Melasti Beach Resort & Spa — Hotel in Kuta

I’ve stayed at Melasti every year for the past several years. I used to love it – the location, the relaxed vibe, the value for money. Unfortunately, over the past few years, the resort has steadily declined to the point where I’m not sure I’ll return unless some serious investment goes into the rooms and facilities.||The Good||To give credit where it’s due, the outdoor areas are looking great. The resort has clearly been spending quite a bit upgrading the exterior – they’ve redone the stone walls around the perimeter, upgraded the pool statue, and re-paved the entire network of pathways (which is actually a big improvement; the paths are much more even and easier to walk on now).||There are three pools, and they’re genuinely lovely – cool, spacious, and perfect for a lazy afternoon swim. The location is also unbeatable: absolute beachfront, and you can walk straight out for a sunset drink on the sand. Shops, restaurants, and massage spots are all within easy reach.||The bar at the front of the resort remains a highlight – great atmosphere, free pool tables, and a nice spot to chat with other guests. The Wi-Fi has also improved considerably over the past couple of years, and the breakfast, while basic, does the job. If it’s not to your liking, there are plenty of good cafés nearby.||The staff are mostly friendly and do their best, but it’s clear they’re working with very limited resources and little authority to fix ongoing problems.||The Bad (and there’s quite a lot of it)||While the gardens and outdoor areas are being improved, the rooms are in desperate need of attention. The resort is clearly focusing on cosmetic upgrades outside, but the interiors are deteriorating rapidly.||Bathrooms are the worst offenders. The hot water takes forever – I actually timed it one day, and it took over five minutes for hot water to reach the shower. When it does, the water pressure is abysmal, and the showerheads are so old and crusted with buildup that it’s barely possible to wash properly. One of my rooms this year had two showers, but only one even worked.||There are no toiletries provided – not even basic soap or shampoo – so come prepared.||Air conditioning is hit and miss, and most units I’ve encountered over recent stays no longer get properly cold. Fridges are sometimes non-functional, and TV reception is terrible. There are only a few channels, most of them unwatchable, and the HDMI ports appear to be disabled – so don’t plan on streaming anything or plugging in your own device.||Electrical issues are another major concern. In one room, two of the power points didn’t work, and several ceiling lights were blown. Even after reporting this to reception, nothing was done. Combined with the lack of visible fire alarms or sprinklers, it raises real concerns about fire safety and wiring integrity.||Speaking of safety: the hotel will only provide one key per room, no matter how many guests are staying. This created an absurd situation where, if my friend wanted to sleep in, I had to either lock him inside the room (a major safety hazard if there was a fire) or leave the door unlocked, which isn’t great for security.||Then there’s the cleanliness and pest issues. In one room, the bathroom was overrun with big ants every day. Outside areas also had persistent ant problems. I eventually gave up and bought a can of fly spray to deal with it myself.|Worse, the rat problem seems to be escalating. Last year, a rat poked its head out above the pelmet in our room. This year, I saw several – both in and outside rooms. Other guests mentioned rats in their rooms, and even one on a child’s bed. That’s a huge red flag for a hotel of this size.||Mould is another ongoing issue. Some rooms are worse than others, but the musty smell is often unmistakable. Friends staying at the same time this year had to move through multiple rooms due to various problems before finding one that was just “okay.” Staff even mentioned that several ground floor rooms in the new white building are offline due to mould damage and a “roof falling in.”||Housekeeping has also slipped noticeably. On several occasions, bath towels weren’t replaced, forcing me to go to reception to ask for more.||Finally, the beds are rock-hard and badly need replacing. I brought a mattress topper last year just to make it bearable, but the mattresses are old.||Summary||It’s frustrating because the Melasti Beach Resort has so much potential. The location, the pools, and the charm of the place could make it a wonderful, affordable beachfront stay. But right now, it feels like the management is focusing all their energy on appearances – upgrading paths and statues – while the core infrastructure of the hotel is crumbling.||If things continue to deteriorate at the same rate I’ve seen over the last few years, I honestly think the hotel might face serious safety or operational issues in the not-too-distant future.||Until major work is done on the rooms, plumbing, air-conditioning, and pest control, I can’t recommend staying here. Interestingly, this was the same thoughts of all the other guests we spoke...

My aim here is be helpful for those looking to decide where to stay on their Bali holiday.

OVERALL: aged and a little tired but still a lovely large resort with very affordable and generous sized rooms. If you're after luxury accomm, look elsewhere (and pay more).

ROOMS: we had the older, larger Deluxe room on the third floor - good for noise and away from the crowds. Air con (bliss!) set to 25 all the time suited us well as an escape from the heat after shopping. HUGE bed. No TV reception to speak of (but come on, you're on holidays in Bali!). Daily room service efficient and always what you'd expect.

