The best value hotel in Bali

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The best value hotel in Bali

Perched on a small sandy peninsula on the north coast of Bali, surrounded by jagged blue mountains and backdropped by dreamy rice fields, is Mayo Resort: a place so quiet and peaceful compared to the tourist hotspots in the south of the island that it feels like being on the edge of the world.

A micro resort with only five suites, one two-bedroom apartment and a gated villa with a private pool, Mayo Resort is not only one of the most beautiful little hotels in Bali but also offers the best value. The 46 square metre “oceanview suites” with double sliding doors that open up onto an oversized balcony and sweeping coastal and mountain views are a steal at $80 per night — about the same you’d pay for a basic hotel room half the size with a view of a car park next to a noisy nightclub in the south of Bali, or the average price of a bunk bed and the right to share a public bathroom with 100 other people at a backpacker hostel in Perth.

“I’ve advised the owner to increase the price because compared to other properties in this area, it’s too cheap,” says the general manager Nyoman Gede Sumitra Jaya, or Sumitra for short.

The grounds and gardens at the Mayo are small but immaculately maintained with shady coconut palms, frangipani trees in bloom, and a lush green lawn wall touching the seawall.

On the other side is an empty beach visited only by fishermen and the shimmering expanse of the Bali Sea.

Facilities at the Mayo are limited: there’s no gym, no retail and no day spa; only a sparkling pool edged by trimmed hedges, daybeds, umbrellas and a single gazebo; and a restaurant called Bora Bora Bistro and Grill. A whitewashed shabby chic beach house with hand-carved wooden furniture, vintage posters and an open-plan design that spills onto a deck with a wide bench sofa, it feels like a movie set.

And as it faces west, sunsets here are insane, oscillating from blood red and blood orange. Even if the food were terrible, I would come back. But Bora Bora has the most sophisticated menu in this part of Bali. The grilled mahi-mahi fillet served with lemon butter sauce, roasted garlic, mash and greens was as perfectly cooked and plated as a dish at an expensive restaurant but only $14.

From open focaccia sandwiches with pesto chicken or fresh tuna, to shrimp ceviche with citrus dressing and homemade meatballs in tomato sauce, the kitchen makes no mistakes here; all the ingredients are top shelf and every single mouthful is balanced and full of flavour.

“I can’t take any credit for it. The menu was designed by a French chef who worked here years ago, before my time. We never changed a single dish,” Sumitra says. Mayo Resort can arrange enough activities to keep you busy for a week or more; massages, scuba diving, dolphin watching, trekking in the rice fields, visiting waterfalls, temples and hot springs. A golf course, mountain biking park and even a vineyard are all less than an hour’s drive away. But the best thing to do here, Sumitra suggests, “is nothing at all”. Five out of five stars.

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+ Dave Smith was a guest of Mayo Resort. They have not influenced or read this story before publication.

Camera IconMayo Resort. Credit: data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconMayo Resort at sunset. Credit: data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconThe beach at Mayo Resort. Credit: data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera Icon Breakfast is served. Credit:

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