By Alexandra Kirkman Contributor
When India’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, visited Bali–the 2,000-square-mile island that first distinguished Indonesia as a premier tourism destination–in 1954, he famously called it “the morning of the world.” It stands to reason that his indelible sentiment was likely inspired by a sojourn to Ubud, the isle’s riotously green cultural capital and beating heart, and home to Mandapa, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve, which marks its 10th anniversary this year.
With an unrivaled location amidst Ubud’s Ayung Valley, Mandapa, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve, offers a ne plus ultra immersion in Bali’s beating heart.
Mandapa, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve
Presiding over 24 verdant acres along the Ayung River in the village of Kedewatan, a 10-minute drive from Ubud’s center, the 60-room resort, meticulously designed to resemble an indigenous Balinese village, is both a singular world unto itself and a prime base from which to explore the area’s myriad charms.
Every inch of the property honors the sanctity of nature (a pillar of Balinese culture)–namely Ubud’s dizzyingly dense vegetation, teeming with Banyan trees, coconut palms, and giant tree ferns, to name just a fraction. Lushly landscaped foliage, epic in scale and exuberance, seamlessly integrates with the surrounding rainforest, creating a jasmine-scented, otherworldly oasis that cascades down into the Ayung Valley.
The resort’s rice paddies offer a picturesque view from many rooms and common areas.
Mandapa, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve
Shimmering rice paddies, some ringed by stepping stones for easy exploration of the grounds, provide both a striking vista and the staple grain to the resort’s restaurants. To overstate Mandapa’s Eden-esque majesty–closely overseen by general manager and nearly 20-year Ritz-Carlton veteran, Masanori Hosoya, whose affable, soft-spoken charm belies a venerable green thumb and an exacting attention to detail–is impossible.
Luxury Accommodations Immersed in Nature
Against this backdrop, Mandapa’s suites and pool villas, whose chic dark wood paneling contrasts with bold pops of lime and fuchsia, immerse guests in Balinese opulence. Thirty-five suites spanning 1,075-1,560 square feet feature unique local art, spacious verandas with 180-degree views, and rattan-wrapped bathtubs.
Measuring nearly 1,100 square feet, Mandapa’s entry-level Reserve suite is one of Ubud’s largest.
Mandapa, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve
For an unrivaled romantic (or solitary) escape, Mandapa’s 23 one-bedroom pool villas exude comfort and ambience galore. The 4,600-square-foot hideaways, tucked behind high stone walls lined with frangipani trees, boast vaulted ceilings and vibrant outsize canvases handpainted with scenes of Bali’s wild nature. While artfully embroidered bedcovers and golden mother-of-pearl chandeliers amplify the sense of place, it’s the outdoor spaces that cast Ubud’s land-before-time spell: a glass-walled, alfresco living room neighbors an infinity pool swathed in tangles of verdure and shaded by towering palms. Twelve of the dazzling villas overlook the Ayung River, Bali’s longest at nearly 43 miles, whose heady rush serves as the resort’s signature symphony.
Twelve of the sumptuous one-bedroom pool villas overlook the Ayung River.
Mandapa, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve
Meanwhile, Mandapa’s two- and three-bedroom pool villas–packed with amenities like indoor/outdoor living and dining areas, outdoor rain showers, and pool cabanas–offer consummate venues for milestone celebrations and multi-generational family getaways. Speaking of family, the resort’s kids’ club, Mandapa Camp, educates children about Balinese traditions through a wide range of engaging, nature-based activities, including visits to Mandapa’s organic garden and farm animals; art and cooking classes, where they’ll make Balinese offerings and energizing herbal drinks; and evening bonfires complete with roasted marshmallows.
Notably, all Mandapa guests enjoy 24-hour Patih (“king’s attendant”) butler service. While virtually any request–from a buggy ride to breakfast to a bespoke gourmet dinner in the reserve’s rice fields–is a mere WhatsApp text away, don’t be surprised if your wish is granted before you even ask. Peerless service imbues the island’s DNA: word of the Balinese people’s inherent geniality and generosity of spirit began to spread in the 1930s, when high-profile visitors like Charlie Chaplin and Doris Duke, instantly besotted by Bali’s prodigious gifts, catapulted the far-flung isle onto the world’s radar.
Mandapa Club, the resort’s kids’ club, offers an inspired array of educational activities that showcase Balinese life and traditions.
Mandapa, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve
The ensuing decades saw an ever-increasing influx of travelers, lured by Bali’s entrancing exoticism and hospitality. These days, despite formidable traffic jams, burgeoning tourist throngs (a record-breaking 6.3 million international guests arrived in 2024), and encroaching evidence of over-tourism, the isle’s pervasive grace endures–a palpable tranquility rooted in rwa bhineda, the Balinese philosophy of balance. Simply put, it means that maintaining harmony in the universe requires two opposing forces: there is no joy without sorrow, no good without bad. (Trees, shrines, and statues wrapped in black-and-white checkered cloth symbolizing this duality—saput poleng, literally “blanket in two tones”—are common sights in Bali.) Tolerance is another tenet; the Balinese consider differences among people to be integral elements of an even cosmic keel—a magnanimous view that especially suits an economy disproportionately (an estimated 60-70%) driven by tourism.
