Four scooter routes worth the ride

Bali is small on a map and slow on the road. These four rides are the ones worth planning a day around, and each asks something different of the scooter.

Canggu to Ubud

The classic first day trip, and the one most people underestimate. It is not the distance that tires you, it is the traffic at both ends and the last stretch of narrow lanes. Leave early, and treat the return as a separate decision — riding it back at dusk is a different ride.

Comfort category is enough. Two up with bags, go Premium. See Canggu and Ubud.

The Amed coast loop

The east coast road strings together fishing villages and dive bays below Mount Agung, with steep short climbs between them and long open sections. This is the ride where a small engine stops being economical and starts being tiring.

Premium, minimum. See Amed and Tulamben.

Kintamani at sunrise

A long climb in the dark to reach the caldera rim before the cloud arrives. It is genuinely cold up there at dawn, colder than anyone packs for, and the descent back into the crater is steeper than the climb up to it. Bring a layer and check the brakes before you set off.

Premium. See Kintamani and Lake Batur.

The Sidemen valley

The quiet alternative to Ubud: a river valley of rice terraces between Agung and the coast, with steep narrow roads in and out and very little traffic once you are inside it. The most rewarding of the four if you like riding for its own sake.

Comfort handles it solo; Premium two up, because of the climbs out. See Sidemen.