Maya Ubud
 

Check In We arrived at the Maya rather early at 11 am, and understandably the rooms were not yet available. Despite seemingly low occupancy, it took quite a while to process the check-in registration since all the hosts were preoccupied when we reached the desk. After a member of staff became available, we were attended to and promptly invited to take a seat. During the registration process, we were offered a glass of their fruity welcome drink (which was a pineapple juice concoction). Given our early time of arrival, and the room yet to be available, we headed out for lunch; they proactively requested a contact number to inform us once the room was ready. We had our luggage 'stored' (which meant tagging in and leaving it by the porte-cochere). We headed back to the hotel at 14.00, which was their usual check-in time. The room was ready by the time we arrived, but we were unfortunately not contacted. Our luggage was still at the porte-cochere, and we had to wait for around 15 more minutes for a golf buggy to be ready to take us to the room. Location Maya is located down a smaller road close to the centre of Ubud. It is 5 minutes away from most of Ubud's well-known restaurants and attractions by car, and around 20 minutes walk to the Ubud Palace. Room When the Maya opened back in 2004, it was arguably amongst Bali's hottest hotels. 17 years later, the hotel's rooms had undergone a few facelifts, resulting in the modern, comfortable rooms today. Villa EntranceOur room, a "Heavenly Jacuzzi Villa" was located a 5-minute walk away from the lobby and was adjacent to the car park. Despite that, it was quiet and peaceful in the room. The room itself was advertised to be 245sqm in size, though that evidently included the outside space since the room itself felt quite small (around 45-50 sqm). True to its name, the villa offered a glorified terrazzo bathtub in the garden, which we never ended up using. Personally, the jacuzzi felt like an awkward set-up, especially given that the garden essentially opens up to the walkway to the lobby and views other villas.Deck outside the roomJacuzzi in the gardenThe room itself was clean, well appointed with comfortable sitting surfaces, and featured a very cold air-conditioning system. Despite the building's age, the hotel's recent renovation ensured that the room felt new and 'spiffy', if you will. Yet, it was my opinion that the oversized furniture (from the four-poster bed to the oversized sofa) made the room feel rather, unfortunately, cramped. View into the roomFour-poster bedOversized sofa and televisionClosetThe bathroom was conversely very spacious. It featured a fabulously large metal bathtub, along with a separate shower. Due to that, the bathroom itself was probably the highlight of the room. The toiletries came in refillable containers and were decent.BathroomBathroomBathtubShower Pool and Grounds The hotel's grounds itself are expansive and well-kept, and some parts offer magnificent views. The hotel has two swimming pools, one being the Valley Pool and the other being the River Pool. During our stay, the Valley Pool was under renovation and thus unavailable for use. Walkway from Villa to LobbyMain buildingWhilst the Valley Pool was located near the lobby, the River Pool was located around 15 minutes away by foot. The pool is located down a cliff, and that required either a walk down a long, winding staircase or a convenient elevator. View of the staircase from the topAfter the short elevator ride :P, we were met by the loud sound of a natural waterfall, of which turned out to be incredibly located next to the elevator. Sadly, the elevator shaft blocked any view of the waterfall's fall. The pool is located another staircase down, and the entire area was absolutely stunning. The gardens were very well manicured and appointed and was reminiscent of a rainforest. The pool was organic in shape and viewed the adjacent river. There were several loungers by the pool as well as day beds. Service As probably hinted from our arrival experience, the hotel's service wasn't quite tip-top or polished. Most of the hotel staff were friendly, but the service at times felt to be slow and dysfunctional. Unfortunately, it was my distinct impression that there wasn't much coordination/integration between various areas. It wasn't a deal-breaker per se, but it definitely made the hotel feel less appealing. Overall Overall, the Maya is a decent choice in Ubud, although I'd say there are other places at Maya's price range that are arguably better. The rooms were clean, modern, and comfortable, and the grounds were beautiful. The service was a bit of a hit and miss, and therefore wasn't memorable. I would come back solely for the enchanting swimming pool, but that's about it.