Totally loved our stay and especially our hosts

Guest: Jami (Hawaii)
Date of Stay: 06/20/11 Review Submitted: 07/02/11

July 3, 2011. We are just completing a 2 week stay at the villa and have absolutely loved it. I am writing even before returning home because I had read a negative post just before I came here and want to assure readers that it should be ignored. There are many accurate posts before that one about how wonderful our Balinese hosts are, and we totally agree. Wayan and Kartika have been exceedingly gracious and have treated us like highly honored guests every day. There have been repeated cases of thoughtful consideration that have just "made our day". Yesterday for example we had a change of plans and needed a car and driver for the day, but Wayan had a conflict, so he arranged for his brother, a professional guide for a deluxe resort, to drive us. He then phoned us before we got to our destination with some advice about shopping there, and where to look for one item I sought. Then when we got home he had had someone come over and already turn on the yard lights for our ease in re entry. Others have spoken about the beautiful setting and peacefulness, and we agree. The private pool is a treat and this beats a high end resort stay by a large margin. Add in Kartika's home cooked breakfasts , the touching prayer offerings morning and night, and Wayan's attention to the detail of every day for us, and you cannot go wrong. Just be thankful that you found this wonderful spot.

Recommended for:Adventure seekers, romantic getaway, sightseeing, tourists without a car, age 55+, girls getaway, families with young children.

Property is okay

Guest: Alex (Zurich Switzerland)
Date of Stay: 11/21/10 Review Submitted: 04/16/11

Based on my brother staying here in 2003 we decided to spend 6 nights here. The property is in okay shape but does need some minor fixing up. The main item that bothered us the most is the wall/painting directly behind the bed is rotted out, thus allowing anyone to enter the house and not providing much comfort when trying to sleep. The biggest problem that we the whole time is with the manager/Bali owner. We would clearly make an agreement for an excursion with a certain company four days before and then the night before at 9 PM he would say they are full! Of course he offered then to book the excursion at another company he knew at a special price.... Or we would make an agreement of a price for a drive and then afterwards he would change the price. For example he drove us to the beach and we set an arranged pickup time since he had to run some errands. When he picked us up, he claimed to have waited for us the whole time and wanted to be paid for the full time. The best was when I got home to Europe, I had some purchased stone statues which he was to organize the shipping. Once in Europe he changed the price and added extra taxes / charges for no reason. Hint - go with the shipping company of where you buy the item. In the end we could not handle him anymore, so his younger brother drove us around for a few days. Needless to say it ruined our vacation. If you decided to stay here do understand there is not really anyone near that speaks english, which is all fine, but you have no other driver choice you can walk to. When you arrive at the airport I would suggest getting as many phone numbers from other drivers so you can do away with the stress and get a real driver. Otherwise the house is a good value for the price and it's very quiet and relaxing!

Owner response:this account by mr d is completely refuted by our mgr/partner, wayan...mr d did not understand wayans attempt to contact the tour company as a courtesy for mr deller, to CONFIRM his booking with the tour company.wayan told mr deller "there was no answer" when he tried to call the company to confirm...he did NOT say "they are full"! when he could not confirm with the company that mr deller booked directly, wayan suggested another company simply to "insure that he will have a tour", NOT to circumvent his booking with another! mr d also fails to note that he requested a ride to the beach in Sanur, which wayan gladly obliged...they had an arranged pick-up time of 12noon, as wayan informed them he had another appointment at 1pm.Not only was mr deller LATE but in wayans words "they have to come to the car at 12.00,and i wait 3hrs at beach for them, but they came at 12.30 and still they told me to take them to atm to get money and that make me VERY late for my appointment" When wayan requested they pay a $30 fee for this ride, which is NOT included in our rate, they refused and only paid $10! This is absurd as ANY taxi would have easily charged $30 for 4hrs, as Sanur beach is 30minutes from the villa...Then to request wayan take them to an ATM, which he did, and cause him to be late for his personal meeting, is simply not fair! re the shipping fees, wayans words explain it best: "my chargo charged them $ 280 to ship their 2 pcs stones and they agreed to that price but my chargo said that there is some extra charge for europe countries $35 coz of new regulation and told them that and to pay me 10% for my fee to do all the quality control ,if they do not agree then that is okey no peoblem with but why do they complained it after the got everything at home and did not pay my fee,i helped them to pick up a good stone carving shop, help them bargaining for a good price,and inspect the quality control 3 time, but they pay me nothing so what is this, complaining after they got everything free,once again alex d is big different to his brother Marcell". the $35 fee to europe was simply an added "duty or tax" that was unforeseen by the shipper... the 10% fee for wayan, is "very common" in Bali, for the work that Wayan outlined...He saved them far more when he bargained for a price for them and drove them around to view various pieces AND made sure the pieces, BEFORE shipping, were the exact ones mr d had requested. a COMPLETELY UNFAIR account of events!

