High season has come and gone with a record number of visitors coming to Bali. The Villas Bali Hotel and Spa , and indeed most Hotels across the island, has seen record occupancies this Summer, and Bali’s restaurants, bars and tour operators have been busier than even before. What financial crisis you may ask?! And now that the crowds are filtering back to the cooler climes of home and reality Bali provides a chance to enjoy the fruits of paradise at a more relaxed pace, and there is no better place to start that journey to the slow life than at Prana Spa.

This issue of our newsletter takes you to the centre of one of Bali’s poorest regions, Muntigunung in East Bali, (where people live a simple existence of subsistence farming in often very harsh conditions) with the NGO ‘Foundation Future for Children’. The group is committed to helping the villagers with the basic needs of life like fresh water and education and also to get a share of Bali’s tourism wealth. The Villas themselves are proud to be a supporter of the project in not just financial terms, but by being an end user of their produce for use in the hotel and spa.

We have a new addition to The Villas family with the appointment of Si Ketut Surya Atmaja as a new driver and we also get up close and personal with Supardi, our pool supervisor, who has been with us since our doors first opened 11 years ago. The lucky winners of two free nights each at the hotel are Ms Emma Wilson from New Zealand and Mr Stephen A. Jones of Australia. Congratulations to you both.
We look forward to welcoming you back.

Nicoline Dolman
Director of Sales

How long have you been working at The Villas?
I have been working for The Villas Bali for 11 years, since it first opened.

That’s a long time, you must really enjoy working here?
Yes, very much. I love to be outside and meet with the guests. As well as that, I am part of a very close team. They are like my family.

The team must have changed a lot though over the years.
Yes, in the beginning we only had eight villas and the pool team was adjoined with the engineering department and only consisted of three people. Now it has 50 villas and our pool team has 12 people.

Where did you work before The Villas?
I started at The Villas after I finished school in Lombok. My parents headed to Bali at that time and I started at The Villas as a pool boy when I was only 15.

What are your plans for the future?
I really enjoy what I am doing now, but I would be very interested in having my own business in construction materials in the future, so I can really stand on my own two feet.

Would this be in Bali or in Lombok?
This could be anywhere, but Lombok is my home and I would love to be heading back one day with my wife and two kids.

September - October 2009

The Villas Bali Hotel and Spa continue their commitment to local community foundations with several enthusiastic staff members joining a trekking expedition through the mountain villages of Muntigunung on the slopes of the holy mountain Gunung Agung, which was organized by the Yayasan Masa Depan Untuk Anak Anak (Foundation Future for Children), a Swiss-Indonesian non-profit organization.

Click here to read more and see some pictures of the event

The Villas Bali is pleased to announce a new Cooking Class Package. Classes offer a fascinating introduction to the exotic ingredients and unique culinary heritage of Bali. They provide a valuable insight into the various techniques of food preparation and the cooking styles used on our beautiful island paradise.

Click here to read more

We are pleased to announce our new Loyalty Program...the more you stay with us, the better the rewards!
In order to benefit, please enroll by completing this form online. Enrollment is free! We will contact you soon with special offers and benefits just for our Loyalty Members.

Click here to learn more

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:

Ms. Emma Wilson, New Zealand
Mr. Stephen A. Jones, Australia

We are pleased to introduce to you a new member of our Front Office department, Si Ketut Surya Atmaja, who joins us in the position of Driver. Ketut joins The Villas Bali after working for a Telecommunication company for several years where he worked as a Customer Service Officer. We are very happy and honored to welcome him to The Villas Bali Hotel & Spa.

Click here to see the packages available for now