Elope

It's a tough one and to a large degree your satisfaction will probably depend on what type of hotel you're used to and also how much you pay for your stay.

I visited in December for a few days. It's a beautiful hotel. The gardens, the lagoon and the majority of public areas are stellar. The service too is up there with some of the best in Asia, especially for Platinums.

The primary issue is that this is an old hotel - an old hotel in the tropics. While the rooms themselves have been refurbished with some very elegant furniture, you still can't escape some very tired looking hallways, very dated bathrooms that resemble caves, ancient (musty) air-conditioning and a breakfast offering that hasn't really kept pace with modern breakfasts in the region, particularly for presentation.

Do I like the hotel? I really do. That lagoon is beautiful and is still my favourite pool of any hotel I've stayed at. The staff, many of whom have been there since it opened, really are excellent at nearly every interaction.

But that doesn't stop me from being aware of the weaknesses, and whoever I'm in Bali the Laguna generally only wins my business if they price significantly lower than the better located LM Jimbaran or the much more luxurious St Regis that is of course in an entirely different category altogether.

MSPeconomist

Don't all rooms and rates at this property include the butler service? That seemed to be the case when I stayed here a couple years ago. If not, what are the normal conditions now that determine whether one can use the (free) butler service or not?

red star

Totally agree with your balanced opinion even though I don't think Laguna and LM Jimbaran are catering the same group of guests.
One observation though: The Laguna seems to become more and more a favorite with Russian guests. They even hired Russian staff and while I can enjoy a Russian Disco at the resort beach on Saturday night not everybody might.

awxm88

thanks guys. I was all set to book LM Jimbaran but the girlfriend took one look at the property and said "it looks like a time share condo" and that was that. From my understanding LM Jimbaran isn't directly on the beach anyway and there isn't much to do around the hotel, so maybe this could be a better choice. As one previous poster in this thread did, I emailed the hotel to ask what the arrangement was like for confirming upgrades before arrival. However they quoted me some really ridiculous prices which more or less negated any price benefit, so I'm going to play upgrade roulette.

awxm88

as a platinum, i see i've been pre-upgraded to a "deluxe lagoon access" room, but I also see there are ocean view suites available. Executive suites sold out (i'm guessing this is the standard suite given as a platinum upgrade). So... lagoon access rooms any good? Worth pushing a bit to see if they'll bump me up to an ocean view or am I just dreaming?

MSPeconomist

Lagoon access rooms are regular rooms on the first/ground floor that have a balcony over the lagoon (an old swimming pool less than a meter deep that wraps around a lot of the hotel building, right up to the wall) with an old ladder going down into the pool directly from the balcony. There's a gate but it's not kid-proof so these rooms are NOT suitable for families with children. IIRC the hotel sets a minimum age standard for occupants.

Some people like the setup but I don't. The main pool is new and much more attractive and I would think that the ladder could hurt your bare feet. Also, low level rooms can be dark and musty smelling here.

OTOH, ocean view is clearly a specialty suite. However, there are a couple categories of normal suites of which only one seems to be considered select standard for the Plat upgrade pool.

When I stayed here, I was first given a Plat upgrade to a suite on the lower level (same as the pool access rooms but near some vegetation without pool access). It smelled very musty and I was moved to a different and slightly larger suite, but of course without an ocean view. A friend had been upgraded into pool access and was very happy.

awxm88

just got back from a 2 night stay. overall, one word "meh"

a few more words- all the executive suites were full so no upgrade (checked online and they were indeed full). The rooms are alright, nothing to get excited over. My lagoon access room did indeed have a ladder down to the lagoon but the lagoons themselves aren't interconnected. Don't know why but from reading this thread and online I was under the impression that all the lagoons were linked and you could swim from one end of the resort to another.

Platinum recognition likewise meh. basket of fruit, nothing more.

what really bugged me was the concierge, who have been clearly trained to promote in-house options over everything else. i asked where I could find a nice seafood restaurant and was told "oh sir we have one in the hotel". I asked where i could get a nice massage and told "oh sir we have a spa in the hotel". pushed them a bit more and they said "oh but I cannot recommend any outside as we cannot guarantee the quality of the oil and massuse". Yes, exactly

As a side note, went to st regis for dinner at boneka. Asked for regular tap water instead of bottled. was told "we only serve tap water on special occasions". Yes, you heard that right. This isn't a 5 star restaurant, mind. This is the regular buffet. And they serve tap water on special occasions. I was so amused I didn't even bother to argue. Apparently, you need to book a large table and then as part of the package they give you a free flow of tap water. Say what.

back to the property- pools are way nicer than westin, the staff (concierge aside) are very friendly and helpful. Breakfast is bad- no salmon, hash browns or a lot of other stuff that I thought was standard. Spread is actually really lackluster for an Asian property. there are 2 options for breakfast, they say the spread is the same but it's really bigger at the one closer to the pool.

again. meh.

Starwood Lurker II

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reuthermonkey

I'm looking at staying at the Laguna with my wife this fall. She's quite sensitive to smells, and I've read that (some of?) the rooms have a dated, wet smell to them. Is that the case for all rooms? If only the oldest rooms are like that, is there a good chance that I could get Plat-upgraded to a room that's been more recently renovated? If low level (ie lagoon access) rooms are musty smelling, should I request a room on the highest floor instead?

I've got some SNA's that need to get used up as well, so trying to debate using the SNA's for the Executive Suite. I'll be staying there in mid-October.

MSPeconomist

Common wisdom here seems to be that Plats get upgraded here to either the lagoon access rooms or to their entry level suite, although the next category of suite doesn't seem very different.

IME the really bad musty room that I was given first was a suite on the ground level (same floor as the lagoon access rooms) without the lagoon outside my balcony. The room was surrounded by tropical foliage, seemed dark (due to the location and those big tropical plants), and was located in a wing of the building that was the farthest section from the beach, so it felt like the basement in a way. This suite would be absolutely horrible for anyone who is sensitive to smells or suffers from allergies.

The slightly larger suite (the front desk told me it was the next category up, one above their select standard suite) to which I was switched was on the other side (not facing the main pool or the Westin property) and about halfway to the beach on a higher floor, above some lagoon access rooms. However, it still smelled slightly musty and all of the clothes I had with me acquired a musty smell.

When I stayed on Bali, it appeared that all of the regular rooms and normal suites at the Laguna were in the same building with all wings apparently having been originally constructed at the same time. There was a separate and much newer building almost on the beach that seemed to have a few very large special suites; this looked very nice. There was also some even newer construction very far from the beach and close to the security checkpoint booth where vehicles enter the resort grounds that seemed to be villas with some sort of a clubhouse; they could have been condos. This is what I remember; I hope it's helpful.

red star

If you are very sensitive to smells this property isn't for you. After 4 stays (last in April, 1x studio, 3x executive suite) I never had a room/suite without at least a little smell.
It is hard to avoid in this environment if a property is not brand new.
If you want it brand new, go for the Le Meridien. But then, no hotel beach and a chance to get the smell from the fish restaurants at the beach.

reuthermonkey

Thank you guys for the input. This really helps make my decision. I think I'll just go for the Westin since we want to still be able to enjoy the beach!

ExpatSomchai

Someone mentioned alcohol is expensive all over Nusa Dua....any details ? Hic

ajca

Why on earth would you want to drink the tap water in Bali? Maybe the St Regis has a policy of not doing things that could put their guests in hospital!

Starwood Lurker II

Hi all,

This property is participating in the SPG More For You promotion.

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Thyetus Lee | Social Media Specialist
Starwood Customer Contact Centre (AP) Pte Ltd