Hotel Indigo Bali Seminyak Beach Review
The Hotel Indigo Bali Seminyak Beach is nestled between several hotel developments right at Double Six Beach, Seminyak. While the surf at this beach can be dangerous with highly varying water levels the area is my favorite in Bali. There are great eateries and restaurants as well as good coffee in the immediate neighborhood.
We arrived just before 3 PM on the day of our check-in and expected a quick exchange of passports against room keys. We were told to sit in the (very pretty) lobby and attendants would come to join us. Indeed she did but after 30 minutes we got a little anxious. The front desk attendant was very friendly but equipped with the reasoning skills of a pre-schooler. We tried to explain the type of room and the conversation went nowhere. I did not feel it was an issue of language but rather an of comprehension. Eventually, we got it sorted out and were told a room would be ready in about an hour. I found that odd given it was well past check-in time now. But there is a lovely coffee shop downstairs and rather fast WiFi to boot. 60 minutes later nothing happened and the attendants were busy helping other customers. We waited 30 minutes longer and finally, the concierge helped moved our luggage but there were still no room keys available or access to the faster WiFi (using your room number). Waiting 2.5 hours for your room keys is just plain unacceptable - being IHG Platinum or not.
The room itself gave off a hue of luxury with lovely stone floors. However, it seemed it hadn't been used for a long time and there were (small) mosquitoes aplenty. It also was rather small (we had an extra bed). The jewel of the room was the large walk-in closet and the huge bathroom - together they took the biggest space of the floor plan.
The AC was strong and quiet and cooled the room down quite well. The WiFi was fast at most times clocking in at 10 Mbit or better depending on the time of day and location in the resort.
We went out to explore the pools and the beach. There is a lovely 'Balinese - style' adult pool with huge chaise longs and a great setup with the little waterfalls. It was usually quiet and calm there.
Further towards the beach were two pools that hosted the younger crowd. There is little space to the right and left and the pools and sun benches seem quite crowded despite less than 40 people at the pools at any time. While pretty it felt not upscale but more like a Hilton Resort in Hawaii (that suffer from extreme crowding).
Just beyond the pool is the wonderful Seminyak beach which is a huge plus for the resort. Few resorts have such beautiful beach access. There is a small area with benches and beach chairs for hotel guests.
Breakfast had an enormous spread but just a few quality items. It is $25 per person and clearly not worth it given the excellent walkable options just around the corner.
As with many resort areas in Bali - the taxi 'mafia' prohibits Grab or GoJek from entering the area. Rides can be expensive when using the 'local taxis'.
I felt the resort worked at capacity with mostly Australian vacationers during July 2019. The crowds were generally quiet and well behaved giving us a good time at the resort.
In sum, I loved the location of the resort - a true Bali highlight. I also liked how new and generally well designed the resort was. Many areas were just plain beautiful. The staff was friendly but generally completely clueless.
The Indigo Bali posts rates around $250 per night or 30,000 IHG points typically.