Ayodya Batur Villa

The villas, or rather 3 big bungalows, plus house with facilities (kitchen, bar, dining room), are located in the middle of nowhere, where dogs bark loudly. The last section of the road leading to the villas, after leaving the main road, is tragic - you can easily break the car's suspension. From the road you still have to go down steep stairs to the villas. The only advantage of the location is the view of the Batur volcano and, less interesting, huge areas covered with black volcanic lava below. A large villa with a very comfortable bed and a terrace. A bit old-fashioned furnishings, but basically no complaints. Only large ventilation gaps between the sloping roof and the walls may cause concern that something might fly into the room in the night. The bathroom needs refreshing and equipment replacement. Water floods the entire bathroom floor when taking a shower. We were offered only two so-so dishes to eat for dinner, but at a price comparable to that in much better hotels and restaurants in Bali. Breakfast OK, but it's also not great. Quite a nice hostess, or maybe she was the owner. Helpful male staff. A big plus is a large platter with various fruits upon arrival in the room. You may expect waking up very early thanks to the loud birds singing and roosters crowing in the area. Just like in the countryside. We didn’t like: Access, surroundings, access from the street. Poor and relatively expensive food. Bathroom standard. Accommodation not value for money.

Liked · The villa style building was clean and comfortable. Staff were friendly and helpful. The bed was excellent - a firm mattress which we like. Shower was great - new hot water system. Soap and shampoo was supplied as were luxury style towels. Wi-fi was also excellent. Breakfast was good. We had the full 'Australian' breakfast - scrambled eggs, bacon, spinach, tomatoes, mushrooms and 2 slices of nice toasted bread. Bali coffee also was enjoyed with condensed milk. The views were awesome - looking across the lava fields to Lake Batur and Mount Batur. We woke before sunrise hoping to see the low cloud/ mist over Lake Batur but it was a bit windy for that to happen. Disliked · The access road leading from the subsidiary asphalt road was rough - a mix of some asphalt pieces and dirt with quite a few loose areas which required some care - both descending and ascending - we were on a scooter. The access road described is only about 500 metres long. It certainly wouldn't stop us coming again. Although it might be a different story if it was raining and the road was wet and slippery. The bathroom was large but could have done with some place - shelf or similar - for putting our various bathroom things like shaving foam and deodorant.

Breath taking view of Mount Batur. Scenic sunrise & sunset. Do prepare sufficient and suitable clothing as it's located mid height near the mountain. Great housekeeper with excellence hospitality. She is a great cook too! Would definitely come back.