4 August 2006
My executive deluxe room at the Ramayana Resort
The Ramayana Resort and Spa is located right in the heart of Kuta, just off Kuta Square. Although it's not on the beach, the smallish hotel is just a short walk from the ocean as well as the shops of Kuta Square and Kuta Center. The Ramayana offers a variety of rooms clustered around the main pool. There's a small number of bungalows, a two story low-rise wing and a five story wing housing the executive deluxe and resort club rooms.
Although housed in a nondescript building, on the inside my executive deluxe room was quite distinctively done up with Balinese style. A small balcony looked out over the main pool, while inside there were two comfortable chairs with ottomans and a large four poster bed with mosquito nets. The bathroom was average sized with a tub and single sink.
Hotel facilities include two pools (one was closed for renovation during our stay), spa and two restaurants. There's also a "club lounge" on the fifth floor for use by guests staying in the resort club and executive deluxe rooms. Breakfast is available in the lounge for these guests.
Rooms feature air conditioning, hot and cold water, mini-bars, complementary coffee and tea, color televisions (mostly local channels), hair dryer and IDD telephones. Executive deluxe and resort club rooms also have DVD players and wireless Internet access (wi-fi).
Pluses: Excellent location, near restaurants and shopping. Friendly and very helpful staff. Reasonable security.
Minuses: Not on a beach. No fitness center.
Rooms at the Ramayana Resort may be booked through Agoda, or use Hotels Combined to compare rates for the resort from dozens of online booking sites.