**** RUMAH SAYA **** Balinese house by the sea

Lovely property with tranquil gardens across a quiet street from beach.

Everything was simply perfect - clean, beautiful, efficient, and therefore, relaxing. You can’t beat the location as well - close to great restaurants or simply bunker down and relax in the beautiful surroundings!

We loved everything about our stay at Rumah Saya. The grounds were fabulous.The house suited our family very well. We all picked our room. What was especially inviting was the way we could all commune outdoors whether by the pool or one of the wonderful sitting areas. There were wonderful tables for all 13 of us to eat together. Then, just out the gate we could be at the beach or one of the many eating places along the waters edge. The bread truck came by every morning, so we had fresh baked goods almost every morning. We went into Cefalù twice and to Castelbuono for a wonderful wine dinner. We also went into Palermo for a day. We had Loradonna for a 1/2 day tour. The one negative was the kitchen set up. It was difficult to make coffee for 10. The Italian way is great, but we had to wait our turn for our morning fix. The knives were not sharp. We could of used a few more cutting boards. But, we made due with this beautiful bit of heaven. Selim was there to answer any questions we had. Also the art in the house was very interesting and very suited to the villa!❤️

This villa made our holiday! We received a warm welcome from Daniele and Saleem, and a fantastic spread of local pastries, cheeses, charcuterie and fruit. The photos on the website do not do this home justice!! From the lush gardens to the beautiful interiors, the whole property was perfect for a large group of friends who love hanging out with each other around the pool, but also need moments separate from the group to do a little work or read or just to nap. The beach across the road from the villa was beautiful, clean and not too crowded the week we were there in late June. There is a long sea front perfect for morning jogs and evening strolls. We did a combination of dining in the nearby restaurants at the beach and elevated town of Campofelice and taking out pizza to dine on the long table that easily accommodated the 10 of us. The beautiful town of Cefalu was an easy 15min drive or train trip away, (the train station is only a 10 min walk. The pool was beautiful and well maintained by Saleem, who lives next to the villa and was so helpful and generous with his time and expertise! One fabulous feature was that each morning there was baker with a van that would come by the villa calling pane, pane or bread and would have fresh pastries and loaves of bread, foccacia and other treats that would be the makings of a fantastic breakfast. I would definitely recommend this home to my own friends and family. Thank you to Both Daniele and Saleem!

Our family, 7 adults, had an absolutely marvellous vacation for 9 days. And mostly thanks to Rumah Saya with all facilities and maximized relaxation du to the calming environment. And all the top level grades to Santo and Celim which service made our stay perfect! Thanks from the Fellenius family./Daniel

Our vacation started with a warm welcome of wine and treats from the owner. The property was better than expected with a beautiful tropical setting. The location is on the beach side with restaurants and train station nearby. All 11 of us had plenty of room to relax. A pleasant surprise of this vacation home is the caretaker Salem, who lived behind the property. He did whatever he could to make our stay comfortable. He chaperoned us to the grocery store and train station as well as assisted with grilling out. He even moved cushions under cover if it were going to rain. We were grateful to have him around and he will be missed. Secondly, the property owner addressed our request for a local meal prepared on site. He generously volunteered to prepare a fabulous meal of local cuisine. It was a highlight of the week! He also provided tips and recommendations to restaurants in the area. Definitely a generous host. Thank you for sharing your vacation home with us.

We stayed at Rumah Saya for one week with 10 adults and 5 kids and it was just wonderful. The villa is superb - spacious, safe, kitted out, well maintained and clean. The surrounding gardens and pool are spectacular and make you feel like you are encapsulated in your own little paradise. The owners are extremely friendly, attentive and welcoming. We had fresh fruit and small cakes on arrival and pastries on departure! There was nothing that was too much to ask. They arranged for small single mattress in exchange for a travel cot so one of our toddlers slept more soundly, and helped us when we needed a doctor when one of the kid's feel sick. The can also arrange to cook your party a meal if you so wish. There is also a very helpful man called Telim always available to respond to your needs. He helped us find the train station, brought out tricycles and garden toys for the kids and helped us light the barbecue one evening. The surrounding area is great too. Just opposite is a beach with some bars, restaurants and cafes. At the time we visited it was out of season so the beach and cafes were very quiet as they were setting up and cleaning the beach for the season ahead. I expect it would be more lively the later it gets in the summer. In terms of general location, you are 40 mins from Palermo and the airport and 25 mins from beautiful Cefalu and just in land you can wander around a stunning natural reserve called La Madonie. Whether you go by car and visit a cute small village like Castelbuono or take a walk right into the woods - the rolling mountains and views are not to be missed! Nearby there are improvements being made the road leading to the seafront and a main train line being renovated. I expect when that is finished the connections to Campofelice will be brilliant. I really wished we had booked for a longer stay as it was a very special holiday. Gracie mille to the entire Tinnerelli Family for your wonderful hospitality and good luck for the future! Marilena and Family

