Hello,

I am planning to spend my honeymoon in Bali and wanted some suggestions. I have looked at this one place "Kayumanis private villa & spa" and am getting a decent package. The package contains 3 night stay in their Nusa Dua resort and 3 nights in their Ubud resort.
Any suggestions/feedback about this particlaur resort ? Suggestions about any other resorts.
Will appreciate help.

There are just two areas of Bali I would avoid like the plague: Kuta beach (drunk, partying adolescents) and Nusa Dua (sterile international resort area for those who don't want to be in Bali).

For comments on Kayumanis in Ubud, go to the search function, click on advanced search, put Kayumanis in the search box and check the search full replies box. You'll get a list of posts that include the word Kayumanis.

Hi Kathie, Thanks for your reply. I did the advance search thing but got only one result (that has nothing about Kayumanis). Any other places I can look at ?

I get a couple of pages of posts
http://www.fodors.com/search/results...2F2010&author=

Thanks Kathie, this is helpful

Do not stay in Nusa Dua. It is sterile and no feeling of Bali whatsoever. Try Seminyak Beach for a while and Ubud for a while. Plus you don't need a pre-arranged tour. You can book the hotels on your own. Use this forum for recommendations. You can get a good guide on your own. Search for Putu on this forum.

i would also add sanur as a destination, but choose carefully about the hotels there to get a seaside one...

I haven't stayed at Kayumanis Ubud but I've visited and had lunch there several times. It's in a really lovely serene setting. The villas themselves are well designed, but there's a big difference between those that have river valley views and those that don't.

I haven't been to their Nusa Dua property. The group is known for it's architecture and attention to detail so I'm sure these are elegant and sophisticated as well. I couldn't tell from the website whether the villas are located at sea level or on the cliff.

I'm not as negative on Nusa Dua as the other posters: it's a beautiful long beach (albeit quite shallow at low tide) and offers serene environment with nearby golf and sea activities. Agree, though, that Nusa Dua is removed from Balinese culture.

My favorite beach area in Bali is Seminyak because, to me, it offers a good blend of resort activity -- beach, restaurants, shops, spas -- and a neighborhood-y feeling. I would look at The Legian in Seminyak and the Semaya. There are also many, many private villa options. If you're traveling in 2011 you could consider the new W.

You could also ask about Kayumanis' resort in Jimbaran.

It's so hard to tell from a website what the place is really like. I can tell you that it looks very similar to a lot of other private villas in the Ubud area. You could look at hotels that have villa accomodation on their grounds...they will provide better services and facilities most likely, though you might meet more people at the hotel. I can highly recommend the Orient Express group Hanging Gardens which has a sister hotel in Legion, as well as the Maya Hotel(locally owned) and Uma Ubud/Begawan Giri/Four Seasons Jimbaran (owned by one person).

It is not clear if you are staying in Ubud or Nusa Dua. I live in Legian Beach which is between the Main Kuta area (modern beach city)and Seminyak. Kuta is the party area; Seminyak is higher class but still close enough to kuta and other areas to make it easy to move around. Sanur is far from everything and frequented by an older crowd. Ubud is in the mountains, serene and quiet, catering to a "yoga" type crowd. It really depends upon your budget, your plans and your interests. Seminyak is centrally located, but Nusa Dua is only 30-45 min taxi from Kuta/Seminyak area. There are so many beautiful places to stay in Bali, it is really what they do best. The trick is not to stay in one place for the whole time...either planning travel daily..so easy to do by just talking to people as everyone has a friend who gives tours and will spend the day driving your around. A bit far from Bali, but worth the drive is Amed area. Diving but more like real Bali-the beautiful mountain/sea temple is on the way. A drive to Singaraja through the botanical gardens and lake will also give you some feel of Bali. I can't tell you strongly enough that you need to get out of your hotel...there is no hotel that represents Bali...so pick a beautiful place and just plan to relax within their walls in luxury and travel frequently. If you stay in Nusa Dua...the beach is full of watersports-typical resort area...but not far is giger beach...a great place to spend the day at the beach. Hope this helps! Ask any questions at all...I will try to help. (I am an American who went to Bali and decided not to return to the US..as many foreiners do

Hi cmckee,
Thanks for your insightful comments. I was planning to stay 3 nights in Nusa Dua and 3 nights in Ubud at the Kayumani.
My Questions:
1. I have 6 nights, what do you think about the above plan ? and staying at the Kayumani. Some people have not suggested staying at Nusa Dua. What do you say about that ?
2. My budget is pretty decent. Not looking to spend as much as Four Seasons or Bulgari, but can spend 20% - 25% below that. I am really confused with the villas. Can you please suggest me some good resorts (with good views and a pool) ? Also that cater well to honeymooners.
3. My fiance is a vegetarian. So I would prefer resorts that at least serve vegetarian food.

