InterContinental Bali Resort by IHG — Hotel in Kuta Selatan

My wife and I first stayed at the InterContinental Bali Resort one year ago during our honeymoon and when it came around to a milestone birthday this year (along with our anniversary), we wouldn't rather be anywhere else. From the moment we arrived (which was only a short 15 minute drive from the airport), we were greeted by familiar and friendly faces who immediately put us at ease. The lovely Manuela brought us some bubbles and made the check-in process a breeze while we relaxed a bit in the Club Lounge. Manuela was always exceptionally friendly and pleasant anytime we passed by or needed assistance. The Club Lounge Manager, Monica, was also a delight and was instrumental in organising a surprise (and custom) mango/mangosteen birthday cake to be delivered to us on behalf of my wife, also writing me a nice card. Metri, the Assistant Club Lounge Manager, was also very nice, although we only crossed paths a few times. For the entire stay, everyone made us feel so special, with a variety of thoughtful treats and items specially prepared for us.

While we, as Club members, were assigned a personal butler, the vast team of butlers on call all very passionately aim to please and will offer their services readily. In particular, we were walking out of our room once and were greeted by an extremely friendly and charismatic butler named Wawan. Without skipping a beat, he offered assistance - taking note of our love for mangosteen, he arranged and brought several to our room, also flagging for housekeeping to always top up our private supply. Simply amazing! It was also Wawan who delivered that surprise birthday cake. Not only did he prepare a symbolic and adorable towel man as a decoration (only rivalled in cuteness by the intricate towel animals of our room attendant Ari), but he respectfully delivered the cake in silence as my wife was preparing to surprise me with it. It wasn't until the next day we could properly thank him for helping to create such a wonderful experience. Beyond Wawan, the butlers and other Club Lounge and Club Pool staff, such as Gita, were all so welcoming, friendly, and happy to provide us with the best experience they could offer.

Speaking of the Club facilities, it was hard to choose between the Club Lounge or Pool for the two-hour free-flow cocktails! If the weather is nice and you'd like to be poolside, the Club Pool cabanas are excellent. If you are feeling a bit more fancy, the Club Lounge is elegant and regularly includes a masterful pianist to set the tone. Food-wise, the Lounge offerings were more substantial, but I would recommend trying both options between days. Also, it should be noted the free-flow cocktails include menu options, but the bar tender will be happy to offer just about any drink if they have the ingredients. We recommend the frozen banana daiquiri; they also make a good Mai Tai ;)

Food-wise, you will find a variety of restaurants at your fingertips, from the reliably yummy Jimbaran Gardens at the heart of the resort, to KO, an outstanding very thematically polished sushi and teppanyaki restaurant, to the Sunset Beach Bar and Grill with amazing grilled everything, nightly live music (with an amazingly talented band who happily take requests), and an unforgettable sunset. If you have the opportunity, the Balinese Dance and buffet (Saturday nights when we visited) was an unforgettable experience and absolutely worth booking. Price-wise, all quite reasonable and a lot of fun to try a variety of cuisines with such ease. In our case, our package included food and drink vouchers (applicable to specific restaurants), and we found it challenging to use all of them, given the Club Lounge afternoon tea (high-tea), and of course, the best buffet breakfast we have ever experienced. To unpack the buffet breakfast a bit, we had three options for this, including the Club Lounge, Jimbaran Gardens (by the main pool), or Taman Gita (near the lobby). After trying all, they offer a unique dining experience, although with similar menu items. Our preference from our first trip and still is the Taman Gita - with its amazing outdoor seating area with serene view of the pond, it also appears to have the most options available: a fresh egg bar (poached, fried, omelette, benedict, poached, and more), a noodle bar (plenty of options, including some of the best mie goreng you will ever have), a full-service cafe, fresh tropical fruits and juices, and much, much more. For us, what made breakfast at the Taman Gita truly special was us meeting an old friend, Widi who works there (and by the main pool through Jimbaran Gardens). We have had nothing but good experiences with the people who keep the wheels turning at this resort, but exceptional people like Widi are why we came back. During our first trip and this time too, he made sure we were comfortable, well-fed, and accommodated our special requests (including going out of his way to get us our favourite sambal sauce!).

