Ubud

Ubud is a town on the Indonesian island of Bali in Ubud District, located amongst rice paddies and steep ravines in the central foothills of the Gianyar regency. Promoted as an arts and culture centre, it has developed a large tourism industry. It forms a northern part of the Greater Denpasar metropolitan area (known as Sarbagita). Ubud, is an administrative district (kecamatan) with a population of 74,800 (as of the 2020 Census) in an area of 42.38 km2. The central area of Ubud desa (village) has a population of 11,971 and an area of 6.76 km2, and receives more than three million foreign tourists each year. The area surrounding the town is made up of farms, rice paddies, agroforestry plantations, and tourist accommodations. As of 2018, more tourists visited Ubud than Denpasar to the south. History Eighth-century legend tells of a Javanese priest, Rsi Markendya, who meditated at the confluence of two rivers (an auspicious site for Hindus) at the Ubud locality of Campuhan. Here he founded the Gunung Lebah Temple on the valley floor, the site of which remains a pilgrim destination.