Bali Golden Elephant Hostel

We left after the second day and found somewhere else. The room was very dirty, nothing like the photos, and there was no TV or kettle. The “provided water” was a jug kept outside on the ground for three rooms to share. You could hear everything outside, and there was no privacy beyond a curtain. The kitchenette was just a propane hotplate outdoors, shared by about three rooms. The toilet’s frosted glass door was in full view from the bed. The shower was extremely dirty, there was mold all over the bathrooms, the pool was dirty, and the sheets had rips and holes. The stairwell to the rooms was unsafe, basically stacked bricks. It also took over an hour to get out of the area. This is the worst place, and I’d never stay here again even if I were paid.

A month before this, we’d booked a room with a private pool for a few days, but on arrival were taken to a lower-quality room because the one we’d reserved was occupied. We were told ours would only be available the next day after 4 p.m. We accepted the accommodation’s mistake then. For the last days of our vacation, we booked that same private-pool room again, a week ahead. When we arrived at Elephant, they said it was occupied and offered another Elephant accommodation much farther away. It was much lower quality than what we’d booked, with a shared pool used by three other rooms. We refused the alternative and had to search at the last minute among very few available places, with prices very high. It caused us a lot of stress, extra costs, and a last-minute change of plans. If you want to avoid stress and disrespect, don’t book accommodation at ELEPHANT.

I came back for my second stay in December 2023, and the private-pool room was 500k a night without breakfast. The room has a small fridge, and there’s a little outdoor kitchen with a stove, pan, and spatula, which is handy if you’re staying for a week. The renovated bathroom was clean, and you can ask the admin to clean it. There’s food nearby, with supermarkets and warkop close by. The location worked well for me since the beaches are about 20-30 minutes away by motorbike, and Garuda Wisnu Kencana and Jimbaran Beach are nearby too. The place is tucked away, though. The sign is hard to see and the light on the main road is dim. Parking is tight for cars, but there’s room for around 10-12 motorcycles. One odd thing, I saw a rat cross the balcony while I was making dinner for my husband 😅

The staff were nice, but my Airbnb stay was still a letdown. There was construction right in front of the hostel, and the approach was difficult: the place is tucked away, the steep alley was hard to drive a car through, and there was trash all around. Inside, the AC didn’t cool the room well, maybe because of the high ceilings and gaps around the glass windows. I also dealt with lots of mosquitoes, geckos, and strange bugs, and some of the furniture wasn’t well cared for. I really wanted to like this place, but I didn’t enjoy the stay.