Inside The World's Best Hotel In Bali, Slow Life Costs Rs 1.2 Lakh A Night

There are very few places in the world that can balance the delicate tightrope walk of being overwhelmingly touristy and fiercely guarded about its culture. Bali sits right on top of that list. Voted Tripadvisor's Best Place To Visit in 2026, Bali is no stranger to strangers. It hosts a steady stream of guests from all ends of the spectrum - the backpackers, the wayfarers, the Eat-Pray-Lovers, the White Lotus seekers. The island is a universe unto its own. It is ancient, but also modern. Bali adapts to its visitors' needs while keeping its integrity intact. That's how it has held on to its own over the decades: a rebellion against the tide of change, while tweaking what needs to be tweaked.

Ubud is the cultural and spiritual centre of Bali. Photo: Author

Ubud, its bustling spiritual centre, is also the geographical centre of Bali. You can roughly divide the island into three parts: the northern part that includes the stunning, no-tourist Lovina; the central, wellness-dominated Ubud; and the bustling, noisy south with areas like Canggu, Kuta and Seminyak keeping Bali loud and buzzing all day long. Ubud, which sits in the highlands, enjoys views of the caterpillar-like rice terraces, with the volcanoes forming the backdrop against a bright sky. 

The airport, a flash in the Bali Sea, is about 30 kilometres away but don't make your journey calculations on the basis of that innocuous distance alone. Bali's notorious traffic and serpentine single-lane roads ensure the journey from the Ngurah Rai Airport takes anywhere between an hour and three (if you are really unlucky). The temperature in Ubud is a tad lower than the hot and humid coast.

Between A Village And A River

The resort sits by the Ayung river. Photo: Mandapa

My entry into Ubud is marked by the skies breaking open. Ironic, considering the first stop was a restaurant called Ambar, which translates to sky in Sanskrit, a platform in the sky to watch over Ubud from. Ambar is the sunset bar at Mandapa, A Ritz-Carlton Reserve, which feels painted onto the landscape.

When we get to the resort, it is a few days after Christmas. Mandapa has just found itself on the list of The World's 50 Best Hotels in 2025. It has earned three Michelin Keys, certified an extraordinary stay. The mood is jubilant but the atmosphere is still. The calmness is tangible. We are swept into a world that feels much, much different from the chaotic one we inhabit. This peek out of reality was going to be our reality for three nights.

The jute-stick Christmas Trees. Photo: Author

Three jute-stick Christmas Trees at the entry tell us this is not your usual retreat. S for sustainability. The scene then shifts to the right. This is where your heart skips a beat.

The rain has given way to a mist, and the landscape that stretches in front of us is almost mystical. The greenery is blinding. I don't quite know what to make of it. It's a strange mix of awe, envy, and gratitude at having been there to see that evening at Mandapa. There was no sunset. Twilight envelopes the village in a minute or two, and suddenly, it's a pitch-black night broken by starlight. The clouds have cleared by now. From Ambar, the sky above is a cosmic dance.

The Man Who Didn't Part With His Land 

When Mandapa was being conceptualised, the story goes that the owners bought out twice as much area as they needed. Except for one person who did not part with their land. So, the resort sits as an indigenous Balinese village... but for that one home that has a view as enviable as that from Ambar.

From the bar at Ambar. Photo: Mandapa

The 24-acre sanctuary in this part of Ubud is located by the Ayung River, the sound of which is a constant all across the property. You can hear the gurgling Ayung at breakfast, at Sawah Terrace; at dinner, at Kubu, which sits at the bend of the river; or from Ambar, when you're watching the sun melt into the horizon.

The 'King's Assistant'

Mandapa, part of the Ritz-Carlton's highly exclusive Reserve portfolio, deserves every bit of the identifier. It is perhaps the most extraordinary stay in Bali. The resort is designed as a traditional Balinese village, complete with a rice field, and a temple that it shares with the locals.

The resort is built across multiple levels. Photo: Mandapa

Built across multiple levels, Mandapa does have an accessibility issue. But that's probably the only glitch the fantastic team does not have a quick solution to. For the rest, you can blindly trust your Patih, or butler, who is more a personal assistant-cum-friend rolled into one than a butler. Patih, the word for a Balinese King's assistant, is embodied by each of the Patihs in service at Mandapa.

Thania is our Patih for the entire duration of the stay. From the moment we meet her to the moment she bids a half-teary goodbye to us three days later, she ensures every aspect of our stay is taken care of.

What's Inside The Mandapa Suite

Inside the Mandapa Suite living room. Photo: Author

Thania drives us to our stay: one of the massive Mandapa Suites that can easily double up as an entire floor of a Delhi apartment complex. A massive 145 sq-m suite; each of the Mandapa Suites is divided into three areas. The living room, a bathroom that can swallow a 2BHK, and a bedroom where a grand mother-of-pearl chandelier sways above the king-sized bed, transforming the setting into a dream, night through the day. The suites come with a 270-degree view of the verdant paddy fields and dark-green forests that the resort is built into. A balcony runs across the suite. The living room is done up in warm natural tones, jute taking centrestage.

The piece de resistance in the Mandapa Suite bathroom. Photo: Author

The massive bathroom has mirrors and a glazed vanity on both ends. The toilet, a Toto throne, won't let you leave un-pampered. The piece de resistance in the bathroom, however, is a double-adult-sized bathtub wrapped in rattan. From the tub, you can watch the day go by, but Mandapa has plenty to do when at the resort, and you can't help but be overcome by an overwhelming sense of FOMO. Three days aren't enough. No amount of time is enough to take in all that the Reserve has to offer, but we knew we couldn't have it all. There simply wasn't enough time.

