The Villas Newsletter

September - October 2008

Greetings from The Villas Bali Hotel & Spa

This month I want to start by saying a special thank you to our loyal guests, who voted us the Number One hotel in Seminyak on www.tripadvisor.com. This award, voted by travellers for travellers, recognises The Villas Bali Hotel & Spa as the most outstanding resort in Bali's trendiest district, and that's no small feat. The competition is fierce, and we're immensely proud to be recognised as the leading destination in Seminyak. What's our secret? Well, it starts with plain old-fashioned dedication to service. We always go that extra mile for our guests, which is probably why we have witnessed so many marriage proposals!

The word on the street is that Bali is back, and we couldn't agree more. After a bumper high-season – the busiest ever on record – the island is taking a breather heading into the final quarter of the year, but we at The Villas are not letting down our guard for one moment. We intend to keep that tripadvisor.com rating and continue to enhance our service and facilities to provide an unbeatable guest experience. We have launched tailor-made packages like our Family Getaway and introduced a new menu at Prana Restaurant. We also welcome new staff, congratulate the winners of a two-night stay in our bi-monthly raffle, and find out a little about the inspiration behind the award-winning Prana Spa from our Spa Coordinator Sascha Hansen.

As we prepare for Idul Fitri and wind down after the colourful island-wide Galungan ceremonies in August, I am reminded of the vibrant, tolerant society that makes Bali such a special destination. I leave you with this quote from St Augustine : “The World is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page.”

Safe travels, we look forward to welcoming you soon.

David Kearns,
General Manager

Staff Profile

Sascha Hansen (Spa Coordinator)

How did you become involved with Prana?
I started working at Prana testing newly trained therapists before they were assigned to any paying guests and then gave my feedback to the management – a dream job for most girls! Slowly I became more and more involved with the operational side of things and have now been in the position as Spa Coordinator for the last two years.

What makes Prana so special?
First and foremost the design of the spa; drawing inspiration from the elaborate Palaces of Rajasthan. The owners' ambition when designing the spa was to create a space appealing to all senses. To create not only a physical but also a visual experience! Prana was also the first to introduce the Indian ayurveda treatment; Shiro dara which has become our most popular treatment. The standard of our treatments is very high and we are constantly training our staff to maintain this quality.
Furthermore we produce most of our pr oducts ourselves to ensure that our products are 100% natural.

How long has it been running?
The spa opened in 2000 and expanded in 2003 with a total of 20 treatment rooms.

What kind of clients do you get - are they mostly tourists?
The majority of our clients are tourists and many of them are repeat guests, but our clientele also includes the local market and expatriates.

What treatments are available?
We have a wide range of treatments and packages including scrubs, body masks, Ayurveda treatments and different types of facials. We are also able to create some very interesting packages as we have saunas, steam rooms and vichy showers, also known as rain showers.
We have seen an increase in the number of our male guests over the last year and have now created a range of male packages to specifically suit their needs.

FREE stay at The Villas Bali!!

Join our bi-monthly raffle and win two nights free stay! To join, simply put your business card into our raffle bowl at the hotel reception. Two lucky winners will be announced every two months. Good luck for those who just joined and congratulations to this month's winners:

Mr. Ahmed Farrag, Dubai
Ms. Sue Zerk, New Zealand

You have won 2 nights at The Villas Bali Hotel & Spa, FREE OF CHARGE. CONGRATULATIONS!

The Villas Bali Hotel & Spa Rated Number 1 in Seminyak

The Villas Bali Hotel & Spa has been voted the most popular resort in Seminyak by travellers on www.tripadvisor.com. Since June 2008, we have been rated number one on the TripAdvisor Popularity Index out of 44 hotels in Seminyak, Bali 's upmarket beachside district. This Index is updated on an ongoing basis, as travellers provide independent reviews on hotels they've stayed at around the world.

New Staff at The Villas Bali

We are pleased to introduce to you our new Revenue Coordinator, Ms. Jacky Michelle. Jacky joins The Villas Bali after working for a swimwear manufacturer. Prior to this, she was involved in sourcing activities at the Warwick Hotel Chain. She will be involved with revenue and yield management control.
We are very pleased to welcome her to our team.

Prana launches new menu

East meets West in the innovative new menu soon to be launched at Prana Restaurant this month, with an expanded range of offerings to suit every palette.

All the old favourites are still there, but the award-winning restaurant, recently declared “One of the best in Indonesia” by the esteemed Tattler magazine, has added a virtual banquet of new starters, soups, salads, pastas, pizzas, mains and vegetarian options, not to mention delectable desserts to complete every meal in style.

Family Getaway at The Villas

The Villas Bali is pleased to announce a four-day Family Getaway, specially designed for those who value precious time with their family during their holiday. The package includes a choice of several activities such as a day out at the Waterbom Park or an elephant safari ride at the Elephant Park and a delicious BBQ dinner at your own villa.

Please find the Family Fun Package here

Love is in the air

It might sound like a scene from a romantic movie. A couple holidaying together on a tropical island, enjoying cozy candle-lit dinners in the privacy of their villa, romantic sunset cocktails, breakfast in bed and rose petal baths. It doesn't get more amorous than this. But then the man organises the ultimate surprise for his unsuspecting lady: a luxurious Shirodara treatment that ends with a beautiful ring being placed on her finger. As dreamy as it sounds, this is not a figment of your imagination. This is a scene straight out of The Villas Bali Hotel & Spa.

We are privileged to host many weddings and honeymoons thanks to the privacy and luxury of our villas and our commitment to our guests' every need, but sometimes we are also lucky to witness guests' exciting declarations of love.