Fancy staying in the cosy colonial-inspired private home of an interior designer on the Island Bali? Ong Chin Huat checks into the eclectic Maison Simba and falls head over heels for its incredible decor and amazing location.
Those who crave a comfortable home away from home on the tropical paradise island of Bali could do worse than check into Maison Simba, a unique colonial-style private luxury guest house located among scenic green rice fields and lush foliage.
Located on the south-west part of Bali, just 15 km from the glamour and glitz of Seminyak, Maison Simba is the vision of a renowned European interior designer and party planner extraordinaire who had adopted the Island of the Gods as his second home.
Inspired by the black and white bungalows built by British in Singapore, it took three years of research, design and construction to finish Maison Simba and it was certainly a proud moment for its owner when it opened its doors in 2015 to welcome the first guest.
Consisting of several living areas and three bedrooms located on the first floor of the house, each bedroom is in a different décor complete with their own names – Angkor, Borobudur and Luang Prabang. There is also a separate traditional Javanese teak house or “Rumah Gladak” located on the grounds of Maison Simba for those who wish to be separate from the main house and experience a more local and authentic Balinese stay. “I’ve named the three guest rooms after places and sites which have impressed me greatly,” said its owner.
The owner of Maison Simba is an ardent collector of antiques and objects d’art, decorating and furnishing Maison Simba wasn’t chore for him but something he found pleasure in doing. “I travelled all over Indonesia as well as India, Burma, Cambodia, Laos and Thailand to source for the furniture, fabrics and decorations for Maison Simba. The colourful fabrics for the curtains and cushions in the three guest rooms are from Jaipur in India while the collection of stencil drawings and old photographs of temples framed on the wall were bought in Luang Prabang in Laos,” he tells me while showing me around the Luang Prabang room.
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