I’m going to do this review in a few parts, given how much I have to say about this property. Also, when I was researching the trip I thought there was a lack of information as to the difference between room types, so hopefully by doing a more in-depth review I can help those planning a trip here in the future.
I booked the St. Regis Bali for four nights using the Citi Prestige® Card fourth night free benefit, which I’ve found to be extremely valuable.
The cheapest rate at the hotel was $453, which was a “Hot Escapes” rate.
Hotels in Bali have an 11% tax and 10% service charge, so on top of that rate you’re paying another 21%. That made the nightly rate ~$550. The good news is that since I was using the Citi Prestige Card perk, I’d be refunded ~$550 for the four night stay, bringing down the cost to ~$400 per night including taxes and service charge.
For that stay I’d earn a ton of Starpoints, and also frankly it’s the best option for booking this hotel. So while the stay wouldn’t be cheap, I felt like it was a good value. Paying ~$400 per night is the equivalent of a ~$330 base room per night, plus the taxes and service charge. For a St. Regis I consider that to be a pretty good value.
On top of that I was able to apply some Platinum Suite Night Awards to the reservation, which cleared as soon as I made the booking (since it was within five days of arrival). At this property the base room is a St. Regis Suite, and you can use your Suite Night Awards to upgrade to a St. Regis Pool Suite. The rate difference between the two rooms is ordinarily ~$220 per night.
Bali is one of my favorite places in the world, and the St. Regis didn’t disappoint.
As mentioned in the previous installment, we were picked up at Denpasar Airport by the St. Regis Bali, a service which is included in the room rate. They even include a VIP meet-and-greet immigration service, though in this case the queue was short.
The drive to the St. Regis, which is in Nusa Dua, took about 20 minutes. The hotel has an impressive driveway and upon pulling up to the lobby there were a few associates waiting who greeted us by name.
The open air lobby was stunning. My gosh, it must have been one of the most elegant open air lobbies I’ve ever seen.
St. Regis Bali lobby
St. Regis Bali lobby
At check-in we were offered cold towels and welcome drinks, and our check-in was quickly processed. My favorite thing about Bali is the people. They’re the most genuinely hospitable people anywhere in the world, and that’s evident not just at luxury resorts, but just about anywhere. Of course that hospitality is only amplified further at five star resorts.
At check-in we were presented a few vouchers, including:
- 20% off laundry, dry cleaning, and pressing
- 15% off Remede spa treatments
- 10% off many tours offered by the hotel
St. Regis Bali Platinum vouchers
We were also handed a pamphlet which explained all the ways we could redeem points for on-property perks. For example, you could redeem 7,500 Starpoints for a $100 credit. That’s ~1.3 cents per Starpoint. I found most of the other on-property redemption values to be in line with that. I value Starpoints at ~2.2 cents each, so that’s never how I’d redeem my points, though I’m sure others do.
St. Regis Bali “pay with points” option
Within a few minutes our check-in was processed and the friendly associate took us around the hotel on a golf cart for a tour of the property. As we drove by the Gardenia Villas she explained that they’re very popular with honeymooners, “because there’s lots of privacy so others can’t hear you.” LOL!
It ended with us being dropped off at room 101, which would be our suite. The St. Regis Bali has a total of 123 suites and villas. That consists of 81 suites (which are in the main building) and 42 villas. We ended up spending the first two nights in the Plunge Pool Villa, and then switched to a Lagoon Villa for the third and fourth night (more on that upgrade process in the next installment).
We were in villa 101, which was the first villa on the first floor. From the open air lobby, this meant we had to go down a set of stairs and down the interior hallway.
St. Regis Bali hallway to suites
And then from there we walked through the open-air hallway, which had a beautiful “courtyard” of sorts.
St. Regis Bali hallway to suites
St. Regis Bali hallway to suites
Our room was the very last one.
Pool Suite entrance St. Regis Bali
The suite featured a large entryway, with a connecting door on the right (presumably in case you wanted to turn it into a two bedroom suite). I thought it was cute that they had hats and a tote bag hanging by the door. Furthermore, their attention to detail was good, because the day after we arrived the his-and-her hats were swapped for his-and-his hats (is that a thing?).
Pool Suite entryway St. Regis Bali
The minibar was also in the entryway.
Pool Suite minibar St. Regis Bali
There was a tea and coffee set, as well as the minibar. Keep in mind that St. Regis offers 24/7 complimentary tea and coffee, so there’s not really ever a need to brew in-room coffee.
Pool Suite tea service St. Regis Bali
Complimentary coffee through the St. Regis butler service
Pool Suite minibar St. Regis Bali
To the left of the entryway was the entrance to the actual suite.
