danger

Introduction I first visited Bali when I was eight and this was my 5th trip. Prior to Easter this year I had toyed with the idea of heading up to Bali for a stay at the Grand Hyatt. Rates were upwards of USD200 a night and the consenus from members here was that it was just too high. Last week, though, I found a USD155 ++ rate per night. For the second and third nights I had a cash plus points rate of USD75 ++ plus 6k per night. And I added a DSU to boot.As such Bali is a major hotspot for long weekends, buck's parties, hen's parties, weddings, boys' weekends, girls' weekends and end of season (football, cricket, hockey, netball . . .) trips. When Bali was bombed by terrorists in October 2002, 88 of the 202 killed were Australians - more than double the number of locals. The Australian government responded instantly, des patching members of the armed forces and our national police, as well as teams of medics and consular support staff along with medical supplies the very night the blast occurred. Bali is to Australians what I understand Cancun is to springbeakers. It's our very close neighbour where you can enjoy a week-long holiday with hotel, breakfast and flights at a four or five stay hotel for what you'd otherwise pay for a two or three night room-only at a three or four star hotel in one of our major capitals. For Perth folk it's quicker to fly to Bali than it is to Sydney and about the same distance to Melbourne. Now I understand for the American members that's probably not such a huge deal. But when you consider Perth is thought of as the most isolated capital city in the world, it takes on a new meaning. Check In I arrived at the hotel's grounds where security guards give a cursory glance to vehicles before allowing access to the grounds. There was a staff member holding an iPad who asked if I was checking-in. I gave her my name, she confirmed my booking and presumably this alerted another staff member at the lobby 200 metres up the road as I was met by name by another staff member. This gentleman immediately acknowledged my Diamond status and escorted me directly to the Grand Club for check-in. I had arrived at 1.40pm, slightly before the 2pm standard check-in time and my suite was not quite ready. I was invited to relax in the Grand Club and offered a drink. Ten minutes after 2pm I was escorted to my suite on the fourth floor of one of what seems to be multiple standalone villages. I had noted in my reservation a request for a room close to or overlooking the swimming pool but I got neither. Perhaps there aren't suites that satisfy these criteria or perhaps no attention was paid to the request. I often wonder whether the notes section of the reservation is ever even looked at. I'm tempted one day to write something like "I'd appreciate a room with a bouncey castle and small petting zoo" and see if it gets a reaction at check-in. Room A couple of notes. First, no June Jacobs amenities. I know there's a lot of people that don't like JJ but I'm quite partial to them. The bed, as one or two other members have posted, is very hard. And the bed was what I call a false king: two smaller beds pushed together. I don't know how hotels get away with that. If the room description says "king sheets" rather than "king bed", then fine. But this is not a king bed. The two refrigerators were  never cold, just cool and that's a big annoyance of mine and many hotels. And the bathroom is open. There is a wall separating it from the bedroom but it has two massive holes in it. Wifi was very fast and there were no service issues.The suite was very large and spacious, furnished in typical Balinese style with darker woods and generally darker tones, with the exception of the bathroom which was much lighter. I'll let the photos speak for themselves.But never look a gift horse in the mouth.The DSU suite is the 98 square metre regency suite. I was further upgraded to the 141 square metre regency executive suite. The downside was this type of suite appears not to have been renovated whereas the entry level suite, at least from the photos, does seem to have been. Service In all, I can't fault the service. Very impressive.I left IDR3000 for housekeeping in the morning and IDR2000 (AUD2 to AUD3) in the evening (although the turndown service was absent on the second night). The room was always impeccably serviced.I'm never anything less than impressed by Asian hospitality and the Grand Hyatt Bali was no exception. If I encountered 50 staff throughout my stay, 48 of them made direct eye contact and said hello. If that was Australia, I fear those numbers would be completely the opposite. Dining I was disappointed to see a staff member giving a guest in his two children a cardboard box to takeaway items from the breakfast spread. From the number of muffins and pastries the children took I can only assume they were preparing for a birthday party for 20 of their closest friends.Multiple staff service the lounge, offering drinks and clearing tables. According to the welcome letter I received the dress