Hilton Bali Resort – Hotel Review

Perched high on a bougainvillea-strewn cliffside in Nusa Dua, the luxurious Hilton Bali Resort offers everything guests expect from the global hotel brand. With the added benefits of next-level ocean views and legendary Balinese hospitality, the scene is set for a perfect beachside getaway. Read on for the full review.

There’s appeal for all ages at this Nusa Dua resort. Little ones will love the indoor-outdoor Jungle Kids Club with a rock climbing wall, as well as the dedicated kids’ pool and sandy lagoon complete with 30-metre water slide. Adults can take their pick from four freshwater swimming pools, a villa-style spa, four eateries (including a vast buffet breakfast) and direct beach access to a gorgeous stretch of shoreline with volcano views. 

Where is Hilton Bali Resort?

You’ll find Hilton Bali Resort in Nusa Dua, a manicured stretch of south-east Bali favoured by upscale international hotels. It’s about 30 minutes by car from Ngurah Rai International Airport.

What’s near Hilton Bali Resort?

The low-key Nusa Dua area is a relax-by-the-water, drink-in-hand kind of place. But if you want to get out and about, the Bali National Golf Club offers a par-71 tournament-standard course and nearby you’ll find cultural delights in Museum Pasifika and Pura Geger Temple. Take a drive and you’ll easily find a few more sights. Surf haven Uluwatu, where you can see a traditional Kecak dance at the scenic cliffside temple, and the boutiques and trendy restaurants of buzzy Seminyak are both 40 minutes away by car. 

Room types

Hilton Bali Resort spans 388 rooms, as well as 19 luxurious villas in an exclusive two-hectare compound. All room types feature a private balcony overlooking either the resort's tropical gardens or dazzling Sawangan Beach.

Rooms in the Cliff Tower – which were refurbished in 2019 – get a front-row seat to the property’s raved-about vistas. It’s worth spending a little more for the oceanfront suites, with their peerless views and loads of space. Suites are on the higher floors, seven through 14, with entry from the main resort on level 15 (you work your way down to the foot of the cliff).

Regardless of the room type, expect refined design touches, seen in elegant marble bathrooms with separate showers and deep soaking tubs. Enjoy your balcony but be sure to keep your doors shut lest cheeky monkeys sneak their way inside looking for snacks. 

Restaurants and bars

All-day dining restaurant Grain offers international cuisine in a sprawling space with ample indoor-outdoor seating. The buffet breakfast hits all the high notes expected of this style of resort – there’s an extensive selection of continental, Western, Chinese and local Balinese breakfast specialties, alongside a coffee bar pumping out lattes. 

Tri-level The Shore Restaurant, with its open-air rooftop, overlooks the ocean and dishes up quality seafood dishes with Mediterranean flair. The recently updated menu includes an epic dessert section, with the likes of organic chocolate with sea urchin ice cream and caramel popcorn, and lemon sorbet with squid ink, seaweed paper and coral sponge.

Paon Bali Resto & Bar serves up contemporary Balinese cuisine in an open kitchen, while The Breeze caters to the casual beachfront crowd wanting goodies like prawn popcorn or a choc-avocado popsicle while scrunching their toes in the sand. There’s even a delicatessen in the main lobby with a range of sweet treats, chunky sandwiches, salads and coffee.

Travel for work

While rooms lack a dedicated work desk, there are a range of meeting spaces as well as two ballrooms. The Executive Lounge offers its own boardroom, which is accessible for executive room and suite guests who’ll also enjoy complimentary snacks, tea and coffee all day.

Pool, gym and spa 

The extensive interconnected aquatic offering at Hilton Bali Resort comprises four sparkling freshwater swimming pools with an additional sandy lagoon and 30-metre water slide. One of the pool areas has a cave; another its own waterfall. Up on the aforementioned Executive Lounge, there’s a rooftop infinity pool, if that’s more your flavour.

Tucked away in a corner of the resort, the fitness centre is small yet functional. But if you prefer to get active outside, there are three covered tennis courts on the premises.

Mandara Spa, opposite the lagoon pool, sets a totally different pace. You’ll sip on ginger tea prior to being escorted to one of eight semi-outdoor private spa villas for a treatment such as an Elemis facial or a  Body of Mandara signature massage, where two therapists blend five different massage styles – Shiatsu, Thai, Hawaiian Lomi Lomi, Swedish and Balinese.

Sustainability

The resort makes an effort to eliminate the need for single-use plastics, nixing plastic water bottles in favour of daily complimentary mineral water refills in glass bottles and eco-friendly alternatives to plastic straws in eateries.

What you need to know

If your stay includes a Friday night, book in for Paon Bali Resto & Bar’s weekly Balinese-themed buffet. Tables are set up under the stars and guests are treated to live cooking stations with Balinese favourites such as lawar (a mixture of vegetables like green papaya, long bean and jackfruit, Balinese spices, coconut, shrimp paste and minced meat) and the island's famous babi guling (spit-roasted pork). There’s also a full dessert station with local delights like Indonesia’s take on a fruit cocktail, es teler, a colourful slush of avocado, coconut meat, grass jelly, jackfruit, crushed ice and sweetened condensed milk. You’ll enjoy this quality feast while watching traditional Balinese dancers perform.

SEE ALSO: 18 of the Best Luxury Villas in Bali to Bookmark