Having read a lot of comments about Alili resort I think I will pass on it and for our stay on the front end we may stay at Kamandata or Waka Di Ume. Most of that stay really is 2 full days where we will be out touring for 8 hours+. But after going to Java and S.E. Sulawisi we adecided to come back to Bali for 3 nights but it gives us only 2.5 days and we thought that having toured extensively 8 years ago plus the 2 days on the front end of this trip we might use a guide for 4-5 hours and take advantage of a different resort. One that I have read about is the Hanging garden. Has anyone stayed there in the past 12-18 months? I am interested in room size, comfort of rooms and quality of breakfast and reasonableness of dinner prices. Since this will be our last relaxation before a 27 hour trip back to the US. We are still searching for a good guide. Puta who was recommended has not responded to my email of 6 days ago so I just emailed a guide named eka yesterday. Thoughts.

I haven't stayed at the Hanging Gardens but I've visited. It's further out than the other resorts (I'd say close to an hour from Ubud) but depending on where you're touring this may be a plus.

The resort has a European/French ambience and most likely the same applies to the cuisine.

The rooms are nice and the views are spectacular. The layout is severely vertically oriented. There is a cable car / funicular which takes you up and down the hillside. To me this would become extremely annoying after a few trips.

I don't know Kamandata. Waka Di Ume is in another quality range from the Hanging Garden and Alila. More boutique and less resort.

Try to visit Alila while you're there the first time. I think it may be what you're looking for -- medium sized, resort focus -- but I agree other travelers' experiences have been mixed. I will add that the Alila has excellent guides and cultural programs.

I think it's Putu not "Puta"!

Guides are often out and about so I would give him a phone call instead. Very nice man and a good guide.

http://balifriend.net/about_bali_driver.html

Can marmot or others help me identify "hidden gems" that we should tour. When we visited in 2002 our guide, now a dentist,took us to the major temples on the tourist route (maybe 5 or 6), a drive through the rice terraces though I would not mind visiting them again, to several small villages (maybe 4-5) where in 2 we observed women bring fruit/flower offering to their local temples as well as stops at a few Ubud galleries but that was in 2002. What we saw on a quick bus tour of 4 hours this past March was rows of shops in Ubud many selling similar products that looked mass produced unlike our visit 8 years earlier. We will likely stay near Ubud but plan to tour for 9-10 hours for 2 days and thought several of you including marmot might suggest "hidden gems". Though I have a walking limitation I can walk 400-500 meters on a path but cannot hike unfortunately to see many of the waterfalls I read about. Help!

I think the best of Bali is in the every day life -- the temple ceremonies, the processions, the markets, the villages, the rice paddies and irrigation systems. These are sights that you will stumble upon everywhere you go in Bali. But you need to get out of the car and wander around.

Any guide will know which villages are holding temple ceremonies and will act as your escort, making sure you are properly outfitted. Some guides are better at explaining what's going on than others. You also have to be very patient and prepared to endure a lot of hanging around as things happen slowly in Bali and the really good dancing often takes place late at night.

Some of the most spectacular scenery in Bali does involve a fair amount of trekking up and down mountains or river banks; however, the forests and rice paddies are mostly level and can be easily navigated. On one of my favorite walks the guide (Sangputu who is affiliated with the Alila) pointed out the uses of the various indigenous flora along the path – coffee, chocolate, clove, cinnamon, turmeric, kapok.

Some of the things I like to recommend in the Ubud area:
Setia Darma House of Masks & Puppets
A phenomenal selection of masks and puppets from all over Indonesia. About 10 minutes outside of Ubud, but difficult to locate. Call if you have a problem.
Mas Ubud Bali
Jl. Tegal Bingin
Ubud, Indonesia
62818251088

The Green School
Amazing bamboo architecture
http://www.greenschool.org/
Jalan Raya Sibang Kaja, Banjar Saren, Abiansemal, Badung
62 361 469 875
“We invite all members of the public interested in sustainability and education to come for a general tour of our beautiful eight hectare campus every Monday and Wednesday at 3 pm. We suggest a donation of IDR100,000 per person for the tour”

John Hardy
Beautiful, but pricy, jewelry in a unique setting. Factory tours are available if interested.
http://www.johnhardy.com/pages.php?pageid=11
Call 0361 469

Mask maker I Wayan Tangguh
This guy doesn’t have a “showroom” per se but his workshop in Singapadu Village is the real deal.

