🇮🇩Honest Experience Visiting Garuda Wisnu Kencana🗿
During my Bali trip, one of the places my travelmate and I were genuinely looking forward to was Garuda Wisnu Kencana. We’d seen photos and videos of the massive statue online and were super curious to see it in real life. I mean, how often do you get to see something as huge as a building that’s also a cultural icon? We were quite excited!
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When we arrived, our first impression was that the place was huge. The statue itself is breathtaking in scale and detail — definitely one of those “wow” moments when you see it with your own eyes. We were also hoping to snap a few nice shots, and at the right angles, the statue does make a great backdrop.
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But the experience wasn’t as pleasant as we’d hoped. From the entrance, we had to take a shuttle and then walk quite a distance just to get close to the statue. That alone took us about 30 to 45 minutes, and we hadn’t even started exploring yet. We initially planned for a quick visit, but just getting in and out ended up taking over 1.5 hours. (We were lucky that it was either dry or just drizzling lightly — if it had rained any heavier, we wouldn’t have been able to walk to the statue building at all.)
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Another thing that caught us off guard was the hidden cost involved. We had already paid the entrance fee, but when we got to the statue building, we found out — only after walking all the way down the red aisle to the end — that there was an additional fee to go inside. It felt like a waste of time walking in and was quite frustrating. The whole place gave off the vibe of being overly commercialised, kind of like Singapore’s Sentosa, where every section feels like a separate attraction that requires more payment.
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What made it slightly more confusing was the lack of clear guidance. While there was signage, it wasn’t very easy to follow. We spent a good amount of time just figuring out where to go, which added to the overall exhaustion.
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In the end, although the statue was impressive, the overall experience didn’t quite live up to our expectations.
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Would I recommend it? If you’re really into cultural monuments or want that perfect Instagram shot, maybe. But I’d say — manage your expectations. It’s beautiful, but may not be the smoothest or most enjoyable visit.
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Don’t forget to bring insect repellent, a face mist, and an umbrella or raincoat too — just in case!
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📍Garuda Wisnu Kencana Cultural Park
Jl. Raya Uluwatu, Ungasan, Kec. Kuta Sel., Kabupaten Badung, Bali 80364, Indonesia
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