Secret Hotels of Bali

AMED

Blue Moon Villas
Though it's long been popular with divers and snorkelers, Bali's remote northeast coast is still off the beaten track for most visitors. That may change if more hotels follow the example of Blue Moon Villas, a stylish boutique hotel that makes the most of its dramatic coastal setting. Designed by local architect Pak Jaya, it has five rooms in three bright, airy villas, as well as an open-sided lobby/restaurant and a small infinity pool. The rooms all have balconies or terraces, some of which are large enough to double as living rooms. As in many Balinese hotels, the bathrooms are partly open to the outside but completely private. The staff is friendly but less deferential than in the main Balinese resorts--which could be because many of the staff members are related to the hotel's co-owner, Komang John, an engaging local guy who also gave his name to the hotel's restaurant (his brother is one of the chefs). After a dinner of fresh wahoo barbecued over coconut husks, you'll want to sit on your balcony and watch the fishing boats fan out into the ocean. In the morning, if the local roosters wake you in time, you can go out in a fishing boat to watch the sun rise. 011-62/812-362-2597, bluemoonvillas.com, from $60.

UBUD

Ulun Ubud Resort & Spa
In an open-air workshop just to the west of Ubud, Bali's cultural capital, a young woodcarver is contemplating his latest work--a goddess slowly emerging from a twisted tree trunk. Satisfied at last, he marks the wood and begins carving again. The craftsman's boss is Gus Tu, son of a noted local woodcarver and owner of the Ulun Ubud, which sits next to the workshop. The artistic heritage is obvious as you meander down the paths and steep steps linking the hotel's 22 thatched cottages: Each nook and cranny holds a statue or a carving--a Hindu warrior here, a head of the Buddha there, and everywhere countless carved frogs, fish, shrimp, and crabs. The rooms are simple but comfortable, with bathrooms that could do with a little updating and wide balconies that overlook a lush river valley. The hotel has a reasonable restaurant serving Balinese and Western dishes, and there's a free shuttle if you're inclined to sample some of Ubud's many restaurants. If you take breakfast on your balcony, you may hear the distant chink-chink-chink of iron on stone. Look down toward the river and you'll see that along its banks, local craftspeople are cutting stone to make new carvings, some of which may well show up on the hotel's rambling grounds. 011-62/361-975-024, ulunubud.com, from $75 year-round, breakfast included.

Quoted from : http://www.budgettravel.com/bt-dyn/content/article/2006/04/04/AR2006040400852.html

Supported by : JavaTourism, Lintang Buana Tours