Ectoine is a valuable active compound produced by halophilic bacteria with broad applications in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries. The increasing industrial demand underscores the need for enhanced production capacity and drives the discovery of effective and efficient ectoine-producing bacteria strains. Although Indonesia possesses numerous high-salinity habitats, such as traditional salt ponds, the potential for novel ectoine-producing strains remains underexplored. Therefore, this study aims to isolate ectoine-producing bacteria from traditional salt ponds in Buleleng Regency and optimize the yield of potential isolates. Halophilic bacteria were initially cultivated from saltwater and soil samples on MM63 medium. The ectoine-producing capability of these isolates was then evaluated using a batch culture approach incorporating an osmotic shock step. Ectoine quantification was performed through reversed-phase High-Performance Liquid Chromatography using a mobile phase of water/acetonitrile (95/5). To maximize production, a series of optimization experiments determined the ideal media composition, initial pH, incubation temperature, and incubation time. The results showed that seven ectoine-producing halophilic bacteria were successfully isolated, with one of the best isolates being Halomonas huangheensis LES5 AG4. The application of osmotic shock increased ectoine production by up to 3.6-fold, specifically from 94 mg/L to 335 mg/L. Furthermore, ectoine production was significantly increased to 646 mg/L after optimizing several key factors, including ammonium chloride (0.47% w/v), glycerol (1.42% w/v), NaCl (11.67% w/v), Initial pH (7.1), incubation temperature (30 °C), and incubation time (16 hours). These results show that Halomonas huangheensis LES5 AG4 holds significant potential for development as an industrial-scale ectoine producer.