Also, the resort has something like 8 pools; it is absolutely massive and each pool will give you a different experience. You can setup camp and relax by just one for a whole day, or you can go for a dip in each and be adventurous. If you are interested in pool toys or inflatables, we had no issues with ours and they were a bit of fun. As far as I know, the only restriction is to not use toys/inflatables in the Club Pool to not disturb the more peaceful environment it is intended to reflect (which it does well in its private little area). The atmosphere of the whole resort deserves mention in itself, from the amazingly breathtaking artworks and décor to the relaxing peace found during an award-worthy massage by the ocean.

So with that, we couldn't recommend the InterContinental Bali more, particularly if you are celebrating something special and are looking for a holiday where you won't want to leave the resort. We did go on a day trip to explore a bit, but there is absolutely more than enough to keep you entertained, fulfilled, and satisfied for a week inside the resort alone. Looking forward to our...

My adult daughter and I booked The Intercontinental Bali Resort, Jimbaran for our six night stay in the area for one main reason - we'd never seen such consistently glowing reviews of any hotel, ever. Now we have the opportunity to add our own!

We were confident we'd enjoy our stay, yet didn't expect to love it just as much as we did. Every day felt like we were in paradise. From the lush, canopied driveway on entry, the warm welcome on arrival, the soaring ceilings and vast grandeur of the foyer, the classic architecture and the exquisitely curated beautiful spaces, we fell in love straight away. Balancing sculptures and luxe furnishings, we we were nutured and surrounded by the mature and abundant tropical gardens, turquoise pools and gorgeous fountains throughout the vast property; the blend of built form combined with exquisite nature taken to an art form. The wide golden sand beach frontage with mesmerising, magenta sunsets every day was another ten-out-ten experience. We loved dining al-fresco at the lovely restaurants, were wowed by the truly amazing breakfasts, loved the authentic cultural music and dance performances and the mellow saxophonist playing over electronic beats. The vibe was chilled, uplifting and enchanting for our entire stay.

Yet most of all we commend IHG Jimbaran for its’ staff culture. As with anywhere, it does not matter if a place is beautiful, any hotel/resort is only as good as the service and attitude of its staff. And here is an example many could learn from. Five stars does not do your staff culture justice. From the person handing out the beach towels to every cleaner, waiter and manager on any given day, we felt so well treated and looked after. Everyone achieving just the right balance between attention and discretion.

In particular we mention a few of the Interncontinental Team members.

Dea and Yudika - check in, front desk who went above and beyond to make our stay great

Bell boy Yuda What a lovely and helpfu young man

All the staff in the clinic especially Dr Dwi

Widi - waiter poolside and in the breakfast restaurant, proactive, service oriented

Suyasna, Surya poolside waitstaff poolside, Jimbaran Gardens - great service

Widastra at Sunset Bar memorable smile and wonderful attitude

Arik, Komang Dewi and Rio at The Spa

These are just few of all of the team deserving acknowledgement - in fact every single member of staff throughout the resort whom we met deserves thanks. We would love to list them all by name. We noticed how everyone just got on with their job with a smile and nothing was ever too much trouble. Thank you for your ‘yes’ culture. The guests also seemed to be much more calm and happy than in other hotels. And this is a result of the synergy of the beautiful place and beautiful people working there. Talking to staff we were impressed by the longevity of tenure of a number of staff, being part of the team for over two decades.

Also please accept my deep gratitude for your on-site doctor clinic service and staffing. This enabled me to get the swift medical attention I unexpectedly needed in a discreet, time and cost efficient and personal way. (After some tests, all ended well with no problem). Importantly, your clinic service meant we were able to maintain the quality of our holiday rather than it being derailed, which could have easily have been the case.

