Ubud Unveiled: A Luxurious Retreat at Capella Bali – A Hotel Review

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Overview

Capella Hotels first came to my notice when they used to operate the Capella Pedregal resort in Cabo, Mexico. Capella is a small chain (which also incorporates the Patina brand) across mainly the Far East and Maldives and as soon as I saw the tented experience becoming featured at Capella Ubud I knew it was somewhere I wanted to visit. The quirky design reminiscent of a refined camp of 1800’s early European settlers perfected by Bill Bensley made it look like a place I really wanted to experience for myself, not least the fact that I hadn’t been in Bali for so long that made me want to revisit. 

Definitely more maximalist than my usual preference of minimalism, I’ve also read the style at Capella Ubud described as whimsical, which indeed sums it up perfectly. There is such a blend (or contrast) of colours, patterns and styles; not assaulting the senses but certainly giving them a wake up call. There is so much to take in, not only in our tent but elsewhere throughout the resort, that it took me well over a day to realise that the dual sinks in the en-suite bathroom not only didn’t match, but were so opposite in design that it should have been obvious from the off, which wasn’t. Normally this opposition of uniformity would irk, but here it worked (reminding me of what was an assault on the visual senses, but still loving, at The Reverie Saigon) - one sink was recessed in marble under the same countertop, the other a beaten metalware deep countertop bowl in complete contrast.

The resort opened in 2018 and I originally booked in September 2019, but with Covid restrictions it took another three years until I could actually take the trip. Part of Leading Hotels of the World and partnered with Nihi Sumba as a two-centre option (which we’re going to next as well), these two locations are the first of a four-centre holiday when we return from Sumba to Bali to visit both Camaya Bali (which I saw featured in the Netflix series The World’s Most Amazing Vacation Rentals) and finally The Club by Legian Seminyak.

You can find the complete itinerary detailed here.

Hotel website: https://capellahotels.com/en/capella-ubud

Would I stay here again?   Yes in a heartbeat - we felt our time passed very quickly and would have loved to have stayed longer. With each tent being so unique, I imagine you could visit multiple times and still have a different experience on each.

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Location

Being met at the international airport from our flight (it was worth the extra charge for Capella Ubud to organise a VIP clearance service) and after being sped through the visa on arrival process, luggage collection and immigration, we were met by the Capella driver to take us direct to the camp/resort. It was a good two hours to get there, despite the traffic not being as bad as I’d expected, having last visited Bali 22 and 24 years ago. The camp is about a 20 minute drive through Ubud in the Keliki Valley (Keliki is a local artist village), spread over a hillside down to the Wos River. A daily shuttle to and from operated various times during the day, taking about 20 minutes to get there.

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Accommodation

The resort is made up of only 23 luxury tents, all with private pools (22 of them are one-bedroom and 1 two-bedroom). Each is named after a traditional skill set - ours was the Toy Maker’s Tent, but there were also Captains, Naturalists, Catographers, Photographers and Architects. Surrounded by lush vegetation (some of the tallest bamboo and palms I’ve ever seen), you feel as if you’ve been transported back in time to a lost explorer’s camp, albeit in absolute jungle luxury. Designed by Bill Bensley (who has been on my radar for a while through Shinta Mani Wild in Cambodia).

Through a private entrance, you walk down a path lit by explorer gas lamps (actually all electrified with power-saving LED bulbs) to your private tent, but this is a tent like no other. There are two staircases in from a huge terrace deck (seating, dining and a double-recliner bed all under a canopy) where you’d find an open plan lounge/bedroom/bathroom. No two tents are the same, either in design or outlook as they’ve all been designed around the jungle foliage, to perfectly blend into the Balinese hillside. They’re filled with antiques and curios, all selected to be in keeping with that tent’s theme.

There was every luxury you could want, like a super-comfortable king-size bed, excellent (but subtly incorporated) air-conditioning and ceiling fans, a drinks and snack centre complete with various cookies, coffee maker, toaster etc. as well as a refreshment trunk filled with all sorts of drinks, all soft drinks and local beers complimentary. Not to mention Wi-Fi and lots of charging points throughout including USB plugs too. The bathroom was at one end, partially open with double sinks (loved the huge choice available of local soaps and the large vanity top suspended on horse hoof legs), a throne toilet like no other and a great flower headed shower inside, as well as a large outdoor private terrace with another shower there too. All toiletries were provided, as well as lots of extras like toothbrush kits and a camp survival bag with sunscreen, insect repellent, bite relief and hand sanitizer.

Down a short path from the terrace you’ll find the private pool (overseen by a playful bronze monkey statue) naturally blended with stone with loungers and a Balinese umbrella for shade. There was thoughtful placement of exclusive Capella Ubud SPF30 sunscreen here too. While I’d hoped for one of the tents with the larger pool extending out from the deck into the forest, what we had was amazing - so much space both inside and out, all naturally screened from other adjacent tents (at some distance) with greenery everywhere you looked.

