A personal opinion based upon two weeks - June 2013

The Bali Hyatt has, in my opinion, improved immeasurably since our visits in 2009 and 2010. Unfortunately our 2010 review appears to have gone astray but, hopefully, this update will be all the more relevant.

In summary, from check-in to check out we had a delightful visit, with no complaints whatsoever - by far the best stay we have had at this hotel.

The Bali Hyatt was, arguably, the first resort hotel in Sanur - dating back to the early 1970s. It stands on the best part of the sandy beach which is protected by a reef and a shallow lagoon. The hotel buildings are rather dated, but the several acres of mature tropical gardens more than compensate for the tired appearance of the main buildings.

We had a club room which we found to be far better (though obviously smaller) than the suite which we had in 2010. The room was adequately furnished with a furnished balcony with overhead fan. The air conditioned room had plenty of storage space in hanging wardrobes and drawers and had a good laptop sized security safe. The bathroom was well cleaned, adequately supplied with toiletries and had separate bath and shower. Towels were good quality, plentiful and changed twice daily. Housekeeping was excellent with six bottles of water (more if required), fresh fruit and flowers and a well stocked mini bar fridge. We had everything we needed (including free mosquito repellent).

Check in was very friendly, welcoming and efficient and took place in the club lounge. Check out / payment must be done at main reception and this was also speedy and efficient.

Facilities include a spa, 2 pools, tennis, badminton, pitch & putt, fitness centre, jogging track, volleyball court, free internet (wired in room, Wi-Fi in public areas) concierge service, business centre/internet room, shops and a host of activities which are advertised daily on an in-room flyer. Pool and beach towels are provided and changed on request. Water sports are also available. Additionally there is a children's club - Camp Sanur

The gardens are a particular feature with trees, shrubs and flowers and water features / ponds dotted throughout. There are, to my knowledge 3 temples within the grounds - there may be more. There are two special Balinese themed evening buffet meals, with traditional dance, twice weekly and the bars / restaurants all feature special evenings or promotions.

Breakfast is taken in the club lounge or Wantilan Cafe, which is open for breakfast only. Other restaurants are their excellent Chinese restaurant - Talaga Naga (evenings), the Omang Omang Grill (all day), Pizza Ria, Italian themed restaurant (all day) and Cupak Bistro Indonesian restaurant (evenings). The Wantilan Cafe and Cupak Bistro no longer seem to open all day, as in previous years. There are 4 bars, the Piano Bar, Grantang Bar (air conditioned), Pool Bar and Beach Bar - although the Omang Omang grill seemed to provide the beach service during our visit. From late morning drinks and snacks may be ordered directly from your sun lounger on the beach. There is also an ice-cream trolley situated beach side.

In addition to breakfast (07:00 to 10:30 daily - to 11:00 weekend), tea, coffee, soft drinks, juices and some snacks are available in the club lounge to club guests from 07:00 to 23:00 and there are drinks and canapes / snacks available between 5 and 7 pm.

The laundry service is efficient, although the ironing may not be to the highest standard.

It is the staff that are the outstanding feature at the Hyatt, many of them having been at the resort for several years. Nothing seems to be too much trouble and they get the perfect balance between friendliness and over familiarity. We cannot praise them highly enough.

This hotel provided all that we required - how could we ask for more?

A personal opinion based upon 12 nights - Sepember 2009

The Bali Hyatt stands in several acres of gardens on a nice central part of Sanur Beach in Bali. The building, however, is a rather unattractive concrete affair, screened by bougainvillea and other shrubs. Accommodation is in 3 blocks, surrounding courtyards, containing shrubs, trees and flowers. We believe that a few more Balinese touches throughout would not have gone amiss - the area in front of the lobby bar would bear witness to this.

In general terms, the quality of the staff, service and breakfast catering was very good. Reception and check-in / out were fast, efficient and friendly and security was fairly tight.

We had an ocean view guest room on the 2nd level (1st floor) with a good sized balcony and a lovely view over the gardens and a pleasant part of the beach. The room was a a bit tired in appearance and we felt that the bathroom could have been a lot cleaner.

Other than breakfast, which was an excellent meal with good service and a wide selection, we only had one other meal in the hotel, the Balinese evening, which was not particularly good. You can obtain typical food of a higher standard in Sanur village and dance entertainment is regularly featured in some restaurants.

The location, mid way along the beach and close to many restaurants was great and very convenient. Some good restaurants are available within a few minutes walk and various activities, boating, scuba, etc., are available on the beach path, nearby.

The staff were helpful, friendly and generally very good. The hotel is served by 2 pools, neither really large enough for the number of guests. The garden area, between the lobby bar, breakfast (Wantilan?) restaurant and pool are, is rather attractive with many Balinese touches and water features.

The beach, fronting the hotel, has plenty of good sun-beds, is cleaned frequently by the staff and is a very pleasant feature, The sea is a shallow lagoon at high tide, protected by a reef. It is not an ideal place to swim an at low tide almost dries out and it is possible to wade out in places almost to the reef.

Towels are supplied for either the pool or beach and the staff are excellent in preparing sun-beds. There are a very limited number of sun umbrellas, however, and finding shade before the early afternoon is not easy. In the afternoon, shade is too plentiful the beach faces East and is backed by tall trees.

There is an entertainment programme, but this is poorly communicated to guests. Apart from the Balinese evening nothing appealed.

We felt that more could have been made of the space available. I understand that a refurbishment program is due commence late next year.

Nevertheless we had a fairly relaxing and enjoyable time at the Bali Hyatt.

We would wait for the refurbisment to be completed prior to even considering a re-visit. Other, in my opinion better, hotels are available locally but none, to my mind, can compete on location and beach.