Gajah Mina Beach Resort

I really enjoyed our stay at Gajah Mina Beach Resort, it was only one night but I could have happily stayed longer. It’s a quiet hotel with its own beach and peninsula with bat cave! The sunset was amazing and the food tasty. It’s a little tired as a hotel but that appeals to me. The pool was crystal clean and the staff welcoming. A great stop off if you’re travelling to West Bali National Park as we were. Drive across country and visit the Jatiluwih Rice Terraces on the way from Denpasar, you won’t regret it.

The room could have been a bit cleaner but it was ok. Wouldn’t put me off visiting again.

Comfy bed in lovely Bali style garden bungalow. Beautiful long pool with lots sun beds. The location is isolated, away from mass tourism, with pretty cool, green gardens in grounds with views to sun sets over sea. Restaurant also had nice food.

The ‘Secret beach’ sea was a bit too wild to surf. And smoke generated from the burning off all the dead, dry vegetation (as the surroundings have plentiful trees, gardens etc) was a bit annoying in morning.

Location was amazing. Design of the property meant that each bungalow/villa was very private. The pool was stunning. Waking up to the sound of birds was lovely.

The property is charming, and the pool is great.

The property is very understaffed, so we were left feeling neglected - and our expectations are not very high. There is a feeling of Miss Haversham about the place. Leaving us imagining what it would have like in its hay day. Laundry was 4 times more expensive than anywhere else we stayed and we could only pay that in cash, even though Gajah Mina was on the invoice. We were also disappointed to discover our minimal breakfast options (paid for and included) was a lesser version than other villas. This made us feel like we were somehow less valued than other guests (we booked the last villa available) - so we went out for breakfast after the first day (lots of great options in Balian) and we left Balian a day early. We had to walk past the neighbour's dogs (to get to Balian town and beach) who had developed a 'pack' mentality and one even nipped my daughter! So take a stick/handbag when walking into town and don't ask to borrow the hotel's umbrella if it's chucking it down, as they are "only for use in reception"...