The owners met us when we arrived, gave us a tour and had prepared a lovely late arrival lunch with some local delicacies for the 6 adults (1 Scottish and 5 Italians) and 4 children that descended on the property. Property was exactly as expected, better in some respects as the photos don't do the property justice. The outside living areas are fantastic, with plenty of space and furniture to support us all. The pool was great, the kids especially loved it. The beach across the road (30 meters away) was also very good (a little messy as it was the end of season) but a great advantage to the end of season was that the beach was not too busy or overcrowded. The owners of the villa were very welcoming, dropping in a few times during our stay to make sure we had everything we needed and the caretaker Celim was also very good (and discrete) and generally helped us with BBQ and local directions when needed. Cefalu is an easy 15 minute drive, Supermarkets all within easy driving distance (5 minutes) and local Pizzeria and Bars are only a short 5 minute walk away. We would recommend this villa to anyone and we all had a great time

On arrival, the property immediately strikes one as a very lovely and secluded place to stay. Indeed, the facilities are high standard, ie 6 bedrooms, large kitchen/living area, excellent walled garden giving good privacy, wide verandahs on 3 sides, a first class swimming pool and a garden of tropical plants and 2 Indonesian-looking huts. The sea is a 30 yards walk away - across a road and the beach. The property is looked after by Salim, originally from Bangladesh, who stays unobtrusively in accommodation with his family behind a hedge. He is available for any queries that might arise, is cheerful and willing to assist (eg preparing a BBQ, location of supermarket etc). On the downside, we were disappointed by the bedding - eg rock hard pillows ; and there was a continual problem with hot water (or rather, the lack of it). It seemed to be a lottery which bathroom (and often the kitchen) was going to have hot water. Salim did his best but we did not want to call him out continuously. If there had been no problem with the hot water, we would have voted this place as 5**

My wife and I along with 4 very close friends arrived at the villa on Saturday September 16, 2017. Our stay at Rumah Saya started out poorly as we arrived at 6pm to find the caretaker Celim and a cleaning lady still trying to get the house in order due the previous guests leaving very late. Celim unloaded our suitcases as he tried to explain the situation. We decided to head to a nearby supermarket to load up on food, drinks, toilet paper, napkins, charcoal for BBQ, etc. We did not realize that we also needed spices, cleaning supplies, paper towels, shampoo, body, dishwasher and dish soap which the villa does not come supplied with. We arrived back at the villa beautifully lit up to find everything in order. The air conditioned rooms and property was immaculate! The only downfall was the lack of towels due to the previous guests use of all the towels (Santo the owner should buy more towels to avoid this). Celim delivered them to us in the am after air drying.Villa has a washing machine located in the outside bathroom but no dryer. The villa is equipped with an additional outside kitchen with a small refrigerator , freezer, stove and dishwasher, etc. Celim was nice enough to give us ice cubes the 1st evening and was very helpful throughout our stay! He kept the pool (not heated) and outside property clean. He does not clean any part of the interior of the villa after you arrive. The property is located close to major roadways to access other parts of Sicily which we took advantage of! Cefalu is 15 minutes away via car or train and Palermo 45 minutes by train and 45-75 minutes away by car depending on traffic (watch for speed traps use Waze app.).The train station is a 5 minute walk from the villa and there are 2 very good restaurants and a wine bar cafe within a 5 minute walk from the villa along the beach. The village of Campofelice di Rocella is a 5 minute drive. Since the beach clubs shut down in early September we found the rocky beach littered with cigarettes, plastic bottles and broken glass. I was told that the beach is clean during the summer season. Lots of construction along beach and surrounding area. This was really the only regret of our stay. The beach at Cefalu was sandy and clean! The decking around the pool was loose and many screws were popping up. I have been told that this will be repaired in November. Overall we had a wonderful stay at Rumah Saya and would like to return with family and friends in the future!