Disneyland for Influencers: A Visit to the Ceking Rice Terraces

On our recent trip to explore the interior of Bali, we visited the Ceking Rice Terraces in Tegalalang — a UNESCO World Heritage site.

The terraces are actually a group of rice farms owned by local families, passed down from generation to generation. They’re made up of mile upon mile of rice paddies sculpted into the verdant hills just north of Ubud, where rice is harvested painstakingly by hand by the families who own them — a dying art.

There are several different entrances to the terraces, but most tourists use the main one just north of Ubud, which has been turned into a Disneyland for social media influencers. Just outside the entry gates you can find any number of setups to help you get the perfect Instagram shot or TikTok video.

You can perch in a giant fake nest hovering over the paddies below. You can rent a brightly coloured dress with a comically long train to wear while you launch yourself over the chasm on a giant swing. You can take a ride on a “superhero zipline,” where you fly from one side of the terraces to the other, strapped to the zipline on your stomach while gripping a GoPro on a selfie stick to capture video of your “flight.” You can even ride across the gap on a tandem bike suspended from a highwire strung up at dizzying heights.

We chose to bypass this spectacle, and instead spent our time there snaking our way down the terraces using the narrow footpaths that outline them, taking time to stop and wonder at the natural beauty of the place. It was one of those rare expanses of nature that are so magnificent that they could inspire you believe in a higher power.

Despite the distractions above, it was easy to feel like we were in the most magical place on earth, Disneyland aside.