The best way to avoid Bali belly is to drink safe water, eat food that is fully cooked and served hot, wash your hands before eating, and avoid raw foods, unknown ice and lukewarm dishes. When soap and water are unavailable, use hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol. These steps lower the risk, but they cannot remove it because restaurant hygiene and food handling are partly outside your control.
Bali belly usually refers to travelers' diarrhea caused by contaminated food or water.
Bali Belly Prevention at a Glance
| Risk | Safer choice | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Drinking water | Factory-sealed bottled water, boiled water or properly treated water | Tap water unless treatment is confirmed |
| Ice | Ice made with verified safe water | Ice from an unknown source |
| Food | Fully cooked food served steaming hot | Lukewarm, raw or undercooked food |
| Fruit and vegetables | Fruit you rinse with safe water and peel yourself | Salads, cut fruit and raw garnishes |
| Hand hygiene | Soap and water, or sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol | Eating with unwashed hands |
| Street food | Food cooked in front of you and served immediately | Food sitting uncovered or at room temperature |
Is Bali Tap Water Safe to Drink?
Treat Bali tap water as unsafe for drinking unless your accommodation can confirm that its supply is reliably treated. Use factory-sealed bottled water or properly treated water for drinking, brushing your teeth, making drinks and taking medication. Avoid swallowing shower water.
Check that bottled water has an intact factory seal. Do not use bottles that appear to have been refilled or tampered with.
Ice can also cause Bali belly if it was made with untreated water. Order drinks without ice unless the source is known to be safe. Fountain drinks and drinks mixed with tap water carry the same concern.
Hot coffee and tea are generally safer when served steaming hot because the water has been boiled. Take care with added ice, fresh lemon, cream or milk that has been sitting in an open container.
What Food Should You Avoid in Bali?
The safest rule is simple: cook it, peel it or leave it.
Avoid:
- Raw salads and uncooked vegetables
- Cut-up fruit prepared by someone else
- Raw or undercooked meat, chicken, seafood and eggs
- Unpasteurized milk, cheese and dairy products
- Freshly squeezed juice prepared by another person
- Raw sauces, sambal, salsa and garnishes
- Food that is warm rather than hot
- Meat or seafood treated only with lime, vinegar or another acidic ingredient
Fresh salads can become contaminated during washing, chopping or serving. Fruit is safer when you rinse it with safe water and peel it yourself. Fully cooked food served hot is generally the safer option.
Can You Eat Street Food Without Getting Bali Belly?
Yes, but choose the stall and serving method carefully. Look for food that:
- Is cooked in front of you
- Uses ingredients with a high turnover
- Comes from a cooking area that looks clean
- Is served steaming hot
- Is not left uncovered for long periods
- Does not receive raw vegetables or garnishes after cooking
Avoid meat, seafood, rice and noodles that have been sitting in trays at room temperature. If you cannot tell how long food has been out, choose something cooked to order.
The CDC advises that fully cooked food served hot is generally safer. Food from vendors and restaurants with poor refrigeration or hygiene can increase the risk of illness.
How Important Is Handwashing?
Wash your hands with soap and safe water:
- Before eating
- Before touching snacks or medication
- After using the toilet
- After handling money
- After visiting markets or animal areas
When soap and water are unavailable, use hand sanitizer containing at least 60% alcohol. Soap and water are preferable when your hands are visibly dirty.
Should You Take Probiotics, Pepto-Bismol or Antibiotics?
Probiotics are not guaranteed to prevent Bali belly. Bismuth subsalicylate may reduce the risk for some travelers, while preventive antibiotics are not recommended routinely.
Probiotics
Evidence for using probiotics to prevent travelers' diarrhea is inconclusive. Major travel-health guidance does not routinely recommend them for this purpose.
Bismuth Subsalicylate
Bismuth subsalicylate, found in products such as Pepto-Bismol, can reduce the risk of travelers' diarrhea by approximately half in studies.
Do not take it, or ask a healthcare professional first, if you have an aspirin allergy, kidney disease or gout; take blood thinners or other interacting medicines; are pregnant; or are giving it to a child. It can temporarily darken the tongue and stool and may cause constipation or nausea.
Preventive Antibiotics
Do not take antibiotics routinely to prevent Bali belly. For most travelers, the risks include side effects, antibiotic resistance and Clostridioides difficile infection.
A doctor may consider a standby antibiotic for severe illness or for a traveler with specific medical risks. It should be selected before travel and used according to medical advice.
Should You Get Travel Vaccines for Bali?
Yes, but vaccines do not replace food and water precautions. The CDC recommends hepatitis A vaccination for unvaccinated travelers going to Indonesia and typhoid vaccination for most travelers. These vaccines protect against specific infections, not every cause of travelers' diarrhea.
A travel-health appointment is especially worthwhile if you are pregnant, traveling with young children, immunocompromised, older, or managing a chronic medical condition.
What Should You Do if Bali Belly Starts?
Start replacing fluids as soon as symptoms begin. Use sealed bottled water, boiled water or oral rehydration solution prepared with safe water. Oral rehydration salts are more appropriate than relying only on very sugary drinks, which can worsen diarrhea when consumed in large amounts.
For uncomplicated diarrhea without fever or blood in the stool, loperamide may reduce urgency and frequency. Do not use loperamide alone if you have bloody diarrhea or diarrhea with a fever.
Seek medical help promptly if you have:
- Blood in the stool
- High fever
- Severe or worsening abdominal pain
- Repeated vomiting that prevents you from keeping fluids down
- Dizziness, confusion, very dry mouth or little urination
- Diarrhea that is severe or does not improve after several days
Children, pregnant travelers, older adults and people with weakened immune systems should seek medical advice earlier because dehydration and complications can develop more quickly.
The Simplest Bali Belly Rule
At each meal, ask whether the water source is known, the food was cooked recently and served hot, and the dish has been sitting out. If you cannot answer, choose another option.