Our Pad in Bali

I had the assignment of planning the whole trip, and my search for hotels took more than a week to complete. It wasn't easy looking for a hotel when you didn't know what to expect. MY man texted his friend in Jakarta to ask for advice, and this friend suggested we stay at Kuta Beach, and even got good discounted rates for us at a couple of five-star hotels located at Kuta. "Your first time in Bali," he said, "you've gotta stay at Kuta. Not for the beach, but the culture." Problem was, I've stumbled on one too many negative comments about Kuta. Touristy. Crowded. Dirty.

We want a quiet vacation, and the Nusa Dua area seemed the perfect place for us. At first I hesitated because I did not know how far exactly it was from the airport, and I wasn't sure if I could arrange for airport transfer. Thanks to Kuya D who just came back from Bali. His description of the area narrowed down my search to Nusa Dua hotels. I'm not even going to say I'm just lucky, I believe it was providential, that I stumbled upon a hot deal at Novotel Bali Benoa. Non-refundable, non-cancelable, at $35 less than the normal rate. So Novotel Bali Benoa it is!

Note: The write-up below was written in Bali, 13 February 2009, the night we arrived.

There were only a few greeters at the arrival area. We scanned the signboards that each person was holding up. Couldn’t have missed the hotel representative. He was right there, at the very front of the cordoned area. I couldn’t make out the words, but I knew it was NOVOTEL the moment I saw the familiar blue insignia. He met us at the exit.

“Ms. Eris?” For a second there, I thought MY man had a new name again (I should write a post on that.) But the guy was looking at me. Eris. Yep, that’s me.

With a friendly smile, the driver led the way to the parking lot. He stopped in front on a Toyota Innova and loaded our bags onto the car. “The drive to the hotel," he informed us, "will take about thirty minutes.”

It turned out to be a pleasant drive. “There’s no traffic in Bali, mommy” Roo observed. We had our first glimpse of Balinese architecture on the way. The driver informed us that 90% of the people in Bali are Hindus. No wonder they say that Bali is the only place in Indonesia that serves pork. We were wondering about that because from what we know, Indonesia is a Muslim country.

When we arrived at the hotel, bellboys bowed their greeting and welcomed us courteously. They were all dressed exactly like our driver, in plain beige long-sleeved shirt with chinese collar, and traditional batik sarong that ran all the way to their ankles. Welcome drinks were served at the front desk, and to Roo's delight, Novotel Dolfi Kid's Club had a welcome gift waiting for him! A stuffed reindeer, which he quickly named as Nicky.

The hotel, beautifully designed in traditional Balinese architecture, overlooks Tanjung (Cape) Benoa. We walked to explore the resort and found ourselves in the middle of a lush tropical garden.The atmosphere lent a relaxing and soothing feeling as soft Balinese music played in the air. We trekked to find the beach, passing by a swimming pool with a lifeguard on duty who seemed to have his hands full, but was not too busy to greet us with a smile. We decided to have lunch at their restaurant by the beach, and much to our surprise, the food was very affordable! Vegetarian pizza and a dish set of grilled dory fish with rice and vegetables turned out to be less than $10, inclusive of 21% government tax and service charge. God is good!

Well, God was not finished with His surprises yet. "Your room is not ready yet," the receptionist said, "but we are upgrading your room. You will stay at the tropical terrace room." My smile widened. After all the research I've done on the hotel rooms, I knew quite well that this room is nicer, more spacious, and umm, well, beyond our budget. Isn't that just a wonderful surprise? We paid for a superior room but we got to stay in a tropical terrace room instead!

Here are some pictures of the hotel:

View of entrance to the hotel on the beach side. Taken from the hotel wing across the road.

Balinese flutist playing music at the lobby

Pathway that led to our room: gate opens to a tropical garden

Rain shower beside the gate

Terrace fronting the room

View of the garden from the room

Roo exploring the bathroom

Every evening, hotel staff came knocking at our door to give us the next day's weather forecast. And these calachuchi (plumeria in English) flowers.

Pathway outside our gate, leading to the gardens, and out to the beach

Roo's welcome gift, Nicky the reindeer

Restaurant by the beach where we ate our first Balinese meal