The Terrace With A Million-Dollar View

So, we packed in as much as our time allowed. Our days began with breakfast at Sawah Terrace, with the silence of the surroundings broken by the singing Ayung in front of us. Tasselled umbrellas try to keep the intermittent rain from diluting your coffee, as the tiny table fans keep the intruding insects away. You're in the middle of a forest, after all.

Sawah Terrace. Photo: Mandapa

Occasionally, there are whooping sounds of celebration from rafters who break on to the scene in groups before being swept away to the disembarkation area on the property. Sawah Terrace is where the grand Sunday brunch takes place. The Indonesian restaurant serves up traditional Balinese delicacies, including a full suckling pig on Sundays.

Colourful, brightly-dressed dancers bring the evenings alive with their performance to Balinese mythologies. The sambal section at the buffet is worth endless mentions. If you love your dishes with that side of twang, try the Sambal Colo Colo. You'll not want to have a meal without it.

A Fairy Tale By The Ayung River

While Sawah Terrace is located at the mid-level of the resort and Ambar takes up the top level; Kubu is where fairytales come true. The restaurant is open only for dinner. After sunset, the bamboo pods that Kubu is named after, come to life. Dim lights ensure that the Ayung-induced reverie is not broken. This is the most romantic restaurant on the property and you will meet doe-eyed honeymooners making the most of the seclusion that the private cocoons offer.

The cocoons of Kubu. Photo: Mandapa

The restaurant serves eight- and ten-course tasting menus, paired with wine and non-alcoholic options. The food here is Chef Eka Sunarya's tribute to his Balinese roots and the island's land, seasons and traditions. The tasting menu honours everything that makes Bali what it is, from the roots to the leaves. Keeping with a zero-waste and circular philosophy, the food is sourced from within 100 kilometres of Mandapa, from land and sea.

The food at Kubu. Photos: Author

Bedugul Roots, a selection of beetroot, jicama and turmeric form the first course of the menu, which takes the eater through a complete sensory exploration over a three-hour meal in this bamboo restaurant by the Ayung. From the sea, Chef Eka chooses Serangan Crab and creates magic with homemade vinegar, berries and Plaga tomato. The chef's beans are a rage across the culinary scene of Bali. We soon find out why. Cashew cream, kelp pickle and free-range egg yolk keep the beans company.

Each dish on the menu is both surprising as well as deeply connected to the land. Often-overlooked ingredients are the showstoppers in Chef Eka's kitchen: wild herbs, unique vegetable varietals, exotic fruits; a complete snapshot of Bali on a plate. Or, in a miniature Kubu cocoon, which is brought to you with after-dessert bites to round off your dinner.

A Blind Healer's Touch And Intuition

While the resort's food and beverage options are spectacular, equally evocative is the spa on site. The river plays main character here as well, and you drift to a different world inside the spa chambers. The wellness menu is a 20-page tome of everything possible and impossible. On site, Ibu Ketut Mursi, a blind healer, treats you with her touch and intuition.

At Mandapa, while we miss out on a session with Ibu Ketut, we're all agog to hear about people who have had a session with her. They don't disappoint. There are stories of the healer recommending cancer screening to patients who had no idea there was something amiss. Or of billionaires who found peace after a session with her; something all the world's riches couldn't get them.

The Vagaries Of Ubud

Our trip also includes a half-day excursion through Bali's extremely fertile countryside, to the rice terraces, the Pura Tirta Empul water temple, the Ulu Petanu waterfall - all in a bright-orange vintage Volkswagen convertible. The early-morning Bali breeze soon makes way for a spell of rain, and the top comes back on. The vagaries of Ubud. We return to the resort after a day out. A much-needed minute of rest follows, followed by more pampering at Mandapa.

Inside the pool villa. Photo: Mandapa

At the end of three days at the resort, it is like our lives had been parted into two parts. Before Mandapa, and After Mandapa. From that moment on, Mandapa meant the best that Bali had for us, tinted with a great deal of nostalgia, and an experience that wasn't going to leave us. Maybe that's why they say Bali comes at you with full strength. There's nothing mediocre, nothing midway here. It's life; in a great tidal wave, transforming your life forever.

FACT SHEET

Where: Mandapa, A Ritz-Carlton Reserve, is located in Ubud, in central Bali, at a distance of 30 kimlometres from the international airport. The city is a spiritual and cultural haven. Expect to meet travellers from all over the world.

Stay and tariff: The suites at Mandapa come in two categories, Reserve Suite and Mandapa Suite (doubles from Rs 1.2 lakh a night, varies as per season and availability). The villas are divided into three categories: Ubud Pool Villa, Riverfront Pool Villa, Reserve Pool Villa. The Mandapa River Estate, a three-bedroom villa with a whirlpool, sits in front of the Ayung River and occupies the highest tariff slot at the resort.

The rice fields of Ubud. Photo: Author

What Indian passport holders need to know: Bali, the island in Indonesia, is pretty much its own world. Indians can apply for an e-visa on arrival in advance. Alternatively, you can get a visa at the Bali airport too. The queues are usually quite long, and you will find people hanging around, promising an earlier exit for a fee.

If you have an electronic passport, the e-visa on arrival allows you to use the Indonesia Autogate at Arrival and Departure Checkpoint.

The visa on arrival allows stay for up to 30 days in the island. It costs about Rs 2,600.

Indonesia uses the Indonesian Rupiah. 1 Indian rupee converts to 184 IDR.

(NDTV Lifestyle was a guest of Mandapa)

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