Pera ONE Villas - Private Villa Gili Trawangan — Hotel in Gili Trawangan

Stayed here for a couple days to explore the Gili islands.

Staff were friendly and attentive. They were quick to respond, and generally available for any issue or request. They caused a good impression from the beginning, and were very welcoming and warm.

The villas are quite nice, the private pool smells of the correct chemicals (meaning that it's properly maintained and disinfected), and the setting can feel very intimate, tucked away in the island. For the price and compared to other hotels/resorts, it was lacking a bit in luxury feel. No bathrobes, no slippers, no snacks or refreshments (except on arrival, they give you iced tea which is very very good). No cushions on the loungers on the deck, some stains in the towels, one towel was s bit ripped and not in super condition. Also the bidet in the toilet did not work. But they cleaned the room daily, the bed linen was very good, the mattress very comfortable and they changed the towels also every day. Wifi was very good.

The breakfast is very abundant, so you start your day with a lot of energy. Though the juice is not as good as in other places, and some food items could be tastier. But overall, it's a good breakfast and with a lot of food

The AC works very well, and the outside shower is very cool, making you feel like you are in the forest. But the soap they give you could be improved, the one they have does not smell super good.

There is indeed (as other reviewers pointed out) a mosque that just does not shup up, this is maybe the most annoying when a kid in the mosque starts yelling out while you try to relax. When they call to prayer though it's not that annoying, but I have the impression that most of the times it's just kids yelling in the microphone. But also this is a cultural thing and not the hotel's fault.

There is a huge mountain of trash one street away from the villas in a field with cows and chickens where some guys just burn trash 24/7. The first day I was a bit surprised but tbh it was not too smelly or anything. In the evenings, households burn their organic residue, but this does not smell bad either.

They give you a bike to tour. This is good, but the bikes are really not in good condition at all. Most of them have super rusty chains which stain your clothes, no brakes, seats that sink down,and on one bike the pedal fell off and we had to walk back 25min pushing the bike, as we were on the opposite side of the island. Location is good (IMO) as it's not directly in the port (noisy part) and it's closer to the snorkeling and beach bars in the north. However the ride back at night with no light is funny...

In all, it was a good experience, however maybe lacking slightly in luxury feel considering the price point of the hotel.

Generally though, I would reccomend...

The staff is young but very friendly and supportive. Easy communication and ordering via WhatsApp. The Food is delicious and very affordable and provides a wide variety. The rooms in the private villas are just awesome and cozy, gives you a feel of luxury. There is free drinking water available in the room. Bike rental is also included and recommended to use and please avoid taking the horse taxis. There are also some small, sweet cats around.

Very important to know is: the very next building is a mosque where public singing/praying takes place 7 times a day (3x each) and they use a microphone with a powerful sound system blasting out to the whole island. The point is, they start with that at 04:50am and it is extremely loud so you cannot avoid or ignore it, you will get awake every. Single. Morning. Earplugs are fully useless due to the high volume. Sometimes at the day prayer/singing they just yell in the microphone making it hard for me believing it is a prayer. I recommend using earplugs though, as they wake up the whole island including the chicken, which will start screaming. And there are a lot of chicken around. as soon as the sun sets, the locals around start burning some material. Idk what they burn but it is not smelling like a cozy bonfire, it smells not nice. It will last all night long and is very present if you chill outside in the living room. So you also need to turn off the air Condition very early otherwise you have the smell in your bedroom the whole night. there are multiple wifi but none of them works properly so make sure you bring a local (e) Sim with you, as only telkomsel ensures connection. the location is in between the busy areas on the coasts, so the location around is not very nice and might cause all the points above.

I total my stay was very nice and I would recommend staying here. But you really need to be aware of the points above. This accommodation at either east or west coast in the busy area would...

The staff at Pera One Villas were excellent! They were friendly, brilliant service always with a smile, checking that we have everything we need and greeting us 'home' every time we returned to the villa, offering free bikes every time we headed out. Breakfast was plentiful and delicious with options to mix it up over our stay. Alex delivered breakfast most days and was always so cheerful and polite, a lovely start to our day. Often they would surprise us with a yummy afternoon tea treat if we were in. The room service food and drinks was also great prices and delicious and fresh every time. |The villa itself was a tranquil piece of paradise all to ourselves, beautifully designed. Loved having a private pool with outdoor area to eat, aircon worked great, mini fridge, open air bathroom out the back was unexpected but we really liked it, still secluded. Never ran into other guests and the noise didn't seem to carry much between villas. Earplugs were provided and I did have to use them every night due to sounds I'm not used to, including the dripping sound of the aircon and the early morning prayer over loud speakers (this is done all over the island and not a Pera One fault). Was able to sleep through with ear plugs though. |The location was great for us. It's a 15min walk back to the harbour side coastal hub, but really anywhere on the island is walking distance and we enjoyed being away from the main thoroughfare once done for the night. Felt totally safe walking anywhere on the island, at any time. |Overall, we cannot fault Pera One. They provided an all round amazing experience and we would not hesitate to return or recommend to others! Thank you so much for making our romantic holiday away so easygoing and memorable 🙏❤ We honestly can't wait...