newlyweds06

My fiancee and I are planning to visit Bali for our honeymoon in late June and would like to know if anyone here has had any experience with any of these hotels and which one you prefer.I know the Four Season will be the most expensive,

We prefer to stay in a villa. Thanks in advance for your help.

scfphoto

We stayed at the Alila Mangiss on the coast and a place called Puri Wulandari in Ubud. Puri Wulandari was amazing! We went to 4 Seasons and were really glad we stayed at Puri Wulandari. It is near the Alaila Ubud. Better site for views and the Villas were incredible with infinity plunge pools hanging over the edge of valley, a complete out door living room and thatched roof lounging area by the pool. Very private, we rarely saw anyone there even though the resort was half full. You have your own butler to make all of the arrangements for sight seeing , romantic dinners, really anything you want. Book directly with the hotel online to get some great packages. It is less expensive than Four Seasons and better! They are affliated with SLH and have their own web site www.puriwulandari.net it takes a long time for the site to load. I get no commission from this palce just want to help the people who work here as tourism is way down in Bali at the moment. There is an article about them in Destinasian magazine.

scfphoto

Also take a look at the reviews on tripadvisor.com.

cruisinred

scfphoto-
What did you think of Aliala Manggis?

scfphoto

We enjoyed Alila Mangiss very much. It is laid out like a hotel not individual villas.I would splurge on one of the two suites if possible. Service, food, and setting are really nice. The big drawback here is the beach is not nice at all. It is only a beach at very low tide but that may be seasonal. We had very high tides with full moon. But it is dirty with lots of trash floating around. We would not go in the water, and did not see anyone else braving the water except local surfers. Great pool though so you can stay cool and wet. It is a great location for exploring east side of Bali, temples, water palaces, rice terraces. The cooking school was great and the restaurant exceptional. They bring in Balinese dancers and have an outdoor Balinese feast once a week. It was fun and food was very good for that type of thing. It was a very well run hotel with a very personal feel but if the beach is important I would go to a different part of Bali.

clear

scfphoto;
Please tell me more about Puri Wulandari,does the resort has huge grounds to walk around. I cannto decide between, Pita Maha, Royal Pita Maha, Puri Wulandari, The Bale, The Legian, Tugu and Ritz, we have 10 days. Thank you

scfphoto

Puri does not have huge grounds to walk around. It cascades down the Ayung river valley it is very steep. I don't think any of the hotels built in the Valley would have huge grounds as most spill down the hillside.They will bring you up and down the hills in golf carts if you choose but we always felt like we should get some excercise. They will take you to a trail that goes through the rice fields and some small villages and ends up in one of Ubuds main temple complexes Camphuan I believe. All I can say about this resort is I have travelled all over the world and stayed at some great hotels and resorts and this is the only one I rave about to anyone who will listen. The villas are huge and right out of one of those Bali style interior design books, in fact they are in some of the books. The spa was so peacefull and romantic.The service was perfect. I thought having a personal butler was going to be a little over the top, but he was so friendly, explained so much of the culture and it was his personal mission to make sure we enjoyed our stay. Such as showing us his village temple and explaining how his grandmother's death that day was a cause for celebration not grieving. The butlers must be fluent in English and Japanese. The hotel is locally owned so all who work there share in our tourist dollars. If I had 10 days in Bali I would split the trip into beach area and Ubud. Stay at the Ritz at the beach then Puri in Ubud. All of the Resorts mentioned I am sure are very nice I just thought Puri Wulandari was very special.

clear

Thank you scfhphot, I appreciate your time and help.

newlyweds06

Thanks for the feedback, will look into Puri.

I'm also interested in hanging gardens Ubud. Anyone stayed here?!?

KimJapan

The Hanging Garden is new, so not many here have seen it. It has an interesting feature...it's own funicular or something like that because it's on a steep hill. It is a Pansea hotel, which is pretty well known as a nice group...not super luxe, but nice.

