Staying Healthy in Bali: Dengue, Rabies, Sun, Surf and Hospitals

Bali is an easy place to stay healthy once you know the handful of risks that actually matter: mosquitoes, animal bites, the sun, the reef and scooters. None of them should put you off, but each has a simple routine that makes a real difference.

This guide covers dengue, rabies, sun, reef cuts, vaccines, insurance and the island's hospitals. It is general information, not medical advice, and your own doctor or a travel clinic should have the final word.

Before you fly

Vaccines to discuss

See a travel doctor six to eight weeks before you leave, as some vaccines need more than one dose. None is required for entry unless you arrive from a country with yellow fever risk, but these are usually discussed for Bali:

• Routine vaccines: measles, mumps and rubella, and tetanus, diphtheria and polio. A tetanus booster matters if you surf or ride a scooter.
• Hepatitis A: recommended for almost all travellers.
• Typhoid: recommended for most travellers. The vaccine is not fully protective, so care with food and water still counts.
• Hepatitis B: often recommended, especially for longer stays.
• Rabies (pre-exposure): worth serious thought for Bali, especially for long stays, children and anyone around animals. It makes treatment after a bite much simpler (see below).
• Japanese encephalitis: for stays of a month or more, or plenty of time in rural areas near rice fields.
• Chikungunya and dengue: sometimes discussed for long stays. More on dengue below.

You do not need malaria tablets for Bali's main areas, including the south and Ubud. You may need them if you travel on to parts of eastern Indonesia, such as Flores and Labuan Bajo, so give your doctor your full route.

Travel insurance

As of October 2026, travel insurance is not a legal requirement for a tourist visit to Indonesia, although Indonesian regulators have discussed making it mandatory for foreign visitors. Check the latest before you travel, and note that some long-stay visas and permits ask for proof of cover.

Required or not, buy it. Private hospitals in Bali often ask for a deposit or an insurer's guarantee before admitting you, and a medical evacuation to Singapore or Australia can run into tens of thousands. Check that:

• Medical evacuation and repatriation are covered.
• Scooter riding is covered. Many policies refuse claims if you had no valid licence or no helmet.
• Surfing, diving and anything else you plan to do is included.
• There is a 24-hour assistance line, saved in your phone.

Dengue

Dengue is a viral infection spread by Aedes mosquitoes, which bite mainly during the day, with peaks in the early morning and late afternoon. It is present all year in Bali, and cases usually rise in the rainy season, roughly November to April. Numbers swing from year to year: local health data put Bali at about 9,100 cases between January and July 2025, and around 1,600 in the same months of 2026.

Prevention

• Use an insect repellent containing DEET, picaridin (icaridin) or IR3535 on exposed skin, and reapply after swimming or heavy sweating. Sunscreen goes on first, repellent on top.
• Wear light, loose clothing that covers your arms and legs, particularly in the early morning and late afternoon.
• Choose rooms with air conditioning or screens, or use a net or plug-in repellent.
• If you live in Bali, tip out standing water around the house every week. Plant pot saucers, buckets, blocked gutters and old containers are where Aedes breeds.

The dengue vaccine

A dengue vaccine called Qdenga is approved in Indonesia and offered at some private hospitals and clinics in Bali. It is given as two doses three months apart, and as of October 2026 expect to pay roughly Rp 800,000 per dose at private clinics. Advice on who should have it differs between countries, and some recommend it mainly for people who have already had dengue, so talk it through with a doctor first.

Symptoms and what to do

Dengue usually starts suddenly, four to ten days after the bite, with a high fever, a severe headache, pain behind the eyes, muscle and joint pain, and sometimes a rash, nausea or vomiting. If you get a fever in Bali, see a doctor and ask for a blood test. Clinics can test for dengue quickly.

For fever and pain, doctors generally suggest paracetamol. Avoid ibuprofen and aspirin until dengue has been ruled out, because they raise the risk of bleeding.

The dangerous phase often comes as the fever drops, typically three to seven days in. Go to a hospital straight away if you have severe stomach pain, repeated vomiting, bleeding gums or nosebleeds, blood in vomit or stool, unusual drowsiness or restlessness, or cold, clammy skin.

Zika and pregnancy

The same mosquitoes carry Zika. In August 2026 US health authorities issued a level 2 travel notice after Zika cases were reported in travellers returning from Bali, while Bali's health agency said it had found no confirmed local cases and was stepping up monitoring. Zika is usually mild but can harm an unborn baby. If you are pregnant or planning a pregnancy, speak to your doctor before you book: the current US advice is that pregnant travellers should avoid Bali.

Rabies: what to do after a bite or scratch

Rabies has been present in Bali since 2008, and it is a real risk. The island recorded 16 rabies deaths in 2025 and five in the first half of 2026, and more than 29,000 bites from animals that can carry rabies were reported between January and May 2026. Once symptoms start, rabies is almost always fatal, but before that it is almost entirely preventable with prompt treatment.

Any bite, scratch or lick on broken skin from a dog, cat, monkey or bat counts, even if the animal looks healthy or belongs to someone.

Right away

1. Wash the wound immediately with soap and running water for at least 15 minutes. This alone greatly reduces the risk. Then apply an antiseptic such as povidone-iodine if you have one.
2. Go to a clinic or hospital the same day. Do not wait to see whether the animal gets sick.
3. Tell the doctor exactly what happened, which animal it was, and whether you have had rabies vaccine before.