Recommended for:Adventure seekers, sightseeing.

Perfect Hideaway

Guest: IAMNOTDULL (Hong Kong)
Date of Stay: 05/25/10 Review Submitted: 06/22/10

Perfect for travelers who want a hideaway, located slightly away from Ubud, you will have the peace and quietness of Balinese village, and great access to all the attractions in Ubud. The resort manager and staff are extremely friendly, and the rates are very reasonable too, which also includes breakfast. Spacious and overlooking the paddyfield, swimming, reading a book, doing yoga or just sunbathing. You will love it! Enjoy your stay!

Owner response:aloha lance! terima kasih for your wonderful review. im really glad we were able to work out the last minute details. hope to have you again soon....regards, peter

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, sightseeing, tourists without a car, families with teenagers, families with young children.

Soul of Bali

Guest: BarbandPaul (Picton, Ontario, Canada)
Date of Stay: 04/02/10 Review Submitted: 04/18/10

Hi Peter, Paul and I cannot say enough great things about our experience at the villa. From the ease of making our reservation with you (and answering our multitude of questions...thank you!), to the kind care and attention of Wayan and Kartika, it was heaven. After spending a week in the busy, touristy Benoa area, we both felt we had found the soul of Bali staying here. The view from the villa is amazing and very relaxing. Watching Kartika make the daily offerings and visiting with their cute little boy made us feel part of the real Bali. Wayan helped us so much, showing us the best places for shopping, and local artisans that we might normally miss. He took us on a day trip to Sideman, which was the destination I asked for, but he chose an amazing route that I would not have thought to request, and it was the most beautiful part of the trip. He also suggested restaurants in Ubud that turned out to be our favourites...Ibu Oka for the babi guleng ... delicious, and so reasonably priced. And Murni's Warung... the smoked duck was so good I had it both times we were there. The location of the restaurant is so gorgeous...be sure to sit in the lower area ... they won't automatically seat you there, and it is much more beautiful than overlooking the road. We also ate at Kafe Waran Batu which we enjoyed. At Wayan's suggestion, we went for a walk thru the rice fields behind Santi Mandala (the resort which the villa overlooks) which was fun. Afterwards we stopped at the villa and they said we could have lunch or dinner there...it is a lovely location, but unfortunately, we didn't have time to go back to eat. They did let us use their internet twice, for a small fee, and that was really helpful to us. Please thank Anthony and Tanya for allowing us to stay in their lovely home, and let them know that Wayan is a godsend! We hope we can come back some time in the future. With kind regards, Barb and Paul

Owner response:hello barb and paul! so nice to hear about your stay. thankyou so much for your kind words. wayan said to say "hello", and wanted to thankyou also. your suggestions will be much appreciated by our future guests as well! hope you visit again....terima kasih! peter

Recommended for:Adventure seekers, romantic getaway, sightseeing, tourists without a car, age 55+.

Our Best Holiday EVER!!

