Amanjiwo — Hotel in Java

We stayed here for 3 nights and had booked the Cultural Trial package (3 cultural activities of choice, breakfast, afternoon tea and return airport transfer) which was a great offer and can be recommended.||It was our 4th stay at an Aman property and we were therefore expecting a certain standard. Here we were a bit disappointed by some things we had experienced differently before:|Housekeeping was unfortunately not invisible and even forgot about our room one day. The little „presents“ (e.g. cable binders, bedtime treats and tag for the suitcase) fell short or rather sparse. The minibar contained only some complimentary items but also others which were not included. Our room was located near the staffs parking lot where people were having loud conversations early in the morning and late in the evening, from somewhere we could also hear a TV playing around the clock. At the pool complimentary water was served and loungers were nicely prepared but other than that service was rather ordinary. At the afternoon tea we were often not served but had to find our way by ourselves. In general I think it would be helpful if every room would have one specific, reliable contact person because we always encountered someone new while planning or communicating and this led to a lot of confusion on both sides, also because things were not followed up by. Also the kids club was unfortunately not staffed. |All of this is portrayed in the light of the previous experiences we had at other Aman properties, if this would have been our first encounter with Aman, we would not have noticed or be bothered by these things at all. Also I did not communicate most of this directly because I wanted to spend a relaxing time there without constantly nagging about basically small details. But nonetheless I noticed them.||Other than this we enjoyed the scheduled activities very much. The pool itself is just amazingly beautiful! Do not miss the daily yoga sessions there.|The Hotel, its surroundings and views are stunning and the food was excellent. The room was overwhelmingly beautiful with an expansive terrace and atmosphere. The coloring amenities in the room were a nice treat. Staff in general were amazing and super friendly. There is no constant music playing which we enjoyed very much because the nature around is just breathtaking. I did communicate about one larger issue that occurred and this matter was solved extremely well and quickly by Pandhu which I appreciated very much.|We would recommend Amanjiwo and would return (but to a different room).|Tip: Do a Sewa Volkswagen tour through the surrounding countryside. It is an activity only available at this particular town and it was beautiful and...

This resort, which was opened in 1997, is very well maintained. The architecture of the resort is unlike any other we have seen, and it is in total harmony with the Borobudur temple, which can be viewed from the resort. We stayed in a Pool Villa with a Borobudur view for 4 nights, and the villa was nicely designed. Nothing looked outdated or worn out, even though this resort was built many years ago.||We were checked in by an inexperienced and careless staff member, which made us question whether we had arrived at the wrong hotel and not an Aman property. We have never encountered a staff member like her in any of the Aman hotels we have visited, and she definitely needs more training. Fortunately, the rest of the team was fantastic. Everyone we met was friendly and caring, and we had a wonderful time staying while exploring the fascinating temples in the area.||In addition to the Borobudur temple, we also requested a tour to see the Prambanan temple, which was more than 90 minutes drive from the resort. The temple was well worth the time, and we highly recommend visiting it. There was daily lecture about Balinese culture or the history of the temples in the evening at the library, hosted by the resort’s anthropologist. We learned a lot more about the temples we visited from these talks.||The food at the resort was good and there was a lot of variety. We also had dinner at the Pak Bilal’s house, and on the eve of our departure, we had the Ramayana Royal Feast with a traditional dance performance. Both specialty dining experiences were well organized and very enjoyable. It was also interesting to visit the back of house and see the kitchen in operation. We had a lot of fun at our chocolate cooking class, making ice cream and soufflé.||I came here to celebrate my birthday, and I received wishes from every staff member I met, which I really appreciated. Not only did they present me a brownie birthday cake at breakfast, but they also presented another cake in the shape of Borobudur temple at dinner. They also decorated our villa with flowers and candles while we were out for dinner, which gave us a wonderful surprise. It was definitely a memorable birthday celebration.||The one thing we did not like about this resort is the lack of spa facilities. They turned one regular villa into a couple room and called it a Spa Suite, and they could only serve one party at a time. This could not meet the high demand for spa services from guests, and the massage treatment we had was an underwhelming spa experience. We were told they have plan to build a spa, and we consider this to be absolutely necessary to meet the requirements of...

I've had to wait a few weeks to write this review. This was my first Aman hotel stay ever so maybe I'm being a softy, but my experience (it's more than just a "stay") at Amanjiwo was literally a dream come true. I planned my visit a year in advance and spent weeks messaging back and forth with my concierge to plan my visit. I stayed five nights so I had plenty of time to enjoy the many experiences available through Amanjiwo as well as simply enjoy the resort itself. The welcome experience is something you have to see to believe, showered with flower petals and then escorted to a seat in the main rotunda. You really are treated like royalty. Every staff member I interacted with or simply passed by was exceedingly friendly. Maybe I'm naive but the friendliness seemed very genuine, not just the typical 5 star, I'm-friendly-because-I'm-obliged-to-be kind of way. The professional staff I interacted with seemed truly happy to try and make me happy. Greeted by name by everyone, even staff members I had not met before. ||But a special mention deserves to be given to the concierge staff and the individual guides. Poor Vivian was probably tired of hearing from me in advance of my trip. I wanted everything to be just right and she not only delivered, she went far above and beyond what is typical for a luxury hotel, even investigating the possibility of an excursion that I asked about that no one else has every asked about before. And my guide/driver, Arifin. Truly spectacular! He was knowledgable (led my tour of various temples in the Kedu Valley), friendly (always smiling and sharing stories), professional (acted as a translator at times), concerned for my well-being (providing bug spray before I knew I needed it), and just spectacular. ||The facilities and property are amazing, as you would expect. Maybe there are a couple of little indications of the properties age, but easily overlooked because of the overall immaculate impression you get.||The resort does not have a typical spa facility (no sauna, vitality pool, cold plunge, etc). Nonetheless, the two treatments I had in the spa suite were fantastic. My understanding is that there is a plan to build a traditional full spa facility. ||I did visit during Ramadan and more specifically, Eid fell during my stay. Be prepared for a lot of noise because of the celebration--cantors praying from the loudspeakers and fireworks on Eid. But, as a non-Muslim, it was great to be there during such an important holiday. ||Overall, this checked a lot of boxes for me. Cultural experiences, spiritual exploration, luxury stay...