BATHROOM: large again, with shower over bath with a hand held hose, and a separate shower (with curtain). Water pressure not great - enough to shower but you won't luxuriate. Signs of use/wear and a bit of discoloration around all the edges

WiFi: supplied for free but like a lot of hotels the download speed was slow. In the end I got a 4G SIM with 8GB data which was valid for a month for about AUD$17 - useful for Google mapping when out and about.

POOLS: 3 to choose from - small one near the street entrance (but deep 1.65m) really caters to those with rooms on the ground floor right near it, otherwise everyone else uses the other 2 big pools. The 'loop' pool has a kids section at the end furthest from the bar, while the rest is neck deep all the way around. Not the easiest to access and not heaps of recliners. The main pool was where we hung out mostly - easy enough to get a recliner if you're there early, with umbrellas and shade options. Also a very deep pool for the most part (over 2m!) - inflatable toys kept kids happy and there were pool noodles to help float around. Water was warmer than the beach. Snooker table (in a bit of disrepair) overlooks the main pool - fun option to break up the monotony of all the RELAXING you'll be doing. Music is played at both bigger pools most of the time (lots of classics and Aussie favourites) which I didn't find too obtrusive, but again, if you're after a quiet relaxing luxury getaway you won't enjoy it. Overall, the pools are best for competent swimmers rather than young kids.

FOOD: breakfast was the typical self serve production line with an egg bar to order and enough variety over the 8 days we were there. Fill up on breakfast and opt for two meals a day. Room service and ordering food at the pool was handled efficiently and was standard fare.

LOCATION: stretches from the street right down to the beach - this is a big place. Lots of beach vendors with beanbags and eskies of Bintang. I was disappointed there wasn't the restaurants on the sand like there are higher up past Double 6 road in Seminyak, and for this reason alone would probably stay further north next time. On the street end, security gates keep the riff raff out, supermarkets and ATMs and massage places abound. Expect the offers of a 'taxi boss?' or 'everything 5 dollar!' wherever you go. Good variety of places to eat within walking distance (eg Romeos, Lanai cafe, Sammy's, Asia Cafe) - Mozzarella's is delicious and very close (and I agree with Lonely Planet - best place nearby to eat).

SERVICE: always friendly. Front desk can struggle with detailed questions in english but does pretty well. No tipping needed. Tourist info and booking service available. In house photographer will take photos for free and then sell you prints if you like (without the typical pressure you get on the streets). We had a sunset photo shoot in the resort and on the beach, and opted for only 4 photos for AUD$30

I think if i was staying in Bali again, I'd choose something further north (we stayed in the Pelangi last time) but his place is hard to beat in the value for...

We arrived, but no one came to assist us with luggage from the car. We were travelling with another couple.|We saw some young girls arrive, and immediately they were assisted, and a bellhop luggage rack appeared for them. We all had to drag our luggage to the rooms. I had to return to get my husbands luggage as he has an injured arm. We are both 70. I asked the reception manager if he could assist me. He didn't.|2. We had been offered a suite for an extra payment at reception. Upon reaching these rooms, we decided we couldn't stay there as there were no power outlets for our CPAP machines or phones. We stayed in these suites 30years ago and I swear NOTHING has been done at all since we left. We dragged our luggage back to reception. No assistance. |3. They then said they didn't have any other rooms as they were fully booked. We asked where the rooms we had actually booked were as surely they had those. however, we were shown a dark, horrible room, which also didn't have any power outlets. |3. Strangely enough, we were then offered 2 ground floor rooms which were marginally better but were given a long power cord. There were no towels and only q coffee cup and no coffee so I went back to reception where i was told to find the room cleaners as its there problem. Finding them in a big hotel wasn't easy. We left our luggage there and went out with promises of supplying towels WHEN the washing was finished.|4. Arriving back and wanting showers and a closer look, we saw the extent of the mould and lack of cleaning. The previous tenant had left stuff in the fridge too. As we were told there were no other rooms available, we prepared for bed. I couldn't face the bathroom and thought I'll face it tomorrow..|4. Our friends then rang and said come and look at our mattress. OMG someone must have died on it. |The sheets were dirty AND the mattress protector was so stained so they complained. In the process of stripping the bed they discovered the mouldy mattress as well. After complaining they were then offered another ground floor room in another block so I complained too about the dirty bathroom. Funnily enough we also were offered another room on the ground floor next to our friends.|These rooms have refurbished bathrooms, a larger newer fridge with power points right next to the bed which is what we requested over and over again! These rooms are still the same standard as we had booked and were available!|5. So we were told some porky pies re not having other rooms available. |6. This hotel is run down and really should be only a 2 star.|7. Of course the newer room didnt have any towels so I walked back to the older room and retrieved those.|8. I hope...