The Renaissance Bali Nusa Dua Resort is the newer of the two Renaissance resorts operating in Bali. Complementing the existing sister hotel in Uluwatu, this property is located on the hills of the Nusa Dua Peninsula, just outside the gated complex of The Nusa Dua. Opened in January 2022, the 307-key resort shares its property with Marriott’s Bali Nusa Dua Terrace, an 88-apartment timeshare. It is also one of the newest resorts in the area, competing with other yet older and established Marriott-operated resorts like the Westin Nusa Dua, The Laguna, Courtyard Nusa Dua, and St. Regis Bali.

Booking Renaissance Nusa Dua

As part of an impromptu visit to the island, I decided to book a one-night stay in Nusa Dua due to its close proximity to the airport. After scouring resorts upon resorts, I finally found an exceptional rate for the Renaissance, which I booked with Trip.com. This was my first time using the China-based online travel agency, so I did have some qualms, although those concerns proved to be unnecessary. For my stay, I paid a breakfast-inclusive rate of IDR 1,926,925 (USD125, GBP98), which I thought was very good for a last-minute booking.

Location

Unlike most resorts in the peninsula, the Renaissance isn’t located within the ITDC Nusa Dua gated community. You’ll instead find its driveway on Jalan Siligita, close to Hotel Santika Siligita and Coco Supermarket Nusa Dua. The resort’s driveway opens into Nusa Dua’s main commerce area, where you’ll find various local eateries; although be warned that the walk from the resort’s lobby to the main road is a long one. Since the resorted is located on a hill, it is obviously not a beach hotel. Despite that, the resort does offer free shuttles to their dedicated beach area, which I’ll explain in a bit.

Arrival and Check-in

After our underwhelming TransNusa A320 flight from Jakarta, we drove straight to the Renaissance and arrived at around 14.00. As is usual anywhere in Bali, there was a security checkpoint before we could drive up to the lobby. Since it was the peak of the school holidays, the entrance was understandably busy, meaning that it took several turns before we could unload our bags at the porte-cochère. Our bags were quickly taken care of by a friendly porter, who directed me to the reception desks on the right-hand side of the lobby.

Once inside, I found the lobby to be profoundly eccentric in terms of design. At the centre were a bunch of multicoloured chairs, in a myriad of different patterns and shapes. For one, the hotel seems to have a music-related theme to it, given how a few of the public spaces are named after things you’d find in a concert (Backstage, Mainstage, etc).

At the front desk, the friendly associate courteously greeted me and handled the registration quickly. However, since we arrived an hour before the check-in time, we had to wait a few minutes for our room to be completely ready. After about 15 minutes, we were issued keys to our room on the fourth floor, which is on the same level as the lobby.

Deluxe Garden View Room

The entry-level Deluxe Garden View Rooms are sized at a spacious 49 sqm (527 sqft). Having been newly built in 2022, it is no surprise that the room features a very contemporary design, employing an open-concept layout that blurs the lines between the living and bath areas.

Bedroom

Thanks to the open-concept design, the room feels very airy and spacious, despite its modern and eclectic design. For one, the room felt like an even more eccentric version of a W hotel room, given all the zany elements and bright colours adorning the space. Surprising was also the cool ceramic tile floors, which look and feel deceivingly wood-like. Regardless, I admire the interior design, which didn’t feel cluttered or confined despite the myriad of decor.

At the centre are the two queen-sized beds, which I found plush and comfortable. The provision of two queen beds is something that only North American hotels do very well. As it is quite rare in South East Asia, I appreciate the extra space. I also like that each bed has its own nightstand, which is always convenient.

Furthermore, a sizeable circular desk is located by the window. As it has two chairs, the desk easily doubles as a dining table, which again is a creative design choice. What I disliked, however, was the rocking chair between the bed and the window, which is a bit too ‘avant-garde‘, to me. While I like that there are lots of seatin options, I didn’t find this one very comfortable.

Finally, the eccentric design also continues to the minibar, which is housed inside a metal chest-like cabinet. In all, while I found the room’s style to be clever and unusual, I did feel that it would start looking dated very quickly if the room wasn’t maintained often enough.

Bathroom

Just like the bedroom, the bathroom has a similarly eclectic design, featuring many local elements and crafts embedded into the design. Despite being open-concept, the bathroom is separated from the bedroom by way of a waterproof-lined double-layered curtain. When closed the bathroom feels completely private, if not a bit dark.

Notably, the bathroom features both an oversized free-standing bathtub as well as a walk-in shower with a rain shower head. To make things better, both the water pressure and temperature in the shower and the bathtub taps are excellent, allowing for an exceptional bath.

The bath amenities came in large reusable bottles fixed onto the shower wall. These were Argus by Margot Elena-branded, which appears to be the regional branding for the typical Tokyo Milk amenities you’d find at Renaissance Hotels. In any case, I found it to be pleasant enough and rather nice.

Balcony

Beyond the bedroom is a small balcony overlooking the hotel’s driveway and the greenery of the Nusa Dua peninsula. On the balcony is a daybed and a comfortable sofa chair, alongside a small side table. A drying rack is also provided on the balcony, presumably to dry wet swimsuits among other things.

Amenities

Atomic 17 Pool

Located just behind the lobby is the Atomic 17 Pool, named after the adjacent outdoor Atomic 17 bar. This pool is the largest in the resort’s complex, featuring both a jacuzzi and sunken lounge chairs. Compared to the other three pools, this is also the loudest, owing to the steady stream of music coming from the bar.

