The Four Seasons Hotel, Sayan Bali
This is one of the nicest hotels I have stayed in – ever!
Sayan is very close to the cultural Balinese town of Ubud and the hotel is set in an exquisite location, in a valley with a river at the bottom and terraced rice paddies across the valley. My lasting impression of the hotel is that is it very sympathetically designed to fit in with the surroundings and everywhere you go in the hotel you seem to hear trickling water, whether from the river at the bottom of the valley, or the man-made ‘river’ at the back of the main part of the hotel.
Along with our driver we were a bit bemused on arrival because we couldn’t see the hotel, and weren’t sure we were in the right place! We quickly discovered the hotel is below you – accessed by a wooden walkway that leads to a large circular lotus flower pond which is actually on the roof of the hotel. You walk down some steps through the middle of the pond, past reception and down to a lounge and bar area that manages to be both colonial and modern at the same time.
To check-in there is no standing around at reception. We were ushered down to the lounge, made comfortable and offered a complimentary cocktail. After a few minutes a member of staff came to tell us what our room would be and give us the key - we didn’t have to say who we where, presumably they had got our name either from the driver or our luggage – a nice and welcoming touch.
We stayed in one of the river front villas, which also had a lotus pond on the roof. Our room was accessed down a spiral staircase and the door first opened into an outside living area that had a seating area complete with mosquito screens, outside sun loungers and our own plunge pool. The room and living space was cleverly designed to allow you to feel open to the elements, yet completely private and not-overlooked by any other room. The bathroom was beautiful with granite tops, double basins and indoor and outdoor showers. The bedroom had a lovely seating area in the window recess, plenty of Balinese artefacts and all the normal mod-cons such as DVD and CD players (the hotel keeps a library of films).
Running around the edge main living floor is a ‘river’. There are no walls - the roof overhangs by quite a margin so rain doesn’t come in. The comfy wicker chairs, ceiling fans and pillars all add to the colonial feel, but the infrastructure of the building is un-mistakably modern. Somehow it all works together effortlessly.
Service throughout the hotel was faultless. On arrival we were hungry and sat by the infinity pool for a snack (we just ordered chips and a drink). The waitress arrived with 3 beach towels each and proceeded to use 2 towels to completely cover each sun-lounger and left a spare one each in case we went for a swim (we didn’t even have costumes on / with us). When our snack arrived we were given hot hand towels – the ‘poshest’ serving of chips I’ve ever experienced!
The restaurant was excellent – I can still remember a wonderful breakfast of the creamiest granola with berries and an evening meal to die for. There is plenty to do in and around the hotel with wondeful spa treatments, a well equipped gym and the hotel organises walks and tours throughout the local country-side, if you can tear yourself away from just admiring the view and soaking up the ambience.
I have a couple more memories to share – one being some early evening (outdoor) entertainment of traditional Balinese dancing and music with the lush green backdrop of the valley behind, and the other of sitting in one of the large curved jacuzzi’s (that run around the outside of the gym) sipping champagne and watching a lightning storm over the valley as darkness fell.
For me there is something incredibly relaxing about the way luxury in interpreted in the Far East, and I feel The Four Seasons at Sayan is one of the very best examples. The town of Ubud has a lot to offer too, but it felt like a wrench every time we left the hotel – I want to live there!
If I have whetted your appetite take a look at their website:
http://www.fourseasons.com/sayan/
I stayed there some 6 years ago (about a year after it opened). If you have been there since I’d love to hear from you to hear if much has changed.
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