Jimbaran a 'Kemang' in the making

Andra Wisnu ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Denpasar   |  Mon, 08/11/2008 10:34 AM  |  Bali

The hills of Jimbaran have become a new high-class tourist destination, with boutique villas and five-star hotels continuing to pop up.

Long-established five-star hotels in the area, including the Ritz Carlton and the Four Seasons, have paved the way for a slew of foreign and domestic investors to develop luxury boutique villas in the area, according to Robert Murdoch, owner of Serai Club, a high-class resort set to be completed by the end of the year.

Robert, whose Serai Club will cost his company somewhere between US$14 million (Rp 127.4 billion) and $15 million to build, plans to offer 23 luxury boutique villas, each complete with a private pool and a 24-hour butler service.

"I believe that Jimbaran could become a new high-class market establishment in Bali," Robert said.

"I even think Jimbaran may end up being the Kemang or Menteng of Bali," he added, referring to districts in South and Central Jakarta, respectively, where many expatriates live and tourists visit.

Jimbaran, which is located in South Kuta and is a 10-minute drive from Ngurah Rai International Airport, is considered a late bloomer compared to rival tourist destination spots on the island, including Sanur, Kuta and Nusa Dua.

"Sanur and Kuta are perceived as more lucrative because tourists prefer beaches to hilly, naturally beautiful places like Jimbaran," Murdoch said.

Construction in Jimbaran is made more difficult by the area's bed of soft limestone, he said.

"But there was simply nowhere else better to build because rapid development has been reducing good real-estate space," Robert said.

Rendi Parangguan, a resort and hotel investor in Bali, said Jimbaran provided a more exclusive atmosphere than Kuta or Sanur.

"Everywhere else in Bali is becoming more dense, and Jimbaran simply has more class because it caters to the well-to-do crowd," he said.

"So far, from what I've seen in my survey of Jimbaran, it has a lot of potential."

Murdoch said Jimbaran attracted hotel and villa developers because of its strategic location in the center of southern Bali.

"In fact, we're marketing the villas as homes that outsiders can buy," he said.

A one-bedroom villa at the already-completed Serai Club will cost about $500 per night during regular season and $700 per night during peak season in the first year, Murdoch said.

"And we already have bookings for 2009," he said.

A similar villa at the Club in Legian could cost more than $900 during regular season and $1,100 per night during peak season.

"The villas here are expensive and the developers have put a lot of money and effort into making them because we believe our investments will pay off," said Murdoch.

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