Bali Hyatt, Denpasar

My wife and I had recently spent 4 days here after a stint at the Ritz, Bali. My idea not the wife's. We haven't stayed here since the summer of 2006. At that time, we left here very disappointed. The rooms were damp and dirty back then, and the service was somewhat lacking. Boy have things changed. Upon our arrival, the manager from 2006 greeted us. He had all the details, (some of my negative feelings were listed) from our last visit 2 years ago, in fact from all our 3 previous visits at his hotel. This kind of freaked us out a bit. We had no need to worry. He was happy that we gave them another try. The first thing that he did was let us know that as soon as the Regancy Club room (which we were upgraded to), was ready, (4th floor over looking the ocean), we could settle in. Immediately I began to remind him that I heard that before at this hotel. He reassured us with 2 complimentary dinner vouchers for anything on the menu, while we waited for our room. That helped a bit for I had the steak sandwich."Great". At about the time that we were finishing our meals, we were presented with our room card-keys, and were brought to the place we were to call home for the next 4 days. To say that we were knocked off our feet, would be an understatement. It was beautiful with a great view of the garden/lawn area and the ocean. An immediate amends from our disappointments of 2 summers ago, had been made. Of course this hotel doesn't come close in comparison to the Ritz or the Intercontinental resorts, but it has a great country club feel to it. They don't. People that had worked at the hotel and the beaches from 2 years ago, still remembered us. While the wife had a 2 hour spa at the hotel, I would go just beachside of the hotel to the right, and get my US$5.00 massage from Daimi. The same woman that took good care of the wife and I two years ago. The next day, while the wife had her hour long tennis lesson, I went sailing on a traditional Javanese sailboat with a buddy I ran into from 2 years ago named Madi. I think he stilll used the same boat from that time, for it looked a little worn. However, this added to the overall excitement and feel of our stay here. Sanur beach at high tide isn't very deep. In fact, it isn't over my head while swimming. So make sure that the tide is in, if you plan to do water sports. At low tide you could walk all the way to the reef. Maybe that's why some of the surfers that I ran into in Kuta call Sanur Beach, "Sn-ore" Beach. Keep the surfboards at home, if you are planning to stay at this hotel. The hotel food was very good with a reasonable price. The buffet breakfast had improved very much since our last stay. The buffet was served in an enclosed area, no flies/birds to contend with. Unlike 2 years ago, you weren't allowed to smoke in the buffet area. They did have a very nice area for me to smoke my Cohiba cigar in the morning, just outside and away from the decent folks in a separate windowed, but cool area. This made the wife very happy and free from embarrassment, and put me on display for other people to write about.. Kind of like being a monkey at a zoo. The hotel's Italian/pizza restaurant has a great selection. Also along the beach walkway you can find many quiet but perfect, eating establishments with both western and Balinese food and great views of the beach. All nice and very reasonably priced. In conclusion, my wife said it wasn't the Ritz, but it was the best country club that we have joined and been members of in a very long time. A traditional Balinese feel in every area and every venue. My wife was happy. I was happy. And to my surprise, my wallet was very happy with our overall stay at the Bali Hyatt in Sanur. *Note: Don't exchange your money here(very low rate). Go to the main road in front of the hotel and transact with the money changers there. Hey, not that I'm cheap,, but a nickel is a nickel in my book.