The trick to uncovering these hidden gems? Leaning into local know-how and staying at places that really get the vibe of their surroundings and have a good track record of integrating with their local community.
TRAVEL
New Year, New Ways to Experience Bali
by Karen Tee
27 Jan 2025
27 Jan 2025
Interesting ways for the careful traveller to experience an authentic slice of the Island of the Gods without having to try too hard.
Everybody loves Bali, no further explanation needed. But its allure has also led to its challenges, with over tourism threatening the charm that made it famous. Yet despite this, there are still pockets of thriving authenticity where they are often hidden in plain sight.
- ART, CRAFT, AND CULINARY TREASURES
- EMPOWERED HANDS, TRANSFORMATIVE TOUCH
Art, Craft, and Culinary Treasures
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Capella Ubud's main swimming pool set amid lush greenery -
Copper bathtub in the tents (photo by Georg Roske) -
Capella Ubud River Tent exterior
A stellar example is Capella Ubud, the Bill Bensley-designed luxury tented camp resort nestled in the lush Ubud rainforest. Despite its discreet, ultra-private environs – there are just 22 one-bedroom tents and a single two-bedroom lodge – the hospitality brand has always had an ethos of sharing local cultural experiences with guests through its Capella Curates programme.
In Ubud, this includes visits to creative art communities like the Keliki art school at the hamlet just outside the hotel, as well as hyperlocal culinary experiences.
Admittedly, it is challenging to leave the resort’s indulgent comforts. My stylishly eclectic tent, with its four-poster bed, sumptuous Balinese wood carved door panels and even a throne-seat for the, well, throne, is nestled in the rainforest canopy – perfect for enjoying melodious bird songs all through the day.
(Related: Ubud Revisited)
A restored joglo at the Tonyraka Art Gallery (photo by Karen Tee)
But curiosity won and my Camp Navigator organised a six-hour excursion to explore Balinese art and interior design. We whizz by Jalan Andong, filled with galleries and artisanal shops offering all manner of homeware, rattan goods and wooden crafts and I make a mental note for the future.
At Tonyraka Art Gallery, A.A Bagus Tony Hartawan, an architect and art collector, showcases rotating exhibits of contemporary art alongside tribal crafts and antiques like Flores’ ritual peos and Dayak hampatong guardian sculptures.
Hartawan, who offers private tours of the premises when his schedule permits, shows me two lovingly restored traditional Indonesian joglos (homes), which he had brought in from East Java, now used to display his rare collection of Indonesian artefacts.
Before a weathered and slowly disintegrating wooden Dayak hampatong figure, Hartawan gestures to his collection, saying, “These pieces carry a simplicity and power that is hard to find in modern crafts. Every cut was made with intent, often for rituals or to honour ancestors. Today, so much is created for the tourist trade – it is beautiful, but lacks the soul, the meaning imbued in these older artefacts.”
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Display of tribal masks (photo by Karen Tee) -
A weathered Dayak hampatong at Tonyraka Art Gallery (photo by Karen Tee)
In contrast, a pit stop at the industrial art workshop Railroad showcases how discarded parts from ships, old pipes, and various machinery bits and bobs are upcycled into steampunk-inspired furnishings and homeware like lamps, chairs, and tables (some pieces can be spotted in Capella Ubud as well).
As for food, there are few dishes more emblematic of Balinese cuisine than Babi Guling, a whole slow roasted pig that is the traditional centrepiece of local Hindu rituals. Local institution Babi Guling Gung Cung roasts whole pigs over coffee and clove wood fires till the skin turns a crisp golden brown with a rich caramelised bite.
Besides its central Ubud location, it has a second serene, off-map location that only locals seem to know of. Here, tender, spice-infused pork is perfectly paired with urutan (Balinese-style sausage), lawar (fine chopped vegetables), sambal matah, and fluffy rice – scrumptious to the last bite.
(Related: Gourmet bonds in Bali)
- ART, CRAFT, AND CULINARY TREASURES
- EMPOWERED HANDS, TRANSFORMATIVE TOUCH
Empowered Hands, Transformative Touch
Even in the hustle and bustle of Seminyak, one of Bali’s most well-trod neighbourhoods, there is a different side to the area to be uncovered. Smack among the trendy boutiques and cafes of Jalan Kayu Aya is the newly opened Mello Spa, with a second location in Canggu in the works.
In a tasteful showcase of contemporary Balinese aesthetics, the building is designed by architectural firm Samma Studio and features bespoke furniture crafted by local business The Medium, as well as artwork by buzzy Indonesian artist Rizrizrizzz.
Co-founded by Perth-based sister and brother duo Fatima and Mumtaz Khan – the latter is a doctor – their aim is to raise the standard of day spas in Bali by offering state-of-the-art treatments inspired by biohacking principals.
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The treatments, which blend high-tech innovations like oxygen facials and LED therapy with traditional techniques such as guasha massage, were carefully formulated by the Khans to maintain high standards like A-grade medical hygiene and tried-and-tested treatment steps.
But what sets it apart is its most valuable asset – the staff. What most customers may not realise is that behind the blissfully effective treatments is the founders’ deep-rooted commitment to empowering the local therapists they have hired by providing them with comprehensive skills training.
For up to a year before the spa launched, the therapists were paid their full salary while undergoing stringent training modules which included sessions with overseas trainers to equip them with skills that would meet international industry standards.
“We wanted to break that master-servant relationship that is prevalent between the locals and many visitors on the island,” says Fatima. “With education and industry skills, they are empowered to have greater control over their lives and their future.”
This autonomy has translated into a noticeable difference in the quality of treatments offered at Mello Spa and fostered a convivial, family-like atmosphere within the space. Relaxing in the stylish, light-filled lounge after a calming after sun soothing facial paired with a 15-minute face guasha that has miraculously introduced defined contours to my cheek bones, I exchange skincare tips with the therapists and we engage in warm, light-hearted conversation.
The experience feels deeply personal, a positive ripple effect of creating an environment where the staff are respected and well-trained. A therapist tells me she dreams of eventually working in another country – something that she now believes is a distinct possibility with her training at the spa.
Asti, another therapist, reflects, “Mello Spa is the first place where I received training that goes beyond the massage steps and gained knowledge about the human body and skin. It makes me feel confident because now I have the understanding and the skills to build a career. My family often tells me that I should value this chance to grow and develop myself while offering the best spa experience possible.”
It is enough to make me want to drop by on my next visit to have a catch-up with her – and to enjoy yet another indulgent massage, of course.
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