The Balé is an all-villa property located just outside the Nusa Dua gated community, near Aman Villas and across from The Mulia. The resort is operated by the Singapore-based, LifestyleRetreats, which is also the operator of The Menjangan up north, as well as a few other properties on the island. The word ‘balé’ itself means along the lines of ‘pavilion’ in Balinese, so it’s no surprise that the resort’s rooms are categorised in that way.

The resort apparently opened in 2002, and has 29 pool pavilions; since the resort isn’t adjacent to the beach, there isn’t a sea view of any kind, which is probably the main caveat about staying here.

Location

The resort is located south of the island, in the Nusa Dua Peninsula. However, it is outside the gated community that houses many of the area’s international-chained hotels and convention centres. It lies directly across from the sprawling Mulia complex, and nearby The St. Regis Resort. The resort is within a 6-minute walking distance to Geger Beach, and nearby are several local ‘warung’ food establishments, as well as restaurants housed within the many hotels in the Nusa Dua complex (The St. Regis, in particular, has excellent food at its restaurants).

Arrival and Checking-in

We arrived at The Balé just past midday by car from Sanur. The resort’s entrance is rather bizarre, in the sense that there isn’t really a drop-off, less so a porte-cochère, which made the arrival confusing. Its small entrance instead opens straight to a small parking lot fitting a few cars. When we arrived, there wasn’t anyone on standby at the entrance either (unlike most hotels in Bali, which tend to station security guards at their entrances). As such, it would require one to go to the lobby to get attention for assistance with any large luggage.

That aside, check-in was very quick. The helpful and friendly host explained the features of the resort, whilst her colleague brought over some refreshing citrus-based welcome drinks. Soon after, we were driven to our pavilion up a narrow winding path by a golf cart/buggy.

Our Suite

We booked a confusingly named ‘Single Pavillion’ and received one as such. It would appear that the terms ‘single’ and ‘double’ refer to the number of bedrooms in each pavilion. Following a short ride on the hotel’s golf cart, we were led up a flight of stairs to the topmost row, where we’d find our beautiful pavilion. The pavilion, as with all others, has a private pool with a nice, minimalist garden. There is also a small roofed area outside, which features a mini-bar, a desk, a daybed, and two folding deck chairs. However, after a closer inspection, the chairs were static and did not fold, which alleviated my irrational fear of folding deck chairs (phew).

Bedroom

The spacious, terrazzo-clad bedroom section features a standalone closet, a couch-desk combination, as well as a television. I similarly thought that the bedroom was very beautifully appointed – looking both very sleek and modern but without losing tropical charm. We did notice that there was some wear and tear with the bedroom’s furniture, but I didn’t mind it too much. All, in all, I had only one gripe with the bedroom – the lack of power outlets. I counted a total of just three outlets in the room, including one that is a Type A American/Japanese plug. All three are placed in inconvenient locations and none of them is bedside, making it bothersome when it comes to charging stuff.

Bathroom

Behind the closet is the bathroom, which is comprised of two parts – an indoor section with double sinks, an oversized bathtub, a shower cubicle, as well as the toilet, and an outdoor section with a shower and a small garden. The choice of having both an indoor and outdoor shower was great, despite the fact that the outdoor shower had probably seen better days. The bright and similarly spacious bathroom also features sliding doors that open straight to the private pool, making it convenient to shower after a leisurely dip. I liked that the resort also provides a selection of bar soaps with different scents for us to try, which reminded me of the setup at Capella Ubud.

Despite being at the topmost row of pavilions at the resort, we still weren’t afforded much of a view of the area… it was a good thing that the resort looked stunning regardless.

Dining

Breakfast, which was included in our rate, was the only meal we had at the resort during our short stay. This was served at the interestingly named Faces Restaurant (hmm), which the resort’s sleek though tropical theme also extends to. There, the restaurant offers a rather varied a la carte breakfast menu. I found it nice that they had several choices and thought that the food was generally high in terms of quality.

