Introduction The Maya Ubud Resort is the original of the two Maya Resorts now operating in Bali (the other being in Sanur). At around 10 hectares in size, the hotel splendidly houses only 38 rooms and 70 villas, allowing for many beautiful open spaces. The hotel was completed in 2001 and opened to much fanfare and retains a venerable reputation for its architecture in the area. Like its Sanur counterpart, the hotel is a masterpiece of Budiman Hendropurnomo of Denton Corker Marshalls, which also oversaw the designs of the popular Anantara Uluwatu resort and the cavernous Kempinski Bali.Maya Ubud Lobby Check In We arrived at the hotel's porte-cochere, where our luggage is unloaded (and left until the check-in registration was completed). The hotel was absolutely busy (we were told the hotel is overbooked), and as such, it took a while as we waited for our turn. After the registration formalities were completed, we waited for 30 minutes for our room to be ready, after which we were driven there with a golf buggy. Room We stayed in a Heavenly Pool Villa, which shared the exact layout of the lower-category Heavenly Jacuzzi Villa, albeit with a small plunge pool. When I say small, I mean really small—to an extent where it looked pointless.Heavenly Pool Villa PoolHeavenly Pool Villa PorchInside the villa is a main living/bedroom section and bathroom section. The size of the villa itself makes it look more like a room in a standalone building. The design itself is modern with many ethnic touches in an effort to be chic. Nothing about it looked Balinese, and I thought of it to be mostly unremarkable. The room was bright, although the lighting control frustratingly doesn’t allow individual lights to be switched off/on. The bed however was very comfortable.Heavenly Pool Villa RoomHeavenly Pool Villa RoomHeavenly Pool Villa RoomHeavenly Pool Villa Coffee Machine, coffee pods were from IllyAs such, I thought that the premium for a Pool Villa over the Jacuzzi Villas is definitely not worth it (unless one is assigned to a valley-viewing room). I am very happy with the degree of cleanliness of the room, which pretty much looked spotless.Between the relatively smaller space and the large furniture, the room felt cramped for space. The bathroom, however, is a different story and felt very spacious. I absolutely loved the fast-filling oversized metal bathtub that is very nice to bathe in.BathroomBathroomOur room views the hotel’s expansive gardens and features a small porch with two chairs. There is an outdoor shower adjacent to the plunge pool.Outdoor showerIn-room wifi was very weak, and there were times when I struggled to connect. I suspect the bandwidth wasn't able to withstand the guest numbers. I was disappointed to find that the coffee machine hasn't been cleaned after use by the previous guest. Dining We paid the £10 premium for breakfast included in our rate. Despite the relatively low premium, I found the breakfast spread to be very underwhelming. Breakfast is a buffet, which included a rotating variety of Indonesian, Western, and Asian selections. The quality and taste of food are mostly poor, bar the fruits and cold cuts. The juices taste artificial, and the restaurant seemed to be understaffed, leaving service to be rather slow.However, I found the chef manning the pancake/waffle station to be cheerful and enthusiastic, and proactively offered to make us a hot batch of whatever is on offer on that day. Kudos to him.Mayasari BreakfastMayasari BreakfastMayasari BreakfastMayasari Breakfast Service Compared to most places we’ve been to in Bali, Maya overall probably had the least friendly staff. They weren’t outright hostile but seemed only to go about the motions of their jobs. For instance, that’s to say that staff won’t proactively greet one unless greeted first (which sometimes gets ignored). Service is never proactive, and most people didn’t seem to enjoy their jobs very much.However, there were also instances where we felt the staff was borderline rude or unhelpful. For instance, housekeeping wanted to enter our room shortly after we returned from breakfast; our request for them to return later was interjected with a sharp “When?!”There was also the time when we requested a taxi only for it to be declined. We were instead offered to be driven by the hotel’s car at an absurd rate of IDR200,000 to the Campuhan area (10 minutes away). When we asked for any alternative transport options or taxis, we were told to find one ourselves. Among the few exceptions to this was our buggy driver/porter at the end of our stay who was very cheerful and friendly. Amenities Amongst the biggest selling points of Maya Ubud are definitely the hotel’s two beautiful pools as well as its expansive manicured gardens. I personally thought that both pools looked to be very beautiful. However, due to the exceptional hotel occupation rates during the period, the pools was absolutely busy at most times of the day. River PoolInfinity PoolHotel GroundsImpressively, the hotel also has a small piece of farmland adjacent to their tennis courts.Maya also has a small gym and Yoga Pavillion which was occupied for much of my stay, thus I unfortunately cannot get a picture. Location Maya is a 5-minute drive away from Central Ubud, making it a convenient base to explore the island. There isn't much within the direct vicinity of the hotel, apart from a small local restaurant, so it can be rather isolative for those who like to walk; the hotel, however, does have a time-limited shuttle service to Ubud centre. Overall Between the hotel’s underwhelming service, forgettable food, and the mostly unremarkable rooms, I don’t reckon I can see myself wanting to come back. The hotel's pools and the setting is definitely beautiful, although it does not preclude other hotels from offering a similar ambiance.I'm sorry to say that I cannot recommend this hotel.