We also observed that over the course of our entire stay everything, everywhere was spotlesslessly clean and we never saw one piece of rubbish anywhere on the property. This added to the feeling of calm and serenity.

After reading this you won’t be surprised to learn we are going to be recommending your resort to everyone who wants or needs a luxury, value, relaxing holiday they can rely on to be amazing. And we are already thinking about when we can return, bringing more family and friends with us!

Thank you so much for exceeding every expectation and giving us an experience way beyond our greatest hopes and dreams. Yes it was that good! Having had the great fortune to travel in different parts of the world, It is good to know our favourite hotel ever is not...

Whilst pricy, having experienced this resort, it is definitely worth every dollar. The resort has everything you need, and they do it so well.

Arriving at the lobby, it’s is classic Intercontinental style, a huge sculpture and Indonesian art aplenty. It is expansive with multiple areas to sit and lounge whilst you wait or even after check out. Plenty of counters, a concierge and welcome drinks. The staff carefully manicure all the lawns and we can see them spending hours on garden upkeep, and it looks amazing. We find our room, and it reminds me similarly of other Intercontinental rooms we’ve stayed in, so the brand really keeps up that reputation. The beds are comfortable though we book for three, we had to pay an extra $29 USD for a child bed. I’m strongly opposed to that and professed this prior to booking and upon arrival. If you book for three, there should be beds for three. Thus extra cost is exorbitant and unfair. Otherwise, we are happy, the room is spacious - balcony, couch, tv, coffee and tea making facilities, a huge bathroom, gowns and slippers. Rooms have safes and irons. The plugs are not international and only have one USB port so technology is a tad old. Don’t forget your adapter. This resort is on Jimbaran Beach so you can easily walk out onto the beach, for a dip in the ocean, or to visit a beachside seafood restaurant. As far as the whole Intercontinental property goes, it is enormous, 36 acres to be exact. Guests don’t have to leave the hotel, unless you plan to go on tours. However, given its pricy nature, we did walk out into the main strip for some great restaurants, laundry, coffee and massage. But if you’ve got the cash, by all means get it all done in the Intercontinental because obviously it’s amazing. We did what we could in the realm of our budgets. The site has wellness spaces; massage, hairdresser. The jacuzzi was awesome, no extra charge. The facilities are divided into male and female areas, each with a steam room, a sauna, hot tub and a plunge pool, plus lockers and showers. There are multiple pools including one with a swim up pool bar. People lounge all day and “reserve” their pool beds so to speak. So get out early, plonk your towel or book there and you’re set for the day. You can also have tennis lessons, hire bikes or do Pilates and a number of their other wellness experiences - keep in kind most of them cost. Holidays are also a lot about eating - so make visits to their various dining spaces. There’s a fancier restaurant, Bella Cucina, Ko Restaurant, a Japanese venue with Japanese outdoor gardens and this offers both teppanyaki and Ala carte. For most of us though, you’d be visiting Jimbaran Gardens, a poolside eatery which hosts the breakfast buffet and Ala carte over lunch and dinner. There’s Also Sunset Beach Bar & Grill, overlooking the ocean, and Taman Gita for the other buffet site. We mostly ate from the buffet and the occasional meal down at Jimbaran Gardens. The food at the buffet was outstanding; Cereals, yoghurt and fruits, an egg station, bread buffet, western and local hot dishes and also Ala carte options to order like avo from n toast or Benedict. The other buffet venue even had a whole kids station with special foods to suit their fancy. We were impressed with the food here and couldn’t have asked for anything more. One of the other great things about the intercontinental is the kids club, I mean that’s the whole reason we booked! Planet Trekkers has great staff, and it’s open long hours. The staff run plenty of activities (at extra charge) and take such good care of the children overall, we loved our stay and would definitely go again, if we got a good luxury...