Pool Suite entry to main room St. Regis Bali
As you entered the suite you walked right into the living room, which consisted of a desk with two chairs, a couch, and a chair, all surrounding a coffee table. I thought the decor was beautiful, and authentic to both Bali and the St. Regis brand.
Pool Suite living room St. Regis Bali
The fact that the desk had two chairs made it easier to have room service in the room, given that the suite didn’t have a traditional dining area.
Pool Suite desk St. Regis Bali
St. Regis Bali Pool Suite living room
St. Regis Bali Pool Suite living room
The living room of the suite was separated from the bedroom by some drapes.
St. Regis Bali Pool Suite
The suite featured a king size bed, which was extremely comfortable, both in terms of the mattress and the plush bedding.
St. Regis Bali Pool Suite bedroom
St. Regis Bali Pool Suite bedroom
Across from the bed was a TV, and waiting under it was a welcome note, fruit plate, and a small box of chocolates.
St. Regis Bali Pool Suite welcome amenity
St. Regis Bali Pool Suite welcome letter
Across from the bedroom was the massive bathroom, which I loved. It featured double sinks, a soaking tub, a walk-in shower, and a partitioned off toilet.
St. Regis Bali Pool Suite double sinks
St. Regis Bali Pool Suite bathroom
St. Regis Bali Pool Suite tub
St. Regis Bali Pool Suite soaking tub
St. Regis Bali Pool Suite toilet
The shower featured both a rainforest shower head as well as a handheld one.
St. Regis Bali Pool Suite walk-in shower
St. Regis Bali Pool Suite shower
As is the norm at St. Regis properties, toiletries were Remede branded, which is also the spa at St. Regis properties. On one hand I love Remede toiletries, and especially that the body wash has beads in it. On the other hand, the shampoo sort of reminds me of toothpaste based on how it “tingles.”
St. Regis Bali Pool Suite Remede toiletries
I was also impressed by the huge selection of complimentary amenities in the room. While most hotels will gladly send free sample size toiletries to your room, the St. Regis basically already has everything in your room.
St. Regis Bali Pool Suite amenities
Next to the bathroom was the closet, which was quite large.
St. Regis Bali Pool Suite closet
What makes the St. Regis Plunge Pool Suites different than the other suites is the outdoor area. Since you’re on the ground floor, your private patio is much larger than in other rooms. For example, here’s the view from the garden of our suite. As you can see, the rooms above only have shaded balconies. Our “backyard” was much larger.
View of other suites at St. Regis Bali
St. Regis Bali Plunge Pool Suite outdoor area
Right as you walked out there was a two person couch as well as a chair.
St. Regis Bali Plunge Pool Suite outdoor area
St. Regis Bali Plunge Pool Suite outdoor area
Then there was a dining table, two chairs for lounging, and also a beautiful padded “hut” you could relax on.
St. Regis Bali Plunge Pool Suite outdoor area
St. Regis Bali Plunge Pool Suite outdoor area
As the name of the suite suggests, there was also a plunge pool, which was on the small side, though better than nothing.
St. Regis Bali Plunge Pool Suite plunge pool
On top of that there was a walkway around the side of the suite.
St. Regis Bali Plunge Pool Suite outdoor area
The suite was absolutely gorgeous and more than sufficient. I was extremely impressed by it. That being said, I don’t think this hotel is very good at measuring.
The hotel claims that the plunge pool suites are 2,034 square feet, while the standard suites are 990 square feet. In both instances it seems like they’re including outdoor area in the square footage, which is the first time I’ve seen that done when it comes to rooms. Don’t get me wrong, I kind of expected the room to “only” be maybe 600-700 square feet, though prior to my stay I kept saying to myself “what am I missing, where are the other ~1,500 square feet?” And the answer is that I wasn’t missing anything, they’re not there. 😉
Bottom line
I’ll of course have a lot more about the resort in the upcoming installments, but suffice to say I loved this resort (which is part of why I’m writing a few installments about it).
The standard rooms at this property are suites the same size as the one we were in, minus the outdoor area. While I think the hotel slightly exaggerates the square footage of the rooms, they’re gorgeously designed, and I have nothing but good things to say about them.
I thought the plunge pool suite was worth the Suite Night Award I redeemed for it. The rate difference would have been ~$220, so whether it’s worth paying an extra $220 per night for that probably comes down to how much you value privacy. If you’re the type of person who likes to hang out in your own garden rather than the main pool, then it’s well worth it. If you’re just as happy in the hotel’s other awesome pools and lounging in public, then you’ll probably get limited value out of the garden.
For the third and fourth night we paid to upgrade to a villa, so I’ll have more on that shortly, and whether I think that’s worth it.
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