Dance Performances
There are dances every night at the Ubud Palace (right in the middle of town). They’re outside so not good on a rainy night. Get there early to get a good seat.
Puri Agung in Peliatan is another option.
We also like the Kecak in Jungjungan Village and ARMA. Both are outside of Ubud.
You can get information on performance locations and times at the Ubud Visitors Center.

Lastly I think this group offers excellent insightful tours of Bali. If you contact them you can usually join a portion of any itinerary that suits your timing and interest.
http://www.danutours.com/bali_menu.htm

marmot; thanks for all the good ideas. When did you stay at Alila last. The negative comments are primarily the small rooms but a Deluxe Room is 45sq. meters. The other two items mentioned several times was worm furniture, very small closet space and some maintenance problems. Lastly and least important to us was the breakfasts were to quote 2 travelers limited and cold were things were to be hot. Considering we will spend 3 nights there I really just want an attractive comfortable room with no hassle. We will onluy be there after touring at 5-6 PM until we go to breakfast at 8. On our second visit after Java and Sulawisi I thought of Hanging Garden for more relaxation in our 3 night stay (really 2 full days with maybe 4-5 hours of touring but the tram sounds like a bit of an inconvenience affter the novelty wears off and at $475 with Taxes. We wanted to be in a different area than Ubud for that stay but within 55-70 minutes tops of the airport. Since we will be spending some time on property we would be willing to spend $300 plus taxes for an elegant room, plunge pool NOT needed, and if it's not within 1/4 mile of 2-3 restaurants then the resort should have very good, gourmet not necessary, fusion cuisine of sorts at reasonable prices (~$40/person for a 2-3 course dinner with a glass of wine). Ideally size maybe 30-50 guest rooms. Any thoughts.
Anyone else with ideas please chime in.
THANKS!!

marmot; thanks for all the good ideas. When did you stay at Alila last. The negative comments are primarily the small rooms but a Deluxe Room is 45sq. meters. The other two items mentioned several times was worm furniture, very small closet space and some maintenance problems. Lastly and least important to us was the breakfasts were to quote 2 travelers limited and cold were things were to be hot. Considering we will spend 3 nights there I really just want an attractive comfortable room with no hassle. We will onluy be there after touring at 5-6 PM until we go to breakfast at 8. On our second visit after Java and Sulawisi I thought of Hanging Garden for more relaxation in our 3 night stay (really 2 full days with maybe 4-5 hours of touring but the tram sounds like a bit of an inconvenience affter the novelty wears off and at $475 with Taxes. We wanted to be in a different area than Ubud for that stay but within 55-70 minutes tops of the airport. Since we will be spending some time on property we would be willing to spend $300 plus taxes for an elegant room, plunge pool NOT needed, and if it's not within 1/4 mile of 2-3 restaurants then the resort should have very good, gourmet not necessary, fusion cuisine of sorts at reasonable prices (~$40/person for a 2-3 course dinner with a glass of wine). Ideally size maybe 30-50 guest rooms. Any thoughts.
Anyone else with ideas please chime in.
THANKS!!

I last stayed at the Alila about 2 years ago. I've never found the ideal resort in the Ubud area. They all have pluses and minuses. The Alila, to me, has the most positives and the least negatives. I find it tasteful and serene, though I agree that it needs a maintenance overhaul.

I'm not sure what constitutes a deluxe room. The suites -- 103 & 104 especially -- are exceddingly nice. Big airy rooms with wrap around terraces, unobstructed views.

The restaurant is very serious and within your budget (which is about double what a lot of people expect in Ubud). The setting is beautiful and I always looked forward to breakfast.

There aren't too many mid-sized properties in Ubud. You know the Four Seasons and the Aman. Kupu Kupu Barong, which is next to the Aman, was recently renovated. See Robbietravels' comments. She liked it a lot.

Many people like the Maya. I don't particularly as it gets a lot of Asian tour groups.

My all time favorite is the Como Shabhala for architecture, location, food and wellness programs, but it's not so easy to get in and out of. I would only stay there if you could take full advantage of the facilities.

The Chedi Club is lovely and well managed, good food, beautiful spacious grounds. It doesn't have the river valley views, though.

