Suprise temple in the villa, host made us choose between privacy and denying the locals their worship

[Royal0]

I booked a villa in Bali (for a month) with my fiance so that we could have privacy and relaxation.  Before arriving I had also arranged to cancel all housekeeping and breakfasts (for added privacy) which the host agreed to.

Upon arrival we discovered that the local temple was in between the pool and bedroom, the locals literally have to enter the living room to get to the site where they leave offerings on a daily basis. This was obviously not OK since we valued our privacy, so I contacted the host to request a refund so that I could make other arrangements. The host denied the request and instead told the locals (some of whom are the villa staff) that they could no longer pray at the site (where they have been going daily their entire lives) during our stay.

We came to Bali for privacy and peace, but also to discover the local cultures and traditions [albeit not in the living room of the villa I would be staying a month at.] The host's solution was so abhorrent that we decided to relocaateto another site at a total loss of about $3k rather than turn away the temple worshippers. I called Airbnb support in an attempt to rectify the situation and was told that since the host offered to remove the worhshipers that we cannot have a refund.

As an Airbnb host for about 10 years (7 as a superhost) I am shocked that the host would list a property without mentioning this and that Airbnb would put us in the situation of having to choose whether to disrupt local customs or deal with having to share the living room with the locals.

Royal

[Royal0]

Here is the villa-

https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/5951112?guests=1&adults=1&s=67&unique_share_id=925d368a-1173-488f-b5b4-...

They just recently added (after our booking), "Please read about Balinese culture and their religious activities. You will assist in a tiny portion of it on our property when one of the Team will carry a little basket with flowers and a scented stick to leave it in the nearby temple. Please respect this appearance."

The nearby temple is 5 feet in direct view of the outdoor toilet.

[Emiel1]

@Royal0 

I noticed the issue is not mentioned in other reviews. so it seems you are the first one complaining about it. But now it is at least mentioned in the listing , which ofcourse is nessecary as future guests need to be made aware of it.

You don't want to disrupt local worships, but also don't want those people on the property. So actually there is no other choice then to leave.

I wondered if other options were discussed, like shortening the reservation ?

[Royal0]

@Emiel1 Other guests likely came in groups and might have only stayed for a few days. I came with my fiance (expecting total privacy) and booked for a month. The ceremonies are daily. I requested to shorten the reservation but was denied.

Now I have another problem in that the internet has been down since I arrived, and I have work in a couple hours (here on a work visa).

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Royal0  wow, this is quite a shock 😄

You know what I would do? I would allow them to pass 1 day a week, from 6 PM - 7 PM. I would sit by the pool and look at the ceremony, maybe even join them, take some cool pictures and videos... and it would be a great story to tell my friends and grandkids one day 🙂

[Royal0]

@Branka-and-Silvia0  That sounds nice except it's a daily ritual and I'm here a month. I didn't book a villa to have to stop what I'm doing and prepare for guests everyday.

[Jessica-and-Henry0]

@Royal0 

I agree that as a guest it would be quite a surprise to find out something like this upon arrival, but whether the solution was to your liking or not, the host did make an offer to stop worshippers from entering. (maybe there was another nearby temple the locals could go for their daily worship?) I would have probably asked that the worshippers be allowed to come only during a certain time slot. Agree with @Branka-and-Silvia0 that it would have been a great opportunity to learn about local culture first hand, maybe even join the ceremony. 

[Jessica-and-Henry0]

@Royal0 

Also on second thought..... the area where daily offerings were made....... I don't think it's what would be considered a *temple* which is probably why no other guest mentioned it in any of the reviews and why the host never thought to mention it in the listing description before. Probably a few of the villa staff just making their daily morning offerings and not a bunch of random neighborhood people showing up at all hours of the day to worship. 

cc: @Sarah977 @Branka-and-Silvia0 

https://www.gadventures.com/blog/explaining-balis-daily-morning-offerings/

https://www.flokq.com/blog/bali/balinese-offering

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Jessica-and-Henry0  thank you for these links, it is so interesting, I've never heard about it 🙂

As it is a DAILY  ritual, then of course it is not appropriate to enter the garden and the vila during the guest's stay.

@Royal0

To keep gods and demons in balance I think you two should replace the locals and perform this ritual by yourself in your garden during your stay. Just in case... you never know ... 🙂

[Royal0]

@Branka-and-Silvia0 I came here to relax, unwind, and isolate with my fiance. Not attend daily church.

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Royal0  I was joking 🙂

[Royal0]

@Branka-and-Silvia0 Apologies, I couldn't tell because most of these armchair experts here are saying things equally as silly. 

[Royal0]

@Jessica-and-Henry0 I mentioned in my first post that I actually coordinated with the host to cancel all breakfasts and housekeeping for privacy, and also because there's been a recent explosion in covid-19 here and we wanted to self isolate.

It may sounds pleasant to you, but having staff come to my livingroom everyday to pray for a month during [what was supposed to be] a romantic getaway is not fun. I didn't pay for this. If I wanted to see the ceremony I would go visit a temple, and even then maybe only once.

[Sarah977]

@Royal0  While I agree that it should have been mentioned in the listing, it seems odd to me that no one else in 70 reviews has mentioned this. Either you are misrepresenting how intrusive this was, or it simply didn't bother anyone else and they accepted it as part of the  experience, which guests consistently review as amazing.

Also the reviews mention how huge the place is, and it has 3 bedrooms. Yet you only were there with your fiancee and in all this space where you could surely have been assured of privacy,  a few locals coming with offerings to the temple at certain times of the day was highly and unacceptably annoying. Seems like you could have worked out a better solution than what transpired.

It seems pretty culturally unaware to take your expectations of "complete privacy" to a place where that concept may not be really understood. 

[Royal0]

@Sarah977 There is literally nowhere in this house that isn't visible from the outside (when on the property), except one of the two bathrooms. The other master bathroom toilet is outside and directly in front of the shrine where they leave offerings. They also leave offerings at the pool next to the living room which has no curtains. This means that we must be fully dressed before they come.

I'm not sure which is more ridiculous, asserting that I should be ok with sharing my Airbnb rental with locals because "I'm only there with my fiance" or that expecting privacy in Bali is "culturally unaware."**

**[IComment edited - Community Center Guidelines]