Kid’s Pool

Located just below the Atomic 17 pool is the Kid’s pool. Complete with a range of water-related activities, this shallow pool is conveniently placed next to the Lava Land Kid’s Club. Nicely enough, a range of daybeds are available by this pool, allowing parents to remain comfortable while supervising their children.

Jungle Pool and The Cove

The Jungle Pool is perhaps the resort’s nicest-looking space, hemmed in by the lush surrounding greenery. In particular, the pool itself consists of a circular pool separated by a lantern-lined walkway cutting through the middle.

A handful of daybeds surround the pool area, which feels profoundly beach-like. Given the design and how the pool gradually becomes deeper as you reach the middle, the area feels like a little artificial cove.

The sunken walkway in the middle leads to The Cove, a wedding venue that can easily double as a yoga pavilion when not in use. Frankly, The Cove is rather unique as far as wedding venues go, but I can’t imagine it being too comfortable since you’d have to walk through shallow water to get there.

Lap Pool

Finally, located behind the Jungle Pool is the resort’s infinity lap pool, which is parallel to several guest rooms. As its name suggests, this pool is the longest pool, clocking in at 37.5 metres (123 ft), making it ideal for lap swimming.

Due to its location next to the hotel building, it is also the most shaded pool in the resort. This makes it particularly ideal for aquatic sports. As such, the aqua polo net permanently installed by this pool is not a surprising addition.

Gardens

In addition to the four pools, the resort features a lush lawn and garden, separating the Renaissance from the Marriott’s Bali Nusa Dua Terrace timeshare buildings housed in the same compound. While looking quite Balinese, the garden has its own charm to it, perhaps thanks to the water features and garden furniture adorning its various nooks and crannies.

Fitness Centre

Near the entrance to the resort, next to the East Wing, is the Renaissance Spa & Fitness Centre complex. This complex is open 24 hours and is accessible by a keycard. Just inside is the Spa reception, where you could make a request and borrow the bicycles available at the entrance.

After passing the reception, the Fitness Centre is located on the left. While rather small given the resort’s size, the fitness centre is well-equipped with a bunch of Life Fitness equipment. This includes a row of treadmills, exercise bikes, as well as various weight machines.

Shuttle

An hourly complimentary shuttle service runs between 09.00 and 21.00, bringing guests from the hotel to Nusa Dua’s Bali Collection shopping mall as well as the resort’s Beach Club (more on that later). Reservations are not necessary, though do note that the shuttle bus is rather small compared to the number of guests.

Beach Club

Renaissance Bali, Nusa Dua operates a small beach club on the tip of Nusa Dua Beach, next to the sprawling Grand Hyatt Bali. Accessible with the resort’s shuttle, the beach club area is shared with the sister Courtyard by Marriott Nusa Dua resort, which occupies half of the space. However, the seating for each resort is reserved to their respective guests, as you’ll need to show a keycard to be shown to your seat at the entrance.

Nusa Dua is undoubtedly one of Bali’s nicest accessible beaches, with its pristine white sand, long stretch of beach, and shallow waters. As such, it is a great place to take a long walk by the coast or take a swim. Unfortunately, the Renaissance Beach Club isn’t immune to the steady stream of local hawkers, who could be very pushy in offering their services. As such, the place is very relaxing if you could look past the occasional hawker.

Finally, I’ll note that guests of the Renaissance may also use the toilet and shower facilities behind the Courtyard by Marriott Beach Club, which I think is mightily convenient. While I wouldn’t actually suggest showering here, it is only courteous to wash the sand off before going back to the resort.

Breakfast

Breakfast at the Renaissance Bali Nusa Dua is served between 06.30 and 10.30 at the Backstage Food Theatre, the resort’s all-day dining restaurant. True to its name, the graffiti-lined restaurant looks a lot like an underground punk-inspired musical backstage, complete with trolley cards that look like instrument storage boxes.

As you’d expect from a resort of this size, the restaurant is chiefly buffet-based, featuring many different kinds of stations for all sorts of food. While I don’t usually like buffet restaurants, I found the food at Backstage to be quite good in terms of taste and freshness. I also liked that there is a varied selection of food, both pre-made and cooked-to-order, encompassing Balinese, Asian, and Western cuisines. They’ve even got kombucha! However, I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves.

Service

As expected, I found the staff at the Renaissance Bali Nusa Dua to be warm and friendly. Well, to be fair, that is the norm rather than the exception in Bali. However, unexpectedly from a resort of this size, I did find the service to be very casual and friend-like, which I liked. The staff aren’t shy to say hello and make small talk, which sets it apart from the other large resorts in the area. Additionally, I was also impressed with how knowledgeable the staff were and how proactive and efficient they were at fulfilling requests. As such, I have nothing but good things to say about the service here. Bravo!

Overall

The Renaissance Bali Nusa Dua has really made the best of everything despite the resort’s non-beachfront location. For one, I was very impressed with the spacious and uniquely designed room, which I think is at the top of its class. I also liked the resort’s many pools and amenities, which looked fresh and beautiful. In addition, the friendly service and the relatively good breakfast really rounded off this stay. Overall, I found the Renaissance to be very well-rounded, making it a near-perfect large resort in the Nusa Dua area. As such, I might even say that it is my new favourite large upmarket resort, perhaps toppling the chic beachfront Sofitel Bali Nusa Dua from that title.

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