We spent 3 nights at The Samaya, Ubud, with our children aged 11 and 15. We had the most stunning villas, with a pool between them and absoltue privacy and security. Each villa had a stunning spa bathroom complete with TV and airconditioning.!!! The staff were superb and knew us and our children by name. Breakfasts were amazing "picnics" delivered to us by the pool or in the restaurant. There was no chance of the kids being bored as there are so many activities close by, and we also made use of the amazing spa salon. My daughter and I for nail treatments, my partner and son for some massage on their aching bones!!!. The Samaya has a shuttle service that runs you into Ubud and back on request. We ate at the resort restaurant Swept Away and it too was faultless... stay tuned for our review!!!!! Thankyou Samaya..pure bliss!!!!

Everything about the Samaya was just absolutely amazing , from our very first welcome to the gorgeous villa with private pool and daybed and a garden area big enough to practice my daily yoga in . Everyone from the hotel manager to the housekeeping staff treated us like their family ; well a royal family ! We really did feel like royalty there , so much so that we extended our holiday from 7 days to 14 . I dont think I've ever seen so many people smiling whilst going about their work in one place , ever. I felt a little ill one day , a doctor was called in and was accompanied by the assistant manager , special Balinese drinks were sent to me and all the staff showed their concern and care for me in a way which was extremely touching . All in all it was quite simply the best resort/ hotel we've ever stayed in , and we are already planning another visit very soon . Our feet haven't quite touched the ground yet , that's how special Wayan and his team made us feel :-) amazing

We stayed here for 2 nights in a hillside villa. Since this was the third time I have been to Ubud, I feel like I can make an honest assessment of this hotel. I actually agree to most points of the previous reviewer:

1) The physical location and hardware of this hotel is incredible (The villa setup, the privacy, the serene view of the valley and the river, the shuttle bus service, etc)
2) The staff members were all very very friendly, kind and polite (to the point where it occasionally got annoying)
3) However, the staff members (with the exception of the GM and front desk manager) in general did not speak English very well. They were capable of making standardized chit-chat with you, but should you have a real question/problem that needed to be solved, they were unable to provide actual assistance. (In those cases, I just called the front desk directly)

So it was kind of annoying at times. But to be fair, I find this to be a problem in a lot of the so-called high-end hotels in South-East Asia. Once when we were checking out at the Four Seasons Jakarta, the reception could not add/subtract our bills correctly, even with the aid of a calculator! My husband had to walk her step-by step-through the maths! At least at the Samaya Bali, there was a very capable front desk manager who could solve your problems. (i.e. When we checked-in, we asked for afternoon tea in-villa at 3pm with one of the bellboy, but it never came, so I just called the front desk. Problem solved.)

On a side note, the quality of the restaurant was very high at this property. We ate out a lot last time in Ubud, and we thought the Samaya Bali on-site restaurant was much better in quality than most off-site restaurants in town (well, except Ibu-Oka, but that's a local lunch spot, not a proper restaurant). We ate all of our dinners on-site this time and we were very happy with the food quality.

Still a great place to stay, just manage your expectation correctly.

FYI - Ubud in generally has colder climate than the coast. We stayed twice in the summer and both times it was too cold to swim in Ubud (I come from Hong Kong, so I can't swim in non-tropical weather), however by the coast at Seminyak we find swimming possible both times.

We stayed 2 days at the Samaya in Ubud and it was really great.
The staff is very helpful and tries to satisfy all needs of the customers.
We had afternoon tea and dinner at the hotels restaurant very beautifully at the river. It is excellent. Please try the typical regional menu. The Balinese desert is most delicious. Also the Spa and the breakfast do not leave anything open.
If you do not want to walk the steep hill, the golf cars will arrive immediately to pick you up. They have a transfer service to the City Center of Ubud, which is very convenient.
The hotel also offers guided bicycle tours. We would recommend to join these. It is a very nice experience to drive through the rice fields and also to meet some local people together with the guide. At our tour nobody else but our self joined.
The Villa itself and also the private pool has seen some better days. Pool tiles were not immaculate.