Overview
The site has been in use since long before Hinduism reached Bali in its present form, and its position on Agung is the point: the mountain is the axis of Balinese cosmology, and the temple faces down from it. When Agung erupted in 1963, killing around seventeen hundred people, the lava passed either side of Besakih and left it standing, which Balinese read as a sign and geologists as topography. A new entrance and parking complex opened in 2023.
Highlights
Only worshippers may enter the inner courtyards; the walk up the terraces and the view back down over the rice country is what visitors come for. Guides are now allocated at the official desk with a fixed price, which has ended the long-standing problem of compulsory escorts appearing on the path. Cloud closes in over Agung by mid morning, so go early if you want to see the summit.