Old Man’s is something of an institution in Canggu with live music, and a solid happy hour and it’s only a very short distance from the beach.
But is it a beach club? Conde Nast, the travel people, think it is, but we’re not so sure and this was one of the most hotly debated reviews in our office that we’ve ever done.
However, all of our team has visited Old Man’s and we think that this is what you need to know about this “beach club”.
Introduction – Getting To Old Man’s
Old Man’s is just in front of Batu Bolong beach and it’s a very easy location to get to. You can drive yourself or get a Grab or Gojek.
As with nearly every venue in Bali, the roads around Old Man’s can get very busy, particularly in rush hour and peak season, so if you want to be there at a certain time, you need to allow more time than the distance between places might suggest you need.
Where Is Old Man’s? Jl. Pantai Batu Bolong No.117X, Canggu, Kec. Kuta Utara, Kabupaten Badung, Bali 80351
Website: Old Man’s
Opening Hours: Open daily, every day except for Nyepi, from 11 a.m. to 1 a.m.
What’s Inside Old Man’s?
Old Man’s has several seating areas plus bar and restaurant facilities as well as some car parking.
Our Review Breakdown For Old Man’s
Before we start our review of Old Man’s in Bali, we have to preface it with the fact that several team members feel that Old Man’s Bali isn’t really a beach club at all.
That means that our review process (which is designed for beach clubs) may not be 100% fair to Old Man’s.
However, as with all of our reviews, Old Man’s has been judged on 20 criteria each of which is rated from 1 (worst) to 5 (best). This gives a final score of between 20 (worst) and 100 (best).
Once our review is live, it will be a year before we revisit any given review.
Pre-Club Advertising
Old Man’s does do a little bit of online and offline advertising, but we don’t get the impression that this beach bar is trying very hard.
It does, however, tend to be fairly busy as it has one of the cheapest happy hour deals around. It’s often a place for friends to meet for a warm-up before a bigger bar crawl.
Overall, we think they could do more in this respect, but how much impact it would have, we don’t know.
Location
Old Man’s is named after the surf break on this stretch of beach (Batu Bolong) and the beach itself is a pleasant black sand beach with waves lapping at the shores.
The bar is within walking distance of other beach clubs, shops, restaurants and bars. You should be able to find everything you need around this area.
We would urge some caution when it comes to parking at Old Man’s as it appears several drivers have mistaken the steps down to Batu Bolong beach for an entrance to the car park and ended up with their vehicles buried head-first in the sand.
Booking Process & Seating Options
Old Man’s has no booking process. You turn up and if there’s a seat available, you can have a seat. Most of their events have no entry fee, either, so there’s no need for a ticket to get in.
Their website is fairly basic, though, and doesn’t really explain very much about Old Man’s beyond the details of the happy hour and any upcoming events.
Entry Fee
There is no entrance fee at Old Man’s and you only need to pay for parking if you bring a car, scooters can park for free.
We think every bar and beach club in Bali should offer free entry, you should be able to see what you’re getting before you commit to anything.
Minimum Spend
Old Man’s has no minimum spend requirements because there’s a fairly limited amount of seating available and it is all allocated on a first-come, first-served basis (and it often all goes during happy hour).
You just pay for any food and drinks you enjoy while you’re in Old Man’s.
Old Man’s is on our list of the best beach clubs where you don’t need to commit to a minimum spend.
Welcome And Security
As with nearly every bar and beach club in Bali, there is a security check as you enter Old Man’s this is to make sure that the happy hour stays happy and safe for everyone, it also allows them to ask you to leave any contraband at the gate with their security team.
The staff are friendly enough when welcoming you to Old Man’s but this doesn’t have the emphasis on welcome that most beach clubs do.
Inclusions
With no minimum spend, nothing is included in your stay at Old Man’s and you will need to pay for everything that you consume while you’re there.
There is also no premium-level service of any kind, so you can’t pay extra at Old Man’s for better services or for some additional perks.
Service
We had no complaints about the service at Old Man’s at all. The waitresses were cheerful and helpful and were happy to walk us through the best items on the menu.
When they brought drinks they were always served cold and delivered promptly after ordering.
While they may not have the polish of some of the premier beach clubs, the servers at this bar are professional and kind and know how to help you enjoy your time there.
Entertainment
If you come for lunch, there will be no entertainment (unless you head to the beach and use the surf break) bar some piped music.
But if you come down at night, then you will get DJs and live music to go with your drinks and this place is popular with a younger party crowd, trying to make their money go as far as possible.
Pool Quality
With no pool of any kind, Old Man’s can’t really be judged on its pool quality. As we’ve said before this is really a bar with DJs and live music rather than a traditional beach club.
We can imagine that if you overdo it in Happy Hour, you might feel like you’re swimming but that’s the only way you can get a swim at Old Man’s.
