The Luxury Hotel Insider: Exclusive luxury hotel deals, features and special rates from the luxury hotel experts at Five Star Alliance.
Named one of Tripbase's Best Luxury Travel Blogs for 2011, below are Five Star Alliance's newest articles featuring exclusive information on luxury hotels worldwide including special offers and deals at the world's best hotels.
Providing a secluded retreat in Bali's central foothills, Alila Ubud is a luxury hotel located about 15 minutes from Ubud, the island's cultural center. Set on a hillside on the edge of the Ayung River valley, the property provides guests with an immersive experience through the guidance of the Alila Leisure Concierge team for active pursuits, such as exploring rice terraces at Tegalalange, visiting the Goa Gajah Elephant Cave, or taking cooking classes. Learn more about a special perks offer for Five Star Alliance guests below the photo.
Accommodations at Alila Ubud include Superior and Deluxe Rooms, Valley and Pool Villas, plus Terrace Tree Villas, and Two Bedroom Terrace Tree Pool Villas. Furnished in contemporary Balinese style, there are private balconies with daybeds, in-room safes, minibars, and coffee & tea-making facilities. Continue reading below the Terrace Tree Villa Bathroom photo.
Five Star Alliance Perk: Guests making reservations through Five Star Alliance receive full breakfast daily at Plantation restaurant, $50 food and beverage or spa or Alila Experience credit, per room, per stay, and a welcome fruit basket. Plus, based on availability at the time of check-in/departure: a room upgrade, early check-in, and late check-out.
Set on the southern tip of the island of Bali, the Four Seasons Bali Jimbaran Bay is an oceanfront luxury resort. Designed as a traditional Balinese village, the property offers a range of amenities including cultural tours, Jimba Kids' Club, Balinese dance performances, Sunrise & Surya Yoga, plus kayaking and catamaran cruises on Jimbaran Bay. Learn more about the resort in the article below from our sister publication, Luxury Travel Advisor, by Bob Curley.
Find the Bali Beyond the Beach at the Four Seasons Jimbaran Bay
Long before Bali became known primarily for its beach parties, this Indonesian island was a quiet artists' community, and still retains a vibrant arts scene. It's a quieter side of Bali that the Four Seasons Jimbaran Bay resort is hoping to channel with a new set of traditional villas and the establishment of the Ganesha Cultural Centre, a showplace for traditional art, crafts, and music.
In a setting reminiscent of a Balinese village, the resort's new two-bedroom, Jimbaran Bay, and Premier villas are built from locally sourced materials, from wood floors to thatched roofs. Each villa is also decorated with original artwork, and bedrooms abut a common living area that flows into the sundeck with a pool and outdoor dining area, the latter set on a cliff's edge.
Luxury Travel Advisor thinks the redo at the Four Seasons Jimbaran Bay will appeal to VIPs seeking a more authentic Bali experience — or at least a trip that doesn’t focus on partying until dawn. The destination, of course, offers plenty of opportunities to engage in Balinese culture, from visiting the Tanah Lot temple on its narrow perch above the sea to browsing the stalls in the Ubud Art Market. The Ganesha Cultural Centre, located on the resort grounds, expands the former Ganesha Gallery by adding hands-on learning programs to the static displays.
“We believe it is our responsibility, as well as our honor, to give guests the opportunity to personally meet and learn from Bali’s talented artists, who are hand-picked and invited to share their knowledge and skills,” said Uday Rao, general manager of Four Seasons Resorts Bali, in a written release.
For example, guests can take lessons in woodcarving, weaving, painting, and dancing, and learn the proper way to make offerings at Balinese ceremonies. The Jimbaran Bay resort also has a Balinese cooking academy, an on-site Hindu temple, and a cultural immersion program that includes tours led by a resident Balinese priest.
Bali is a true tropical paradise, and the Viceroy Bali takes the meaning of a romantic hideaway to a new level. The all-villa property offers 25 private villas each with their own heated pools, luxurious Balinese furnishings including island-produced natural bath products, and views of the Valley of the Kings. Read more below.
The resort's award-winning CasCades Restaurant offers an idyllic, poolside fine dining experience with a menu that combines contemporary French cuisine with exotic Asian flavours. Plus, a one-of-a-kind setting overlooking the Petanu River Gorge, and an extensive wine menu for a truly memorable evening.
