Grand Hyatt Bali

By any measure, this is a huge resort, even among the sprawling four- and five-pearl behemoths that crowd Bali's ever popular Nusa Dua area. The resort is nestled on expansive grounds with landscaped gardens, palms, teak and frangipani trees, bougainvillea, waterfalls, and koi lily ponds with egrets and herons. Within all of this lovely greenery are five outdoor pools, including a huge freeform lagoon pool and a river pool with a long water slide. The water in the pools is a cool blue color that contrasts nicely with the surrounding landscape, and the resort does a fine job providing a tropical escape throughout all of its exterior spaces.

The resort's interiors feature lots of teak and stone, with hardwood floors and rattan furniture. Design is stylish and rustic, with tree-root tables, low-slung contemporary furniture, and pagoda ceilings criss-crossed by wood beams. A unique aspect of the resort is the Pasar Senggol market, with thatched-roof gazebos and Balinese carved-wood facades on the buildings. Here guests can sample Indonesian and Balinese fare from food stalls, purchase artisan handicrafts, and dine while enjoying Balinese entertainment. Due to its size and layout, the resort can feel like a world unto itself, and in fact there's little reason to leave with so much provided on site. With its conference center, the Grand Hyatt gets a lot of business guests and group bookings, but families and well-heeled tourist couples are also drawn to the resort. 

The seafront Grand Hyatt Bali is in central Nusa Dua on Nusa Dua Beach. The Bali Collection -- a mall that features a large selection of high-end shopping, dining, and entertainment -- is across the street. The Nusa Dua Theatre, featuring colorful Devdan dancing and acrobatic shows, is about a 10-minute walk from the hotel, and it's 15 minutes on foot to the Museum Pasifika, which exhibits Pacific Islander art. Bali Nusa Dua Convention Center is a four-minute drive from the hotel for those with the luck of doing business in Nusa Dua, while the Water Blow -- a seafront rock formation that creates a giant "blow up" splash when waves crash into it -- is a 15-minute walk or five-minute drive away. It's about 15 minutes by car to get to Tanjung Benoa Beach, which features water skiing, water jets, banana boat rides, wakeboarding, scuba diving, and sea turtle watching. Ngurah Rai International Airport is just under 20 minutes away by car. 

Spread out across four "villages," the 636 rooms, suites, and villas at the Grand Hyatt are huge, with mostly contemporary decor including ample use of Javanese teak wood and marble. The color palette is warm and bright, with some rooms sporting burgundy or royal blue in the bed throws. Unfortunately, style is not uniform across all rooms, and some of the rooms in older wings are a bit tired. While the Grand Room (Ocean View) that we visited was fine enough, the decor was a bit dated and dark, with olive green accents and chunky furniture with heavy fabrics. Rooms like the Grand Suite are a fine step up, though, with eye-catching artwork, rustic materials like bamboo-mat paneling, and travertine floors that live up to the hotel's luxury status.

All rooms come with desks, safes, minibars, tea- and coffee-making facilities, DVD and CD players (upon request only in lower-category rooms), flat-screen TVs with satellite and English channels, and plush beds with thick mattresses. Each also features a private balcony or terrace with views of the tropical gardens, lagoon, or sea. Marble bathrooms include separate tubs and walk-in showers, batik bathrobes and slippers, and premium bath products. Suites and villas also have separate living areas, and villas offer kitchenettes. Some villas also have outdoor private pools and hot tubs. Grand Club units come with access to the Grand Club Lounge, with privileges such as private concierge service, free continental breakfast, all-day refreshments, and evening cocktails. 

One of the Hyatt's more unusual features is the Pasa Senggol, designed as a modern Balinese night market and featuring Indonesian and Balinese food stalls, artisan-produced handicrafts, and an open amphitheater where guests can dine while being entertained by live Balinese music, dance, and theater. Other dining venues include a garden cafe with classic Asian and Western fare, a beachfront Italian restaurant, a Japanese restaurant with open kitchens, and a breakfast buffet restaurant with hot and cold international and Indonesian items. 24-hour room service is available. The rooftop cocktail bar has sea views and a living room cocktail lounge with acoustic guitar music. Breakfast is not included in standard room rates. 

The resort offers a white-sand beach with swimming, kayaking, canoeing, parasailing, scuba diving, snorkeling, surfing, and other water sports. The resort also offers five outdoor swimming pools: a lagoon pool set parallel to the beach with sea views and a poolside bar; a river pool with a water slide set in tropical gardens; and an elegant pool inspired by ancient Balinese water palaces. There's also a pool reserved for Grand Club guests and a pool in the health club. 

The health club also features a fitness center, an aerobics studio, two squash courts, steam and dry saunas, a hot tub, and plunge pools. Guests can also head outside for tennis on one of three floodlit courts, and on-site recreational activities include water polo in the pool, bocce ball, beach soccer and volleyball, scuba diving and surfing lessons, bocce ball, and golf on a nine-hole putting green. Guests should be aware that fees apply for some activities, like squash and tennis. The full-service spa offers authentic Balinese massages, facials, reflexology, and aromatherapy services. Families can take advantage of the kids' club, which offers Balinese art and crafts, cooking and music lessons, dancing, and Indonesian language classes, but it's not free. Business features include meeting space, a business center, and free hotel-wide Wi-Fi. Parking is free.