I visited all the components of this WHS over a week in August 2018. Even though Bali has some very touristy spots and notorious tourist traps, it has its very own architecture, culture, traditions and is practically the only place in Indonesia were the majority practice Hinduism.

Even though the inscription is centered on the subak system and landscape, this WHS has much more to offer than just another water management system. Personally, I was expecting something along the lines of UAE's aflaj or Madeira's levadas. What I visited in Bali can be roughly divided in 3 aspects. 1) Nature - Lake Batur, Mt Batur, 2) Beautiful man-made landscapes - Subak Landscape of Catur Angga Batukaru, and 3) Temples - Supreme Water Temple, Royal Water Temple and Pura Gunung Kawi Engravings. So to sum up all 3 aspects, the experience I had reminded me mostly of Kathmandu valley with multi-storied temples everywhere and a culture which is very much alive.

I based myself in Ubud and organised a full day driver services to the different places I had researched before my arrival. Early starts are highly recommended to beat the crowds and to avoid getting stuck in traffic jams. As I usually skip lunch, visiting popular places such as Taman Ayun at around lunch time meant I had the place almost to myself. If you want to avoid being hassled just buy a cheap sarong and wear it before entering the temples or else be adamant that you're not willing to pay and you'll be given one for free (or a small donation) at the entrance. Another worthwhile tip is to print google maps and clearly highlight the long names of the temples - for example there are 2 pura ulan danu temples (Bratan and Batur, the latter being the inscribed one) in completely oppposite directions.

Although I divided the locations in 3 aspects, you'll be able to experience a degree of each aspect in all inscribed locations. However, I'll describe what in my opinion were the highlights of each aspect during my visit. The first aspect, nature, was the least inspiring out of the three. Indonesia has great natural WHS and great non-inscribed natural sites, so I wouldn't suggest visiting Bali solely for this aspect. Even though the island is lush all year round (also thanks to the subak system), bird hunting and trapping is a very big problem all over Indonesia, so the only place worth visiting for birdwatching is the remote nature reserve on the north-western part of the island. Apart from that, in Bali you're more likely to see hordes of tourists, big coaches or vans struggling to pass through the narrow roads of Bali, and all sorts of tourist traps like instagram spots, Bali swings, etc. Elsewhere in Indonesia, huge never-ending nature reserves or national parks are rarely crowded if at all visited and have much more on offer. That said, Lake Batur makes for a very worthwhile stop for sunset (it is marketed as a lunch-time stopover point) before or after visiting the Supreme Water Temple of Pura Ulun Danu Batur. Here you have to have a sarong as you won't be able to borrow one. The supreme water temple has meru towers or pagoda-like shrines, intricate gates and very colourful and scary statues. Fog seems to be a frequent visitor here too because of the surrounding mountain landscape which adds to the atmosphere but may make it hard to view Lake Batur!

The second aspect was the one I was looking forward to the most when visiting Bali. The scenic rice terraces of Bali with their year-round rice production help Indonesia's national economy as the third largest producer of rice in the world. The best place to experience everyday life in the rice terraces is the Subak Landscape of Catur Angga Batukaru, known as Jatiluweh rice terraces. The best time to visit here is in the late afternoon when all the locals feed the oxen in their little sheds, plough the terraces or harvest the rice. Even though a bit touristy, it is nothing like the tourist trap of Tegallalang (Ceking) Rice Terraces (where cattle sheds have been replaced by instagram spots or Bali swings) and is really quite large. It deserves at least half a day if you don't mind trekking a bit. The treks are clearly marked even though it's fun to get a bit lost, make friends with the locals and perhaps follow them through muddy short cuts up and down the rice terraces. I opted for the 3.8km long trek (blue line) and wasn't disappointed. If I were to revisit, I'd surely base myself here instead of Ubud. The rice terraces of the Subak Landscape of the Pekerisan Watershed were lovely too and also interesting to see the technical aspects of the deviation of water of the subak system.

However, what impressed me most of the Pekerisan Watershed were the engraved shrines of Pura Gunung Kawi in Tampaksiring village. 5 shrines are located on the eastern side of the Pekerisan River (where an impressive Kecak dance is performed on special occasions - I had noted this place down from the documentary Baraka), 4 shrines are located on the western side and a 10th shrine is located at the Bukit Gundul hill with some ascetic caves. Here the different temples and shrines are very much still in use and a few of them are not open to women. The highlight of the Pekerisan Watershed subak landscape though is definitely Pura Tirta Empul where locals and tourists bathe in the holy spring water supposedly for ritual purification (even though E. coli contamination seems to have been an issue in 2017). This was by far the most crowded inscribed site. The highlight of the third aspect of this WHS was the iconic Royal Water Temple, Pura Taman Ayun, with its serene gardens, impressive gates and towering pagoda-like shrines (photo).   

All in all, I really enjoyed my visit in Bali and this WHS really was the highlight of my visit on the island. Outside all the different locations there were information boards and UNESCO inscription plaques displaying the different locations of this WHS. For those of you who want to visit more worthwhile temples (not inscribed) in Bali, I suggest Pura Besakih and Pura Ulun Danu Bratan. For those of you who want to stay away from the crowds (as much as possible in an already crowded island), avoid Pura Lempuyang (instagram spot - gate of heaven with volcano background) and Tanah Lot.