StanKase

The Four Seasons-Sayan was one of the nicest hotels we have ever stayed at in a Deluxe Room overlooking the brook. We have stayed at 5-6 FS and 2 Aman resorts and using them as reference points, FS Sayan was the best. Conte's Nast readers also rate it very highly.
The food was very good, our room was lovely and the landscaping was first-rate.On the other hand FS Jimbaran Bay is very nice but is not nearly as nice and too busy because of size and location. But it was worth 2-3 nights then 4-5 at Sayan.
A different point of view. Hope it helps.

marmot

In the Ubud area I like the Alila, especially the suites. They are actually a large room with a wrap around terrace that hangs out over the river valley. The view is magnificent.

Overall the architecture of the Alila is contemporary. Some like it, some don't. The pool, restaurant and grounds are lovely and the food and service are very good.

The Four Seasons is a bigger operation. Everyone I know who has ever stayed there has liked it, but for me, the public architecture is bit off-putting.

Hanging Gardens is too new to comment on.

I would also recommend that you take a look at Kayumanis which is a small group of villas. Very well designed and intimate in a beautiful setting.

The Alila, Four Seasons, Hanging Gardens, Wulandari, Begawan, Kayumanis, Amandari all overlook the same river valley and have similar ambience. You can't really go wrong at any of them.

Alila Manggis is in another part of Bali. As mentioned the beach is just so-so but the resort itself is quite nice.

newlyweds06

Thanks for your help...now i'm considering the FS Sayan, Puri Wulandari , Alila and the Begawan.

Before I book my room, does anyone have any information on the Como Shambhala Estate @ Begwan (also known as the begawan giri)?!?

What is the location like?!? Is it located on the river gorge like the Four Seasons, Puri, and Hanging Gardens?!?

Also, if someone can tell me about the villas...

marmot

newlyweds, the Begawan is on the same river valley as all the others. It's located on a spectacularly beautiful bend in the river and is, I think, one of the most exclusive properties in Bali.

The management was recently taken over by a Singaporean group (the same people who own the Uma in Ubud). I haven't been there since they've taken over so I don't know if they've made any changes.

The Begawan is the farthest away from Ubud of any of the resorts you've listed and to get to the resort you have to travel down a long village road. Not a problem in itself but it does add to the travel time whenever you leave the resort.

The individual villas are shared by two to four groups of guests, which again isn't an issue unless you want absolute privacy. Most likely they won't be full and you'll have the whole place to yourselves anyway, but you should inquire to make sure.

The food, service and spa are all excellent.

Hanuman

I also really like the Begawan and it would be perfect for a Honeymoon. We stayed in the Master Suite of the Wanakasa residence and I think this would be perfect for you. Very beautiful bedroom with a four poster curtained bed, fireplace, stone tub in the indoor bathroom and an outdoor shower with sundeck and a large Jacuzzi(all outdoor facilities are private and hidden). Best part about this residence is that it's like a treehouse with possibly the best view out of all the residence. We also rented the whole Bayugita Residence, used to be known as the Owner's Residence, but we prefer the Wanakasa more.

One more point about the Begawan, when we went, in 2004, we ask for a discount when we were reserving the rooms and residences and we got about 40% off. Not sure if that is still offered now a days but I guess it never hurt to ask!

newlyweds06

Thanks Hanuman,

The 5 night CSE package advertised on their website is much too expensive for us....looking to be in the $2500 range for 5 nights.

We will contact the Begawan to see what discounts are available. There are too many hotels in that area to decide!!

newlyweds06

Hi there-

We went to Bali for our honeymoon and stayed at Kayumanis Villas in Ubud and in Jimbaran Bay. I have to tell you that it's right next to FS Sayan and it's AMAZING!!! They also do a great honeymoon package that FS does not offer. We got a couples massage, daily b'fast (which is excellent food at the hotel), a 24 hour butler, private 2 bedroom villa with infinity pool, 1 excursion, welcome amenity, 4 course candle lit private dinner, etc. I'm sure they can make a great package for you. The service and location is great. Above all, you get a chauffer and 24 hour butler for your entire stay who will take you anywhere you need to go. The website is http://www.kayumanis.com/.

We had looked at the resorts you mentioned too but we felt that this was the best for the price and honeymooon package they gave us.

Have fun!