Can people comment on Amankila? I am thinking of spending 5 nights there in July. I have 10 nights total in Bali and will spend the first 5 at the FS Sayan. I also wanted to have a nice beach vacation and have selected Amankali.

First off, does that seem like the right mix off time at the resorts? Do people think I should visit another location/resort considering I have 10 nights?

Also, what are some impressions of Amankila. It is a bit pricier than almost everywhere in Bali and I'm hoping its worth while. I was thinking of the Garden Suite to save the $150/night over the ocean suite. Do people have any pictures of the rooms/views/beach/resort that they can share?

Are some rooms closer to the beach? Are any rooms steps to the beach or is it a 5 minute walk from all of the rooms?

Finally, are there any discounts available for any of the Aman resorts? They didn't seem willing to reduce prices when I contacted them.

Thanks all.

don't know if it applies to your time frame but aman was offering a 50% discount at their phuket, thailand destination---a first

Reviews I found on this place are very positive. People rave about service.
Location seems to quite remote.

However beaches in Candi Dasa are not that wonderful, although the resort has its own private beach.

Aman resorts are famous for not granting any discount.... with the current exception of the one in Phuket due to the tsunami effect.

I did an image search and here is what I found (pictures from people who stayed at this place)...

http://www.superidee.be/Nederlands/a...ionLanguage=NL

http://members.jcom.home.ne.jp/shima.../amankila.html


http://home.j05.itscom.net/pouss/3_V...nce/AD_TOP.htm

My wife and I stayed at Amankila 4 or 5 years ago and absolutely loved it - even more than Amandari. Architecturally it's a little out of context, but the rooms, setting, and service are all spectacular. We found ourselves hanging out on the huge daybeds next to the pool most days. I still Aman still has a deal where you stay at Amanusa, Amandari, and Amankila and they shuttle you between the three. Might be worth looking into.

Amankila may well be the best hotel experience you ever have in your lifetime. Here is my detailed trip report of both Amankila and the FS Sayan from two years ago. Spring for an ocean view room - the setting is magnificent. None of the rooms are steps from the beach, but you never have a problem getting a ride down or back and its a lovely 2 minute ride. The beach is black sand and completely private which is more than you can say for most beaches in Bali. Sorry, no digital pics to share!

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AMANKILA – BALI
This was where my husband and I became Bapak and Ibu (Mr. and Mrs.) Nelson. And, if you can’t tell by the length of this review, this is the property we consider the end-all, be-all of our trip, and the property that will someday draw us back to Bali.

We were picked up by private car and greeted by some of the most welcoming, warm people we have ever met. Taken immediately to our villa by multiple staff members for a more personal check-in experience, we were met with a full bottle of Moet & Chandon French champagne. Knowing that this property would have one of the more stunning vistas of our trip, we booked what our research told us would be the villa with the best view – the Indrakila suite. Unlike the rest of the property, this villa is only two years old. We had seen pictures of the villa and its view prior to our visit, and were driven to pay an unprecedented amount of money (for us) to secure the accommodation. Have you ever anticipated a place so much, that when you finally got there, you could be nothing but disappointed? This was not the case with the Indrakila suite. When the staff members left us, I remember turning to my husband and saying, “We’ll never be able to top this.” He agreed. The 180-degree ocean, mountain, temple and black sand beach view was pristine and breathtaking. Our oversized patio stepped down to a large, blue-tiled pool and a private bale, where we would take breakfast and after dinner cocktails. The inside of the villa was nearly as beautiful, with terrazzo tiled floors and sliding windows lined up to take best advantage of the spectacular scenery. All of our time in the villa was spent with gentle “selon ding” music playing in the background. We especially enjoyed leaving it to play overnight, with the sound of waves joining it in the background.

Putting views and luxurious accommodations aside, the most amazing thing about Amankila was the staff. They knew who we were and where we were at every moment. They learned what made us happy and they shared that information with each other. They knew when we were out of our room and when they could get into it without disturbing us. Each staff member was equipped with either a cell phone or a radio – groundskeepers, too. When we would leave our room, the groundskeepers discretely reported it to the front desk, the front desk would then conversationally find out, from us, where we were going and report that to the staff members in our path. The result was an absolutely blissful, if eerie, experience where every staff member we ran into (even the person in the gift shop) was anticipating our arrival and knew our name. Amankila also kept a computer record of our likes and dislikes. They only asked my husband once how he likes his martinis. And a week later, when we had dinner at Amandari (while staying at the Four Seasons Sayan) the people at Amandari knew our names, knew we had spent time at Amankila, and knew how to make my husband’s martini – they didn’t have to ask!

