Museum Pustaka Lontar, Karangasem: Write Balinese Script on Lontar

Museum Pustaka Lontar, in the Dukuh Penaban customary village in Karangasem, does not sell tickets. Visitors leave a voluntary donation, and a villager guide shows them palm-leaf (lontar) manuscripts and lets them try writing Balinese script on a lontar leaf with a special knife (pengrupak). It lies about 4 km north of central Amlapura, close to Tirta Gangga.

What you see and do

Villagers of Dukuh Penaban built the museum themselves from August 2017 on about 1.5 hectares, on the initiative of I Nengah Suarya (ANTARA, detikTravel). The compound is a set of traditional pavilions, collection rooms, a traditional kitchen and an open stage. The holdings include usada (medicine), babad (history), asta kosala kosali (architecture) and wariga (calendar) texts. The oldest manuscript mentioned, Bhuana Kosa, is around 400 years old and is kept at the village temple, not in the display rooms.

The part visitors talk about most is menyurat: scratching your own name in Balinese script onto a lontar leaf. detikTravel says the results are displayed in the Bale Daja pavilion, while IDN Times says you can take yours home; ask which applies when you visit. ANTARA also notes a welcome drink made from medicinal plants.

The museum also serves locals who want family manuscripts read or transliterated. The price list on its website: Rp2,500 per leaf for reading, Rp2,000 for digitisation and Rp3,000 for transliteration into Latin script.

How big is the collection?

Sources disagree. ANTARA reports 313 catalogued manuscripts, 160 of them digitised; the museum website mentions about 4,120; other articles say "hundreds" or "thousands". Assume a large collection that is only partly catalogued.

Pustaka Lontar or Gedong Kirtya?

Gedong Kirtya in Singaraja is a lontar library founded in 1928 and run by the regional government. It suits researchers and anyone who wants an old institutional collection. Pustaka Lontar suits a hands-on visit: a village compound, villager guides and the chance to write yourself. The decision is simple. If you are staying in Amed, Candidasa or Sidemen, go to Pustaka Lontar; if you are in Lovina, Gedong Kirtya is far closer.

Award and drawbacks

Dukuh Penaban tourism village won the 2025 Wonderful Indonesia Award in the tourism village category, as announced by Karangasem's culture and tourism office in January 2026. The drawbacks are real. From Denpasar it takes about 1 hour 50 minutes to 2 hours each way, so it is an inefficient day trip from Kuta or Canggu. Opening hours differ between sources, and detikTravel reported in 2024 that the managers were considering a formal ticket, so the donation system may change. Most visitors are foreign tourists (ANTARA), and much of the experience depends on whichever guide is on duty.

Hours, location and getting there

• Location: Banjar Adat Dukuh Bukit Ngandang, Dukuh Penaban, Karangasem district. View on Google Maps
• Distance (approximate drive): 10-15 minutes from Tirta Gangga, 30-40 minutes from Candidasa or Amed, about 2 hours from Ubud.
• Hours: daily, 8 am-4 pm WITA per IDN Times (March 2026) or 8.30 am-4.30 pm per detikTravel; checked October 2026.
• Cost: voluntary donation, bring cash. Dress modestly; sarongs are provided.
• Contact: a WhatsApp number is listed on the museum website (musium-pustaka-lontar.karyabuanalestari.com). Instagram: search on Instagram

Because the drive from south Bali is long, a night in Candidasa or Amed lets you arrive as the museum opens; hotel vouchers in both areas are on AccessiaPass.