The honest review of Amandari

We checked out of Mandapa after one night and moved to Amandari instead, and it was the better call.

Amandari felt chic and timeless with terrific service and food, a completely different experience from Mandapa, which felt like a glorified chain hotel serving cheeseburger sliders and Heineken at their Japanese bar.

I went in worried the villa pools would be too cold, but they turned out fine once the sun was out.

The pools aren't heated, so lower category rooms especially can feel chilly without direct sun. I found the Villa pool dip refreshing once I adjusted, but you really need a full day of sun to warm the water given Ubud's higher elevation and dense forest cover.

There were small lizards in my villa, but they were harmless and honestly kind of cute.

Given the tropical garden setting and rice-field location, geckos coming through weren't a surprise to me. They stayed on the walls and ceiling and never bothered us during the stay.

Mandapa's pool won me over more than anything I saw at Amandari.

I stayed at both and preferred Mandapa overall, particularly the pool in the regular suite category. I wouldn't book a villa there again, but the suite category was where the value was for me.

Four nights in and I came away pretty underwhelmed, mostly because of the food.

The food during my stay was pretty poor, which surprised me given the reputation. The common spaces also felt cramped, so there was nowhere to relax without other guests being right on top of you.

We were upgraded to a pool villa and barely wanted to leave it for the rest of the trip.

Every person we encountered was warm, friendly and genuinely hospitable from the moment we arrived. The service felt intuitive and flexible rather than scripted, which to us is what real luxury means. The architecture is rustic and authentic, in harmony with the jungle sounds and river below, but still has every modern comfort.

Amandari's service was leagues ahead of what we got at Mandapa, where things ran 20 minutes late or got forgotten entirely.

We stayed at both back to back and much preferred Amandari overall. Mandapa felt huge and less intimate for a couple, more suited to families with teens, while Amandari's cultural excursions, spa and pool were more than enough for us. Coming back to our suite each evening to the incense burning is a memory I still think about.

Seven nights in and I can say this is the best luxury resort experience I've had anywhere.

Whenever I messaged the staff on Whatsapp for anything, a barber, transport, a TV setup, they responded almost instantly. By day one they'd memorized my breakfast order down to the specifics. The gym had a proper Olympic barbell and bumper plates, the pool was quiet, and the spa and sauna felt private and clean.

“the massage bed is really comfortable and adjusts to zero-gravity when they flip you over”in their words

Nearly 37 years since it opened, this place has carried its spirit into today better than I expected.

The villas felt private, serene, and understated, and each moment from sunrise to sunset felt carefully composed against the surrounding nature. What elevated it most was the team: warm, attentive, and professional in a way that felt both refined and personal. The food matched local character with real sophistication.

Our villa was cleaned so thoroughly each day that even our clothes were refolded, right through checkout day.

We stayed three nights in a two-level Ayung pool suite overlooking the forest and river gorge, and the room itself was huge, clean and well maintained. Transportation into Ubud or nearby was available with just 10-15 minutes notice. Highlights included sundown drinks over the valley, a river trek with useful trekking sticks provided in our room, and a traditional Ngejot dinner with local dance performances.

We booked the 3-bedroom villa and it was, without question, one of the best hotel experiences of our lives.

We had our own pool, dining room and butlers, and the food was excellent. The hotel manager personally welcomed us on day one and came back to say goodbye when we left. We still miss our butler Adi, who was the sweetest, most attentive person we could have asked for.

This place feels like it operates on a different level of hospitality entirely.

From arrival, every detail felt thoughtfully arranged, letting us settle into relaxation right away. The setting amid rice terraces and jungle felt genuinely breathtaking. Evening turndowns and perfectly timed refreshments made every day feel considered rather than routine, and the dining leaned into fresh, local ingredients prepared with real skill.

The spa is small but genuinely excellent, if pricier than the spots nearby.

Service throughout our stay was exceptional, and everyone on property clearly cared about the details, down to how the grounds were kept. Food came in generous portions across an extensive menu, even with just one restaurant covering every meal. We stayed four days in a valley view room, which gave us privacy for tea and quiet conversation overlooking the tropical valley.

There are very few places we return to every year no matter how packed our schedule gets, and this is one of them.

The land itself feels spiritually grounding, and the standalone villas pay real homage to Balinese culture. What keeps drawing us back is the people: this is a rare place where you arrive as a guest and leave feeling like family. The food has genuinely improved with each visit, and the boutique carries a thoughtful selection of local artisan work.

Dinner felt more like being welcomed into a friend's home than eating at a hotel restaurant.

Sundowners at the bar led into a semi-open-air dinner as the valley went dark. The Sop Buntut was the best I've ever had, deeply comforting and worth ordering on its own. The resort still follows its original 1989 design closely, and it shows in the old-world charm rather than feeling neglected. Talking with the food and beverage manager Pak Erik added great local color to the evening.

My five-year-old had her own complimentary tennis partner all week and adored every session.

Turn-down came with warm towels and thoughtful touches added just for my daughter each evening, and in-room dining included small gestures like pulled-out chairs and napkins placed on our laps. Our guide Wisnawa took us on a rice-field trek planned entirely around the weather and my daughter's comfort, bringing us to quiet fields away from tourist crowds. My daughter also danced daily with local girls at 3pm and never wanted to miss it.

Even fully booked, the resort still felt like I had the whole place to myself.

The location felt perfect, close enough to Ubud but tucked away and quiet, right next to the Ritz Carlton Reserve. My room was spacious and spotless with natural materials and high ceilings. The one downside was patchy WiFi and a brief power outage one night, though neither bothered me much given everything else.

Our expectations were high going in, and unfortunately the villa's condition let us down.

The bathroom had visible signs of wear, and we found ants and even a dead cockroach on our first night, with no pest control done before the next morning. The toilet also splashed back uncomfortably on every flush. That said, the food was outstanding and varied, and the main infinity pool view was genuinely breathtaking, so the disappointment was specific to the room's upkeep, not the whole stay.

We got engaged here, and it's now officially the best Aman we've been to.

Every time we left our villa it was cleaned before we returned, though we never once saw a staff member doing it. Laundry came back within hours, and a car was ready whenever we wanted to explore Ubud. The tennis court staff were great teachers, and tea and watermelon served courtside was a lovely small touch. Breakfast quality was outstanding, and there were no wild monkeys on property, unlike other spots we'd heard about in Ubud.