After our superlative stay at Bulung Daya, we enjoyed Gusti the villa manager’s company for a couple of hours longer, as he drove us inland to the jungle town of Ubud.
I picked a villa with a very impressive website, including a full 3D tour and drone videos of the villa’s remote setting in the jungle. People don’t just build holiday homes in Bali, the island seems to draw people who want to express themselves artistically. The natural landscape is so beautiful, the cost of labour and materials so cheap and the art of such a high standard that building a dream home here is within the reach of a lot of people. It is something that I’d love to do myself one day.
Although this villa also had staff, they were definitely more hands off than at Bulung Daya. Ayu and Gecko were both really friendly and helpful people though and helped to make our stay very comfortable.
Villa Amrita is set amongst rice terraces at the end of a single lane road. Although we didn’t have a traditional welcome ceremony, the local ducks were out in force and belted out a very boisterous greeting.
Past the dark wooden entry gate was a large outdoor bale, set on a beautifully kept lawn, surrounded by tropical, jungle foliage.
You enter the villa itself via the kitchen and dining area. We were given freshly squeezed watermelon juice upon arrival. My favourite!
Just before reaching their wing there was an extra twin bedroom, which we didn’t make use of.
The twin room also had its own outdoor bathroom
Buddha keeps watch between the second and third bedrooms
Mr and Mrs R’s room was very similar to our own, although it had a slightly brighter colour scheme.
Their bathroom was very similar to the one in the twin room. Villa Amrita even had its own branded amenities, I told you that villa owners go all out in Bali!
We only stayed for a couple of nights and had most of our meals outside of the house. The breakfast was ok but not great. Nasi goreng is Kamara’s absolute favourite and she was a little disappointed with this one. The freshly squeezed lime and watermelon juices were fantastic though.
Because a stay in Ubud involves a lot more eating out and exploration of the nearby area, this was far more of a ‘usual’ hotel-style stay (albeit one in a spectacular setting with private staff and pool facilities). We disappeared at around 10am and made it back just before sunset both days. This meant we were able to enjoy the pool for a quick morning dip…
…As well as using it as our venue for some sundowners, after a day spent exploring.
The view over the edge of the pool.
However most of the time we were on our way out…
…because the allure of life outside the villa was so strong.
Total cost $400 for 4 people, per night – including breakfast and roundtrip private transfer into Ubud centre each day.
http://villaamrita.com/