Hotel Review: Golden Tulip Bay View Hotel Bali

Following my grand Indonesia trip that ended on a sweet, albeit too short, note, I got back to KL and within two days decided that I would return to Bali within the week for 6 days.

After my previous pleasant stay at the Golden Tulip in Lombok, my friend Febrian hooked me up with Golden Tulip in Bali to get me settled in for a couple of days. 

The hotel is located in Jimbaran hills, right next to the Garuda Wisnu Kencana Cultural Park where you will see the famous sculpture by Nyoman Nuarta whose gallery I visited in Bandung. An unusual location, I thought, as I was driven 20 minutes south of the international airport, passing by small and quiet roads before reaching the grand lobby of the hotel. 

The hotel hosted an impressive 268 rooms and suites, a grand ballroom, wedding chapel, 8 meeting rooms and two outdoor pools. Something I didn't expect coming from a hotel hidden in such a neighbourhood, the compound was massive. The facilities such as gym and spa were a bit jaded but given the price (at ~RM240 for the Deluxe room on Agoda), it's really a steal. 

Deluxe Room - my room

The ups: 

The room given to me was a spacious Deluxe room with separate shower and toilet, it even came with a balcony. The bed and pillows were comfortable and when there was a problem with my room key, they sent someone up to have it replaced for me. The service at the restaurant was attentive, despite being the only patron that afternoon, the ala carte menu was surprisingly delicious and affordable. I appreciate the complimentary desserts served with a letter in the room for the guest. 

The downs: 

This was perhaps the biggest down for me during my stay, which was none of the hotel staff's fault but more perhaps due to its location. On my second night, the bar/club across the hotel was having a 'live band' (local music) that lasted till 2am in the morning, despite staying on the highest floor, the lack of sound-proofing in the room was proving to make my sleep a difficult one. 

The neutrals: 

The hotel is situated a bit far from all the touristy hotspots of Southern Bali but can easily be solved by renting a bike or car. Majority of the guests at the hotel were from China so there will be days the restaurant and lobby were filled with Chinese tourists, which didn't bother me but just a note should you wake up one day mistakenly thought yourself transported to China. 

Verdict: 

Now my honest thought, you are looking at a four star hotel at the price of RM200 for their standard room, given the amount of facilities you receive and the room space you get, and this is Bali we are talking about, it's a decent deal. 

Royal Suite aka penthouse

Jacuzzi in Royal Suite

Complimentary desserts

spa

outdoor pool (pardon the exposure as it was a photo for my Instagram @nicootan )





Golden Tulip Bay View Hotel & Convention Bali 
Jalan Raya Uluwatu Br. Giri Dharma Ungasan,
Kuta Selatan, Bali 80364, Indonesia
Contact: +62 361 849 8000


Rating:
Cleanliness: 5/5
Comfort: 4/5
Service: 4/5
Value: 5/5
Food: 4/5
Location: 3/5
Facilities: 3/5

Alila Seminyak Bali: Luxury at its Finest

The trip ended with a bang with our last night in Bali where we were put up at Alila Seminyak, which perhaps possesses the most prestigious location in all of Bali.




Located right in central Seminyak, the compound consists of 5 pools in total: 3 infinity pools (one on the penthouse) with unobstructed view to the ocean, 1 beachfront beach bar pool, and a secluded pool facing few of the suites; the resort comes with their very own private beach, clean soft sand and perfect waves (apparently it exists), and to top it off, hold your breath party people, it is sitting right next to Potato Head (an upper class night club with its own private pool).

I cannot emphasise enough how in love I am with the location of this resort, but what's more amazing was the impeccable service and hospitality that came with its staff, a staggering feat considering there are 240 rooms and suites sitting on the resort.




Award winning architectural designs aside, my "smallest" garden deluxe suite boosted an impressive space of 775 sqft.
I recorded a video below because in this case, photo doesn't do it justice.
Prepare to fork out USD350 for a night here. It's worth every cent.

Just to highlight how amazing the service in this resort was, it was close to midnight when I wanted to take a dip in the pool, but the pool was closed. Sensing my arrival, the beach bar staff (who were cleaning up the bar for the day) approached me and asked if I needed any assistance; after shamelessly asking if I could swim, not only they did not even hesitate to say yes, they immediately offered to bring me pool towels. Now that's service.

Understanding the need for privacy for their guests, they left me alone (out of sight) and I swam till my heart's content. Got up, dried myself, left the towel on the chair, which I believed they promptly collected right after my departure.

I appreciate attention to detail and service to your every whim in the hospitality line, but to have service offered upfront and to read and understand your guest's need is hard to come by. For this I gave Alila Seminyak an exceptional rating for their services.

The resort was extremely instagram-worthy to boot. Have a look.

A photo posted by Nicolekiss (@nicootan) on Sep 21, 2016 at 10:55pm PDT

A photo posted by Nicolekiss Nicole Tan (@nicootan) on Sep 19, 2016 at 6:08pm PDT

Is this not the perfect beach? Gorgeous flat soft sand to run on. 

A photo posted by Nicolekiss Nicole Tan (@nicootan) on Sep 18, 2016 at 8:54pm PDT

Private pool at the penthouse. USD4500 a night anyone?

A photo posted by Marcos Detourist (@marcosdetourist) on Sep 23, 2016 at 3:13am PDT

Borrowing a photo from Marcos (not my room) 




Infinity pool - photo courtesy of Kounila (sassy Cambodian travel blogger)









sunset on the private beach 



Evening setting


Alila Seminyak, Bali 
Jalan Taman Ganesha No. 9
Petitenget, Kerobokan,
Bali, Indonesia.
Contact: +62 361 3021 888
Website: www.alilahotels.com/seminyak 


Rating:
Cleanliness: 5/5
Comfort: 5/5
Service: 5/5
Value: 4/5
Food: 4.5/5
Location: 5/5
Facilities: 5/5

SK-II: Nicholas Teo & Limited Edition Suminagashi FTE Bottles

I was in for a surprise when Nicholas Teo showed up at Mid Valley dressed up top to toe in white.

