Staff greeted us at the door with a welcome drink and took us to our room. We were upgraded to a deluxe suite free of charge which was a bonus! The room was very spacious, with a very comfortab double bed and a flat screen TV with English channels. Okay, so we don’t go on holiday to watch TV but if after a long day you want to get into bed and watch some good old English TV, who can blame you?

The maid service was immaculate and they came in to tidy and make the bed every day. We were also provided with new bottles of mini shampoo and shower gel each time.

There is a pool area outdoor with a long, thin swimming pool. It is located in the centre of the hotel therefore it doesn’t receive much sunlight so it isn’t ideal if you wish to spend the day by the pool. We decided to spend the day at the beach instead.

There is also a spa available with a selection of treatments for an extra charge.

The buffet breakfast cost 50php pp and consisted of hot/cold food, lots of fresh fruit, pastries and an egg station. There was also a coffee/hot water machine. The food was delicious and definitely worth the small cost.

Pro’s

• Location – right in the heart of Kuta
• 10-15 minutes from Denpasar airport
• Comfortable beds
• Spacious, clean room
• Friendly and attentive staff
• Free swimming pool access
• Delicious buffet breakfast

Con’s

• Swimming pool is in the shade most of the day

I would recommend the Harper Kuta Hotel Bali to anyone who wishes to be in the centre of Kuta. It is so close to everything without the outside noise from the streets within the hotel.

The post Review of Harper Kuta Hotel Bali appeared first on Green Eyed Traveller.

As we arrived at the hotel, the owners claimed they hadn’t received our booking. I showed them our confirmation email and then their story magically changed. They tried to blame Expedia and said we should have booked through Booking.com which in itself was a joke. We have used both of them religiously and never once had an issue, which I explained to them. We were then told our room was “broken” – whatever that means.

Apparently, there had been a storm the night before and there were no rooms available for us, even though we had already booked one. We were not informed by the hotel that there wasn’t any room for us so naturally we turned up on the day, expecting a room.

We had spent 1-hour in a taxi, followed by a boat journey & an interesting scooter ride with all of our luggage to then be told the bad news.

We were offered a bed in the 6-bed dorm they had downstairs which was dirty and very small. After having paid for an Ocean View Deluxe room we kindly refused. The owners were no help and started to get angry and become aggressive with us, so I booked a new hotel right there and then.

We asked them for a lift as we had no way of getting to this new hotel, with no wifi (it was also “broken”) and no Indonesian sim to call a ‘taxi’. We expected them to offer us a lift, free of charge – a form of compensation. They drove us the 10-minute drive but demanded we pay them. We would have usually refused but we were very unsure as to how the situation would play out and it wasn’t worth it.

We also had trouble getting a refund from them. We asked them for our money back but they said that because WE ‘cancelled’ they weren’t entitled to provide us with a refund. By this point we were so angry so decided to contact Expedia’s customer service. Expedia backed us up and demanded they paid it back. We had a 3-way conversation (I’m pretty sure the owner was unaware that I was on the other end of the phone at first) and insisted we CHOSE not to stay in our ‘broken’ room, when in actual fact we were never even shown to it.

Absolutely horrible owners, AVOID!

Pro’s

• This hotel does look stunning on the website with an infinity pool overlooking the sea (unfortunately I cannot back this as I never saw it first-hand)
• Location (10-min scooter ride to the beach)

Con’s

• Rude, aggressive staff
• Refused to give us our money back
• Tried to claim it was our fault, even though they didn’t have room for us
• Dorm rooms dirty and very small

Unfortunately the con’s outweigh the pro’s on this one.

If you are looking for somewhere to stay in Nusa Lembongan, we ended up staying at Sunrise Hut’s and thoroughly enjoyed our stay.

The post Review of Taman Sea View Nusa Lembongan Bali appeared first on Green Eyed Traveller.

We booked a room at the Sunrise Huts Nusa Lembongan last minute as our original choice fell through. The staff were amazing with us and prepared the room as quickly as possible. We went out for the afternoon to ensure them that there was no rush.

As we returned to the hotel, all of our luggage had been moved to our room and they had put us in their best hut, overlooking the sea and surrounding mountains, without us asking for it. Sunrise Huts is a 4* hotel, with lovely, wooden rooms and a pool area.

Our room had a double bed and an en-suite, outdoor bathroom. It is very humid in Bali so it feels like an indoor bathroom, however you can look up and see the stars on a night while you shower. I really liked the bathroom in the hotel as it isn’t often that you get to shower under the stars!

There is an infinity pool overlooking the sea so naturally we went for a sunset swim. The pool is the perfect temperature to cool down in, even at night time. The pool does close at 9pm and re-opens early in the morning.

Sunrise Huts Nusa Lembongan hotel is located at the south of the island. The hotel is situated at the top of a hill so you need to hire a scooter to get around. There is a scooter hire within the hotel which is cheap. Petrol costs around 40,000 IDR per litre.

The food available at the hotel is limited and we recommend eating elsewhere. There is a very small selection and the portion sizes are tiny. It isn’t cheap either. You need to use the scooter to get to the nearest restaurants and bars, which is about a 10-15 minute ride.

