“Peaceful Paradise”

“Absolutely gorgeous !”

Response from the owner It is always a delight to have you and your family stay with us. Thank you for being such great guests.

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not TripAdvisor LLC.

“Always so magical ..”

Response from the owner Thank you so much for your lovely review of the villa. We always enjoy when you come for a visit and look forward to your next stay. Cheers.

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not TripAdvisor LLC.

“Absoulute paradise !!!!”

Response from the owner We love having Andrea and her lovely daughters stay with us. Always great guest. Easy and happy. Very kind to the staff and take good care of the house. We hope they will return again soon.

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not TripAdvisor LLC.

“Beautiful cottage accommodation in the perfect location!”

Response from the owner Thank you so much for your fantastic review. Lots of great information for our next guests. You are a great guest both here and there. We hope you will come and stay with us again. Cheers,

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not TripAdvisor LLC.

“Tranquil Garden Cottage”

Response from the owner Thank you so much for your kind and glowing review. It was a pleasure having you stay with us and hope you will return again soon. You are a great and welcome guest.

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not TripAdvisor LLC.

“Overpriced and disappointing”

Response from the owner Dear Veronica, Although we always feel sad that any guest does not have a great Ubud holiday, we do appreciate that you took the time to detail what exactly you felt was unsatisfactory about your stay at the Garden Cottage. This really helps our team and us improve on what we currently provide in terms of services and amenities. We were not made aware of most of these points during your stay as otherwise we definitely would have rectified most of the aspects that made you feel uncomfortable. Wayan and Made, our housekeeping team, are in the villa area every day and only told us that you loved the house and were very happy there. Any one of us would have been happy to help with the issues you raised had we known before your quick departure due to your autistic son’s stomach health back home. When you left, we all had the impression that you had thoroughly enjoyed your stay and the only reason for leaving early your family circumstances. Please allow us to clarify the points you raised about your stay from beginning to end. 1) Kitchen Appliances – We do have a toaster oven on the counter in the kitchen next to the stove, but it may have been tucked away in a cabinet as the kitchen area is quite spacious. We provide a stainless kettle that can be heated on the gas stove as this is more environmentally and economically friendly in Bali which could shortly face power shortages. We do not offer microwaves for health and safety reasons. Our Flipkey listing does not mention this as one of the amenities, but almost everything done in a microwave can be handled more safely in our large gas powered 4 burner stove and oven. Thank you for bringing this to our attention, but our eco-focus means that we will not provide this facility. Microwaves are generally also not offered by the majority of homestays and hotels in Bali, especially in our price range. 2) Value for Money – We believe that we cannot be compared to a homestay which offers much less than what we offer in terms of style and comfort. We chose the antiques you mentioned because they are from Bali and believe that they make a stay more authentic. In addition, we are investing in the local economy and promoting Balinese culture. We certainly did not cut back on the modern conveniences in order to replace them with Balinese artifacts. We try to be as eco/green focused as possible in Bali with recycling, composting, no pesticides, etc. Most people are very complimentary of the aesthetic design of the cottage as it makes them feel like they are truly in Bali. 3) Laundry Facilities – I can think of very few places that offer on-site laundry facilities unless it is for a long-term contract. There are plentiful establishments run by the Balinese who do a great job at a reasonable price. Wayan or Made will take clothes to be laundered and return them on the same day at no extra cost other than what is paid (with a receipt) to the local laundry. Although we appreciate that having kids means you have more laundry to do quickly, we do state on the listing that this is not a facility we offer other than for our staff to take it to an outside provider. We believe this a better investment in the local economy than offering a washing machine for guest use. Also other guests really do not want to see other guests laundry drying in our jungle setting. We believe it is best for all to take the laundry to a local family who always do an excellent job at a very fair price. 