It was the launch of the new limited edition festive Facial Treatment Essence bottles by SK-II, this time inspired by Suminagashi (Japanese floating ink). I'm a fan of the blue design bottle. If only I had a shelf to store all my limited edition SK-II bottles, it would be quite a display. 

They flew in a Suminagashi Sensei to perform live water floating ink on stage, and had us set up for a workshop where we dabbled with the water ink ourselves. Picture of the outcome attached below. 

Not before the dreamy 34-year-old Nicholas Teo performed a new number on stage. 

And he left too soon before I could shamelessly request for a selfie. Sigh...

I also won the flatlay IG contest (first image as seen above) and received a bottle of Mid-Day Miracle Essence. Yay! Not to mention walking away with a box of Bloomthis consisted of 5 large rose blooms (which I have cut and put up in a vase next to my bed now).





free inside scoop ice cream (which I never claimed)



Nicholas Teo!



Suminagashi sensei standing next to Nicholas Teo






place a paper on the water, and voila! floating ink becomes an art! 


 

Thank you SK-II and Bloomthis for the gifts. 

Labuan Bajo: port to Komodo island, Pink Beach, and Flores

The paradise of Indonesia lies in Flores.

Never heard of Flores? Neither have I before my Indonesia grand tour. 

I have heard of Komodo island and I have many diving friends who have visited Komodo and raved about it. 

Little did I know that Komodo island is just a tiny section in Flores, and the true beauty of Flores cannot even be summed up in words, so beware of the onslaught of scenic pornography you'll be receiving in this post. 

To start off, you'll land yourself in Labuan Bajo (Komodo Airport), the main island and port to the nearby islands in Western Flores. To get here you transit via Denpasar airport in Bali. 

Brief Itinerary: 

• Fly into Labuan Bajo - check in, see sunset, eat sushi
• Visit Komodo National Park - trek, see Komodo dragons
• Pink Beach - snorkel, bbq, photography
• Padar Island - trek, photography
• Visit Loh Liang - lunch, guided treks, see nest of Komodo dragons
• Kanawa Island - snorkel, beautiful corals

The above itinerary can be done in 3 days 2 nights, provided you opted for the shortest trek in each location. You can spend up to a week exploring with the same itinerary.

Here's a more elaborated itinerary if you have extra days to explore Flores: check out 15 best things to do in Flores.

I checked into La Prima hotel in Labuan Bajo after two flights from Lombok via Bali. The room comes with a stunning view of the ocean if your room happens to face the sea, with a pool to boot (alas mine was facing the street). Labuan Bajo consists of one street and very limited restaurants (most of which serve western cuisine), but get yourself to the sushi restaurant that you will be pleasantly surprised at how such fresh and delicious sushi can be served up in such a small remote harbour. Don't forget to head over early to catch a seat for the best sunset in the area at Paradise cafe, order a drink as courtesy.

The highlights of my trip were Pink Beach (gorgeous sand) and Padar Island (despite the gruesome insatiably hot trek, the view was stunning). What can I say, I'm attracted to blue sea.

 
Sunset view at Paradise Cafe, Labuan Bajo



Pink Beach






going for a swim at Pink Beach



Snorkelling at Pink Beach



view at the top of Komodo National Park



Komodo National Park Harbor



Padar Island - trek up was strenuous but worth it

Lombok to Gili Trawangan, Gili Meno and Gili Air

And so it began the crazy flight schedules of Indonesia. Transferring between islands in Indonesia can be a hassle with taking up to two flights a day just to get to your destination.

With Jogja behind us, we flew in to Lombok the following morning, not before making a transit in Bali. With a wake up call, you guessed it, at an ungodly hour of 4:30am.

Even the early hours could not contain my excitement towards the second half of the trip - the islands. From here on it would be all gorgeous beaches and many great snorkelling sessions.




Lombok is the main access to the three small beautiful islands Gili Trawangan, Gili Meno and Gili Air. Three gems blessed with baby blue crystal clear untainted sea water, hot spot for manta rays and paradise for the snorkel-lovers. The main island Lombok provides a lot of charms, with winding landscapes along the coasts, great many beaches and restaurants with good food and well facilitated resorts, it is no wonder more and more tourists are diverting from Bali and seeking quieter island paradise in Lombok.

We arrived at El Bazar for lunch, a new establishment serving amazing mediterranean food. I was prepared for the heat of the island so I was sweating buckets dining here. Granted I wasn't able to change to a more breathable outfit.

If you're into colourful hand-weaved fabric (as photo below), then you need to make a stop at Sasak Sade Village. A local village of 300 villagers living in cow-dung built houses, who make a living selling intricately weaved scarfs and sarongs to tourists. Sign up for a tour and you'll be greeted with a warm musical and drumming welcome followed by a cultural dance that did not disappoint.

The following day we moved out to sea to visit the famous Gili islands nearby for a day's worth of snorkelling - Gili Trawangan, Gili Meno and Gili Air. Just a short 35 mins away and we have entered heaven.

My favourite has got to be Gili Meno. The sea so blue and calm and the corals pretty; it was a breeze to swim in (note: pink donut float in the sea pic). But the view at Gili Tranwangan was undeniably breathtaking, with many amazing instagram-worthy sunset moments and photogenic beaches.





Checked in to Golden Tulip Lombok



El Bazar















Donut and fins at Gili Meno



Gili Trawangan



One of Gili Trawangan's swings