Sorry for asking these many questions. I will highly appreciate all your help.

I think your plan for 3 nights at a beach and 3 nights near Ubud is a good one. I think the question is which beach.

I'm surprised that cmckee who says s/he lives in Bali thinks that Sanur is far from everyhting. It is on the southern coast of Bali and is close to the other southern beach areas, but not isolated like Nusa Dua. Take a look at a map.

Take a look at one of the Bali booking sites like www.balidiscovery.com for lots of ideas on places to stay. Also review a few of the hundreds of posts here on places to stay in Bali. Start by choosing Indonesia from the drop-down menu at the top of the page and read some of the posts about Bali.

Any place you stay in Bali will be glad to prepare vegetarian food for you.

Thanks Kathie, this is helpful

For a “special event” at the beach I would choose The Legian in Seminyak or the Semaya. Both have beach front property and villas across the road. I would go with the beach front. The Legian is three stories and every room has a balcony with spectacular views of the sea. The Semaya is villas so you don’t have a sea view from your room, but it’s right there. To me The Legian and Kayumanis Ubud would be an ideal combination.

As I said above I don't have a strong feeling toward Nusa Dua -- it's a beautiful beach -- but getting from place to place in Bali is becoming difficult as they are experiencing real traffic issues. That's why I like Seminyak; everything is walkable or a short taxi. I also love the sunset on the beach. Same could be said about Sanur (without the sunset) or Jimbaran (without the walkability).

Vegetarian is never a problem in Bali.

3 nights at the beach and 3 nights in Ubud sounds good to me. I usually do Ubud first, but that’s because as much as I enjoy Ubud, deep in my heart I’m a beach person.

cmckee, just a friendly comment, you state that "Amed is far from Bali" when in fact it is on the Eastern coast of Bali...Hopefully that was just a typo, but also confusing to people who don't know the island. And the "yoga" characterization you put on Ubud is completely off base. There are several yoga businesses and there is the "Bali Spirit Festival" but to say Ubud is about yoga would be like saying Kuta is about parasailing.

Sonu83, any of the large resorts will have a view and pool. Perhaps if you tell us where you have stayed before that you liked it would give a basis for comparison. And if you state your budget as well....30% below doesnt tell us much when each place has their own ranges...they differ between villas and regular rooms, for example.

Hi Kuluk,
Thanks for the insight. This is my first time in Bali so I don't knoiw much. Regarding budget, I am OK to spend upto $600/night (before the taxes). I have gotten an offer for the Honeymoon Suite from the Kayumanis (3 nights in Nusa Dua and 3 nights in Ubud). It is more ecpensive that $600/night so I am thinking whether it is worth it. Besides, my understanding is that there are no views from their Nusa Dua property.

appreciate help.

Three nights in Ubud and 3 nights in Nusa Dua is great. You are on your honeymoon, you will love 3 days in Nusa Dua - great beaches, great hotels.
Singapore Air has a deal going to Bali - 2 nights in Singapore and 3 nights in Nusa Dua.
Asialux also has deals going to Bali, using Cathy Pacific.
We did the Singapore Air one and told them that we wanted to come back from Bali, 20 days later and they said ok. So we did their 5 days thing and made our own arrangments for 20 and came back on Singapore Air.

I for one would not stay in Nusa Dua for any views or nature. Its totally manicured and manufactured and pretty boring to me. I think Jimbaran or Sanur would be great for you. There are several amazing hotels right on the beach there.

Also, $600 a night is a very healthy budget! You should have a great choice of places. You can always contact the hotels directly and see if they will give you a special rate, if any hotel that you like has published rates that are higher than your budget.

Did you check out any of the hotels I recommended for Ubud?