4) Toiletries – We provide and replenish on a daily basis toilet paper and locally made organic soaps. If for some reason you ran out of this during the day, Wayan and Made would have happily restocked them both. We do not provide shampoo or conditioner as we found most people bring their favorites with them. 5) Coffee, Tea and Water– We provide fresh organic coffee purchased directly from a coffee plantation on Mount Batu Karu, plus an assortment of teas. These, plus sugar are replenished daily. I am not sure why you advised that the coffee was well past its use-by date as it is always fresh with no packaging details as found in processed coffee. Ours’ is fresh, organic and locally sourced. We apologize about the milk, but guest feedback led us to the decision to purchase fresh milk for those who want it. The two staff offer on the first morning to go shopping for the supplies that guests will need during their stay. There is no extra charge for this service and they love doing this for guests. However, we will start providing a small carton of milk on the first day until we are more aware of guest preferences. Thank you for bringing this to our attention as it will be appreciated by those who arrive late in the evening and really need a coffee. A large container of filtered water is always available. 6) Electricity Outage – We do apologize for this, but we did call the electrician as soon as we were aware of the problem and it was fixed by 9:30am. Unfortunately, it was the one night off for our security guard and the other staff turn off their phones until it is time to leave for work in the morning. They do not live nearby. We reacted as soon as we heard the news. This is the first time that this happened, and so sorry that it happened to you at such an awkward hour. 7) Internet – Sadly our internet connections can be slow at times. We have lived on the property for 10 years and have tried everything possible to resolve this issue as we too rely on the internet. Our immediate neighbors have the same problem and it is very frustrating at times. The problem is specific to our area as in town the connections are much more reliable. However, most people who stay with us our holiday makers, so don’t really use the internet that often and thankfully it does work most of the time. We apologize for any problems it may have caused you personally. We will continue to work on this problem as it has been frustrating to us as well. 8) Insects and animals – As the cottage is located next to a jungle and the downstairs garden bathroom is outdoors, we do have geckos and frogs. The good news is that they love to eat mosquitoes! However we do provide mosquito nets in both the downstairs and upstairs sleeping areas, plus an electric zapper, battery operated zapper bats, over head fans, etc., but we do not spray pesticides. Mosquitoes are a reality here, but we do provide every protection possible for our guests. No guest has ever contracted dengue while staying with us. 9) In your first letter to us you said you were looking forward to staying on the jungle river gorge, and rice paddies. Frogs and lizards are all part of the natural setting. As for the giant roaches, we have never had a complaint, nor have we ever seen them in the house. Our staff do a regular pest management control to ensure that this is never a problem. 10) Care for the Staff –All of our staff have earn more than the minimum wage required by law, plus we give them mid monthly bonuses and during their important holidays where they spent more than usual on ceremonies. Wayan and Made also receive 100% of the tips that guests leave them. They have been working at the villas for 8 years, and are treated with the utmost respect as everyone loves their gentle and giving nature. They enjoy working at the villas and interacting with the guests. 11) Refund – When you left we discussed a refund and I advised that if I was able to rent the Garden Cottage out that I could refund some of the money even though it is FlipKey’s policy not to give refunds. We were not able to open the calendar with Flipkey so people could see it was available. We did our best to rent it out, but as it was high season almost everyone had already booked their accommodation. After the New Year, is a slow time in Bali, made worse this year due to the threat of Mount Agung erupting ---which has yet to happen. As a gesture of goodwill we are willing to refund part of your stay. This needs to be arranged by email, so please contact me privately. Thank you again for bringing these issues to our attention. Perhaps when your son is better you can return to Bali for a holiday, in which case as mentioned to before, you can rebook the villa without paying again.

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not TripAdvisor LLC.

“Loved the jungle cottage!!”

Response from the owner We loved having this family stay at the villa. Always a smile and a kind word. We hope they will come to stay with us again soon.

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not TripAdvisor LLC.

“A hidden Bali gem where you feel instantly at peace.”

Response from the owner Thank you for your lovely review. We enjoyed having you stay at the villa and hope you will return again soon. Just let us know and we will have all ready for you. Cheers.

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not TripAdvisor LLC.

“Garden Cottage Ubud”