Well this should have been my HNR3, but you know how it is in Bali :).
Our Villa in Seminyak was good value for money.
Villa ‘Isis' is at the front of the laneway that leads to Serene Villas.
It has a beautiful pool and gardens and the villa is older but well maintained.
It looks just like the pictures on Trip Advisor.
It has one big room that had a spare bed and Day bed in it as well as our bed. The second bedroom was after the open air living area and was smaller.
It is located on Jalan Dupadi, which while being close to everything, is not easily walkable (no footpath, lots of traffic). You catch a taxi everywhere, which wasn't hard as they passed regularly.
I think I prefer where we usually stay, near the Bintang Supermarket, as you can walk to lots of shops.
Unlike other villas we've stayed in, this one did not have fulltime staff. Winnie came in from 8.30am -1.30pm with her pool and garden staff then disappeared. That was kind of nice as most villas have staff popping in and out throughout the day. She was on call if we needed.
Seminyak felt like the start of another holiday. We were back to the noise of motorbikes, not chickens!
It wasn't as relaxing as Ubud because you get the feel you should be doing something with all the shops and restaurants at your doorstep.
At the top of our drive was a Spa/Hairdresser which was a brilliant find. It's called ‘Aspya' and it's on Jalan Dupadi.
It is owned by an Australian woman, Karen, and run by Rusty who came from Spa Yasmin( opposite Bintang Supermarket).
It is very Western in style and décor. While I love the traditional Balinese Spas, at the end of the day it is the treatment that counts. The value for money was surprising as there were always little extras.
Day one I had a pedicure and neck, shoulder and back massage. Best pedicure I've had, ever. It included a neck massage which was a nice extra :).
The neck and back massage was great and ended up being almost a full massage.
The next day I went back for a facial. My friend also had one and we both agreed it was our best facial in years. While the mask was on it was time for foot reflexology and a hand and arm massage (Bonus!)
As I was leaving I heard a familiar voice I hadn't heard in years. It was Bill, the ex-owner of Head Office Hairdressing in the Perth CBD. Turns out he is going to get together with Karen to expand the business. All going well it will come together for the end of March, beginning of Feb. Lucky Bali to have one the top hairdressers in Perth. I will definitely be going back for a cut and colour when he starts, hope he doesn't get as booked out as he did in Perth.
With Bill on board this Salon will really take off, and it's great now!
We ate out a bit more in Seminyak.
The first day we were all tired so we walked up the road and had some Pasta for lunch from Superman Pizzas, a tiny but good value for money cafe. Dinner was at San Sol also on Jalan Dupadi which was lovely.
We tried the ‘Delicious Onion' Food was tasty but the Toilet Nazi rated the toilet 0 and I got sick. (My own silly fault, I ate some bean sprouts that were a garnish- a no-no in Bali) everyone else was fine and we shared food.
We ordered Pizza in one night from Superman Pizzas and everyone liked them ( I was still a bit seedy, so didn't have any).
Best meal we had was at Mama San. We've been meaning to go for ages. Great food, atmosphere, and service. Must book though!
Our ‘Toilet Nazi' was in heaven with the way the toilets ran. Door opened for her, taps tuned on and towel handed to her -all very ‘Royal' LOL!
Last night was at The Queen's Tandoor- always reliable but everything is quite hot so the kids had pasta from down the road before we left.
Waterbom Park has had a makeover and we had a brilliant day there. Yummy Food! We hired a Cabana, which was nice but not essential.
Didn't do much shopping as the Spa kept calling (...)
This was one of best holidays in Bali. Choosing quiet, then busier but closer to the airport really worked.
On a last note we used the Prada Executive lounge at the airport this time - Don't!
I was all set to go to the Dewi Lounge but the others thought this one looked more ‘swish.'
It does, but the food was limited and blah! Not good value, much prefer the Dewi!
‘Til next time.....................