Need to know
Rooms
17 villas built in the local joglo style, including a two-bedroom villa that’s set up for family stays.
Check–Out
Noon. Earliest check-in, 2pm, both are flexible, subject to availability.
More details
Rates usually include an American- or Indonesian-style breakfast. Choose between eggs Benedict, pancakes and French toast, or local picks of nasi goreng (fried rice) and mie goreng (spicy fried noodles).
Also
From 4pm to 5pm, free afternoon tea is served on the Wantilan deck, which overhangs the water. For a take-me-now-or-maybe-when-we’re-back-at-the-villa meal, there are a rom-com’s worth of lovey-dovey settings to dine in. Take to the Ocean Tower deck, have a table laid in the forest or picnic on the beach: the butler will do the rest. Families can also book a private barbecue.
At the hotel
Private beach and club, Menjangan Spa, private jetty, watersports centre, expansive grounds to roam, 360-degree ocean observation deck, free WiFi throughout and laundry services. In rooms: Flatscreen TV, iPod dock, minibar, tea- and coffee-making kit, free bottled water, air-conditioning, Toto bath products and torches.
Our favourite rooms
The deer grazing peacefully beside the One-Bedroom Forest Villas may not sing chirpy tunes or engage in household chores, but they’ll make you feel like true Disney royalty nonetheless. Within, gauzily veiled four-posters and bath tubs fit for a duo of derrières, below a glazed roof – perfect for stargazing – are assuredly romantic. Families will enjoy the oodles of extra space, privacy, and colourfully painted panels of the Two-Bedroom Forest Villa. Ocean Villas are the only stays to have their own – small yet serviceable – private plunge pool.
Poolside
There’s little disjoin between the brilliant blue stretch of Bali Sea and the hotel’s sizeable, unheated infinity pool, set beside the Ocean Beach Club. Arrive early in the day to see herds of deer daintily trotting through the mangroves, or rock up after a leisurely lie-in to make use of the sunken bar.
Spa
Ocean-facing, Padma Spa by Plataran is set amid the mangroves to ensure treatments are carried out in peace and privacy. Their highly-trained specialists offer a range of facials, such as the anti-ageing Black Tea or the revitalising Sundara Radiance facials, body wraps and scrubs, and massages using all natural products. If a few of the therapies take your fancy, book one of their signature experiences that combine a few tempting treatments; the Padma Matcha Paramita experience includes a tension-releasing massage followed by a facial, green tea full-body exfoliation and soothing green tea and citrus bath.
Packing tips
Binoculars to spy animals in hiding, a camera that works above and below water and something snuggly to keep nighttime chills at bay. Besides your fellow Smith, of course…
Also
Artefacts from the owners collection – model ships, vibrantly coloured kites, antique typewriters – are liberally sprinkled through the property.
Children
All ages are welcome. Each villa sleeps up to four guests; the Two-Bed Villa up to six (baby cots available on request). Kids will love exploring the wilds and playing on the beach or in the pool. Activities by land and sea are legion, so take your pick.
Best for
Older children will be able to make the best of the adventurous terrain.
Recommended rooms
The One-Bedroom Forest Villas are likely big enough for a small family with the addition of an extra bed; however, the Two-Bedroom Villa brings with it peace and privacy.
Activities
It’s a thrill for all the family to see wildlife skip past their villa, listen to the starlings chirp away merrily in the sanctuary, and to hike into the surrounding verdure. Bikes can be borrowed for family outings, staff will help smaller Smiths plant a tree in the park, and cruises can be booked to the surrounding islands. Menjangan Island has superlative snorkelling (and diving for Padi-trained little’uns).
Swimming pool
Keep an eye on kids if staying in the Ocean-View Villas, even if the plunge pool is petite. The Octagon Club pool is child-welcoming, but lifeguard-free.
Meals
There are highchairs, but not much in the way of baby kit otherwise. There are plenty of meals that will appeal to kids, from simple burgers and pastas to more complex Indonesian fare. A range of smoothie blends with fresh juices make a nice alternative to cocktails for the underage.
Babysitting
Babysitters can be booked for IDR70,000 an hour, must be booked in advance.
Also
There are no baby monitors to borrow, and the remote nature of the site means there’s probably little use in packing one.