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Food & Drink

There were four options in all for dining - breakfast was in Mads Lange (the main restaurant) which was open throughout the day with a full selection of breakfast items from both a small buffet and an extensive a la carte menu. I'm a huge fan of sourdough bread (well, all bread to be honest) and there was a choice of three as standard each morning. There were also fruits, yoghurts, jams and cereals then another favourite from the menu was smashed avocado on sourdough. From this restaurant there were the most expansive views over the grassy slopes down to The Cistern (the pool area) and Keliki valley beyond, with terraces on different levels, some covered and some open to the sun.

Api Jiwa, actually located on the level below Mads Lange, but still with a great view, was the Asian barbeque style restaurant which offered a fixed dining experience around the Chef’s counter each night at 7pm (both plant-based and Asian Omakase menus available). The Mortar and Pestle Bar at the pool was open throughout the day for cocktails and light food options, not to mention room service available in your tent. Arriving late one evening after a long international flight, we opted for room service which (like everything else at Capella Ubud) was so well executed. There was a good menu choice available through a QR code and easy to order from the vintage style phone, it was delivered quickly by a camp attendant all contained in his backpack in round wooden bento-style boxes to keep it warm.

If that choice wasn’t sufficient, to supplement through the day a complimentary afternoon tea was served each day in the Officer’s Tent (or Living Room) then cocktails and canapes for an hour and a half before dinner, again complimentary (lot of signature cocktails to choose from as well as mocktails and more traditional spirits and mixers). At night, around a campfire adjacent to Mads Lange, movies were shown on an outside screen (weather dependent), where you could be served hot chocolate and marshmallows for toasting on the open fire pit.

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Facilities & Service

There were so many things to do in and around Capella Ubud and Ubud itself, all easily arranged by your dedicated Camp Culturalist. We had organised a few things beforehand like a chocolate making experience, an off-road lavascape adventure (the sunrise mountain hike departing at 2:45am seemed a step too far for a vacation, so we opted for the later driven 4:25am option), Chandra and Surya yoga sessions and some massage at Auriga Wellness. The holistic wellness centre was actually made up of three spa tents, or you could have a treatment in your own tent if preferred. There was also The Armoury tent which on the upper level had an air-conditioned gym and fitness studio (very well appointed with lots of decent equipment), below was the open air shaded space for yoga or TRX classes.

The Cistern (a 30 metre outdoor rainforest pool) and adjacent sun deck had been repurposed I believe from the hull of a ship, and made a fantastic centrepiece for the resort, as well as being beautifully designed with industrial steel piping for fountains and entry staircases. The many loungers each had their own small Balinese umbrellas and something I’d never seen before in a sun lounger was a hole for your face (like a massage table) when lying face down. We had not long sat down before we were served iced water from the Pestle & Mortar bar adjacent and a snack bowl of breads, chips and nachos.

I’ll be writing a separate blog post on an incredible spa treatment we both had, also one of the best yoga classes I’ve ever had which was taken by our guide from the day before when we had the early sunrise start. Not only was he a great guide, he was also extremely proficient at yoga and also a healer, so had some impromptu help with tight hips and knee pain.

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ThePrivateTraveller’s top tips (any areas for improvement?):

• Genuinely not sure there is anything I can add here.

ThePrivateTraveller’s absolute highlights:

• A nice touch offering 4-pieces (each person) of laundry each day - really added to the safari camp type feeling (as it’s normal in many safari lodges to include laundry).

• Extras like a carafe of spiced rum and homemade cookies in the tent on arrival, as well as a pre-prepared foot bath after a long flight (and actually every night of our stay prepped during turndown).

• I could actually list everything here - from the food to the spa treatment, to the service etc. - all great.

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Useful website links:

• The Private Traveller’s full Indonesian Itinerary https://theprivatetraveller.com/blog/indonesia-itinerary-luxury-bali-sumba

• Capella Ubud https://capellahotels.com/en/capella-ubud

• Capella Hotels & Resorts https://capellahotels.com/en

• Patina Hotels & Resorts https://patinahotels.com/

• Bill Bensley https://www.bensley.com/project/shinta-mani-wild-bensley-collection/

• BENSLEY | Creatively Curious https://www.bensley.com

• Shinta Mani Hotels https://shintamani.com/

• Leading Hotels of the World https://www.lhw.com/

• Nihi Sumba https://nihi.com/

• Camaya Bali Bamboo Houses https://www.camayabali.com/

• The Club by Legian Seminyak https://lhm-hotels.com/en/the-legian-seminyak-bali/the-club-by-the-legian-seminyak

• The Legian Seminyak https://lhm-hotels.com/en/the-legian-seminyak-bali

• The Reverie Saigon https://www.thereveriesaigon.com/

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