Our top 10 places to stay in and around Amed
Five-star feel
Palm Garden Amed boasts just 10 rooms set amid coconut-palm dotted, carefully clipped lawns and gardens, with a decent sized pool set right on the black-sand beach.
Three attached bungalows, five villas and two oceanfront villas are offered, with all in pristine condition -- the hotel opened in 2011 but we would have believed the professional staff if they’d said it opened last week. The feel is very natural, without being at all rustic, with the concrete bungalows painted cream, trimmed and finished in wood and stone, and topped with alang alang roofs. The attached bungalows are motel style, while the villas are standalone, with the oceanfront flavours having a private plunge pool. Bathrooms are spacious and partly open-air. Decor is thoughtful, and in classic Balinese style rather than being particularly contemporary, with pops of colour from cushions, bed runners and local paintings. They have all the amenities you’d expect, barring tea- and coffee-making facilities. The restaurant sits back near the pool so there’s still a beach view as well, while the spa also looks attractive from the outside.
There is an intimate, five-star feel about Palm Garden, with a great attention to detail evident across the board that is rare to see in Amed -- the owners are Swiss, and we weren’t surprised to hear this. That said, prices match what’s on offer -- we were told to check their website for rates, which are quoted in Swiss francs. They start at 100 francs (around US$104) for an attached bungalow, 180 for a villa and 230 for an oceanfront villa. Given what $70 buys you in some other parts of Amed, rates are not unreasonable for the quality on offer.
You might get a little traffic noise as some rooms are not too far off the road, but once inside with the air-con on it should be fine -- it’s at the quiet end of Amed anyway. Bear this in mind if you’d like to eat out at other restaurants, as you’ll need your own transport or a pick-up from the restaurant. Children must be aged 13 or over to stay here, so at least it will be peaceful on that front.
Address: Lean village
T: (0363) 430 1058;
Email: info@palmgardenamed.com
Web: http://www.palmgardenamed.com
Coordinates (for GPS): 115º41'27.24" E, 8º21'23.04" S
See position in Apple or Google Maps: Apple Maps | Google Maps
Room rates: 1,000,000 to 2,500,000 Rp
What we were quoted as a walk-in.
| Standard double room Dollars, price quoted in Swiss francs | US$104 | US$104 |
| Deluxe bungalow Dollars, price quoted in Swiss francs | US$187 | US$187 |
| Beachfront bungalow | US$240 | US$240 |
Reviewed by
Stuart McDonald
Stuart McDonald co-founded Travelfish.org with Samantha Brown in 2004. He has lived in Thailand, Cambodia and Indonesia, where he worked as an under-paid, under-skilled language teacher, an embassy staffer, a newspaper web-site developer, freelancing and various other stuff. His favourite read is The Art of Travel by Alain de Botton.
Our top 10 places to stay in and around Amed