I had thought of trying the huevos rancheros, but ultimately decided on their ‘Balé Benedict’, accompanied by a customary fruit plate, and a pastry. To drink, I ordered a Lychee BOOM, which is a lychee tea, and a Get Up, which is a blend of pineapple, orange, and strawberry juices. I frankly commend their creativity with drink names, although it did make it hard to remember.

Faces Restaurant Food

The fruit plate came first, which I was happy with. It featured a varied selection of papaya, grape, honeydew melon, pineapple, watermelon, and dragonfruit, served with a nice splash of lime. Drinks were also brought out by then, by our friendly waiter. I loved the lychee tea, although the juice blend was a bit watery and bland. The pastries, which were brought out after we finished the fruit plate, weren’t the best I’ve had, but it was warm and edible. The preserves, however, were surprisingly homemade and tasted fresh and excellent.

Last was the ‘Balé Benedict’, which was served with some mushroom bits and fragrant white truffle oil; whilst I thought the dish was overall nice, it seemed like they ran into a bit of trouble preparing the hollandaise given that it was sadly slightly curdled and a bit too acidic.

Service was polished at the restaurant, as our friendly waiter was very particular with the placement of cutlery and dishes on the table. Very nice!

Resort Grounds and Amenities

Have I mentioned how beautiful The Balé in its entirety looks? I mean wow!! The resort somehow managed to pull off a sleek look, whilst maintaining a nice, serene feel. In fact, the design of the whole place really reminded me of that of Alila Villas Uluwatu, particularly with its sleek lines combined with traditional elements (e.g. rattan at Alila, and thatched roofing here). As I was photographing the resort, a staff member explained that water is a very strong element of the resort’s design, encompassed by the two-tier swimming pool and the shallow stream of water that flows from the Faces Restaurant to the lobby.

Pool

At the centre of the resort is a main pool, which is fed by a gentle waterfall from the two-bedroom pavilion’s pools. The main pool is split between two levels and is very beautifully designed. The entire setup exudes a bit of a tropical desert oasis vibe, which I very much liked. In the pool are some concrete-built sunken lounge chairs that I didn’t find particularly comfortable, however, I’d probably understand the appeal that it had not been so hot during our stay. On both sides of the pool are several enclosed daybeds, which unfortunately were covered with scattered leaves and plant debris… I guess this was another sign that the place was understaffed. 

Interestingly, there is also a small bookcase by the pool’s changing area, which I sure thought was an interesting place to store books…

Fitness Centre and Spa

The resort also has a small but nicely appointed fitness centre that viewed more gardens, along with a spa and a gift shop. I also came across several faint references to a beach club, which I believe was an offering the resort had in the past. Having said that, I’m not sure if the beach club still existed at this point, since no one had mentioned anything about it and I couldn’t find any information about it on their website online.

The Balé is officially an adult-only resort, and it sure felt that way. The resort was very quiet during our short one-night stay, even though every ‘Single Pavilion’ was occupied. In fact, the public areas were deserted during our stay, except one time early in the morning when several people arrived to do a photo shoot for some sort of cushion product… but they kept to themselves and didn’t distract me in any way.

Service

It occurred to me that the resort, like many others on the island as a result of the pandemic, very much looked understaffed. It didn’t seem like there were many people working the place, although they did a great job keeping the place clean and maintained. Despite the limitations, each and every staff member I encountered was very friendly and warm, and they worked hard to ensure everything was as good as possible.

Overall

Overall, I was rather impressed by The Balé. This resort certainly surprised me, especially given that it and its managing company, LifestyleRetreats, aren’t seemingly very widely known. Both the accommodations and the resort in its entirety are very beautifully designed. Add to that mix, the team of friendly and quick-to-respond staff and the high-quality food at the restaurant, and you have a formula for an excellent resort.

However, between the lack of proper beach access, being understaffed, and some inconvenient quirks with the room’s design, I sadly wouldn’t say that The Balé stands to rival the best of the best resorts in Bali; but then again, it is also not as pricey as those places. It is, however, a very much upmarket, intimate boutique resort, which I would wholeheartedly recommend.

Read more Bali hotel reviews here!