2 January 2018

“Expat lifestyle in a magic environment… highly recommended!!”

Villa Bekul is fairly new and very comfortable. All bedrooms are air conditioned and have their own en-suite with an open air shower which is very appropriate for Bali. The common areas are sufficient, with pavilion style open air dining and lounge area with ceiling fans. The location is in the hills out of Lovina town and away from the beach, we walked into town one day and it took about 40mins. To walk back to the villa from town would be more difficult as it is up a seriously steep driveway (we had to walk the last 50m when we arrived… the van could not make the climb with 8 people plus baggage ;-)… Don’t be put off by the distance to town, as Bali Bob was always available with transport when needed, whether for a quick run down to the shops, or a full day expedition. We walked to one of the nearby waterfalls which was great, but we had a lot of rain (expected in December) and the water was a bit too dirty to swim in… would be great at other times of the year. Other activities we did included snorkelling in the National Park, visiting the local markets, jumping and sliding at waterfalls and just slothing around the villa enjoying the day beds or lazing around the pool. The girls explored a number of local spa’s, and decided that they liked Spa Agung best. The staff were fantastic… The food was great and the rooms were made up and cleaned every day. Garden and pool were tidy and well maintained. As I mentioned above, Bali Bob was great at arranging transport. It felt a bit weird having staff around all the time, but we got used to it very quickly as they are very unobtrusive. Each morning after breakfast we agreed which meals we would be around for, for the following day, the staff provided an estimated cost, which we paid, then during the day they would shop and next morning they would come back with the food, receipts and our change and prepare the meals. The system worked very well. There are some good restaurants in the area, Buda Bakery was one of our favourites and the list in the villa is very helpful. One word of caution… both my wife and son slipped over on the wet tiles in the villa… they are like ice when wet… be cautious.