cost for the lounge prohibits beachwear, gym clothing or bathrobes, the former two being a slightly blurry line in this climate. Just like the evening spread breakfast was adequate but far from extensive. There is also a chef cooking egg dishes.In contrast to a member a couple of posts up I found the Grand Club lounge perfectly fine. I'm certainly one who is guilty of treating "evening drinks and canapes" as a full meal but I also acknowledge that that's not what the hotel intends. Canapes were limited but they were more than edible. A chef was there each evening preparing a made-to-order dish (like a small salad or an Asian soup) and there were an additional two hot dishes rotated each evening. I can't comment on alcohol as I never drank in the lounge. However, alcohol is neither on display nor self-serve so I cannot comment on what types and brands are available. Again, though, just like in the room, the refrigerators for non-alcoholic drinks were only coolers rather than chillers. The Grand Club must certainly be unique in the chain, being entirely open-air and set almost like an island in a made-made lagoon where scores of fish and other waterlife frolic. This also means it's not airconditioned, as has been mentioned and mosquitos can be an issue.I had breakfast one morning in the breakfast restaurant and it was perfectly fine. The selection isn't huge but was more than adequate. There were egg dishes cooked to order as well as another chef making pancakes. Staff were again efficient in clearing tables and offering hot drinks.As others have noted there are multiple dining options at the hotel itself. From Balinese cuisine, to Eastern favourites to Italian to Japanese, there's something to suit almost everyone.  One evening after having dinner off-site I stopped by one of the restaurants for dessert. I ordered an icecream dish with four or five scoops, presented in a cookie jar with a wafer cone, all for AUD12. Outstanding. Location The only thing close to the hotel is Bali Collection, a more or less outdoor shopping village with slightly higher prices than you'll find elsewhere. There is an abundance of restaurants, however and these are still reasonably priced. Two nights I ate at an Italian restaurant and for a main meal and milkshake I paid AUD16. Certainly pricey for Bali but by no means outrageous.As others have noted, the location of the hotel in Nusa Dua means it is far removed from the tourist hotspots of Kuta and Legian. This is of course a pro and a con. It's a good 30 minutes and up to 45 minutes into these areas but taxis and, particularly, Ubers are dirt cheap. I used a taxi once, from Legian back to the hotel and it cost IDR112k (AUD11.50). Use, Uber, however and you'll pay a pittance. How much would you expect to pay for a 43 minute, 17 kilometre trip? A dirt cheap IDR61k - barely more than AUD6! How these people survive I'll never know. Pool One of the big drawcards for me with this hotel was the multiple and large pools. The hotel's website says it has five spread out across the property, including one dedicated for Club guests. The main pool is a huge free-form lagoon, perfectly nestled among large frangiapani trees that drap across the water. There's several small waterfalls and a couple of water slides. It's a true water oasis. There were two downsides. The first was the water temperature was hot. I estimate it was probably pushing 30 degrees C on one day but I guess there's not a lot the hotel can do about this. The second is all the pools close at 7pm each day. For a hotel in such a hot climate and with multiple pools I really think that's disappointing. I had the same issue with the outstanding pools at the Hyatt Regency Sharm El-Sheikh. Surely the hotel could permit one pool or even part of one pool open to 9pm or 10pm. Overall There was, however, one major disappointment and it happened at check-out. I only booked my stay late on a Thursday for arriving the following Monday. I use travel insurance included with one of my credit cards but to trigger it I need to spend $250 prior to departure. To do this I contacted the hotel to ask them to pre-charge my first night (the USD155 ++). I did this by faxing them, emailing them at the generic address and replying to an advance email I received from a guest relations agent. There was only one business day in which this could be done, hence my multiple contacts. Anyway, someone made the charge on the Friday which ensured I had my travel insurance. Come check-out, however, the hotel had no record of it. None. As a result I had to pay for the night a second time. How a hotel can take your money and not have a record of it blows me away. I will now have to pay both charges off my credit card and do a chargeback that can take up to two months. It was a very sour end but I haven't let it take away from the otherwise very pleasing stay.Overwhelmingly I very much enjoyed my stay. I do agree with others that prices upwards of USD200 (and even possibly a little less) are too high but for what I got I'm quite pleased.