Villa Athalla

Timber letters on the rendered entrance wall spell out ATHALLA, and beyond them the villa opens straight onto its own long pool. This is a Berawa villa built the way the good ones on this street are built: two floors, a lap pool running the length of the courtyard, and a living pavilion that slides open along its whole front so that the water is effectively part of the room. Planting softens the stone wall on the far side and a balcony walkway shades part of the terrace above. Berawa Beach and Batu Belig Beach are both around a five-minute drive, with the Berawa cafe and beach-club strip closer still.

The ground floor is one open room. A deep sand-toned sectional faces the glass with a live-edge timber coffee table in front of it, and a row of terracotta plates runs the length of the wall behind, the one flourish in an otherwise very calm space. The kitchen shares the same room, built around a black stone island with a live-edge breakfast bar and a patterned tile splashback behind the hob. A timber dining table with woven stools sits between the two. Coffee maker, kettle, blender, toaster, rice cooker and microwave are all there, so a household of six can feed itself without negotiating.

One bedroom sits on the ground floor, and a lit timber staircase climbs to the two above, each with sliding doors onto the balcony walkway. All three have a double bed, a private bathroom and their own sofa or chaise, which is the detail that makes this villa work for three couples or for parents travelling with older children. The bathrooms vary pleasantly: one has a live-edge timber vanity and a shower behind glass, another twin basins on concrete with a marble-lined shower, the third a pair of woven-framed mirrors above matching vessel basins. Room-darkening shades and air conditioning throughout.

Upstairs, the balcony is the quietest spot in the house. Woven sun loungers face out over the pool with frangipani leaning across the rail, and the light up there in the late afternoon is worth arranging your day around. Downstairs there is an outdoor shower for coming back from the beach, free parking on the premises, and staff who clean daily. The concierge takes care of airport transfers, car or scooter hire, a private cook, massages at the villa and anything else worth booking. Long stays are welcome too, which suits anyone treating Canggu as a base rather than a stopover.

Villa Athalla suits a group that wants Berawa on the doorstep without giving up space to itself. Three private bedrooms, a pool long enough to swim properly in and a balcony that catches the last of the sun make it easy to spend a whole day at home and still feel you have made the most of Canggu.