Courtyard by Marriott Bali Seminyak Resort — Hotel in Kuta

Overall, my experience at Courtyard during our 2-night stay was strange and unusual.

We’ve visited Bali multiple times and usually find people to be warm and kind. However, our experience at Courtyard this week was quite disappointing.

Security Check: As soon as we arrived and stepped out of the car at the lobby, we were subjected to a security inspection. The staff asked to check the contents of our small bag. After a 2-hour car ride from Ubud, we were expecting a warm welcome, but instead, we were treated as a “potential risk” right upon arrival. This behavior ruined our holiday mood, and the attitude of the security staff gave a very unpleasant first impression. We’ve never been greeted like this at any other Bonvoy hotel or resort. While we understand the need for security, there should be a more thoughtful and welcoming approach when greeting arriving guests. This poor first impression lingered throughout our stay, and unfortunately, nothing during the visit managed to turn things around.

Platinum Benefit: As a Bonvoy Platinum member for several years, I was planning to choose breakfast as my welcome gift, as is typical. However, I was told that breakfast at this property incurs an additional charge. I’ve never experienced this at other Courtyard properties when selecting breakfast as the benefit. Instead, they said I was entitled to a USD 10 F&B credit per day, which could be applied toward breakfast. This is a confusing and unusual benefit structure.

Seminyak Kitchen: We stopped by for dinner and ordered some local dishes, but they were extremely salty. Although we tried a few bites, we couldn’t continue. The staff kindly offered to remake the food, but it was still too salty for our taste. While the staff were courteous, I can’t recommend dining here based on our experience.

Invoice Process: I received the room invoice by email around 4 AM on the day of checkout, even though I hadn't requested it. This created confusion, and I had to confirm with the front desk regarding the payment status and why I had received the invoice before checking out. The email didn't clarify that the invoice was for reference only—it made it seem like we had already checked out. This unnecessary and unprofessional action caused us unnecessary concern.

Smoking Near the Pool: While relaxing on the sunbed by the pool, a guest began smoking nearby, despite there being no-smoking signs. His child was also swimming. We reported it to the staff and left the area when the smoking continued. Later, we also saw a woman smoking in the garden. It’s unclear why smoking is allowed in non-smoking areas. It would be more appropriate for security to monitor these areas rather than focus solely on checking bags at guest arrival.

In-Room Photo: We noticed a photo in our room displaying a woman's nipple????, which felt inappropriate and uncomfortable. While art is subjective, this image didn’t appear to be respectful or culturally representative. A more tasteful and scenic local image would be much more suitable for a guestroom.

Concierge Service: Upon departure, we waited for our airport transfer. We assumed hotel staff would assist with our luggage, but no one helped—even after our car arrived. In the end, my husband and our driver loaded everything into the car themselves. We’ve never encountered such poor hospitality and lack of assistance at any Bonvoy property. There was no farewell, no assistance, and no visible concierge presence.

In summary, we were extremely disappointed with the hotel’s service, staff attitude, operations, food, and overall management. As a Bonvoy Platinum member, I can confidently say this Courtyard did not meet expectations at all. We had just come from Westin Ubud, where the service was excellent. Courtyard Seminyak has a lot to learn from them to ensure a pleasant stay for future guests. Unfortunately, I will not be returning to...

Stayed here a few weeks ago. Always good to be back here, especially when you are recognized and remembered 😊 make you feel like home, safe and relaxed.

The hotel is in a perfect location! Nestled in the bustling heart of Seminyak, it’s surrounded by fantastic spas, restaurants, cafes - everything you’d want within walking distance.

But, other than the location, hotel facilities are fabulous and clean, the associates at the restaurant, at the pool lounge, housekeeper, gossh... beyond words - love them!! The associates indeed truly made the stay memorable. They never get tired throwing their best smile and provide great services, professional, helpful, and attentive to detail. They have a unique way of making you feel like home, especially during breakfast, where their attentive service really stood out. My first time meeting Pak Andika, he was great too! And Pak Gede Wahyu, always been very kind and super helpful every single time of my visit.

I always like the Gym area, it's neat and clean. Beautiful pool, with nice selection of music. Just like people said, I think.. Breakfast was a daily highlight for all of us too. The selection was just right—not overwhelming but also not too limited—with high-quality options that tasted fantastic. I like the room too, however.. a little issue if there are two medium or even large suitcase, got nowhere to put it, not enough space 😟 never realize until it happened. This time, we stayed more than a week, so everyone carried a big suitcase. It was a little hard to keep our luggages without blocking our movement.

