My husband and I spent a few days at this resort on our honeymoon. As newlyweds, we upgraded to one of the villas with a personal pool and it was worth every penny!

Accommodations: The villa was absolutely amazing! It was so nice to have your own private pool and deck to take a morning swim overlooking the jungle. There was an outdoor shower (which was great!) and a bathroom as big as my current apartment. The bed was by far the best bed I've ever slept in at a hotel - we wound up nicknaming it the "cloud bed."

Service: Service here was amazing. I didn't really know what superior service was until we stayed here. Probably the best way to sum it up: every night we returned to our room which was freshly cleaned, with a bedtime story on our bed, and all of our soaps and condiments neatly arranged in height order! They also placed bookmarks in all of my books that we left out.

Grounds: the grounds are huge and hilly but you can ask for a ride from most of the buildings and be transported around the grounds by golf cart. Also, the grounds are immaculate. The grass is kept fresh and green and hand cut by the gardeners. They also have a nice rice patty and garden as well.

Exercise Facility: AMAZING! They serve you cold towels as you workout. They have extra shoes as well to borrow if you forget your tennis shoes. Their cold and hot plunge pools are truly breathtaking as well!

Food: There are so many good places to eat at in town, so we only ate breakfast here. However, it was an amazing breakfast everyday - starting with an amuse buse of the chef's choice. You dine overlooking the grounds with the river raging in the distance.

Getting into Town: We had no difficulty getting to and from the grounds. We typically took their complimentary transport, or a $8 or so cab.

We had two blissful nights at a villa in this resort. The resort is built into one of Bali’s ravine-like jungle river valleys and you enter via an aerial walkway to the main hotel building which is topped with a giant lily pond and seems as if it is suspended in the valley rather like part of the set of Avatar. The main building contains many of the rooms, with the rest spread out around the very large estate as duplex villas. You get around by golf cart or on foot, and the resort not only features the usual, highly decorative tropical greenery, but also vegetable and herb gardens and rice paddies planted and harvested by hand in the traditional Balinese manner. The setting is remarkable: spectacular, dramatic and very beautiful.

The villas we cannot recommend enough – we opted for a villa with a view of the valley but not on the river (having read some TripAdvisor reviews about early morning white water rafters disturbing the peace). All villas are topped by lily ponds covered by a bure style structure, and you descend a stone stairway to a spectacular outdoor/indoor living space with its own private (and I mean private) pool. The outdoor section contained a dining table and chairs and a Balinese divan. The indoor part contained a spacious bedroom furnished with Balinese antique statuary with all relevant mod cons. The bathroom was massive, with a dressing room, separate indoor and outdoor showers to suit your whim, a massive bath and his and hers vanities.

There are two restaurants: one in the main building with breathtaking views of the valley and river below and one right by the river itself. Both are worth a visit. We had an Indonesian BBQ at the latter at a table for two right by the river – the way the tables were arranged we seemed all on our own! Balinese delicacies like suckling pig and crispy skin duck were outstanding, as were the wonderful salads and desserts.

The Sayan is about 15 minutes from the centre of Ubud, which is not a tiny village but rather a major centre and the resort runs a shuttle bus every two hours or so to the centre, a subject of complaint by some other TA reviewers. We hired a car and driver for five hours – at USD 25 an hour, a very cheap and effective option. The drivers are all very keen to show you the best of Bali, don’t hustle you to craft shops you don’t want to go to, and make excellent personalised tour guides. We got a lot more out of the stops we made recommended by the driver than we did from the Ubud markets.

The resort also offers a free guided tour of the rice paddies, the forest and the neighbouring village of Sayan, which was amusing and informative – don’t miss it. Nor should you miss (if it’s on when you are there) the traditional Balinese dance performance held in the lobby – an opportunity to experience traditional dance in somewhat quieter surroundings than the palace in Ubud.

What suggestions could we make for improvement apart from not charging for WiFi? Nothing at all. Keep doing what you’re doing, Four Seasons!

I have been to almost every luxury hotel in Bali. The Amans offer amazing service, the 4 Seasons Jimbaran has a beautiful location, the Bulgari has superlative villas... but the 4 Seasons at Sayan offers all of this, and more... I would classify it as a MUST STAY hotel in the world.

So what's the most amazing thing about this hotel, I hear you ask?? Location! What an incredible location.. perched above the river, and immersed in padi fields (yes there are actual rice terraces in the hotel!). It's design is also simply magnificent. Designed by my family friend, John Heah, it is ideal in the setting of the hills of Ubud. The central building rises from the riverbed like a spaceship yet hardly intrudes on the surrounding countryside. The villas are well separated and designed such that you hardly notice they are there. Thoughtful architecture..

And what about the accommodation? The villas are huge, especially ours, the Sayan Villa. We enjoyed nearly 4000 sq feet of space together with a swimming pool that you can actually swim in (unlike the ubiquitous plunge pools in other resorts). I know that some refurbishment is forthcoming as the villas are in need of some refreshments but overall they are functional, well-equipped and very very comfortable.

Yet what really makes this hotel shine is the gracious and efficient service. The housekeepers are efficient and go beyond their call of duty (when I asked for the floors to be cleaned outside our villa door, they were scrubbed with bleach!). The concierges are knowledgeable and usefully opinionated. The restaurant staff are smart and diligent. And the lady who manages this property is gracious and charming. All in all, a fantastic team led by experienced managers!

I would strongly recommend this property to anyone who visits Bali or the region. It's a special place run by special staff. Stay at a beach resort like Amankila or the Bulgari, and then come here to truly chill out....

The resort is breathtaking. The staff goes above and beyond to make you feel like family. The food is amazing, the pool is over the top. Our room was completely private and relaxing. i cannot wait to go back!