Samsara Soul Escape Villas Gili Air

Samsara Soul Escape is two villas and two pools on the quiet west side of Gili Air, a four-minute walk from the beach and the sunset. Each villa is built for two around its own pool, with a garden wall for privacy and a kitchen you will actually use. Guests on Booking.com rate it 9.7 out of 10 across more than a hundred stays, and the reviews keep coming back to the same three things: the pool, the privacy, and a team that answers on WhatsApp.

The villas

Both villas follow the same plan. A high timber roof over one open room, with the bed, a sofa corner and a proper kitchen island under it, and a wall of folding doors that opens the whole thing onto the pool. The walls mix river stone, reclaimed wood and painted panels, so it feels more like a small Balinese house than a hotel room. Behind the bedroom is a semi-open bathroom with a rain shower under the sky and a garden of its own. Outside, a wooden deck, a daybed with an umbrella, and the pool, long enough to swim a few strokes rather than just cool off. Air conditioning, fast Wi-Fi (guests measure around 40 Mbps) and a stocked mini-bar are included.

One-Bedroom Villa with private pool

One large double bed, private pool, open kitchen and outdoor bathroom, for two guests. There are two of these and no other category, which is the point: you are never sharing anything but the gate. No extra beds, so it is a couples’ place, or a solo traveller who wants space.

Eating

Breakfast is delivered to the villa every morning, with coffee, fresh juice, fruit and a cooked plate that changes with the day: pancakes, eggs, an omelette with local bread. Eat it on the deck or with your feet in the pool. During the day you order food and drinks by WhatsApp and they arrive at the villa, or you walk four minutes to the west-coast beach cafes for lunch and the sunset. The mini-bar drinks are included in the rate.

Location and getting there

The villas sit on Jalan Mandala, inland on the western side of the island, among coconut trees and a few neighbours. That puts you on the sunset side, away from the harbour strip and its evening noise, with the calmest snorkelling water on Gili Air a short walk away. The harbour, where the fast boats from Bali and the public boats from Bangsal arrive, is about fifteen minutes on foot or a few minutes by cidomo, the island’s horse cart. There are no cars or scooters on Gili Air. The villas lend you bicycles, which is how everyone gets around. The loop of the island takes about half an hour at a slow pace.

From Bali, fast boats run from Padang Bai and Serangan to Gili Air in two to two and a half hours, weather permitting. From Lombok’s airport it is about two hours by car to Bangsal harbour, then fifteen minutes on the public boat. We book the crossing with your stay and the villa staff meet you at the harbour.

Diving and snorkelling from here

Gili Air has a handful of dive centres along the east and south coasts, all within a ten-minute cycle of the villas, and they share the same sites around the three islands: turtle-heavy slopes at Meno Wall and Turtle Heaven, the Bounty wreck off Gili Meno, and drift dives on the deeper walls when the current runs. Snorkelling straight off the west beach is good for turtles in the morning. If you want to dive, tell us when you book and we pair the villa with a centre and a schedule. See our Gili Islands guide for the sites, the season and how the three islands differ.

Good to know

• Check-in from 13:00, check-out by 11:00. Arrive early and they store your bags while the villa is finished.
• Rates are per villa per night for two, breakfast, mini-bar drinks, Wi-Fi and bicycles included.
• Honeymoon or celebration floral set-up can be arranged on request.