Bali Wins Top Travel Destination Award In Asia Based On Real Traveler’s Votes

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Readers of DestinAsian magazine have voted Bali the Best Island for Travel in 2025. The magazine, popular with English-speaking readers across the continent, hosts its awards annually, and experienced travellers share their insights to help compile the list. 

Bali has beaten the likes of the Maldives, Boracay in the Philippines, Phuket in Thailand, Phu Quoc in Vietnam, Palawan in the Philippines, Koh Samui in Thailand, Langkawi and Penang in Malaysia, and even neighbouring Lombok to come out on top once again. 

DestinAsian shared, “Our readers have once again chosen Bali as their favorite island destination in the Asia-Pacific region, continuing an 18-year-long winning streak for Indonesia’s most popular tourist hub.”

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Adding “Home to powdery stretches of sand and verdant rice terraces, famed surf breaks, and a singular culture whose deep spirituality and artistic leanings have inspired people the world over, the fabled Island of the Gods still exerts its enduring charm on modern-day travelers. An impressive number of high-end resorts on its scenic coastlines and in the idyllic countryside adds to Bali’s broader allure.”

It was not Bali as an island escape that won big at the prestigious DestinAsian awards, but many of the island’s top hotels and resorts and even I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport too. Bali Airport came in a respectable 4th place in the rankings for Best Airport in 2025, missing out on internationally acclaimed travel hubs Singapore Changi, Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport, and Hong Kong International. 

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The Best Resorts in Indonesia category at the DestinAsian Travel Awards 2025 was dominated by some of Bali’s most loved hotels. In fact, no other hotels and resorts in any other destinations across the archipelago even got a look this year! The Ritz-Carlton Bali won the top place, followed closely by Sofitel Bali Nusa Dua Beach Resort, and The St Regis Bali Resort came in third place. 

The stunning Apurva Kempinski Bali came in fourth place, followed by Mandapa a Ritz-Carlton Reserve which can be found just outside of Ubud. Raffles Bali came in sixth place, with Alila Seminyak in seventh. The top ten were completed by Four Seasons Resort Bali at Jimbaran Bay, Conrad Bali, and AYANA Resort Bali. 

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Bali is one of the top award-winning travel destinations in the world. The province won a series of high-profile awards during the 2024 travel awards season, including being listed among the top travel destinations by TripAdvisor.

In fact, in 2025 Bali was listed as the second most in-demand destination in the world by TripAdvisor’s Traveler’s Choice Awards. Bali lost out on top place to London and beat Dubai which came in third place. The top ten were completed by Scilly, Paris, Rome, Hanoi, Marrakesh, Crete, and Bangkok. 

As more media attention lands on Bali, demand for travel to the province continues to soar. Bali is on track to once again smash tourism targets in 2205 and will welcome at least 6.5 million international arrivals and millions more domestic tourists too.

As the island’s top resorts become even more popular with holidaymakers, Nusa Dua, Sanur, Kuta, Legian, Seminyak, Canggu, Uluwatu, and Ubud to name but a few, returning visitors to Bali are taking the opportunity to explore lesser visited regions of the island, to explore the island’s culture more deeply and to avoid the crowds.

Areas in East Bali like Candidasa and Amed are set to be trending destinations in 2025, along with Lovina and Pemuteran in North Bali, Medewi in West Bali, and of course, the incredible West Bali National Park is crying out to be explored!

Tourists should especially look out for travel deals and promotions focused on East Bali. Earlier this week the Indonesian Deputy Minister of Tourism, Ni Luh Puspa, confirmed her support to promote Karangasem Regency as a travel destination for all. 

She shared “Let’s work together to develop Karangasem tourism so its benefits can be felt by the community. Karangasem’s tourism potential is very large to be developed. We will also immediately communicate with the tourism center in Karangsem.”