Pro’s

• Hotel facilities – Spacious, clean room. Infinity pool.
• Lovely staff
• Helpful and attentive staff
• Outdoor bathroom
• Pet golden retriever

Con’s

• Location – it is slightly out of the way, especially if you aren’t comfortable driving scooters.
• Food availability is is very limited

Overall, we would recommend this hotel to anyone and would come back to stay if we are ever on the island.

**The hotel organized our boat over to the Gili Islands for us, including a transfer to the port and it was a good price, cheaper than what it should have been!**

The post Review of Sunrise Huts Nusa Lembongan Bali appeared first on Green Eyed Traveller.

The hotel is also filled with furry visitors from the Monkey Forest.

The reception staff greet you at the door with a welcome drink and take your luggage to the room. The rooms are spacious, with big comfy beds and a private balcony. We were told not to leave anything lying about outside as the monkeys would steal it so you have to be careful.

There are two pools in the hotel with an outdoor seating area and a spa. The water temperature is perfect and the green colour adds to the style of the hotel. There are no pools in the spa but there is an extensive selection of treatments on offer and you get a discount for staying in the hotel.

I had a 4-hour treatment which consisted of a full body massage, a facial, followed by both a manicure and pedicure and it was excellent service, so cheap too! I would recommend bringing your own nail varnish with you for the ladies to use, as theirs is not great quality and comes off within a few days. The rest of the service was amazing and my feet were immaculate!

Champlung Sari Hotel Ubud

There is a restaurant in the hotel that serves lunch and dinner, and a breakfast room where there is a buffet every morning. There is a small selection of foods available, enough to fill your plate. There are pastries and fruit, bread with hams and cheeses and an egg station where you can request omelettes, scrambled eggs or pancakes.

The monkeys love to sit and watch you eat through the glass windows which is great entertainment. You have to remember to close the door on your way in, or you could cause absolute chaos!

The Champlung Sari Hotel Ubud offer a laundry service but it is quite pricey compared to other places. There are many shops along the main street who offer this service at a lower price. Outside the hotel is a taxi service which is great if you wish to explore more of Bali.

Pro’s

• Location – This hotel is right next to the Monkey Forest
• Close to bars and restaurants
• 2 large swimming pools
• Spa treatments available (at an extra cost)
• Buffet breakfast
• Spacious, clean room with a private balcony
• Comfortable beds
• Friendly, and attentive staff
• Welcome drink upon arrival

Con’s

• The monkeys – this one depends on how you perceive them. The monkeys can be great entertainment but they can also be aggressive. You cannot bring food into the hotel or you may be attacked. They usually do their own thing but will approach you if you have food. Just bare that in mind for a more enjoyable stay.
• There could be a bigger selection of food on offer at breakfast
• Laundry service is expensive (but there are many services nearby)
• Cheap nail varnish in spa treatments – bring your own

Overall, this hotel is beautiful and has a very ‘local’ feel to it. I loved the decor throughout the entire hotel. The best part of the Champlung Sari Hotel Ubud was its location as it was in walking distance from everything we wanted to see whilst we were there.

If you are heading to Ubud, make sure to check out my blog about visiting the non-touristy Rice Fields, or the Local Balinese Markets.

We loved this hotel and would come back to stay!

The post Review of Champlung Sari Hotel Ubud Bali appeared first on Green Eyed Traveller.

It is ideal if you want to relax for a few days; the staff are incredibly attentive, and the rooms are clean with huge, comfortable beds. The staff went out of their way to help my boyfriend prepare the room for me. They went out to buy flowers to decorate the room for my arrival without asking for anything in return.

The staff also took the time to learn our names, which is a tiny gesture that makes you feel so special.

I mostly enjoyed the huge buffet breakfast that is served every morning. There is a choice of hot and cold items and eggs to order. There is something to suit everyone from English Breakfasts, a large selection of pastries, to healthy fruit bowls.

Outside, there is a large pool separated into two parts by a bridge. Around the pool area there are plenty of sunbeds, some of which are sat in shallow water which I LOVED. While sat tanning, you can drop your feet or hands in the water to cool yourself down, or slide right into the pool from your sunbed.

There is a small gym in the hotel which is free for all guests; a great way to burn off the unlimited food at breakfast!

Ramada Encore Hotel Seminyak

Pro’s

• Spacious, clean room
• Large, Comfortable bed
• Friendly and very helpful staff
• Delicious buffet breakfast with huge selection of foods
• Large pool – perfect water temperature
• Room Service
• Security monitoring front door

Con’s

• Location – it is a 15-minute drive from Seminyak central
• Small gym – very limited equipment

The Ramada Encore Hotel Seminyak is only ideal if you do not want to be right in the centre of everything. It is easy enough to make your way to town, either using the free shuttle service or by grabbing a taxi, but if you prefer to be close to all the bars, restaurants and beachfront then I would look into something closer to town. If you don’t mind being slightly out of the fuss, this hotel is a lovely escape with very attentive staff and lives up to its 4* quality.

The post Review of Ramada Encore Hotel Seminyak Bali appeared first on Green Eyed Traveller.