How "crowded" is Bali in August?

As a general rule, it's very crowded in August. The Bukit has the biggest numbers in the water but you'll find it busy just about everywhere.

It's all about timing and luck erik.

Erik, have a look at Baliwaves.com Slim the owner posts daily surf reports and pics from all over bali and gives crowd numbers, also exchange rates and current temps etc
fuck mate july august that's peak season.......60-80 on the peak at ulu with another 30 plus down the line, crowds do thin a bit once it gets over 6ft ....as the others have said 'timing'.

Just wait for the swell to be big. Then the crowds will be low.
EXCEPT: For Padang it will be packed like Snapper but about half
a dozen Balos will dominate and get 90% of the sets.

yeah and that big fat american guy with a 3 inch thick board will drop in on the balos. anyone ever seen him out at padang?
It is a sight to see a 150+kg beast get to his feet after riding down the face on his hands and knees from the takeoff and clamber up into a wide 8ft pit. I was truly impressed haha.

Erik,
Have fun you will get waves i'm sure. Personally I reckon the beachies from Kuta to Legian and beyond can produce as good waves as some of the main breaks when the swell is up, and the peaky beachies handle the crowd much better than a reef.

Head over to Lembongan. If you can time the high tides outside the visiting hours of the Bali fun ship that comes over every day (between about 9am to 3pm) you will get relatively uncrowded waves. Look for Captain Nemo, he'll take you out to the reefs.

I think this is the bloke you're talking about yocal.

Big Jimbo Pellegrine.

Aaaaaahahahahaha!

Yep I was 90% sure in the first 39 seconds of the clip, 100% sure this is the guy after 40 seconds! Smoking the locals.

I remember he paddled out after scoring a huge pit and someone had dropped in on him, he said in his californian y'all drawl...

'next dude who pulls in on me is gonna get a CAP IN HIS ASS!' ahahahahaha

Most talented fat cnut I've seen on a shortboard hands down credit where credit is due.

Super busy in August - but for good reason. On a 6 foot + swell you can score simply fantastic waves. A lot of people in the water will get out when it gets about four foot (and a lot more probably would if they knew how!). Be a charger, then the waves are always pretty empty.

Erik, I mentioned peak season........which is pretty much april to October or any time the conditions are right for bali's west coast ,im hearing further down the coast Balian is also pulling large crowds these days.

Correct udo, was last up that way 3 years ago staying at a friends place and there were units, "camps", and cafe/restaurants under construction with others starting. Medawi is the same. Whenever the Bukit is small, the crowds pile up there in droves. Fortunately there is still some hidden gems for those willing to explore.

Just think outside the square ,outside temples, mondays and thursdays early as everyone gets boozed up at single fin the night before , beachies, east coast if winds are good , late when the onshore gos cross shore

I think we should stop giving hints now - we've already said too much.....

Agree Dandan , whatever happened to figuring things out for yourself?
All this "helpful friendly "advice given on the internet seen by surfers worldwide just contributes to the crowded line ups everyone bitches about. I wonder how many extra surfers might be in the water cause of your suggestions herbo? Think before you post eh

hearhear dandandan & greggreggreg

Lucking out you can score empty perfectionsometimes when you least expect it.
One trip i had a call from immigration in kuta to come back and get fingerprints copied (social budaya 180 day visa), in mid july or aug, not sure..anyway was a few islands away from bali and a 12ft swell was expected and had hardly any cash either.

So hitchhiked back with out surfboard and wouldnt you know it, so many places were pumping on the way into bali, including the rare padang bai bowling nicely with no one around to surf it.
So yeah you can get waves away from where most people are looking in aug..crowds can be severe most of the time though. Uncrowded days are a blessing in bali.

Haha u guys are kidding or havent been in august if you think my commments are going to make ulus any more crowded i gave up years ago

You cant fit anymore surfers in Bali anyway there is no more space in the lineups.
So any news or help, swell predictions are a good thing.

As Udo says check out Baliwaves.com. I have stayed with Slim 3 times (just got back two weeks ago) he has the place wired, during my last trip I surfed 5ft Balangan with 5 other guys, and another spot on the East Coast, well overhead, with just the four of us who were staying with Slim in the line up.

I just flew back from 2 weeks in Bali on Tuesday.
Surfcrowd wise it wasn't overly hectic on the bukit but the traffic was jammed up allover the place.
The only clear run was on the new toll road which is awesome for getting over to the east side.
Surfed 1-2 foot Canggu with way to many people for the amount of waves but since I had driven down there thought I better get wet. Hadn't been there in about 7 years and felt empty with all the development falling into the ocean.
I had kids and wife with me so wasn't heaps of surfing and get better waves and less crowds at home.
Bali for most of the time is frustrating due to the crowds on roads, in surf and at waterbom.

also alongside slim and baliwaves a good site which puts up a surf check video everyday is http://nusasurfwear.com/surf_video_reports.php

Check out the 16 day forecast for Bali. You must live in an amazing slice of the world Paddlepaddleduc if your local is expecting better conditions than that mate.
But your right about the frustration at times. Some spots I can't even bring myself to look at these days but I no doubt miss out on a few good sessions because of it.

So who is there right now or just returned, How bad was the crowd ?
Waist-chest high and perfect today going by the wave camera on paddlepaddles link.

Hey Udo, it is packed everywhere unless it gets solid and then the crowd thins somewhat.
You can still get waves but it certainly isn't a relaxing affair trying to get a few under your belt at peak periods.
Almost got my face chopped off by a dangerous dropin last week, the brazzo's in the lineup were upset about it, which is saying something.

Blowin wrote:

Check out the 16 day forecast for Bali. You must live in an amazing slice of the world Paddlepaddleduc if your local is expecting better conditions than that mate.
But your right about the frustration at times. Some spots I can't even bring myself to look at these days but I no doubt miss out on a few good sessions because of it.

yep , im picking up what your laying down.
been goin to bali / indo since the 80's. havent surfed canggu since 88, i think, and that was just cos of the japs back then. now if i saw the line up any where packed with japs id think "wow , how mellows that, might go and get a few runners" lol.
but theyve long since been replaced with brazilnuts , euro's , hot and hungery locals , more euro's and now even bloody russians (go figure) and allways with a base of aussies to finally eliminate any chance of a satisfying surf.
i had a little spot id go to , for years and years , when the crowds really pissed me off. never saw another surfer there . hadnt been for about 2 years and i took a mate for the first time. paddled out and blokes started rocking up from every where. ended up there were ten of us out. lol.
i luv bali.
i still go 4-5 times a year. one wave stolen from rizal at padang is worth the hassel.
if you want waves in bali there is a way but i aint gonna tell yas. but dont expect race tracks or bingin to offer up many (any) uncrowded surfs.
but go there for the balinese.

Only go there when its big! You can get waves then.