Kanishka Villas

The location was perfect: close to a mini-mart, pharmacy, Frestive supermarket, and lots of places to eat, plus a nail salon and bar. Getting there was less appealing, though. Our driver initially thought he had stopped at the wrong place. Reception is a small room that looks like it’s in an alleyway. We booked several villas for a week as a family, and for what we paid, we were disappointed with what we got compared with other options in Bali. The photos looked better than reality, especially for the one-bedroom villa with a jetted tub. The two-bedroom villa with a pool was much more modern, comfortable and inviting. The one-bedroom villas were old and worn. Except for the main entrance, the doors wouldn’t close or lock properly. The mosquito net, sheets, curtains and tapestry behind the bed felt grubby. The floor was dusty and worn, the lamps were crooked, the desk chair was wobbly, and the sink and tub drains were mouldy. The shower had good pressure and temperature, and the old mini-fridge worked. We also weren’t told before arrival that these rooms were upstairs. The staff were pleasant enough, but I found the service poor. When I asked about laundry, they only said they didn’t provide it. One family member arranged for her washing to be picked up at reception, but when it was returned, staff called us to collect it instead of bringing the suitcase a short distance down to the villa. When I asked housekeeping for extra toilet paper, because you need it in Bali, he seemed annoyed and left without giving me any. The second toilet in our villa was locked. Front-of-house staff and other housekeepers basically told us we’d have to use the upstairs bathroom. Later, a man came to check something else, and when we asked him, he arranged for someone to climb over and unlock the toilet from inside. On the first night, front-of-house staff said someone would come each evening to lower the mosquito nets, light coils and spray. That first evening was appreciated, since the open villas had lots of bugs and creatures. It only happened once, though. I had to call to ask on the second night, then gave up after that. I wouldn’t stay again or recommend it.

We stayed in 4A. There was water dripping from the bedroom light, and the washroom wasn’t clean. The bathroom taps were badly rusted, and spider webs were all over. Hygiene was very poor. You can get a much better property for this price, so I wouldn’t recommend it.

In September 2025, my friend and I visited Indonesia for the first time and stayed at three hotels or villas in Bali. Kanishka Villas was our second stop, for two nights. It was nice, though a little outdated. Our villa had two rooms, but one was upstairs and the other was downstairs in a separate building. We didn’t want to share, but hoped to be in the same building. The outlets didn’t fit American plugs. We’d left our voltage converters at home, but the front desk gave us two. The pool at our villa looked lovely. At night, all we heard was its water, which was nice and quiet. Bali had 48 hours of rain while we were there, though, so we never tried the pool. We could’ve swum in the rain, but chose not to. The upstairs bedroom was spacious, bigger than the one downstairs. The beds had mosquito nets, unlike our first hotel, and I appreciated that Kanishka Villas seemed to know bugs could be a problem and wanted guests protected while sleeping. The open-air bathrooms made that clearer. Since Bali is a rainforest island, I found them interesting, though I think that setup might be nicer in a dessert. I kept the bathroom door closed and didn’t switch on the light when I went in at night because I didn’t want more bugs coming in. There was no bathroom in the downstairs area, and the first-floor bedroom also had an open bathroom. The staff were nice, and we enjoyed the breakfast included with our booking. I also liked exploring Seminyak. We had dinner at Papa Lee's Taiwan Teppanyaki Steak House and Wild Habit Pizza, then shopped around each night.

The rooms are older, but the place is quiet and set back from the main road. Booking and turndown service were great, and the staff are really helpful. I love this place. I’ve been back 5 times, and damn straight I’ll come back again.