Viceroy Bali: A Boutique Resort With 5-Star Amenities

A precious gem in a hidden forest

Nestled in a serene and remote area in a valley, Viceroy Bali is surrounded by lush wooded forest. In addition to that, Ubud’s relatively cooler temperature (about 25 degrees Celsius, or 77 degree Fahrenheit on average) makes Viceroy Bali the right accommodation for you, especially if you are looking for a comfortable retreat to disconnect from your world.

Upon your arrival

During your entire stay and even before your arrival, you will be treated like a star. A member of the staff will contact you via email to ask a series of questions to ensure a perfect stay. More specifically, they will ask if you’re staying for a special occasion like a honeymoon or wedding anniversary. They will also ask your preferences on several things like dietary requests, room temperature or pillow preference (do you have some sort of backache and prefer harder pillows?).

As you reach the hotel’s lobby, you will soon notice that members of the staff have been waiting for your arrival. A bellboy will open your car door and greet you. As you enter the lobby, you will be given a flower lei, a welcome tropical drink (fruit juices like pineapple or star fruit), as well as refreshing warm towels.

You will instantly fall in love with the resort’s artsy and fragrant lobby. It’s a semi-open building with the scent of lemongrass. The building has a thatched roof with some big ceiling fans, and Balinese/Hindu decorations on the walls. I love the large framed relief, which depicts a Balinese dance performance. It is so alive and a lot of skill and time went into creating this traditional work of art.

A room with fabulous facilities

This boutique hotel has 25 very large and fabulous rooms, and you can rest assured that you’ll be comfortable, as rooms are cleaned and tidied twice a day by the staff.

Just like other 5-star hotels, each room comes with amenities such as a well-stocked mini bar (you can find Bintang, the popular Indonesian beer, and non-alcoholic drinks are complimentary) and a digital IIIy coffee maker, where you can conveniently put capsules of coffee and creamer in the machine and set the machine to produce a tasty cappuccino. Other amenities include a large flat-screen TV and a DVD player with a beautiful sound system! Wait a second, a DVD player? Yes, you can borrow DVDs from their great selection of Western movies in the resort’s library in the lounge of the lobby.

Standard rooms have comfortable king-sized beds with four soft pillows to help you have a good night sleep. Each has a comfortable large sofa bed too, so if you stay with your kids, they will be happy to sleep on it.

Marble bathroom with a huge soaking tub

The bathroom is huge with marble floors and walls. It comes with amenities like toiletries, towels and a hair dryer, and the bathtub is larger than any bathtub I’ve ever seen before. The bathtub is positioned for guests to be able to watch TV while having a nice and relaxing soak.

Heated private pool

Each room has a living room and veranda facing the green forest, but what amazed me most was the heated private pool located just outside of the room. Nowadays many 5-star resorts have a private pool adjacent to each of the rooms, but how many of them provide heated pools? Ubud’s weather is relatively cool compared to other areas in Bali, so this heated pool is perfect.

There is a well-lit sitting area next to the pool and even at night you can conveniently spend your time there while reading a book. If you stay at Terrace Villa, you will be able to sit on the ‘bale,’ or a gazebo, while enjoying the view of the lush greenery.

The Cascades, a restaurant with natural touches

Experience relaxing dining and have your palate delighted by the resort’s exquisite restaurant, The Cascades. This is one of the best places in Bali to dine luxuriously while being surrounded by a green tropical jungle. The restaurant is beautifully situated near the edge of a gorge. Not only will you have the view of the thick greenery, but you will also hear the singing birds and the chirping crickets. There is piano too, and almost every weekend a pianist plays sweet melodies to entertain you while dining.

Appetizing delicacies

Just sitting in this restaurant is refreshing because you are fully surrounded by nature! All of the food and beverages are very appetizing. You can order anything from Indonesian food, such as ‘pecel lele’, which is fried catfish, to Chinese porridge, and if you want to find the best European cuisine in Bali, this is simply the restaurant. Their lobster bisque (lobster soup) and beef wellington (beef wrapped with puff pastry) are just a few of many European foods they serve.

I personally enjoyed their seared duck sautéed with sweetened BBQ sauce. It is crispy and juicy and also comes with Indonesian side dishes like yellow rice (nasi kuning, savory rice cooked with coconut oil and turmeric) and sambal matah, Balinese chili sauce with a strong onion flavor.

Various beverages, from juices to wines and alcoholic cocktails, are all available, and if you are a coffee drinker, I recommend ordering their fragrant macchiato.

There’s more good news: breakfast is included in the room price and it is eaten at the on-site restaurant. For breakfast, you’ll find lavish a la carte options including drinks, appetizers, and desserts. Their citrus pancakes, which are stuffed with strawberry jam and banana slices and served with berry compote and cream are just awesome! They serve different items for breakfast every morning, so if you stay for more than one night, you can be sure you will have different things for breakfast.

The infinity pool

Besides the view of the tropical jungle, you can also enjoy your meal while being pampered with the view of the hotel’s infinity pool, located right next to the restaurant. What is special about this pool is that the water flows over one of the pool’s edges, as if the water falls somewhere down the pool, creating the view of a pool with no boundary. You can find this type of pool in some luxurious beach resorts in Bali, and if you want to swim and relax in an infinity pool with a jungle view, this is the right resort for you.

Helicopter transport

Have you been inside a helicopter? If not, did you know that you can ride a helicopter from the airport to the hotel? Yup, this is the only resort in Ubud that has a helipad and provides helicopter to transport its guests!

The helicopter ride, which can hold up to 4 passengers, certainly saves you a lot of time. While it takes you about 90 minutes from Ngurah Rai airport to Ubud by a taxi, you will only need less than 15 minutes to reach the resort, so make sure have your camera ready to take photos during your helicopter ride!

Incredibly, the resort can arrange a scenic helicopter to take you to many beautiful places in Bali. There are several flying routes you can choose, including the one to Mount Batur to see the mountain and its lake and to Nusa Dua to view the cluster of islands in the south of Bali! A helicopter ride for airport pickup or sightseeing costs 1,842 USD (24,095,020 IDR) for an hour.