Medewi

Medewi breaks the mold of powerful Balinese barrels and is almost unique in Bali for being a point break. Located far up Bali’s West Coast, it holds a special place in the heart of surfers looking for long, mellow rides. This guide takes you on a comprehensive tour of surfing Medewi.

Medewi is a playful soft-breaking boulder bottom left-hand point break. On its best days, the wave retains its shape and rolls for over 800 meters, offering one of the longest rides in Bali. It’s also a much easier wave than the other long left-handers of Bali, such as the impossibly fast Impossiblesor the challenging Balangan. Medewi stands out from the other, more advanced-level surf spots in Bali because it is a more mellow and slow-rolling wave.

In other words, you’re not going to get the barrel of your lifetime here, as the wave does not break powerfully enough.

Rather, Medewi is a dream for goofy footers and caters to a range of surfing levels, offering a mellow, cruisy ride that’s great for longboarders. The long and smooth rides here are perfect for practicing maneuvers like cutbacks. These waves break quite close to the shore, and there is an excellent vantage point to watch the surf.

Medewi is a less frequented surf spot, especially when compared to other spots on the west coast of Bali, such as those found in the Uluwatu region. This is largely due to its distance from the airport and Kuta, as well as the lack of nightclubs attracting the party crowd.

Medewi offers a quieter and more relaxed alternative to the other bustling areas of Bali, such as the tourist hotspots of Kuta, Seminyak, and Canggu. Despite the long drive from the airport, Medewi is well worth the journey.

But while the vibe is relaxed and the waves are relatively gentle, Medewi is not without its hazards.

Entry and exit to the water can be tricky because it involves navigating over rocks. The boulders can become slippery, and some are covered in barnacles that can cut your feet.

So caution, attention, and careful foot placement are essential. Booties are recommended when surfing Medewi at low tide to help protect your feet from sharp rocks both entering and exiting the water.

Best time

The ideal season for surfing Medewi is during the dry season, which runs from April to October. This time sees regular ⬇️↙️S-SW swells and offshore wind conditions, providing the most consistent and cleanest waves. Medewi is blocked by Java from SW swells so will be much smaller than Canggu and Bukit if there is a lot of west in the swell. On southerly swells, the surf will be similar in size to other breaks on the west coast of Bali. Unlike other spots on the west coast of Bali, which are easily blown out by the trade winds, the headland offers some protection from the SE winds that blow consistently daily from mid-morning to sunset.

The wet season tends to offer mushier and smaller waves, which can be ideal for novice surfers looking to practice and improve. Keep in mind that the water at Medewi can become dirty during the wet season.

Medewi is a relatively consistent surf spot and you can find surfable waves all year-round, except on a small west swell when it can be too small to ride.

When To Surf Here

Medewi is a year-round surf spot that works best with a ⬆️↗️N-NE wind. The ideal surf size is between head high and head and a half. It holds bigger swells but it breaks further out, making it more exposed to cross-winds, and the bigger waves breaking outside have a shifty peak.

Medewi works on all tides. But higher tides generally result in better-formed waves and it’s hard to get in and out of the water when the tide is low, due to the rocks which must be navigated.

Early mornings are usually the optimal time due to the wind interference (the trade winds are cross-onshore) later in the day. So Medewi is generally favorable in the early mornings when the wind is usually lighter. It is quite rare to get a North-NorthEast wind other than early morning or sunset, except after it rains and the land cools.

Medewi is always smaller than Balian, particularly so on Southwest swells. If Medewi is flat or too small, then it can often be worth the drive up to Balian (30 minutes), or Car Parks (20 minutes).

You’ll generally want to avoid surfing Medewi at low tide because the wave loses its quality, and the danger of hitting the sharp rocks increases.