When it comes to hotel rooms, I can take or leave a flat-screen television or an iron. I’m not fussed whether I get complimentary slippers or a turndown service. But there are some basics that always make me feel right at home and, settling in at the Sun Island Boutique Villas in Seminyak, I’m finding more than a few of them.

 

There’s a bathtub in the big bathroom and a couple of flannels to wash my face. A kettle is accompanied by a modest selection of teas and coffee and — bonus — big cups. There’s a safe for my passport and laptop and pretty good free wi-fi.

With the minimal black-and-white colour scheme and big windows opening to a private outdoor area with a plunge pool and tropical garden, the whole thing feels modern and luxurious, but with a Balinese flavour — which is to say, very Seminyak.

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’m staying in one of Sun Island’s one-bedroom villas, so I have at my disposal a big bedroom with a big bed complete with a towel elephant adorned with frangipani flowers, a TV and DVD player, desk and a chair. (There are also two-storey villas, with two bedrooms.) The semi-open ensuite has the bath, a rain-head shower, twin vanity, a wardrobe and a toilet enclosed in a frosted-glass cubicle. The big windows slide open to the alfresco kitchen, plunge pool, sun loungers and garden. If I were here long enough, I could self-cater — the kitchen has a gas stove, microwave, good-sized fridge and a selection of cutlery, crockery and cooking equipment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Having liberally dispersed the contents of my suitcase throughout the room, I take a little look around the rest of the property. Mine is one of 23 villas, so this isn’t a big resort, but the facilities are good — a nice swimming pool with sun loungers, towels and a selection of books and magazines to read while you bask in the sun, a bar and restaurant that’s open throughout the day, and a day spa. The gardens, filled with frangipanis, orchids and tropical foliage, are lush and well established.

Typically for Bali, the service is warm and intuitive: lots of smiling faces and friendly greetings but no sense that anyone is hovering. In all, it feels like a nice balance between a private villa and a big resort.

Outside the front gate, I’m well placed to enjoy everything Seminyak has to offer. There’s a convenience store just down the road for stocking up on bottled water and restaurants, bars and shops are within walking distance, as is Double Six Beach. Quintessential Seminyak spots such as Potato Head, Ku De Ta and Motel Mexicola are a short taxi ride away. (The airport is a 20-minute drive in the opposite direction.)

But I opt to stay in, have a dip in my plunge pool, order a pizza off the room-service menu, read, have a bath and lie in bed watching the flat- screen TV. It feels a little indulgent but very relaxing — again, very Seminyak.


FACT FILE

•Rates at Sun Island Boutique Villas start from $US368 ($480) per night, plus 21 per cent government tax and service charge. Parent company Sun Island Bali owns a number of other properties on the island, including in Kuta and Legian. sunislandbali.com.

•Garuda Indonesia has daily flights from Perth to Denpasar, operated with a wide-bodied A330 aircraft. garuda-indonesia.com or 9214 5100.

Gemma Nisbet was a guest of Sun Island Boutique Villas and Garuda Indonesia.

 

© The West Australian

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