Karma Kandara Resort
From the ultra-fashionable Karma Group, Karma Kandara was among Bali's first wave of boutique all-villa resorts and still rates as one of the island's most iconic and glamorous destinations. It's sophisticated, but with a touch of flip-flop hedonism, attracting guests that range from hip jet setters and celebrities to 20-something partygoers, all the while remaining surprisingly family-friendly. Perched on limestone cliffs at Bali's southernmost coastline at Uluwatu, on the Bukit peninsula, this 5-star resort is a cluster of 55 luxuriously appointed, one- to four-bedroom pool villas—some with fabulous ocean views—plus the cliff-edge, five-bedroom Villa Maria. The majority of villas are comprised of three- and four-bedrooms, making the exclusive villa life actually somewhat attainable for friends and families traveling together. Whatever size, all detached residences guarantee total privacy within pretty, high-walled gardens, complete with private pools. Spacious open-plan interiors are outfitted with fully equipped kitchens and semi-open tropical bathrooms. These are all linked by a labyrinth of limestone walled laneways, overhung with bougainvillea, surreally resembling a hillside Greek village.
Karma's stand-out destination facilities are dramatically suspended on rocky outcrops above the surf: The di Mare fine-dining restaurant towers over a spectacular curved infinity-edge pool; on an adjacent cliff, the internationally acclaimed Karma Spa lives on the edge (literally) with cliff-hugging spa shacks and an open-air stone deck with a Himalayan crystal salt regeneration pool. An inclinator drops guests down a sheer cliff to a private white sand cove with Karma Group's flagship, Karma Beach Club, a thatched beach bar providing refined casual dining, live DJs, and watersports facilities—it's listed among the "World's 50 Best Beach Bars" by CNN Travel.
Like most of the 5-stars tottering along Uluwatu's cliffs, Karma Kandara is relatively cutoff from everywhere, isolated down a long country lane. Be prepared to hole up for a few days. Oh dear.
From the ultra-fashionable Karma Group, Karma Kandara was among Bali's first wave of boutique all-villa resorts and still rates as one of the island's most iconic and glamorous destinations. It's sophisticated, but with a touch of flip-flop hedonism, attracting guests that range from hip jet setters and celebrities to 20-something partygoers, all the while remaining surprisingly family-friendly. Perched on limestone cliffs at Bali's southernmost coastline at Uluwatu, on the Bukit peninsula, this 5-star resort is a cluster of 55 luxuriously appointed, one- to four-bedroom pool villas—some with fabulous ocean views—plus the cliff-edge, five-bedroom Villa Maria. The majority of villas are comprised of three- and four-bedrooms, making the exclusive villa life actually somewhat attainable for friends and families traveling together. Whatever size, all detached residences guarantee total privacy within pretty, high-walled gardens, complete with private pools. Spacious open-plan interiors are outfitted with fully equipped kitchens and semi-open tropical bathrooms. These are all linked by a labyrinth of limestone walled laneways, overhung with bougainvillea, surreally resembling a hillside Greek village.
Karma's stand-out destination facilities are dramatically suspended on rocky outcrops above the surf: The di Mare fine-dining restaurant towers over a spectacular curved infinity-edge pool; on an adjacent cliff, the internationally acclaimed Karma Spa lives on the edge (literally) with cliff-hugging spa shacks and an open-air stone deck with a Himalayan crystal salt regeneration pool. An inclinator drops guests down a sheer cliff to a private white sand cove with Karma Group's flagship, Karma Beach Club, a thatched beach bar providing refined casual dining, live DJs, and watersports facilities—it's listed among the "World's 50 Best Beach Bars" by CNN Travel.
Like most of the 5-stars tottering along Uluwatu's cliffs, Karma Kandara is relatively cutoff from everywhere, isolated down a long country lane. Be prepared to hole up for a few days. Oh dear.
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