Location: ★★★★☆
Zen: ★★★★★
Luxury: ★★★★★
Sexytime: ★★★★★
In a nutshell: You’re basically spoiled to bits in a private, intimate, lush, and tastefully-decorated pocket of paradise.
What I liked about Villa Sungai
I’ve been to a lot of beautiful places while on my journey searching for accommodations that energize the heart and soul, and I’m really excited to dedicate my first bold rave review to Villa Sungai.
It’s an intimate property located in Canggu, Bali and consists of two villas – Sungai Gold, which sleeps four people, and Villa Sungai, which sleeps 6. Both villas can be combined into one property when a hidden pathway is opened up between the villas to accommodate larger groups of 10+.
Two things set this place apart from other resorts I’ve visited: the people who work there, and the small details.
Villa Sungai was built over a decade ago by a woman named Pamela and her Balinese business partner Made (Mah-day), with the goal of providing the quiet region of Cepaka a means to flourish. The entire staff – from the butler to the chefs and chauffers – as well as the people who built the resort itself, are from this immediate local village, and the amount of warmth and soft energy that radiates from these people is truly noticeable, even for those who might not be in-tune with energy exchange yet. The place is cared for with love, the guests are cared for with genuine hospitality.
My most memorable example of how good the staff is here is from one evening when I was working on my laptop from the day bed, facing the pool. At some point I looked up to see a dozen candles lining the edge of the infinity pool, floating in the water, and lighting up the stone Buddha statues around the villa, without a single person in sight. I consider myself an astute person, but I didn’t hear anything, see anything, or have my vibes disrupted one single bit during this process. Maybe I was in turbo flow. But either way. It was so impressively stealthy.
The other thing that really stood out to me was how no small details went overlooked. The pens are made of cinnamon sticks, hemp, and mala beads; straws are bamboo; and even bath products are made with their signature blend of bergamot essential oil, citrus lily, and sweet almond & coconut oils. They even provide a cute little foot-shaped pumice stone as part of your amenity kit.
I should be wrapping up this review but I haven’t talked about the food yet, so here we go. The food is amazing. The menu is surprisingly large for such an intimate venue, and every item on the list is hand-curated from inspirational chefs and restaurants located around Bali and beyond. I was there for nine meals total and the two dishes that stand out in my memory are the Buber Injin (black sticky rice pudding in coconut milk with raw honey) and the Bebek Betutu (roast duck. Anyone remember that snapchat?).
Their signature welcome is made from vodka, lime juice, and palm sugar, with kaffir and lemongrass infusions and soda. That’s another thing I love about Villa Sungai – it’s an all-inclusive experience, and guests are treated like adults. No faux-orange sugar water drinks, no additional fees on a Bintang-or-bust mini bar. Drinks are drinks. The in-villa fridge comes stocked with top of the line spirit selections, including three bottles of wine spanning various years.
Things to note
Villa Sungai is about an hour from the airport and 20-30 mins north of Seminyak/Kuta region. They offer daily yoga classes, in-villa massage treatments (I had the 90-minute traditional massage and it was heaven), as well as tours through the rice fields or a trip to the famous seaside temple Pura Tanah Lot. The beach is a 10-15 drive away, and chauffeurs are always on standby to take you where you want to go.. Though I personally prefer renting a moped or two to take in the traditional landscape while en route.
Worth it?
100%.
TripAdvisor review: Villa Sungai
Website: bali-villasungai.com
Full resort album: flickr