Sorry, my spelling's falling apart: It's Como Shambala.

You might also look at the Uma Ubud. It's just outside of town, nicely designed rooms, clean, bright, Japanese-y in feel. Not spectacular views, but pleasant. Very good restaurant.

The advantage is that getting into Ubud proper would be just a short ride or a longish walk.

Any suggestions for a place in a different region for our second 3 nights, really 2.5 days where we will only devote 5-6 hours to touring abnd therefore may appreciate the beauty of the lanscape of the resort, aarchitecture different from Alili, quality cuisine on-site and the touring might be very different from the 30-35 mile radius we will cover around Ubud but within 60-70 minutes from the airport. Here we would consider $300-$330/night plus that heavy 21+% tax or $400 or should we still stay around Ubad maybe at the Komamaka Tanggayuda and just tour further for 8-9 hours to get to a different area on that 1 day of touring? Thanks again.

I'm headed to Bali in 2 weeks and also struggled to pick out a hotel for the Ubud area and explored all the places mentioned in this thread, as well as a few others, and ultimately I picked out Linda Garland's Panchorean Retreat (http://panchoran-retreat.com) because it looks authentic, charming and luxurious. Since I'm traveling all the way to Bali, I don't want to stay at a Western chain, and many of the boutique properties that possessed a sense of place unfortunately didn't also look luxurious, so it was a tough decision. This property is actually the private home of an Irish architect who moved to Ubud years ago and has subsequently welcomed guests into private villas all made from bamboo. The property is written up in Architectural Digest and the Luxe guide and Conde Nast, which is reassuring, but I couldn't find any reviews on TripAdvisor and Fodors, which is the one element that makes me uneasy. I'm not sure when you're leaving for Bali, but if there's enough time I can give you a full review after my stay.

Komeneka Tanggayuda is very close to the Alila Ubud.

There are quite a few new properties in North and East Bali, but none that I know of that are of the size that you're looking for. Most are 5 to 10 villa developments.

Matahari on the North coast and Alila Manggis on the East coast are two mid-sized places that are well established. (Though Matahari would be well beyond your target distance from the airport.)

Hanging Garden is about 20 - 30 minutes to the North of Ubud...it's a lovely property but you will be isolated from other restaurants and so forth. The funicular is manned by a real person and holds about 4 people, so if there are lots of people coming and going, there could be a wait. Otherwise you can always take the steps.

As far as being within an hour or so of the airport, depending on traffic, it could be one to one and a half hours from "downtown" Ubud to airport, so Hanging Gardens would be too far away...

The Uma Ubud is actually across the street from my house and it used to be the Villa Bukit for anyone who remembers that hotel. Nice views of the Wos River, serene architecture, good location, and it's owned by the same woman who owns Como Shambala.

About those rows of shops selling the same thing...that was definitely there 8 - 10 years ago, but depending on where your driver/guide takes you, you will see very different sides of Bali. Have a great trip.

This is a good discussion, we just booked the last 2 nights of our upcoming Bali trip at the Uma Ubud because we wanted a location within walking distance of the town and restaurants. We were really pleased when we realized it is just across the street from Naughty Nuri's and Mozaic (from what I have read). I will plan to post a trip report late march.

I decided to dstay 3 nights in a Deluxe Room ($210 with tax/service at the Alila-requested room 101 and 3 nights at the end of our 26 day trip at the Chedi. I was able to gewt that through Agoda for $300/night with all taxes/service. It is ointeresting in yogyja we have a Deluxe room at the Hyatt on the Club Floor for $146 with tax and service and in Bromo at the Java banana a Superior 1 room for $116 with tax/service. Our stay in S,E, Sulawisi is another story I rather not mention,. It is $900/night with tax/service for 2 with meals and diving and snorkeling and spa but what a place for 10 nights.

Stan, I just realized I made a mistake in the room number of the Alila suite that we like. It should be 303.

I don't have any information positive or negative about 101 (or 103). Sorry, if this was misleading.

I have a feeling that you'll find that the prices you've confirmed will turn out to be proportionate to the rooms and services. I look forward to hearing about all of it.

Are you going to Wakatobi? I need to get back to Sulawesi, and underwater.

marmot; Yes. we are going to Wakatobi.