Kuta
Where to lay your head
Where to lay your head
A proliferation of large all-in resorts lines Kuta’s beachfront, although here the pools get the best view and you may be disappointed by the rooms. Note that in the northern part of Kuta, a busy road runs between the beach and the resorts. If you don’t plan to sit by the pool all day better value can be found away from the beach at one of the many family-orientated comfortable midrange hotels. Cheap chain hotels are sadly squeezing many of the family run homestays out of the market, but the unfortunate fact is they often offer better value (if you like a soulless box). The capsule dorm concept has flooded the market here too, and beds are available for as low as 60,000 rupiah, but for a little more rupiah, a pool and a bit of atmosphere make a more inviting offer. For folks who like Bali’s old-school charm, there’s still plenty of family run joints in the back lanes around Poppies I and II.
A hideaway in a quiet back lane just minutes from Kuta beach, D’Sriwing Villa Gallery is a lovely intimate hotel filled with antiques and artwork set around a shady landscaped courtyard garden and swimming pool. A handful of superior and deluxe rooms as well as self-contained villas are on offer with comfortably sized air-con rooms featuring polished wood floors. The elegant homely styling is... Read our full review of D’Sriwing Villa Gallery.
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Lokal Bali Hostel is hands down our favourite hostel in South Bali. It's pricey for just a bed, but here you get way more than that. Closer to the airport than busy central Kuta, it makes it an excellent stopover if you’re in transit to other parts of Indonesia or beyond (if your bags are light, you could easily walk), yet it's still only a 10-minute walk to the beach. Hidden back from the... Read our full review of Lokal Bali Hostel .
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One of Kuta’s originals, Poppies Cottages started life in the early 1970s, giving its name to the street on which it still sits. Over the years cottages have been added and upgraded, and the beautiful tropical garden has grown. Today the delightful hotel sits amid calm and lush surrounds, a world away from its namesake hectic laneway. Twenty private, well-appointed brick and thatch cottages... Read our full review of Poppies Cottages .
Veiled amid a flourish of tropical vegetation, The Sandi Phala’s 11 luxurious and discreet rooms sit a hair’s breadth from the sands of South Kuta. Housed in double-storey brick and thatched bungalow-esque buildings, three categories of rooms offer opulent traditional-style comfort with bespoke details. The Sandi Phala suites are the top picks here, and of course will make the biggest dint... Read our full review of The Sandi Phala .
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In contrast to the brash international-style resorts along the Kuta beachfront, Alam Kulkul is unmistakably Balinese. It features low-rise, cottage-style rooms and villas within meandering tropical gardens punctuated with traditional carvings, water features and two swimming pools. Opposite the beach at the Legian edge of Kuta and set back from the road behind a kulkul (traditional drum) tower,... Read our full review of Alam Kulkul.
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Planning on taking the kids to Waterbom and want to avoid the traffic? Alaya Kuta scores a good location tucked in behind the popular water park and offers a relaxing sophisticated style that adults will enjoy too. The striking brick-red painted multi-storey hotel is built around a courtyard swimming pool with air-con rooms either facing toward the pool or outwards. Don’t expect much of a... Read our full review of Alaya Kuta.
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In the heart of Poppies Lane II, Dekuta offers good value midrange stylish rooms in a triple-storey block wrapping around an inviting pool. Air-con rooms are a welcome sanctuary from the busy streets with serene natural finishes, tiled or wooden floors and cool white walls. Glass fronted and light filled, with pool access or furnished balconies, most rooms overlook the pool, but some are... Read our full review of Dekuta.
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Dewi Sri Hotel is a comfortable and family-friendly midrange resort smack in the middle of Kuta. Set at the end of a lane near the Kuta bombing memorial, spacious grassy grounds offer a range of accommodation choices in a four-storey, L-shaped block, double-storey bungalows and a more traditional double-storey block. The smartly renovated rooms completed in December 2016 give Dewi Sri an edge... Read our full review of Dewi Sri Hotel.
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In the thick of Kuta’s crowded Poppies Lane II, Grand Barong Resort were celebrating their two year anniversary when we dropped in in June 2017, and still looked sparkling new. A range of smart rooms are on offer in this sprawling popular resort hotel built around a lagoon-style pool with swim-up bar and party atmosphere and quieter decked courtyard pool. A rowdy sports bar fronts the hotel... Read our full review of Grand Barong Resort.
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If you are on a budget but don’t want to skimp on location, style or a swimming pool, Kayun Hostel at the Legian end of Kuta (the nicer bit) offers wallet-friendly, comfortable pod-style dorms and decent value private rooms. The hostel features the cool ambience of polished cement floors throughout, with an air-con cooled 16-bed mixed dorm and 10-bed female doom leading off the streetfront... Read our full review of Kayun Hostel .
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Concealed behind popular Lemongrass Thai Restaurant on Jalan Melasti, a calm and serene world awaits at Lemongrass Cottages. This small immaculate guesthouse offers 12 tasteful rooms in two double-storey longhouse blocks edging a leafy courtyard garden and small pool. Cosy light-filled rooms are spacious enough to feel comfortable, and glass-fronted doors and windows are fitted with block-out... Read our full review of Lemongrass Cottages .
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In the thick of the labyrinthine concrete jungle of Poppies Lane, the small leafy refuge of Mimpi Bungalows offers a handful of charming old-school brick and thatch bungalows and rooms in a larger newer block peppered around a pleasant pool. They start with basic fan-cooled rooms with cold-water showers and move through to newer air-con rooms with hot-water. Interiors are fairly spacious but... Read our full review of Mimpi Bungalows.
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Let’s go surfing now, everybody’s learning how, and once you’re done for the day Pro Surf School and Camp has just the place to relax and lay your head. This “surf camp” delivers the goods when it comes to location, as you can’t get closer to the waves unless you’re on a surfboard. Dorms and private rooms are offered as bed only, so for sustenance head to their beachfront cafe and... Read our full review of Pro Surf School and Camp.
Friendly staff, excellent location and comfortable rooms make Serela Legian a solid pick in this part of town. Despite its name, Serela Legian sits on the edge of Kuta (as we define it) near Jalan Melasti, so named as to not confuse it with their other hotel on Jalan Raya Kuta, further away from the beach. Set back from the road, the unusual facade of this modern multi-storey block dripping... Read our full review of Serela Legian.
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Tucked away behind Kuta’s Bemo corner, The Pavilion Kuta is a compact, neat and smart flashpacker-style hotel housed in a triple-storey L-shaped block edging a small courtyard swimming pool. Clean, tiled, air-con rooms offer comfortable beds, flatscreen “smart” TV, safe and tea-making facilities. The deluxe rooms add a desk, sofa and mini-fridge. Decor employs a fairly neutral palette,... Read our full review of The Pavilion Kuta .
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