Bali 25th anniversary trip
 

Best luxury hotels for approx. 2 week visit Sept. 21 - Oct. 7. Want one week at beach and one week in Ubud. Luxury meaning $100-$200 night. Want relaxing resort or private villa, need good beds and nice bathrooms. Any suggestions?

the newish conrad hotel is absolutely fantastic and i think you would enjoy it for your anniversary treat...it is just north of nusa dua in the south of bali...

In Ubud, there are lots and lots of choices. The Ibah Luxury villas www.ibahbali.com might be in your price range if you negotiate well. The Maya Ubud www.mayaubud.com is also liked by many. One place that is located on Monkey Forest Road right in the center of Ubud is the Komaneka Resort www.komaneka.com. Although it's right in the center of things, it's quiet inside and the rooms are lovely. It's definitely within your budget.

If you wanted to be out of town by about 10 minutes or so by car, Alam Sari is our favorite www.alamsari.com , and they have one villa set up on a hillside with a lovely view. Their rooms are beautiful too. I can tell you from personal experience that their beds are awesome...I'm a horrible sleeper and I slept well there. A stay here could give you a wonderful range of cultural experiences as well, and is well within your budget, too. Ulun Ubud www.ulunubud.com would be another good one to consider.

If you haven't been to Bali before, I want to warn you not to expect "Carribean beautiful" beaches. Many beaches have blackish gray pebbly sand or stones.

In Seminyak, the Legian is well recommended. The Sofitel nearby has just finished renovating and is also reported lovely, if a bit large hotelish. The Conrad is lovely, but the beach is not as nice as over in Seminyak. There are some lovely villas run by the Tamu Group www.tamugroup.com

You might consider the east coast if you want something a bit different and a bit remote and quiet and relaxing. Apa Kabar Villas www.apakabarvillas.com , Anda Amed www.andaamedresort.com , and Blue Moon Villas www.bluemoonvilla.com come to mind as places that would be lovely and quiet with nice views and that lovely small hotel friendly atmosphere.



There are literally hundreds of places to recommend.

Thanks for the great ideas, now I'm even more conflicted about where to stay. Seems there are too many great choices. I'm going to check out the Alam Sari and Ibah in Ubud. How about Kupu Kupu Barong? Is it still nice? My brother stayed there 20 years ago and still raves about the experience?

Consider splitting your time between a place in/near Ubud and a beach location.

oops - I had skipped over the part where you said that's what you want. Too much sun for me today!

alioop, For beach I particularly like the Seminyak area. It's a long, wide beach and accessible to good shops, spas and restaurants.

The Legian is a wonderful resort and I think that what they call a studio suite would fit in your budget (maybe a little over). It's a large room with a good sized balcony. All rooms face the sea so you get spectacular sunsets. Nice bathrooms too. A few hundred yards in either direction are two of Bali's best restaurants so you don't have to spend a lot of time in traffic. The only caveat I would give is that the sea in this area is quite aggressive. Great for surfing and staring out to sea but swimable only for the hearty.

The Sofitel which is in the same area was recently renovated. It's not as stylish as the Legian but it has nice grounds and a good beach.

In the Ubud area, I like the Alila. The rooms are small but well designed and have lovely views out over the river valley. The public areas -- restaurant and pool are especially nice.

The Alam Sari is a very special place and you would be very well taken care of there. It's a bit further away from the town of Ubud though which can entail a lot of driving back and forth.

Kupu was recently redone. I haven't been there since it reopened. It's on the same river valley as the Alila (and the Four Seasons, the Aman and a whole host of other resorts) and the views are wonderful, but I think the rate would be out of your range.

Bali is very quiet right now. There are private villas galore that are highly negotiable. I can't recommend any one in particular but I can tell you if you'd rather go that route than with a traditional resort you'd have a lot of choices.

Congratulations on your 25th!

The Fout Seasohs-Sayan is one of the lovliest boutoque hotes we have stated at in 38 yeats of travel. Take a Premium Room with the B&B plan. With the issues in Bali recently you may go beyond your $200 but I would cut trip to 10 nights to stay there, it is that exceptional.

Okay, so far all we've decided on is spending one week at the Alila Ubud. Still can't decide about the beach week. It's between the Sofitel and going over our budget at the Legian or Orberoi. My concern is that some of the posts talk about the Legian looking tired and worn. I really do want a very nice, clean and lovely room. We also want someplace on a good beach and pretty grounds.

I'm still looking for flights from LAX. Anyone ever flown on Malaysia Airlines? I've found a flight through a consolidator, LAX-Tapei-Kuala Lumpur-Bali. It's very cheap, so we're considering making the extra stop.

Has anyone used Singapore Airlines Asian Affair Holidays? They have a great deal LAX to Bali with 5 nights at some Nusa Dua resorts. So many choices and can't make a decision. We want to have a relaxing time, we're not into sports or nightclubs. We also don't like to be surrounded by lots of tourists, but seems like that may not be a problem right now in Bali.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

alioop, I would not characterize the Legian as looking tired or worn. The Oberoi, yes. The Legian, no.

I'm very fond of the Oberoi in Lombok, but in my opinion their Bali property is in need of a thorough face lift.

Either way both the Legian and Oberoi are a step up from the Sofitel. For a celebratory trip I'd go with the Legian.