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First Impression of Bali and Mandapa
Bali has been one of the places my mom has spoken of for quite some time. She’s a very spiritual woman with an innate curiosity towards faith and world culture. Somehow after taking her to Beijing, my dad and I were still able to surprise her with Bali as a destination on our surprise Around the World birthday trip. What made the surprise even more extraordinary has been Mandapa. This is one of the few places on the trip that we are actually paying for the stay. We used a great Virtuoso rep who helped secure us a very special experience, including an upgrade to a Rice Paddy Pool Villa and welcome birthday cake. In planning the trip we debated Mandapa ( A Ritz Carlton Reserve – 1 of 3 in the world), Amandari, and Four Seasons at Sayan. Ultimately we choose Mandapa and could not imagine a better stay.
Ubud is the cultural center of Bali. Peace, serenity, spirituality, and healing are the reasons to visit. You’ll even see monkies 😉
The downtown area of Ubud has become quite developed and touristed. Escape from the city center to spiritual refuges like Mandapa to clear your mind, body, and soul. Healers abound.
Overlooking the Ayung river Mandapa has 25 villas and 35 suites.
Words. Pictures. Emoticons. Nothing does this place justice. The people, my goodness, the people. Gratitude, graciousness, and joy radiate from their being.
We were given Villa 11.
Mandapa isn’t even 2 years old, yet the entire property feels ancient.
We arrived very late after a 5 hour delay from Singapore. Instead of a traditional check-in we hopped straight in a buggy and did an in-room registration. We were upgraded from a Mandapa Suite to a Rice Paddy View Villa. Incredible to say the least. MILES WAS SWINGING FROM THE TREES!!!!!
Kubu is rated #1 on the island. We dined in a cocoon overlooking the ayung. The artistry, technique, and design should be in every world’s best discussion.
My folks were pretty happy with Miles’ planning 😉
On Easter we had healing sessions, enjoyed Easter brunch, and relaxed as a family. Miles deserved his mimosa 😉
More to come.
I’m still on the trip and am trying to get a post out every day. Mandapa deserves a complete review which will come when I arrive back in the states, but until then…if you’re looking to unplug, relax, celebrate, and enrich your mind, body, and soul – look no further. You can follow the story on my instagram too: @zacharyburrabel or on Miles’ @milesthemonkey
Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Welcome Offer
60k Points after $4k spend in 3 months
Annual Fee
$95
Points Earned
Transferrable Chase Ultimate Rewards
- 60k points after $4k spend in 3 months
- Worth $750 in Chase Travel℠ and way more if you maximize transfer partners
- 5x on all travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
- 3x on dining, including eligible delivery services for takeout & dining out
- 3x on select streaming services
- 3x on online grocery purchases
- (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
- $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit via Chase Travel℠
- The begins immediately for new cardmembers and after your account anniversary for existing cardmembers
- 2x on all other travel
- 10% Anniversary Bonus
- Every year you keep the card, your total spend will yield a 10% points bonus. If you spend $10k in a year, you’ll get 1k bonus points
- Chase Sapphire Preferred continues to redeem at 1.25c in the Chase Travel℠ and the slew of other benefits remain in tact including Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver ( primary ), purchase protections, etc.
- Points are transferrable to 14 Ultimate Rewards partners
- Redeem in Chase Travel℠ for 1.25 cents per point
- No foreign transaction fees
- Suite of Travel and Purchase Coverage
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver is my favorite
- Get complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2024
- $95 Annual Fee
We keep an up to date spreadsheet that lists the best ever offers: You can find that spreadsheet here.
Historically 80k is a very, very good offer and hit in both 2022 and 2023. In 2021, we saw the offer hit an all time high of 100k. Who knows if that will ever come back.
Main Cast:
Cards that earn flexible points and should be used on the bulk of your purchases.
Supporting Cast:
Cards that earn fixed points in the currency of the airline/hotel and can not be transferred at attractive rates. These cards yield benefits that make it worth keeping, but not necessarily worth putting a lot of your everyday spend on.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® is exceptional starter card and offers transferrable Ultimate Rewards, and pairs well with other Chase cards.
If you carry this card alongside Chase’s cashback cards like the Chase Freedom Flex℠and Chase Freedom Unlimited® or the business versions: Ink Business Cash® , Ink Business Unlimited® you can combine the points into Preferred account and transfer into hotel and airline partners
Annual fee is quite low at $95 a year + you get a 10% anniversary bonus on points + $50 hotel credit in Chase travel.
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