Samabe Bali Suites & Villas

Where do we start ? From the moment we arrrived at samabe at midnight ,we were treated like royalty, from our room butler ,pool butler , beach butler all were very well trained to give top service , we like to stay only in 5 star resorts and enjoy the luxury that comes with them but at samabe the service is some of the best we have had anywhere in the world. When we dined in the restaurant tia and April were always there to look after us and new us by name after the second day. The villas are amazing and have everything you could need, the beach was clean and very relaxing, we really enjoyed the afternoon high tea that was served ,what a great idea on the beach and in the cave. We had breakfast in our pool one morning on the floating baskets and loved that as well,not something you do everyday. The food was always delicious and they present it very well. Just a bit spicey and hot ,we don???t eat hot or spicey food. Meet the gm Ralph what a top bloke and shows a lot of passion for his resort and staff, keep up the good work. We were not that excited about Bali itself ,been to better places but this resort is a stand out and we highly recommend anyone to go and experience this little bit of paradise. This resort in Fiji would kill it.

The positives: It is impossible to put into words just how good the staff are here. From the General Manager assisting to serve food (which he admitted allowed him to get to know guests better), front desk so courteous/helpful, Butlers were great, waitresses, gardeners and security - the whole staff function as one big happy family and it permeates the resort. We would love to mention so many people but the five that really stuck out were Agus and Dwi the Butlers, Nonik and Anis in Rempah 2 and Dio the driver who collected us from the airport. There are also many staff in Crystal Blue that deserve special mention but sadly we did not catch their names. The food here is excellent in both restaurants and the menu's are wide and varied enough for a 7-10 day stay - we felt as we stayed 13 nights, the menu's in the last 3 days we knew off by heart but they are still more than adequate for the average duration that guests stay. One massive 'well done' has to go to the way when something goes wrong (which it occasionally will in any resort), the speed and efficiency with which the staff handled things was breathtaking in its expedition; no problem too big or too small and a solution found in minutes. The staff here are 100% Customer Focussed from top to bottom. We stayed in Villa 30 which was perfectly located halfway between Rempah and Crystal Blue - 1 minute to each. 1 minute downhill walk to the Main Pool, the gym, the Ring of Fire Pool Bar and the steps down to the beach. The grounds were immaculate, the Villa's were huge, had almost every amenity and most certainly were 5-star in their cleanliness, layout and the pool/gardens were kept totally clean. All things considered, we would highly recommend this resort and found the staff amongst the best we have ever had the pleasure of being looked after by - they are wonderful people from start to finish. The Golf Buggies are plentiful and arrive very quickly and Room Service is also super-quick. The All-Inclusive package is perfect for our requirements and we would highly recommend this Resort as being an excellent choice. Sadly for us though, two things really stood out that would unfortunately preclude us from staying here again on our next trip to Bali. The first is a major problem for us - and that is 'The Gym'. We knew that there was not much in the gym from the photographs, but felt we could 'get by' and juggle our training routines to fit what was in there. Sadly, the Exercise Balls that were in the photographs were not there and when I tried to use the step-machine, it was broken and I reported it to staff. It remained with a 'broken, do not use sign' on it for the next 12 days - the problem was never solved. That left one treadmill and one cycle machine as the only forms of cardio. The dumbbells are 'okay' and the weight station has an 'okay' few stations, but there was just the one lat pull-down bar and one bicep-curl bar - if they had just single-arm straps or a tricep rope, that would allow for so many more uses of that station. The gym has a great deal of spare room and the Table Tennis Table I never saw anyone use during my twice-daily visits over the 13 nights. To make this gym so much better for anyone that likes fitness, quite simply get some more attachments for the weight station, fix the step-machine, add a rowing machine (which takes up so little room), get a few inflatable exercise balls - get some COLD water in the gym (there is just warm bottled water) and amazingly, add a clock because I have never been in a gym where there is not a clock telling you the time. But because the gym lacks so much and does not allow me to continue my training - not even close really - this would be a massive reason why we would not be able to stay at the resort again sadly. The second determining factor, is the master bedroom and the lack of 'black-out' curtains. Daylight floods in from 6.15am (time to wake up) and if at any point in the day you want a lay-down (which we both did as we arrived with heavy colds/coughs) the blinds do not filter light at all and it is like trying to sleep outdoors in the sunlight. If you are a light sleeper or need a more natural 'darkness' to sleep in, I'm afraid it is impossible to resolve this in the bedroom and whilst we did ask if anything could be done, we were told that sadly it could not. Overall though, a super place, super people with the absolute 'we want to genuinely help' attitude and this could not be faulted one little bit. If they managed to get a good gym set-up and had proper black-out curtains in the bedroom, we would definitely stay again but as it stands at the moment, just for us those two things are a deal breaker. But we wish the general Manager and staff from top to bottom at this wonderful place, all our Very Best Wishes.