Mandapa, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve

The road from Ubud drops into the Ayung valley at Kedewatan and the first thing a guest sees from the open-sided lobby is not a pool but a bowl of rice terraces, green or gold depending on the month, with the river at the bottom and the jungle on the far bank. Mandapa, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve, was built around that view and opened in September 2015.

History

Ritz-Carlton Reserve is Marriott's small collection of resorts in remote settings, begun with Phulay Bay in Thailand in 2009 and Dorado Beach in Puerto Rico in 2012. Mandapa was the third. The name is Sanskrit for a temple pavilion, and a shrine stands within the grounds; the rice paddies that fill the valley floor are farmed by a resident farmer with his water buffalo, and guests may join the planting and the harvest. Kedewatan has drawn hotels since the 1990s because of the Ayung gorge, and Mandapa's neighbours along the river include some of the oldest resorts on Bali.

Architecture and design

The resort is laid out as a Balinese village on the slopes of the valley, with the public buildings at the top and the villas stepping down towards the river. Roofs are of thatch and shingle, walls of local stone and timber, and the paths are lined with stone walls and offerings. Water runs through the site in channels, as it does through every Balinese rice landscape, and the central pool overlooks the paddies.

Rooms and suites

There are 60 keys: 35 suites in the upper buildings, with terraces towards the valley, and 25 villas with private pools, the largest of them with two or three bedrooms beside the river. Every suite and villa has a dedicated butler, known at Mandapa as a patih, who arranges the day. Bathrooms are large, with soaking tubs and outdoor showers in the villas. Villas by the river hear the water all night; the suites above are quieter and cooler, with the breeze off the valley.

Dining

Kubu is the fine-dining restaurant on the riverbank, with tables in bamboo cocoons and a European menu built on Balinese produce. Sawah Terrace, above the rice fields, serves Indonesian and Balinese food and breakfast. The Pool Bar and Ambar, a bar overlooking the valley, handle drinks and lighter meals, and private dinners can be set on the paddies or by the river.

Wellness

The Mandapa Spa has treatment suites in the gardens, a yoga pavilion and a programme of Balinese healing, with sessions led by a resident priest or healer. There is a gym and a kids' club, and the resort organises river rafting, cycling through the villages and visits to the temples around Ubud.

Weddings and events

Mandapa hosts weddings on the lawn above the river and in a riverside wedding pavilion, with receptions at Kubu or on the terraces. It takes small meetings and board retreats in private rooms and villa compounds rather than a conference centre. Published capacities are not available.

Location

The resort is in Kedewatan, on Jalan Raya Kedewatan, about ten minutes by car from the centre of Ubud and its market, the palace and the monkey forest. The Neka Art Museum and the villages of the Ubud painters are on the road into town. Ngurah Rai International Airport at Denpasar is about 75 to 90 minutes by car depending on traffic. This is the resort on Bali that places guests inside the agricultural landscape of the island rather than beside its beaches.