Every moment of our stay was special. The hotel had arranged a gamelan band and a charming children’s ceremonial dance, even though there were only 6 couples at the property that night. And when it rained, there was a staff member ready for us with an umbrella before we even knew it was raining. Each day, two young local girls would sit on their mats and create welcome crafts/gifts for the villas. Referring to one of the crafts that a girl was working on, I said, “That’s beautiful.” The young girl smiled genuinely and replied, “So are you.” There was the ever-so-private dinner on the beach, where the chef spoke to us at length about what we would like him to prepare, and the not-to-be-missed Indonesian afternoon tea. And, when it came time to leave, my husband had to return the book he was reading to the Amankila library. He hadn’t finished it, and knowing that he had a birthday coming up, I decided to contact the hotel to find out the title. I asked them to check their records, telling them that he was reading something war or battle related. It turns out, they did not have a sign-out record, so they emailed me digital photos of their war and battle book covers so that I could identify the book by sight! Needless to say, my husband had a happy birthday surprise.

If we weren’t Aman junkies before, we certainly are now.

FOUR SEASONS SAYAN – BALI
This property is, quite literally, an architectural masterpiece, having won many worldwide architecture awards. To stay here is to stay in the middle of a jungle! We booked a riverfront villa (#20), which the Four Seasons claims is their best and most private. The villa was outfitted with obscene amounts of teak, both inside and out, and had an enormous bathroom with a bathtub that was filled with frangipani on our arrival. There were great expanses of outdoor living space that made up 2200+ sq. ft., including a living room, dining area, plunge pool and deck – but be warned – if it is raining when you go, as it was for us, you will find out how small a villa of that size can feel when you are confined to the bedroom. After 3 days of solid rain, we asked the manager for a reprieve, that is, a transfer to the Four Seasons Jimbaran, which reportedly receives more sunshine since it is by the ocean. Management came through for us (actually apologizing for the weather!) by securing us an oceanfront room on Jimbaran Bay. The food at the Four Seasons Sayan was wonderful, as was the nightly singing of the many frogs. The twice-weekly mosquito spraying was a blessing. The service was a bit awkward at times, and after just coming from Amankila, being asked our room number over and over again felt like a slap in the face, but this seemed to be just a drawback of a larger hotel.

Erika - Thanks for the info. I had actually heard that the sand at Amankila was not black and that the black sand was in the north. Anyway, question about FS Sayan. I am thinking about the Sayan Villa which is about 4,000 SQFT. I've heard though that there are no river views from the sayan villa since it is at the top of the resort. Do you think I should go for the sayan or were the river views from the regular river front villas so spectacular it wouldn't be worth missing? Another follow-up question....did you think the service was poor or just not up to par with amankila? I have heard that the staff there is not particularly nice.

Thanks

A word about the beaches in Bali:

The best beach based on quality of sand and waves is by far the Kuta/Seminyak continuum. It is also the most built up with the oldest resorts, so one aspect cancels out the other.

The newer developments -- some of which are very nice properties -- had to take what was available, which now usually means on the cliff overlooking the beach.

The East Coast of Bali where the Amankila is located is experiencing extreme beach erosion. At some times the beach completely disappears. Again, it's a matter of weighing your options. The Amankila beach is nothing to write home about, but the resort itself is really, really nice.

The Nusa Dua area has a long sandy beach but when the tide goes out the water is knee deep for about half a mile.

The Jimbaran area has pockets of nice beaches but its rocky and truncated.

The Conrad has a pitiful manmade beach (though it's a wonderfully designed resort). The Tugu has a scruffy beach, but fine sunsets. The Legian and Oberoi have big, wide sandy beaches but the surf is aggressive. At the Ritz Carlton and most of the villa development (including the new Bulgari) are on the cliffs in the arid area where Jimbaran meets Ulu Watu. You get fabulous views but you need transport to get to the beach.

It's a tradeoff. I don't think you'll find a perfect combination, so choose the aspect that appeals to your most.

My honeymoon 5 years ago was in Bali. We spent 4 nights at the FS Jimbaran, 3 nights at Amankila, 1 night at Amandari and 2 nights at Amanusa. We spent just the 1 night at Amandari because we had an absolutely horrible experience there - we moved to Amanusa, which was unplanned, because of it.

I LOVED Amankila. The service was the best out of all the properties - it was warm and friendly, but still totally attentive. Our room was not near the beach, but it was only a 5 minute walk to the beach. The pool there is also beautiful, so we spent some time at both of the pool and the beach.

One of my favorite memories is of going down to the beach first thing in the morning, lying in a thatched pavilion and watching the waves gently roll up the beach and under the pavilion beneath me. I can't think of a more peaceful way to spend a morning.

As for discounts, generally none at Amans, although, as Ericka points out, there are discount at the Thailand and Sri Lanka properties through October.

Regarding your FS questions - the people there were nice and the service was good - our problem with the hotel is that we were just coming from Amankila and there's no property in the world that could follow a visit like that and not look inferior. They didn't do anything bad, they just didn't do anything great. We considered the Sayan villa as well, but enjoyed being right on the river with the "babbling brook" effect. The river is literally right off of your plunge pool and it's a unique experience that would be hard to find elsewhere. Tough choice!

If you are very concerned about beaches, hit both Amankila AND Amanusa. The Amankila is black, Amanusa is white. Amanusa is also very close to the airport which could be convenient on your way in or out.