Guest: jonathan99 (tuscon, az)
Date of Stay: 03/10/10 Review Submitted: 04/15/10

not sure if it was because of never having been to bali before, but we had an absolutely wonderful holiday at this villa! from the moment we were met by wayan at the airport, until the night we departed, it was like a dream. the villa was so private and authentic, it was paradise. the pool, the view, the serenity, and the attentiveness of wayan and his family was beyond expectations. a day did not go that we didnt discuss the thought of living there. what a crazy thought perhaps, but intriguing nonetheless. now that we have been home almost one month, we still cannot stop talking about it. maybe it was a dream we sometimes joke. but since we still converse via email with wayan, we know it was true. we cannot wait to return, hopefully next year. peter was very helpful and his suggestions were great. we saved alot of $$ following his advise, and ate at some wonderful local eateries and went to amazing sites. all in all a 10 out of 10..cannot say one negative thing. thankyou peter.

Recommended for:Adventure seekers, romantic getaway, sightseeing, age 55+, girls getaway.

Guest: rc culkin (san diego, ca)
Date of Stay: 07/30/09 Review Submitted: 07/30/09

dear peter, please fwd our deepest thankyou to anthony&tanya for sharing their balinese home with us. the location, the views, the privacy and most importantly wayan, were fantastic. wayan made us feel very comfortable in a far away place, and looked after us as a family member would. the entire bali experience is one we will always cherish. we hope to return one day in the near future, but as a wise man once said, "so many places to goto, so little time to visit them all". but we hope it wont be too long because this trip will be difficult to top! thankyou again..sincerely, r. lee

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Guest: Michael and Lynne Braverman (San Francisco, CA. USA)
Date of Stay: 08/17/08 Review Submitted: 08/17/08

We had an absolutely wonderful 3 weeks at your villa in Bali. The site is beautiful, with a panoramic view of the countryside and ricefields,large bay windows giving a 270degree view. The villa was perfect, large main room with a king bed, an open air shower, a private swimming pool. There is an outdoor covered dining area that we used for breakfast and other meals that we ate in, but mostly we went to local wonderful inexpensive restaurants in the neighborhood or in Ubud. Wayan, who is the caretaker of the villa, is a charming man in his 30s, and he was also our driver and became our close friend. He is knowledgable, kind, thoughtful, curious and caring. His family, a lovely wife and two young sons are charming, and the welcomed us to their community and lifestyle. We had a rare opportunity to see the culture that we would not have had if we stayed in a hotel. One of the best experiences we ever had. Would recommend it highly. 5 stars. Michael and Lynne Braverman

Recommended for:

Guest: Anonymous
Date of Stay: 07/13/03 Review Submitted: 07/13/03

WOW! This was "paradise on earth"!! No photos can do this villa justice. Its impossible to capture the tranquillity,location & SERVICE in a photograph. We didnt want to leave. Viewing the daily rituals with my morning coffee was so soothing, so restful. The people who work here made us feel like kings & queens of OUR castle. DID WE MENTION THE SERVICE! The food was wonderful and the villa and other buildings on the property where construction "wonders". There is no way we could have prepared ourselves for ALL these "pleasant surprises", that exceeded our expectations. We are just sorry we didnt honeymoon here. Its perfect for romance. Thankyou Anthony, hope you dont mind if we tell ALL our friends HOW GREAT THIS PLACE IS!!!!!! Sincerely Rob & Sissy

Recommended for:

Guest: David& Pat Stacy (-)
Date of Stay: 07/13/03 Review Submitted: 07/13/03

We were so sad to leave, as you can well understand, I know. We loved being in the villa, and even more importantly, with your wonderful people there. Thank you for allowing Wayan to be such a good advocate and for instructing him to take such good care of me! I will add our praises to the others on your website, and, if you wish, I shall be happy to rave a bit on the travel message boards. Thank you for everything. When I need to relax, from here on, I shall picture the view from the villa and the kites sailing (and occasionally falling... ask Yande!). We most fervently hope to do this again. Best regards, Pat Stacy

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