Sawah Terrace, Mandapa’s all-day restaurant, serves up unbeatable views along with exceptional cuisine.
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Exceptional Dining and Unrivaled Service
Such storied service, along with top-tier cuisine, shine at the resort’s restaurants. An extravagant breakfast buffet–brimming with Balinese, pan-Asian, and Western classics, along with a panoply of succulent tropical fruit and artisan pastries–greets guests daily at Sawah Terrace, Mandapa’s all-day dining destination. Spectacular rainforest views complement every dish, including refined à la carte options like crab Benedict with mustard hollandaise and decadent soft scrambled eggs and caviar. Come sunset, there’s arguably no loftier spot in town for a dynamite drink and nibble than Ambar, which practically floats over the valley from its perch beside the lobby, where inventive cocktails pair with inspired Japanese fusion plates and nightly live jazz. Try an “Ubud Prince” (jackfruit-infused vodka, ginger, cempaka honey, vegan foam) and a scrumptious pork katsu sando (pork butt panko, brioche, caramelized onion, tonkatsu BBQ sauce), then kick back and marvel at the luxuriant tapestry of treetops before you, unfurling to the horizon beneath a radiant violet sky.
With inventive cocktails and unbeatable rainforest views, Ambar is one of Ubud’s most inviting destinations at sunset.
Mandapa, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve
For a standalone fine-dining experience, Kubu takes diners on a zero-waste culinary journey, where every bite of the ten-course menu is sourced within a 100-kilometer (62-mile) radius. An innovative ode to Bali’s impressive biodiversity, the gastronomic odyssey includes often-overlooked vegetables and other rare ingredients for which Chef Eka Sunarya and his team regularly forage. The stunning setting–nine bamboo dining pods at the river’s edge, backed by a hypnotic soundscape of cicadas, frogs, and nightjars-–creates an ineffable ambience, while dishes like “The Beans” (seasonal Balinese legumes, cashew cream, kelp pickle, and duck egg-yolk confit) and chilled poached lobster with marigold vinegar emulsion earn rave reviews. The last course is a charmer: a tabletop version of a Kubu dining pod, filled with petits fours like colenak, a traditional Indonesian dessert made from fermented cassava.
Kubu’s one-of-a-kind tasting menu and inimitable ambience make for a memorable evening.
Mandapa, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve
World-Class Wellness and Cultural Experiences
With facilities including five treatment rooms, a meditation temple, rooftop vitality pool, and 24-hour fitness center, the resort’s riverfront spa is a world-class wellness destination on an island renowned as arguably the global leader in wellness tourism. Besides an exceptional array of massages, body scrubs and wraps, as well as acupuncture and reiki treatments, guests can book one-of-a-kind experiences steeped in local culture–like a session with a blind healer, who works with her assistant to assess emotional and physical issues, release blocked energy through reflexology, and make recommendations to improve well-being.
There’s also a water blessing ritual conducted by a local priest at the spa temple to jump-start reconnection with inner energy, and a fire blessing ritual that facilitates the release of negative thoughts while manifesting new intentions. Along with complimentary sunrise and sunset yoga sessions at the spa’s yoga pavilion, Mandapa offers guests daily activities designed to cultivate mindfulness and banish stress through its recently launched “Disconnect to Reconnect” program. Four of the 20 experiences–aquatic therapy, quantum healing, and a Balinese medicinal plants workshop among them–are available daily on a rotating basis.
Standalone Balinese treatments and exceptional facilities elevate the Mandapa spa to the ranks of Bali’s best.
Mandapa, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve
The Mandapa team can arrange a seemingly endless list of excursions and activities, from rafting on the Ayung River to fashioning traditional farmers’ hats. Turning to craft, there’s no better place than Ubud to marvel at the dazzling creative gifts of the Balinese, whose affinity for painting, woodcarving, and weaving, to name a notable few, is a defining element of the island’s magnetism. To witness this aesthetic wizardry firsthand, with plenty of sunshine, sight-seeing, and wind-in-your-hair abandon, book a tour in one of Mandapa’s vintage Volkswagen 181 convertibles.
A stop at the non-profit I Wayan Gama Painting School showcases Keliki painting–hyper-detailed, romanticized depictions of subjects like daily life in the island’s rural outskirts–whose intricacies astound. Woodcarving takes center stage in the village of Pakudawi, where modest roadside galleries display exquisite pieces like a serene Buddha sitting atop a lotus blossom carved from a single block of hibiscus, with robes so masterfully honed they drape like fabric, and petals nearly as thin as the real thing.
Tirta Empul’s holy waters have drawn pilgrims to Bali for more than a thousand years.
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Holy spring water rushes from spouts laden with fruit-and-flower offerings into sacred pools full of pilgrims at another stop, Tirta Empul, one of Bali’s most sacred Hindu temples, whose purification rituals–which guests’ personal butlers can arrange–have attracted believers from around the world for more than a thousand years. Then, after more cruising along zig-zagging roads flanked by rice fields glinting in the tropical sun, it’s time to return to Mandapa’s exalted embrace, where golden-hour magic awaits.
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