Volcano & Lake Tour

About the Volcano & Lake Tour

The Volcano & Lake Tour is the most geologically dramatic flight on our menu. Forty-five minutes over Bali's volcanic interior — the towering summit of Mount Agung, the sacred Besakih temple complex on its southern slopes, the ancient Batur caldera with Lake Batur inside it, and Mount Batur's active summit rising from the caldera floor. No other flight shows you Bali's raw geological power with this intensity.

Flight Highlights

Mount Agung: The Sacred Mountain

Mount Agung is the highest point in Bali at 3,031 meters and is considered by the Balinese to be the most sacred site on the island. All Balinese Hindu temples are oriented to face Agung, and the mountain is believed to be the earthly seat of the deity Mahadewa. The Balinese perform regular offerings and pilgrimages to the mountain, particularly to Pura Besakih, the 'Mother Temple' built on its southern slopes. From the air, Agung dominates the entire eastern half of Bali's skyline. Flying toward it, the scale increases until the mountain fills the view. The summit crater, the lava fields, and the temple complex below are all visible on a clear day from our approach altitude.

Pura Besakih: The Mother Temple from Above

Pura Besakih is the largest and most sacred Hindu temple complex in Bali, consisting of 23 separate temples on the southern slope of Agung between 900 and 1,000 meters elevation. The complex is over 1 hectare and contains hundreds of individual shrines, gates, and ceremonial spaces arranged in a series of ascending terraces up the mountain slope. From a helicopter, the layout of the entire complex is visible simultaneously — the central Pura Penataran Agung with its tiered meru towers, the flanking temples, the ceremonial courtyards, and the processional pathways. The relationship between the temple architecture and the mountain rising behind it is only fully comprehensible from the air.

The Batur Caldera and Volcanic System

From Mount Agung the flight crosses north toward the Kintamani highlands and the Batur caldera. The caldera is approximately 13 kilometers in diameter, formed by two successive collapses of an ancient super-volcano. Inside the caldera sits Lake Batur, the largest lake in Bali, and Mount Batur, an active volcano that last erupted in 2000. The transition from outside the caldera to inside it is one of the most dramatic moments of the flight — the landscape suddenly drops away and opens into the vast bowl of the caldera, with the lake and the volcano inside. The scale only makes sense from the air.

Lava Fields and Volcanic History

Both Mount Agung and Mount Batur have produced recent lava flows that are clearly visible from the air. Agung's 2017-2018 eruption deposited lava on the northern and northwestern flanks; these flows appear as dark gray and black channels through the green vegetation. Mount Batur's 2000 eruption and earlier flows from 1994 created lava fields between the volcano and Lake Batur's north shore. The different textures and colors of lava from different eruption years are visible — the oldest flows, now supporting some vegetation, are darker and more textured; the newest flows are lighter gray and almost bare. Together, these lava fields are a record of the island's volcanic history written on the landscape.

What to Bring & Requirements

• Closed-toe shoes required
• Bring a jacket: the volcanic highland area at altitude can be significantly cooler
• Early morning booking recommended for best summit visibility
• Inform us if you have altitude-related medical conditions

Frequently Asked Questions