights that appeal to divers and snorkelers. The waters surrounding Bali offer plenty in terms of natural marine biodiversity, with sightings of some of the world’s most fascinating sea creatures, from oceanic sunfish to whale sharks.

Some of these great Bali dive sites are decorated with vast underwater temples, sculptures, and statues which use materials that encourage coral growth. Once submerged, the resulting sunken gardens provide thriving reef ecosystems teeming with colorful tropical marine life. These underwater gardens have an ethereal, haunting atmosphere and are great places to capture truly out-of-this-world vacation photos.

Bali Hotels

1. Bask Nest Underwater Sculptures

Eerie but beautiful circles of figures

Good for: Photo, Adventure

Bask Nest is an incredible underwater sculpture park right off the shores of Gili Meno island that lies off the north-western edge of Lombok island. Designed by Jason deCaires Taylor, it comprises a circle of 48 life-sized figures encircling several more on the seabed. Some of his sculptures can be found in various dive sites around the world, including the Caribbean and the Canary Islands.

Bask Nest offers an eerie yet beautiful dive site to explore in Indonesia, thanks to the statues’ detailed expressions. You may also encounter turtles, moray eels, and octopus during your trip, as well as whitetip and blacktip reef sharks.

Location: Desa, Gili Indah, Kec. Pemenang, Kabupaten Lombok Utara, Nusa Tenggara Bar. 83352, Indonesia

Phone: +62 (0)819 0909 6400

2. Jemeluk Bay underwater gallery

A working underwater mailbox

Good for: Photo, Adventure

The Jemeluk Bay underwater gallery displays “living sea” sculptures by Indonesian artists like Wayan Winten and Eddi Prabandono. It’s located in Amed, a dive site renowned for its calm waters and the amazing biodiversity that thrives along its coral walls. Some of the most prominent sculptures include a giant baby head, beautiful “apsara” (Hindu water nymphs), mermaids, treasure chests, and “Barong” (a lion-like creature that’s the king of the spirits in Balinese mythology).

A longstanding and highly unusual underwater feature at Jemeluk Bay is the working mailbox. You can purchase waterproof postcards from local shops, then dive to this box and post them to friends and loved ones.

Location: Pantai Jemeluk, Amed Street, Bunutan, Abang, Karangasem, Bali 80852, Indonesia

3. Biorock Pemuteran

A baby coral planted next to your name

Good for: Photo, Adventure

The Bio-Rock project by the Karang Lestari Foundation is one of the world’s most successful reef restoration efforts. These artificial reefs can be found off the shores of Pemuteran Bay in Bali’s northwest, which is also home to shallow natural reefs spanning 20,000 square meters. This marine protected area has over a dozen coral nurseries on sunken metal structures, which are fed with low electrical currents that help stimulate coral growth.

Some of the sculptures you can see during your dive include giant domes, blossoming lotuses, bicycles, and statues of Buddha and Hindu deities. For a small donation, you can sponsor a baby coral by having a small coral fragment planted next to your name (made using iron wire).

Location: Sea, Pemuteran, Buleleng, Bali 81155, Indonesia

Open: Daily from 8 am to 8 pm

Phone: +62 (0)852 3808 2285

4. Boga Wreck

A cargo ship complete with sunken car

Good for: Adventure, Photo, Unusual

The Boga shipwreck is located off the coast of Kubu in East Bali, at a depth of 30 meters. This WWII cargo ship was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine back in 1942. The 85-meter-long wreck is covered with algae and corals, attracting a variety of creatures like sunfish, great barracuda, peacock grouper, coral trout, and angelfish.

The Boga shipwreck has a remarkably intact steering wheel that’s a favorite photo opportunity for divers, along with a sunken Volkswagen 181. The best time for diving is between October and November when the weather are water conditions are relatively calm.

Location: Jl. Sida Karya, Baturinggit, Kec. Kubu, Kabupaten Karangasem, Bali 80853, Indonesia

5. Matahari Tulamben Resort coral garden

Gods and goddesses, temples and monuments

Good for: Photo, Adventure

The coral garden near the <a href=“https://uk.hotels.com/ho481413/”>Matahari Tulamben Resort</a> is a beautiful diving spot right off the shores of Tulamben. The site dates back to 2013 when the resort wanted to have its own house reef for visiting divers. The Matahari Tulamben Resort also has a dive center that organizes supervised trips out to this purpose-built coral garden.

With a depth of around 9 to 17 meters, this sunken garden has Buddha images, temples, and monuments, as well as Hindu gods and goddesses. Tropical fish, moray eels, oceanic sunfish, and eagle rays have been sighted in these waters.

Location: Sea, Kec. Kubu, Bali 80852, Indonesia

6. Deus BioRock

A bio rock n’ roll motorbike

Good for: Adventure, Photo, Unusual

Deus BioRock is a collaborative project between The Marine Foundation and Deus Ex Machina, an Australian surf, skate, motorbike, and lifestyle brand. Located off the coast of Gili Trawangan, Deus Ex Machina sank a motorbike 6 meters underwater, in order to create a unique work of art.

You can call it a bike, a sculpture, a bio-reef, or what the Deus guys like to call it, bio rock n’ roll. The site is some 160 feet off the shores by the La Cala Beach Club. The extraordinary setting of a vintage motorbike covered in coral and algae creates incredible photo opportunities for divers and snorkelers in Gili Trawangan.

Location: Gili Trawangan, Gili Indah, Pemenang, Lombok Utara, Nusa Tenggara Barat, Indonesia

7. Ceningan Buddha Point

Sunken Buddhist statues and monuments to explore

Good for: Photo, Adventure

Buddha Point off the northern-most tip of Ceningan Island is an underwater temple at a depth of 23 feet, making it an easy spot for snorkelers to explore. You’ll find an 8-foot-tall Buddha statue surrounded by smaller statues and Buddhist temple stupas (monuments traditionally used to house relics) similar to the ones you’d find in Borobudur Temple.

Various operators organize daytrip tours to this diving point near Ceningan Island, where you can explore the site on an underwater scooter. Swimming and snorkeling to Ceningan Buddha Point are also possible, but take extra precaution as the water currents can be rather strong.

Location: Ceningan Island, Lembongan, Nusapenida, Klungkung, Bali, Indonesia

8. Badung Underwater Cultural Park

Fire dancers and mythological characters

Good for: Adventure, History, Photo

The Badung Underwater Cultural Park lies around 1600 feet off the shores of Samuh Beach, just north of Nusa Dua’s Peninsula Island. Established by the Nusa Dua Reef Foundation in 2012, the underwater park has 26 Bali-themed artificial reef sculptures at a depth of around 36 feet.

You’ll see life-sized “kecak” (fire dancers) and characters from the Hindu epic Ramayana, all of which are covered with colorful corals. While it’s a little deep for snorkelers, they can easily view the Badung Underwater Cultural Park from the surface on clear days.

Location: Pantai Samuh, Benoa, South Kuta, Badung Regency, Bali 80361, Indonesia

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