I really really had a great super fun yet relaxing time just like old times until my last day upon check out 🙁 it was really disappointed. When we asked for an extension of our stay, we offered to block more deposits as we’d checkout from mobile, we tried to explain that I will be the last person to stay and my friend who paid for both rooms won’t be there anymore, he will be on the flight. But the lady (forgot her name) assured us it’ll be fine and they would do a manual charge for the final bill. They have our details, if anything they will contact us. I told her please make sure that there won’t be any bad issues happen during my checkout.

And, of course upon checkout what I worried about, it really happened!!! It was a guy, a little chubby one and the way he talked and asked for the payment was just irritating and humiliating. I tried to explain from the beginning and he kept asking for the payment, he said he can’t just do a manual charge without the guest approval. I told him, guest was fully aware and agreed for the hotel to charge the remaining amount. But…oh my god, he kept repeating, kept talking in a circle. I asked, I wanted to talk to Pak Gede Wahyu and they sent a duty manager that I had never met before. And you know what … typical of hotel staff, when they come , they'd say “how can I help you?” … instead to jump to the issue which I believe he already knew the issue was .. And of course we have to start explain aaaallll oveeerrr again from the beginning. And same answer like the first guy, that he cannot .. bla..bla..bla .. After back and forth, he finally gave up the bla..bla.. thing and did the manual charge - which he could’ve done first thing. They kept me for almost a hour, it was hot, sweaty, and very uncomfortable. Not sure how the communication amongst the associates - but clearly it was a failure. We are a-repeater guests, you have our details, we tried to offer to block some deposits and said it’s OK no need then…this is what I got after that whole beautiful relaxing stay. I hope this won’t happen again on my next visit in future 🙏🏼

Anyway .. Courtyard Marriott Seminyak is a solid choice..if you’re looking for a convenient and cozy resort in...

TL;DR: Amazing hotel… but it feels like the “amazing” part is reserved mostly if you look foreign. If you blend in as local, the experience hits different — and not in a good way.

Long version: Let me start with the good stuff, because honestly, this hotel delivers on almost everything. The facilities are gorgeous. The rooms are huge, the bed and sheets feel ultra luxe, the bathroom is spa-level, and the pool, gym, and breakfast are all 10/10. The location couldn’t be better — literally a one-minute walk to the beach and all the trendy spots in Seminyak. With Bali’s traffic, being able to skip the jams and just walk is priceless. Service on paper is solid too. They really try to anticipate your needs, and I even scored a super early check-in, which I appreciated a ton. On paper, this would have easily been 5 stars.

Now for the wrinkle — and it’s not small. For context: I look 100% local even though I’m not. In Bali, people automatically speak to me in the local language, and when I reply “Sorry, English please? 🙏” we laugh it off. But that “local look” made a big difference here.

On day one upon arrival to check in, security asked me to run my bag through their sensor and even open it up for inspection. I thought, okay maybe that’s just standard protocol. But after a few days, I noticed a pattern. On the fourth day, while I was coming back from a dance class sweaty and tired and alighting from a gojek motorcab, I was stopped again to get my bag checked. I was surprised; it was a typical Monday evening with many guests coming and going with bags and they weren’t stopped by security. I became super vigilant after that that whenever I was waiting at the lobby, I would specifically observe how other guests get treated at the entrance. I saw white families breeze through with whole bags of luggage and not a request to open their bags. A few days later, after a late night out, I literally got trailed back to my room by security — like they had to confirm I wasn’t just some random loiterer. At breakfast, I’d watch staff chat warmly with other guests — “How’s your trip? How are you enjoying Bali?” — while I got nothing beyond the basics.

One or two of these things, I’d chalk up to coincidence. But over multiple days, it became clear: if you look “foreign,” you get the warm, effortless hospitality. If you look local (or Southeast Asian, like I am), you get suspicion first, service second.

And that’s what stings. This isn’t a budget hotel or a casual guesthouse where you kind of expect things to be hit or miss. This was a luxury stay, priced accordingly. When everyone is paying top dollar, everyone deserves to feel equally welcome.

Maybe it’s just a Bali thing, maybe it’s a luxe-hotel in Bali thing, where local looking people are less likely to be guests, but either way it left a bad taste. As great as the facilities are, I can’t see myself coming back.

Edit: sort by lowest in this review section and apparently my experience isn’t the first time this has happened. 🤷 looks like their white-first policy has been happening for a long time. SEA guests stand...