Menu/Drinks Pricing
We thought the pricing on things at Old Man’s was very fair and the happy hour prices were exceptionally good in a part of Bali where drinks are quite pricey.
All prices are clearly stated on the menu along with tax and service charges and it’s very much “pub grub”.
Food And Drink Quality
It’s good pub grub on the menu at Old Man’s and we can’t complain, sometimes you’re just in the mood for an unpretentious burger and chips.
However, it’s also nothing to write home about. You’ll enjoy lunch at Old Man’s but we doubt you will remember what you had even the next day after your visit.
Sunset View
The sunset over the beach here is amazing, however, it’s kind of difficult to watch from inside Old Man’s. Much of the venue has no view at all, and even the parts of Old Man’s that do offer a view, don’t offer a completely unobstructed view.
In our experience, people tend to come to Old Man’s at happy hour for cheap drinks, rather than because they want to watch the Bali sunset.
Music And Ambiance
The music is Old Man’s strength when it’s playing and if you come down at night to watch the DJs do their thing, you will have a good time.
The piped music during the lunch hour, on the other hand, isn’t that great and it really needs more people to have any real vibe to it during the day.
Payment Options
You can pay by cash or card in Old Man’s but we didn’t see any signs of QRIS or more exotic payments like Bitcoin (BTC).
Exit Process
This is absolutely painless, you just walk out the door and onto the beach road, turn left and you can head straight on to Batu Bolong Beach and visit the famous surf break, turn right and you’re heading back into Canggu.
Transportation
Old Man’s is very easy to get to and Grab and Gojek drop-offs are fine in this area.
There’s also parking for scooters and cars (there is a small fee to park a car but scooters are free), so you can drive yourself.
However, be warned the taxi mafia operates in this area and if you want a Grab or Gojek ride home, you may have to walk 2-300 meters up the road to be able to get a pick-up. We think it’s worth the walk to avoid being ripped off.
Social Media Presence
One area where Old Man’s could give some of the beach clubs lessons is social media. Their accounts are active, and the photos used show what it’s like at its best when its full of people.
There might be a little more variety in their posts, but overall, Old Man’s Instagram, etc. is a good example of how social media can be used to make a place feel interesting.
Other/General Comments
Old Man’s is an odd place and during the day, it’s a bit empty but at night when it’s full of people, it can be a lot of fun. However, it’s very much a drinker’s destination in the evenings, not a place for kids to hang out.
Rating: 3/5x
Our Overall Opinion Of Old Man’s
As we said at the start, we’re not sure that we agree that Old Man’s is a beach club and some of the marks above are a little harsh if Old Man’s is “just” a bar.
Overall, it’s the sort of place that you’re going to enjoy if you just want cheap drinks (the happy hour is very good value) within a short walk of the surf break. However, we’re not sure that we’d travel far with friends to have a drink in this bar, either.
Old Man’s may or may not be a beach club but it’s on our list of the best beach clubs in Canggu as well as our list of the best clubs in Bali.
FAQs
Can You Swim At Old Man’s?
No, there’s no pool at Old Man’s and more importantly, you can’t safely swim on the beach here either. The surf break may be famous (it is, after all, where Old Man’s takes its name from) and the surfing is awesome but swimming at Old Man’s is dangerous.
If you want to swim at your beach club of choice, Old Man’s is not the bar for you.
What Can You Do At Old Man’s?
Old Man’s is a sprawling combination of nightclub, bar and restaurant. It’s a place where friends meet for lunch or dinner and to enjoy a few drinks.
But that’s about it. So, if you were expecting swimming pools, entertainment, etc. it’s not going to be the right beach club for you.
It’s more of a good beer garden by the sea with some DJs at night than it is a beach club.
Is Old Man’s A Family-Friendly Venue?
Sort of. You’re allowed to take children into Old Man’s but given that this is really a bar, we’re not sure that it’s going to be the ideal environment for kids.
It’s probably OK around lunchtime when most of the drinkers are in bed and you can enjoy a burger and chips as a family, but by nighttime, we’d be long gone from Old Man’s if we had children with us.
If you want a list of family friendly beach clubs, you will find one here.
Who Owns Old Man’s?
Old Man’s is owned by an Australian expatriate, Sean Cosgrove, and the bar has been under his stewardship for around a decade now.
Final Thoughts On Old Man’s
Our team are still in two minds about whether Old Man’s is a beach club at all and we feel that judging Old Man’s on beach club criteria may not be the fairest way to assess what it has to offer.
Most people head to Old Man’s for the happy hour drinks and some stay to party until late in the evening but it’s really a bar and nightclub set up rather than a posh beach club and it’s not even particularly easy to watch the sunset at Old Man’s.
Want some other interesting beach club reviews? Check out Vue Beach Club and Warung Pantai too!
