In case you needed another reason to honeymoon in Bali, the hotels are fantastic. There are many options when it comes to choosing your accommodation – more than we will discuss here – but we’d be remiss if we didn’t say that we think our choices were obviously the best.
Where to Stay on the Island
Before choosing a hotel, you need to decide where to stay on the island. Nusa Dua is the most traditional honeymoon location, with what feels like a never-ending string of luxury hotels on a pristine white sand beach. Ubud is a more cultural, contemporary spot filled with spas, shopping, and local cuisine. For the nature lover, there is the North Bali region, running rampant with waterfalls and lush landscape. We couldn’t decide, so we split our honeymoon between these three locations. Some others we didn’t visit: Kuta and Seminyak, which both have a vibrant beach life of their own but are more for the party-goer than the honeymooner. So with that, an overview of Bali’s best our chosen hotels!
The St. Regis Bali Resort
This hotel offers over-the-top luxury in Nusa Dua. Pretty much everything you can request of a hotel can be found here. Beachfront property? Check. Butler service? Check. Multiple chandeliers in your suite? Check, check. The highlight though? Free breakfast for SPG platinum members at the Boneka restaurant. This is no ordinary breakfast, my friends. Some staples on the menu include a lobster omelette with a whole lobster on top, Wagyu steak and eggs, and a custom dim sum station. Trust us when we say those options are only the beginning of this buffet / table-service restaurant’s menu. Kayuputi is also a great luxury dining experience, and Dulang is a high-end traditional Balinese meal, albeit one that feels expensive when compared to options outside of the hotel. We can go on and on about the dining (in case it doesn’t already feel like we have), but that would distract from the world-class service offered throughout the hotel.
Every staff member goes above and beyond to make sure you feel like you are the only guest in the hotel. The staff at the restaurant somehow even knew our names as we walked in for our first visit. I’ll ignore the Google stalking that likely occurred to put names with our faces and instead admire the effort that goes into doing this for each and every guest.
The rooms at this hotel are also something special. We had originally booked the Pool Suite, but we got upgraded to the Gardenia Villa. You really can’t go wrong with either option. Both have a day bed and private pool (both are significantly larger in the Gardenia Villa), and each has the St. Regis feel you expect. Sometimes, though, it’s the little things that make you take a step back and realize just how much thought went into crafting the experience. Things like a flower bath upon arrival and remote-controlled curtains that let you greet the day from the comfort of your bed. Yes, this hotel is expensive, but we really can’t recommend it highly enough. It also may literally be the best hotel that Marriott points can buy.
For more on activities to keep you entertained while at the St. Regis, you can read our posts about the Nusa Penida day trip and other things to do in Nusa Dua (coming soon).
The Damai
This hotel offers a luxury escape in the jungles of North Bali. While not quite as high-end as the St. Regis (No butler service? Come on man…), this hotel is nothing to scoff at. The rooms take advantage of the landscape to paint a “one-with-nature” picture. In other words, get used to showering outside with some friendly snails. The hills also lend themselves well to private infinity pools overlooking the tree-line and the sea.
At night, you can get a beautiful view of the sunset from the hotel restaurant, which has a delicious rotating dinner menu based on produce raised in their on-site farm. The restaurant also has a great breakfast selection that is included with your stay. Much like the St. Regis, they offer a great selection of fresh tropical juices as well as traditional Balinese options.
If you are keen to stay at The Damai, you likely have an interest in the surrounding waterfalls. Great choice! There are a TON of incredible waterfalls in the North Bali region – so many that we had to write a separate post about them. You can also take a day trip to Lovina, which is a short ride away on The Damai’s free shuttle. To be honest, Lovina is not the most exciting town to visit, but we at least enjoyed the Global Village Kafe restaurant and the kitten that called it home.
Element by Westin Bali Ubud
This brand new hotel is just outside the heart of Ubud. While this hotel may not have the same luxury standards as The St. Regis or The Damai, it is a comfortable, budget-friendly stay with the best service we’ve ever experienced, bar none. To elaborate – we had an unfortunate incident with a wasp our last day in Bali, and the hotel manager personally drove us to the clinic, stayed with us during the examination, and extended our stay so that we could comfortably rest in our room until our evening flight. It completely reset my expectations for individualized service. I’m still speechless looking back on it, and we are so grateful that we had such a kind person looking after us during our stay. We can’t stress enough how incredible her completely altruistic acts of kindness were and the positive impact they had on our stay.
The hotel itself also has much to offer. The free shuttle into town was very handy, and the hotel spa offered complimentary yoga courses as well as a welcome massage. The breakfast was also terrific – a common trend in Bali that we definitely took for granted by the end of our trip. The only downside was the location, as it is a bit outside the town and away from the action, but the shuttle definitely mitigated this concern. We would stay at this hotel again in a heartbeat.
For more on activities to keep you entertained and relaxed while at the Element, you can read our post about things to do in Ubud (coming soon).
Happy traveling!
Kitrina & Jordan
