Fully staffed villa in Bali: who does what, and tipping

A fully staffed villa in Bali usually comes with a team rather than a single person: a villa manager, housekeeping, a cook or butlers, a gardener, and security. The exact mix changes from one house to the next, and so does what "included" covers — groceries, breakfast and events are the usual grey areas. Tipping is appreciated but not always required, and the first thing to check is whether a service charge is already on the bill.

The team you usually find

The roles below are the ones that come up in the villa listings we read. Not every villa has all of them.

• The villa manager. The person you deal with: arrival, questions, problems, the bill at the end. In one listing the service charge is paid directly to the manager at the end of the stay.
• Housekeeping. Daily cleaning and bed-making, in one listing timed to suit the guests.
• A chef or cook. One listing describes a chef who prepares dishes to suit your preferences, including traditional Balinese recipes. Some villas have no cook at all, and the butlers handle breakfast.
• Butlers. In one listing they prepare breakfast every morning, help with cocktails, set the table, serve food and wine and do all the washing-up.
• A gardener.
• Security — in one listing a security guard, in another night-time security staff.

What "included" often leaves out

The staff are part of the stay; what they work with may not be. Three things to ask before you arrive:

1. Groceries. In one listing, grocery delivery and stocking the villa before arrival are not included. In another, the butlers shop with money the guests provide, and the manager returns the receipt and the change.
2. Breakfast. Included in some houses, not in others — one listing with a full team still lists breakfast as not included.
3. Events. A villa can be staffed for a dinner and still forbid a party. One listing presented as suitable for weddings allows no event without prior approval.

Ask too when the staff are on site, and who to call outside those times. Renting a villa in Bali covers the rest of the booking, and a private chef in a Bali villa goes further into meals.

Living with staff

A staffed villa is a house with people working in it, and a few habits make it easy on both sides. A Seminyak resort's etiquette page for its guests puts them plainly:

• Courtesy, and the house rules on shoes, TV volume or pool use.
• Staff announce themselves when they come in to clean or serve; if you want privacy, say so.
• Ask before photographing staff.
• Leave the offerings alone. The small palm-leaf trays called canang sari are sacred: do not step on them, move them for a photo or take them as souvenirs.
• Keep music and voices at a considerate volume, especially near other villas and at night.

Tipping, without the arithmetic

Tipping in Bali is appreciated but not always required, according to the same resort page, which adds three things: check your bill for a service charge before tipping, a service charge on the bill may be shared among the staff, and Western tipping habits should not be assumed. A Ubud luxury hotel's article on tipping goes further for villas: you can tip at a luxury villa the way you would at a luxury hotel — the cleaners, butlers, housekeepers, personal chefs and massage therapists.

How to give it:

• Find out first whether a service charge is part of the bill, and who it goes to.
• Hand it over directly when you can, or leave it in a small envelope somewhere obvious.
• Ask the manager how the team shares tips, if you would rather leave one envelope for everyone at the end of the stay.

None of the sources we read sets an amount that everyone agrees on, and we do not suggest one: it is your call, and it should follow the service you had.

What FirstBali's villa pages tell you

Every villa is different, so the question to ask is what the staff covers in the house you are considering — who is on site, what they do, what is extra. Browse the villas and ask the concierge, who asks the owner before you commit. Anything beyond the house's own staff — a chef for an evening, a driver, help with children — is a request: the concierge checks what can be arranged and comes back to you; nothing is promised before that. For cars with a driver, see the transport page.

How to ask

Send the dates, the group, the area and what you want the staff to handle — meals, a dinner for an occasion, help with children. The concierge comes back with the villas that fit and what each one's staff covers. A stay is confirmed only once the owner has confirmed it.

Read next: renting a villa in Bali, large villas for groups and a private chef in a Bali villa.