Nova Oasis 3

Nova Oasis 3 sits behind a pair of tall timber doors on a lane in central Canggu, close enough to Batu Bolong that the surf report matters at breakfast. Push through and the villa turns out to be arranged the long way round its pool: a narrow rectangle of green mosaic tile running almost the depth of the plot, the whole glazed ground floor down one side of it. A rendered white wall closes the other, broken by an arched niche where a rattan lantern hangs, and by a panel of rough stone carrying an outdoor rain shower. Two timber loungers sit at the far end under a palm. It is a small plot used with unusual discipline.

The pool’s best feature is built into it. At one corner a broad plaster platform is cantilevered out over the water and topped with a single thick mattress, bolsters propped against the render behind, so the daybed sits half over the pool and half on the terrace. It takes the late sun, and it is where the villa’s own photographs keep returning. Above it a first floor steps back behind a slatted timber screen and a run of planting, which keeps the courtyard private without shutting it in. At dusk the lanterns and the underwater lights come on together and the whole yard turns the colour of the water.

Inside, the ground floor is one room in white plaster. A built-in banquette drops a step below floor level along two walls, cushioned in oatmeal linen, facing a television set between arched display niches that hold pale ceramics and woven discs. A round jute rug and a low timber table fill the space between. Behind stands the kitchen: a pale stone island with an induction hob, a kettle and a toaster, and a long dark timber table for six under three rattan pendants. Both bedrooms take a king bed set into its own plaster arch, and both bathrooms run to concrete trough basins, round mirrors, vertical wall sconces and a sunken bath.

Staff come in daily to clean, and the concierge list that matters here leans towards families: a nanny, a pool fence for the long unfenced edge that runs the length of the terrace, and breakfast brought in to be eaten at the stone island or carried out to the daybed. Book the laundry early, since there is no machine in the villa. The rest is ordinary Canggu logistics, an airport car, a scooter, a surf lesson, a table somewhere at eight. A welcome drink, towels, fast Wi-Fi and a safe come with the stay, and somebody is on call around the clock to let you in.

Nova Oasis 3 is a new house and it shows in the detailing: the tiled pool, the step-down banquette, the arch behind each bed. Four people fit without anyone drawing the short straw, and Batu Bolong’s coffee and surf are close enough that the daybed is usually the harder sell.