Vaccine and immunoglobulin

Treatment after exposure is a course of rabies vaccine injections spread over the following weeks. For deeper bites and scratches that draw blood, people who have not been vaccinated before usually also need rabies immunoglobulin (RIG), injected into and around the wound, ideally at the same time as the first vaccine dose. RIG is in short supply worldwide and not every clinic stocks it, so call ahead or go to one of the larger hospitals in the south or Denpasar. If it is not available on day one, it can still be given up to seven days after the first vaccine dose, so start the vaccine anyway. Public hospitals and community health centres (puskesmas) also give the vaccine.

If you completed a pre-exposure course before your trip, you will usually need just two booster doses and no RIG at all.

Keep a written record of every dose with dates and the vaccine name, and finish the course at home if you leave before it ends.

Avoiding bites

• Do not touch, feed or pick up dogs, cats or monkeys, however friendly they seem.
• At temples and forests with monkeys, such as Uluwatu and the Ubud Monkey Forest, keep food, drinks, sunglasses and loose bags out of sight, avoid staring at them, and let go calmly if one grabs something.
• If a dog comes towards you, stand still or back away slowly. Do not run.
• Watch children closely, as they are bitten more often.

Sun and heat

Bali sits just south of the equator, so the midday sun is strong in every season, even on cloudy days.

• Use a broad-spectrum sunscreen of SPF 30 or higher, and reapply every two hours and after swimming.
• Wear a hat and sunglasses, and a long-sleeved rash vest for surfing or snorkelling.
• Keep the hottest hours, roughly 11am to 3pm, for shade, a pool or a long lunch.
• Drink water through the day, more if you are sweating or drinking alcohol.
• Know the signs of heat exhaustion: headache, dizziness, nausea, heavy sweating and weakness. Get into the shade, cool down and drink. Confusion, fainting or hot, dry skin can mean heatstroke, which is an emergency.

At the beach, swim between the red and yellow flags where lifeguards are on duty. Rip currents are common on Bali's exposed south and west coasts.

Surfers: reef cuts and ears

Reef and coral cuts

Many of Bali's best breaks, including Uluwatu and Padang Padang, break over shallow coral. Coral cuts look minor but infect easily in the heat.

• Rinse the cut with clean fresh water as soon as you are out, and scrub out any sand or coral fragments.
• Apply an antiseptic, cover it, and keep it as dry as you can for a few days.
• Check it daily. See a doctor if it turns red, hot, swollen or very painful, starts to ooze, a red line spreads from it, or you get a fever.
• Keep your tetanus vaccination up to date.
• Reef booties make sense on shallow reefs at low tide, and local surfers can show you the safest way in and out.

Ears

Surfing in warm water every day is a reliable way to get swimmer's ear, an infection of the ear canal that causes itching, pain and a blocked feeling. Dry your ears after each session and consider earplugs. If your ear becomes painful, see a doctor rather than paddling out again. Long-term surfers can also develop surfer's ear, a bony narrowing of the ear canal caused by years of wind and water exposure, and earplugs help prevent that too.

A note on drinks

Methanol in counterfeit or badly made spirits has caused deaths in Indonesia, including from drinks bought at licensed venues in tourist areas, and you cannot taste it. Be wary of very cheap spirits and cocktails. Blurred vision, a severe headache, vomiting or confusion after drinking means hospital, straight away.

Hospitals and clinics

Bali has good private hospitals in the south, Denpasar and Ubud, and simpler facilities elsewhere. These are well-known options; details change, so check before you rely on them.

• Kuta and the airport area: BIMC Hospital Kuta on Jalan Bypass Ngurah Rai, and Siloam Hospitals Bali on Sunset Road, both with 24-hour emergency departments.
• Nusa Dua, Jimbaran and Uluwatu: BIMC Hospital Nusa Dua in the ITDC resort area, Kasih Ibu Hospital in Kedonganan, and Unicare Clinic, whose Uluwatu branch runs around the clock.
• Denpasar and Sanur: RSUP Prof. Ngoerah (formerly Sanglah Hospital), the main public referral hospital, plus Kasih Ibu Hospital on Jalan Teuku Umar, Bali Royal Hospital (BROS) in Renon, BaliMed Hospital, Prima Medika Hospital and the newer Bali International Hospital in Sanur.
• Ubud: BIMC Ubud on Jalan Raya Sanggingan, with 24-hour doctors, emergency room and pharmacy, plus Ubud Care Clinic and Unicare Clinic. Kasih Ibu also has a hospital in Saba, towards the Gianyar coast.
• North, west and east: BaliMed has hospitals in Singaraja (nearest for Lovina), Negara and Karangasem, and Kasih Ibu has one in Tabanan.
• Nusa Lembongan and Nusa Penida: small clinics handle the basics. Anything serious means a boat back to the mainland.

Emergency numbers

• General emergency: 112
• Ambulance: 118 or 119
• Police: 110

In south Bali's traffic, a taxi or ride-hailing car to the nearest emergency department is often faster than an ambulance. Save your insurer's number and the nearest hospital's in your phone on day one.