INDONESIA | Alila Seminyak, a Balinese Farewell
Thursday, November 10, 2016
Waves crashed on the shore of Seminyak Beach, booming, one after another, unmindful of the people swimming on its waters, unmindful of the big ball of fire, setting poetically behind it. The whole beach was bathed in a fiery orange light, a last hurrah for the day that’s soon gonna end. It mirrored exactly what we were feeling, at the sunset deck of Alila Seminyak, glasses of cocktails in hand. It was a melancholic farewell to the twelve days we’ve spent around Indonesia, with old and new friends alike.
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| SUNSET AT SEMINYAK BEACH |
It was the last day of Indonesia’s Trip of Wonders tour. We started off in Jakarta, passing through Bandung, Lombok, Jogjakarta, Flores and finally, Bali. Unlike our previous stops, we have absolutely no itinerary here. What we were here for was to rest and party, celebrating the adventure-filled days that went by. And our chosen chill-out place, Alila Seminyak.
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| ALILA SEMINYAK’S AIRY LOBBY |
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| THE RESORT USES REPURPOSED MATERIALS, LIKE THESE WOOD PLANKS |
The five-star resort is located on the popular Seminyak Beach in Bali. Its minimalist open-aired architecture designed by the award-winning URBNarc firm, sprawls over a two-hectare ground; with infinity pools, lounge areas, restaurants, luxury rooms and even a legit Balinese Hindu temple facing the massive Indian Ocean.
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| A SPRAWL OF LUXURY |
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| EVEN THE HALLWAYS HAVE MODERN MINIMALIST DESIGN |
For Filipinos, the world alila refers to someone downtrodden, but in Sanskrit, where the resort based its name upon, it means surprise. And, indeed, after touring around the property, we were quite taken with its luxury and tasteful style.
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| THE GARDEN ROOMS |
While a few of our friends were lodged at the resort’s main building, most of us were billeted on their Deluxe Room [CHECK RATES & AVAILABILITY] located on a satellite building. It’s a few minutes away on foot from the lobby, but buggies are readily provided for by Alila for maximum convenience.
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| OUR BALCONY DECK, WITH JUST ENOUGH PRIVACY FROM THE POOL AREA |
Our room’s building, clad in white concrete and set with vertical wooden trellises crawling with vines, overlooks a central pool. We were set on the lower floor, so there wasn’t any view, but the good side was that we have direct access to the pool via the open deck from our room.
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| ALILA SEMINYAK’S DELUXE ROOM |
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| STYLISH TOILET AND BATH |
The room itself is spacious and airy, with floor to ceiling movable glass walls that connects directly to the balcony deck. The furnishing blends well with the minimalist design and it has a super nice toilet and bath complete with his and hers facilities.
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| SET BREAKFAST BUFFET |
Even with our limited time at Alila Seminyak, we were able to enjoy their delectable food offerings, both on our farewell party at their event center and on the complimentary breakfast buffet at their beach-facing restaurant. I particularly liked the latter, the buffet spread offering the side dishes and the main breakfast courses, cooked upon order. Everything is still, of course, unlimitedly eat-all-you-can.
I also love the fact that besides being right out by the beach, the resort is also just walking distance away from posh bars and shopping places in Seminyak. And, if you don’t like walking, they have a vintage Volkswagon Kombi to bring you to these places on select times. Us, we prefer walking. And on that same night, we found a not-so-posh sidewalk burger joint that also offers beer. It was perfect, just as we liked it. And we did what we do most every single night of the trip. Bintang time! Cheers to wonderful Indonesia!
~ THE INDONESIA MINISTRY OF TOURISM INVITED ME AS A PART OF THE TRIP OF WONDERS TOUR. VIEWS, OPINIONS & BIASES, ALL MINE.
Alila Seminyak Bali
Address: Jalan Taman Ganesha No.9, Petitenget,
Kerobokan, Bali, Indonesia
Contact Number: (+62) 361 3021-888
Email Address: seminyak@alilahotels.com
GPS Coordinates Map: -8.680202, 115.150671
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