Lutwala Dive and Bungalows — Hotel in Gili Trawangan

We checked in and out on the same day, something l have never done before. Why? Because the room (triple deluxe) had a horrible musty smell that could not be fixed even after they sprayed a copious amount of sickly air freshener (this in fact made it hard to be in there long enough to remove our suitcases). There was mould growing on the ceiling and a total lack of fresh air. The room was dark with blinds on every window that could only be up or down, not louvered. We cancelled on Booking.com and the policy was that we pay one night, which l was prepared to do. I was held up in the reception for at least half an hour, trying to pay for the one night, the manager was insisting that we pay for the 5 nights we had booked and then get refunded for four. I refused to pay for more than one night, she spent ages on her phone and iPad doing who knows what. I showed her the message from the property ( l assumed the owner) saying we had to pay one night only, still she kept insisting we pay for 5. Eventually she spoke to manager, as did l and we were finally allowed to pay the one night and escape the heat of the tiny reception area. Like it wasn't bad enough that l was paying for a smelly room l could not bare to spend the night, l had to be harassed to pay 5 nights when clearly it's only one. What an ordeal. Oh l forgot to mention the loud intermittent hissing coming from directly outside the room. I asked is this noise happened all night and was told that it did. Well, who would want to put up with that? Steer clear of this place Pools looked dirty as well. The response from the owner was full.of lies, we were shown to the room and not asked to pay beforehand, we were very willing to pay the one night but the manager was insisting that we pay five, to say the room had no odour is laughable, mould was clearly growing in one corner of the ceiling, the staff did not tell us that any of the windows opened, we were told that the loud hissing noise was from the air-conditioning and that it would continue during the night, at no time did l push past any staff, nor step behind the counter, nor grab the phone from the manager. I showed her the message from you the owner stating that we only had to pay for one night, she still insisted that we pay for five, she spoke to you on the phone and passed the phone to me to speak to you, and then she finally let us pay for the one night and leave. It took us at least 30 minutes to be able to pay, which we could have done straight away had the manager been competent and aware of the booking.com cancellation policy. Your false accusations and threats are pathetic. The room stinks...

After a month traveling in the area, this place was my least favorite. I booked it based on other reviews, but my experience was mediocre.

Our room had a faint smell of cat pee, the bathroom had an exterior door where diving instructors would hang out in the mornings, we would hear the Americsn managers yell at employees, we chose not to swim in the pools because we saw multiple people wash goat poop off in the pool water, we’d have to tell workers the breakfast bar needed to be restocked, etc.

Additionally, I saw diving instructors chat with women at the restaurant who obviously felt uncomfortable by their advances.

I’m sure the diving is great! And I understand my bias - but I’m allowed to have an opinion, especially after traveling around and staying at better places that were the same or less priced.

**adding that the managers respond in a very catty way. I did hear staff being yelled at behind closed doors, I did witness people cleaning their poop feet in the pool, the buffets were empty half the days of my stay - telling a customer these these didn’t happen is offensive. I did witness a woman leaving shortly after being talked to by a staff member (I believe it was a diving instructor, they were a white dude).

Also, I was not informed about the circumstances of the room. I take responsibility for assuming the room would be like the others.

Additionally, I did not pay a discounted rate. I just reviewed and I paid the same rate as listed for the bungalows on their website. I did not pay a discounted rate as...

This was booked by makemytrip for my family vacation. Its a budget property which I was not told by MMT. So was a bit disappointed. Here are the key take aways. |Location- Its on the north side of island, broken or no roads. Accessibility is a big big issue. Tough to ride a bicycle. And gets lonely after dark. ||South of the island that is a happening place.Tough||Amenities- Good snorkelling facilities. |3 small pools. ||Rooms- 6 cottages. No room service, no toiletries,no blankets & no telephones in the room. Toughest part is American charging points. Cobwebs in the room.Old model AC’s No water jugs or bottles.||Bathroom- Big ones but water goes on off. No shelf and no toiletries (see pic). No exhaust fans either.||Comfort - cottages are like one above other.Its all wooden so whatever the guy next door does, there will always be noise at night. Since no telephones in the room then u must be prepared to run to reception all the time which is exhausting. No tumblers, cups and water kettle in the room.||Breakfast - just bread butter jam fruits and some juice and coffee.complimentary ||Staff is good and friendly. ||Manager: Property is owned by some American so attitude is like ‘we don’t care’. I went to the manager for issues i faced and she was like ‘ we don’t provide, but u can buy’. Now who carries soaps these days. They don’t have adapters for charging points.management should put some money for amenities.||Better to...