Monday, November 30, 2009

Pre-baby Bali Trip

It was excellent! It was by far one of the best holidays we've had! It was sunny throughout and we just had a great time.

We spent out first 2 nights at the Grand Hyatt, Nusa Dua Bali. Courtesy of points accumulated from hubby's business trip stays at other Grand Hyatt's, we accumulated enough points for 2 nights of stay at any Grand Hyatt, so of course we chose Bali.

The resort was SO HUGE! It has 5 swimming pools. We spent a good amount of time exploring the resort and discovering all the pools and by the time we left, we were not even done yet! They had a bar called the Salsa Bar, which is elevated above the main pool and overlooks the beach. Great for sunsets, but since we were out and missed the sunset, we had after dinner drinks there.  

We had most of our meals outside the hotel, as with any 5 star hotels, meals were expensive and not that nice. Thankfully there was a shopping area with many restaurants just outside the hotel. Besides lounging by the pool and lots of swimming (yes at 22 weeks, I did not hesitate to get into my bikinis and swim!), we managed to go out to the Ubud Art Market and got a painting. Paintings there are definitely very cheap and bringing one home is almost a must. Although it is our second time in Bali, our first time being our honeymoon) it was our first time at the Ubud Art Market. We also realized that Bali is actually quite large and each area is so different from one another.

Ubud is quiet, quaint, arty kind of village, where else Nusa Dua is a touristy, suitable for family kind of area with gorgeous beaches. Kuta and Seminya I think is more for the party and booze crowd.

The next 2 nights were spent at YTL's Spa Village at Singaraja. It is 3 and half hours away from Nusa Dua and it was a long and bumpy journey. However when we got there, we were pleasantly surprised with a foot bath and shoulder massage from the welcoming entourage at the hotel. Singaraja is on the top end of Bali and VERY far from every where. It is a true retreat and is highly recommended for honeymooners and those who are dying of stress :)

The resort is small but gorgeously peaceful and tranquil. We thought we were going to be bored there, but the hotel had lots of activities lined up for us including a spa treatment all included in our package! We had star gazing, where we lay on a inflated mattress in a swimming pool and gazed at the stars. Lucky for us, it was a starry night indeed! Our spa treatment was heaven! It started with a pre-treatment, which I was not allowed to do because I was pregnant, but hubby did it instead. It involved steaming our feet in a bath of hot sand from the beach. After that they gave us a light snack of frozen grapes (something different but delicious on a hot day!) and some drinks. We were then escorted to our treatment room for a massage (pengsan punye best), body scrub, milk bath and then a flower bath. When we were done, we were so relaxed and so happy. After being rejuvenated, we had our lunch, followed by a lontar drawing class. It is basically learning to draw and leaves, which is meant to be a traditional thing in Bali. We relaxed some more by the pool, then we got ready to go for our sunset, fishing cruise on their traditional little boat called the Jukong. We had a FAB time.

Our meals at the Spa Village was all included in the package and it was SO yummy. All were 3 course meals and served gourmet style. The service at the Spa Village was so personalized and every evening when we return to our room we find little greeting notes from our room attendants. One left us 2 weaved little birds on our bed with a note saying something like " These 2 little birds will watch over us tonight as we sleep" How sweet!!

We are definitely going for another YTL holiday. The only overseas resort that YTL has at the moment is the Spa Village at Bali. But their famous local ones are the Pangkor Laut Resort and Tanjung Jara. Definitely will try it!

1 comment:

Drama Queen said...

Wow...now I feel like going to Bali! I've always wanted to go to that YTL resort in Bali but we heard its so far away and there's no TV! But now I really feel like going!

I've gone to all the other YTL resorts and I love them all. Especially Pangkor Laut..you'll love the food there!