Usually, a business lunch with our Four Seasons Hotel peeps involves champagne and a scrumptious lunch; it’s been awhile since this lunch with one of my VV Favorite Four Seasons GM’s, Randy Shimabuku, but I’m obsessed with the arrival at Four Seasons Resort, Bali, where he is now the General Manager. He has hosted me in the Maldives, filled my daily schedule with activities from dawn to dusk and a dinner date with an activity director or he & his lovely wife every night. Although my days of resort activities were exhausting, I became an expert on the resort, smart guy, Randy! Stand by for personal photos!

Many travelers balk at beach travel that includes a flight over eight hours. My first vast flight time beach holiday was to The Brando and to the Four Seasons in Bora Bora. Both are worth the journey; Hawaii is not Tahiti! Mexico is not Tahiti!

In Bora Bora, a beautiful beach with an endless horizon, nothing but palm trees or a massive Mountain. Imagine gazing at Mount Otemanu from a bubbling jacuzzi at the Four Seasons Bora Bora, a vista is a thousand times more beautiful than a beach amid humanity. The long flights are truly worth the destination. Bora Bora is in the middle of the Southern Pacific Ocean. And then there are the brilliantly black skies dripping with stars, the Souther Cross comes to mind!

Maldives invitation seemed so far…longer flight time, initially I was skeptical. Nothing prepared me for the beauty of the Maldives – I stayed two weeks and could have stayed longer. So many activities, endless beauty.

Bali is closer than the Maldives, will you now consider it?! Combine a tropical island getaway with ancient rainforests, enchanting temples and rice fields  With three unique river rafting experiences, there’s something for everyone to do on Bali’s longest river.

Four Seasons Resort Bali at Sayan offers the world’s first arrival by River Raft. I’ve been offered a resort landing with a kite surfer, luckily the wind was up and when the GM took me to the cliff side restaurant where I would have jumped – I said I could never have jumped from there! A river raft arrival, how cool is this? Just say Yes, or Suksema.

For a unique check-in experience, arrive at the Resort by river raft – exclusively available to guests transferring from sister property, Four Seasons Resort Bali at Jimbaran Bay. Duration: 2.5-3 hours.

Famed for its dramatic treetop arrival via a suspension bridge, Four Seasons Resort Bali at Sayan  offers guests a 180-degree change of perspective, with Bali’s first hotel arrival by river raft.

Submerged in a river valley close to the artistic center of Ubud, Four Seasons Resort Bali at Sayan has launched the innovative rafting check-in as an option for guests transferring from its sister Resort, the beach front Four Seasons Jimbaran Bay on Bali’s south-west coast.

Avoid the usual 90-minute road transfer, travelers combining a stay at both Resorts can instead be taken by private car (60 minutes’ drive) to the departure point for a two-hour rafting adventure down Bali’s longest river, the Ayung.

While you enjoy a leisurely guided adventure through Class III rapids with views of lush jungle, rice terraces and majestic gorges, your luggage continues by car and precedes your arrival at Four Seasons Resort Sayan.

After discovering secluded sites – including a natural holy spring and an historic dam belonging to Bali’s UNESCO World Heritage-listed subak irrigation system – rafters land directly at the Resort’s Riverside Restaurant.

Waiting staff ensure a seamless check-in and within minutes guests are relaxing in their room, delivering a hotel arrival unlike any other.

This new arrival by river offers the opposite view with a slow reveal from under the canopy of trees, making it perfect for repeat guests who have experienced the bridge arrival before.

My mantra – the arrival sets the stage for the Journey, certainly applies to this magical adventure! It does not feel like a check-in experience, but rather a transition to another world, welcomed by the friendliest people on Earth, what could be better?!

Located amid two acres of rice fields and groves of fruit trees, vegetable, and herb gardens, 42 private pool villas and 18 suites enable guests to retreat from the world and embrace the valley’s healing energy. Float above treetops on a dramatic suspension bridge and cross into a different world. With locally inspired experiences and rice bowl-shaped architecture set against the lush Ayung River Valley, the Resort takes you closer to the heart and soul of Bali.

Unpacking List: It’s not the things you take with you that define your journey; it’s the experiences you have and the memories you bring home.