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undreds of domestic and foreign tourists visit a remote village of Trunyan, home to one of Bali’s Indigenous communities.

The village is located in a lush and forested area surrounded by Mount Abang and Mount Batur in Kintamani resort area in Bangli regency, some 80 kilometers northeast of Denpasar.

Believed to be the first settlers of the island of Bali’s pre-historic era, Trunyan villagers, numbering around 778 families, still strongly embrace their centuries-old traditions and rituals, which became the village’s most salable tourist attractions for local travel agencies.

For many years, Trunyan has been “exploited” as one of Bali’s unique sites. Visitors who holidayed in Kintamani were curious to know more about the community. They had to take small boats or ferries to cross the 18 square-kilometer Lake Batur to reach the village.

One tradition of Trunyan villagers is to lay the corpses of their dead family members under the Trunyan trees, instead of burying them inside the grounds. The trees are believed to pose elements that will keep corpses from smelling as they putrefy.

One afternoon, a guide was seen showing dozens of his guests a graveyard area, called Setra Nguda, dedicated for infants and children.

The graveyard is located on a cliff within a small cave covered with trees and bushes.

In a corner of the cliff, there were a number of infant and teen corpses laid on the ground and surrounded by stones.

The atmosphere was deemed as quite spooky for many visitors who continued their trip to a nearby graveyard, called Sema Wayah, dedicated for adults.

Before entering a brick gate, 65-year-old Pan Kerni warmly welcomed the guests with his rindik bamboo music instruments.

Sema Wayah houses dead bodies of adults, which are placed under the Trunyan trees. Unlike other “modern” Balinese Hindu communities, who bury and cremate the deceased families, the Trunyans only place their dead members in open-air graveyards.

In the last few months, the village’s appearance has slightly changed.

The local Bangli administration began paying attention to improving the village’s condition as a tourist site.

The administration built sidewalks and small gardens along the graveyards.

Around 52 villagers were also trained as professional guides to accompany guests for village tours. The village’s once muddy roads were transformed into cleaner and wide roads.

Agung Teja Kusuma, head of Bangli’s tourist promotion, said that around 200 to 300 visitors came to Trunyan village every day. “We have to provide good facilities including proper infrastructure and security,” said Kusuma.

Despite its lucrative tourist activities, the majority of Trunyan villagers live under the poverty line.

I Made Nurata, one of the local residents, said that the people of Trunyan had been exploited for the sake of the tourism industry. “We don’t get anything from any tourism activities in our village,” Nurata explained.

Culture and Tourism Ministry Jero Wacik admitted that poverty still lingered on in many villages in Bangli including in Trunyan village. “I promise to improve their living condition in line with the government’s plan to develop an integrated Geopark in Lake Batur and Mount Batur area.”

The minister has promised to involve as many local villagers as possible in the upcoming project.

I Wayan Topan and I Made Nurata were still pessimistic about the minister’s promises. “Tourism belongs to the rich people. Trunyan residents will remain poor and uneducated farmers.”