To end the night, the Viceroy Bar offers artfully served cocktails, unbeatable views, and an extensive selection of fine wines and spirits from around the world. Continue reading below.
To recover from the long journey, or to feel truly pampered, the Lembah Spa offers a calm and soothing tropical open-air environment. Guests can choose from a variety of treatments created by a certified Swiss therapist, that combine traditional Balinese wellness techniques with Western knowledge and natural products.
The very first W Sound Suite from W Hotels is available at the W Retreat & Spa Bali, in the vibrant Seminyak neighborhood. W Hotels plans to unveil additional sound studios in the W Hollywood, W Barcelona, and W Seattle, but for now, check out what the W Bali can exclusively offer:
Designed by New York-based Josh Held Design, the W Sound Suite is a private, soudproof recording studio and writing room available to both professional musicians and hotel guests. A private vocal booth overlooks the hotel's tropical garden.
W Sound Suite is the idea of Chicago-based producer DJ White Shadow, W's North American music director. The DJ affixed the large soundproof studio with sound equipment and helped determine its layout. The studio has locally sourced wooden furniture, hand-carved wooden blocks and handwoven rugs. Other touches include an oversized print of a 1980s boombox by artist Lyle Owerko and a photography print spanning the entire room.
Coca-Cola also contributed to the development of the studio, which has subtle touches of red, a chandelier made from melted Coke bottles and oversized wall text featuring lyrics from the 1970s "I'd like to teach the world to sing..." advertisement.
25 luxurious private pool villas make up the ultra luxurious Viceroy Bali, only a five minute drive from central Ubud. With unparalleled views of the dramatic tropical Petanu Valley views and surrounded by rice fields, hotel guests wanting to avoid the 45-minute drive from Bali's Ngurah Rai International Airport to Ubud can instead opt for a direct helicopter transfer to the hotel. In addition, guests can tour Bali and the neighboring islands by air in the helicopter.
2 of our favorite tours are:
Kintamani Volcano Sky Tour - A bus transfer from the hotel to a private Helipad at Taro Elephant Safari park, then the 25 minute aerial tour of the Kintamani Volcano and Caldera lake, renowned as Bali's most famous landmark.
Nusa Lembongan & Nusa Penida Costal Sky Tour - Approximately 60 minutes long, these islands feature stunning white cliffs and deserted white beaches. Also discover Crystal bay, famous for its shimmering swathes of sand and aquamarine waters.
Anantara Phuket Layan Resort and Spa offers guests a chance to learn to cook authentic Thai cuisine. Much more than just a cooking class, Spice Spoons offers a rich and interactive immersion in Thailand’s world famous gastronomy, renowned for its artistry and unique four flavor balance of salty, sweet, spicy and pungent. For the more adventurous the journey begins early in the morning with a chef guided tour of the market to select fresh ingredients and sample a popular local snack. In the afternoon cooking class, held in the open kitchen of the Thai restaurant La Sala, guests will learn about Thai cuisine's cultural significance and health benefits, indigenous ingredients and cooking equipment, as well as convenient replacements to use at home.
Alila Ubud is a tranquil and secluded hillside retreat that sits high up on the edge of the rich green Ayung River valley in Bali's central foothills, in the traditional Balinese hill village of Payangan. The resort is located 15-minute from Ubud, the island’s cultural heart.
From savoring authentic Indonesian flavours to feasting on succulent grills or enjoying sundowners and light bites beside the pool, Alila Seminyak serves up a delicious variety of gastronomic experiences amid a chilled-out oceanfront ambience, tantalising
your appetite and your senses.
Unfurling along a pristine beach on Bali's southwest coast, mere steps from the Indian Ocean, Alila Seminyak Bali ups the ante on tropical cool. A stunning Seminyak beach resort that radiates
sophistication, vibrance and vivacity, offering an indulgence of luscious lifestyle facilities and refined spaces
for chilling out in style.
Poised on an elevated plateau that meets with limestone cliffs sweeping down to the ocean,
the view from the Alila Villas Uluwatu is nothing less than picture-perfect. Re-discover the joy
of pure relaxation in unparalleled comfort and space in each of our exquisitely designed Bali
luxury villas. Surrender yourself to the enchantment of Bali's beauty and serenity in the luxury
of flawless perfection.
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