GENDING KEDIS LUXURY VILLAS & SPA ESTATE

We stayed in a two room villa with the family this summer. Let's start with the pros: 1) the rooms were good sized (the tube TV was a nice touch), the common living area was nice, as was the kitchen; 2) each of these villas had a pool, which was heated and certainly big enough for fun and games; 3) the breakfast, while it did not offer the choice of a buffet, was totally adequate; 4) the gym was surprisingly good; 5) the service was very good; 6) we had dinner there and it was quite good. The cons pretty much boil down to the whole place feeling dated and worn. The pool deck is falling apart, the color scheme and furnishings are dated (lots of dark cherry wood, which may be consistent with Balinese style, but it makes the whole place a bit dark and decidedly not modern). The only other con is that the shuttle to town only runs in the mornings and evenings (and only into town). It is on a hill, and walking to town is a bit of a trek. On the bright side, you can get a Grab pretty much anywhere and it only costs a few dollars. All and all, I would recommend the place, just don't expect a stylish/hip setting.

The age of this villa complex is showing and it is in need of spruce up. It is looking rather tired, noisey air-conditioners, strange smells from the toilets, But the villas are spacious and big private pools. The wifi internet is terrible! This needs to be upgraded and never to be advertised as fast speed!!! Service is good and attentive. The pizzas are good but a hit and a miss - first time we ordered it was great, second time the base not even cooked through!

Stayed here for 4 days in August. We had a one bedroom villa, which was absolutely massive. It was on 2 floors with lounge and kitchen on top floor and bedroom, bathroom and pool on the ground floor. The villa was very nice and kept clean, there was a turndown service at night and they brought cakes for us each night :). The Breakfast was OK not much choice on the set menus. The complex is bit into a hill and our villa was at the bottom and had a lot of stairs to climb to go back to reception, so make sure you are fit if you go here!!! The hotel says it offers a shuttle bus to Jimbaran, however whenever we tried to use it was not available, not much of an issue as only a 15 minute walk downhill to the beach. It would be nice if they offered a facility to take you back as this is uphill, it was only 20K to get a taxi if they do not try to rip you off.

We stayed at a 1 bedroom villa. Service was generally good. Private pool with the view of the jungle was absolutely amazing. Bathroom requires a little bit an upgrade, but nevertheless villa has an awesome bali ambiance and we really enjoyed staying there. Breakfast was delicious, I especially recommend poached eggs. Location is convenient. Few minutes to Jimbaran Bay, the beach there is nice clean and not crowded. About 30 min from Seminyak and Uluwatu temple.

We were three kids and two adults in a 2 bedroom villa with private pool. The villa was very spacious and had all the amenities for a comfortable stay. However, everything was clearly in need of updating. The sofa was getting threadbare, the floors and cabinets had dings and scratches, and everything just felt worn and tired. My biggest problem was there was a constant stream of baby spiders on the kitchen counter. Luckily, I don't have arachnophobia but it didn't make me feel very sanitary either. The kitchen was generally unappetizing to use so I tried to stay away. The under sink and trash can area smelled despite not having anything in it. The hotel seemed to be running on bare bones. It was clear that the villas get a general cleaning everyday but not a thorough cleaning which means the less used cabinet tops or room corners collect a layer of dust. It also seems to be minimally staffed. Our check-in person also became our shuttle driver and later acted as our "butler" when we needed something for our room. This shortage of staff might be the reason why there was only a beach shuttle (they only go one way to the beach and do not offer return service unless you reserve and pay a fee) from 7am-10am and 4pm-7pm. That's right: exactly in the middle of the day, there is no shuttle service! I think it might be because the check-in person/shuttle driver might also be working housekeeping during those hours. Breakfast got old fast as there were limited selections. We were there five nights and were very unenthusiastic about breakfast by the third morning. Because there are so few patrons, they do not have a buffet breakfast but have a menu to choose from. Unfortunately, the choices were not that inspired and definitely not good if you don't like eggs (like me). The location was also an issue. Jimbaran Beach was only a 5-6 minute drive, but it definitely requires a car. The streets are windy and narrow and uphill on the return. We walked it once and decided it was a bad idea. Transportation is an unfortunate problem in Bali. Local taxi companies rule over their territory so that you can't use driver services like Uber or Grab unless your hotel happens to let you. Then, the service can drop you off but they do not allow pick ups at hot spots like beaches or temples. Those areas are controlled by locals and I've been told by Grab drivers that they will be harassed or even have their car vandalized if they are seen picking up passengers in zones locals have posted signs (which by-the-way, they have no legal authority). Because of the monopoly, they can then charge 50,000 rupiah for a trip that costs me 13,000 rupiah on Grab. One day we went to Ulawatu. The one way 20 minute journey using Grab costed me 27,000 rupiah. Because I was forced to take the only transportation they provided on my return , the journey costed 260,000 rupiah. That was after negotiations that started at 350,000. It is an unfortunate state where the Balinese people are hurting themselves by stifling competition and harming each other and the government are not doing anything to stop it. Overall, I would not recommend Gending Kedis. For the price, you can find something much closer and eliminate the hassle and stress of dealing with the transportation problems. It is also in dire need of updating and until that happens, it will only continue to slide downhill and make it a less and less desirable and comfortable place.