Bali is very different culturally and religiously to rest of Indonesia. 95 % of Balinese people are Hindu. Bali follows a branch of Hinduism that is quite different from India. Most obvious difference is that Balinese have integrated some aspects of Buddhism. This makes them tolerant and very friendly to visitors and tourists.

Religion in Bali is interwoven with everyday life. As well as the obvious ceremonies for births, deaths and marriages, and celebrating aspects of the rice harvests, there is a day for blessing machinery, one for blessing education, etc.

Daily evidence of the importance of Hinduism to Balinese people is shown by innumerable offerings everywhere. Almost every house, business, road intersection, government building, etc., has offerings to gods and spirits of Bali, placed in a shrine everyday. The small banana leaf baskets, containing flower petals, rice, incense and other gifts for the gods demonstrate the way that Balinese live their religion.

Many tourist attractions have a religious origin. For instance, Barong dance tells a story of good versus evil, which is basic theme in most Balinese dances and legends. Another example is Ramayana Ballet, a Hindu epic story about good and evil and love. Cremations in particular are impressive to watch. Sarongs are not necessary for watching a procession, but are mandatory when entering the grounds of temple where the actual cremation occurs. The important thing for visitors to understand is that cremations and other ceremonies are not tourist attractions, but are genuine religious events. That Balinese allow outsiders to be part of them does not detract from their religious significance.

A common occurrence in Bali are traffic jams, caused by Hindu ceremonies. For a procession roads are blocked off, even if it happens to be Main Street of Kuta, Sanur or Ubud! The Balinese understand priorities, and expect non-Balinese to do likewise.
Besakih temple, in East Bali, is the "mother" temple of Bali. Other three important temples are at Uluwatu, Kintamani and Tanah Lot, All of them are fantastic to visit. In each village there is a temple for life at mountain end of village, and one for death at end nearest the sea. Then, there are family temples, temples in particular sacred places, and shrines everywhere, including most houses.

Traditional paintings faithfully depicting religious and mythological symbolisms, met with Western and modern paintings, giving birth to contemporary paintings, free in its creative topics yet strongly and distinctively Balinese. Its dance, its music, and its wayang theaters, while have been continually enriched by contemporary and external artistry, are still laden with religious connotations, performed mostly to appease and to please the gods and the goddesses. Wood and stone carvings, gold and silver crafts parallel the development of paintings, gracefully evolving with external forces to enhance their characters. The batik of Bali owes its origin to Java, and inspired the development of Ikat and double Ikat

Indeed, Bali has a rich culture, making it distinctive from the rest of the islands in Indonesia.