Segara Village

We were disappointed with our room. We paid $260 AUD a night for our room. It was not worth this amount of money. Luckily I only booked 2 nights to try out this hotel for future reference. Our room was ground floor and the outdoor verandah looked directly into another verandah. The screen was see through. The verandah looked into a pond and wall. Not many plants, not maintained and not inviting. Our room was dark and well worn. The buffet breakfast was not the best either and tables were not very clean. The grounds are nice and we did enjoy the back pool. But overall we will not stay here again. There are better options in Sanur.

Our experience was "fine" but not enough to return. Very experienced Bali travellers, but never in Sanur. Grabbed a room here thanks to having nearly 2 weeks availability at very short notice. The grounds are lovely, stunning in parts even. But it stops there. The rooms are sterile and odd, zero soul and a very strange bathroom set-up - hospital room like even. The food is overpriced, kitchen was very inflexible (odd for a hotel featuring kids pool, kids club, playground etc - not willing to assist in simple menu requests for babies) and breakfast buffet again, just "fine". The area outside the hotel has some of the most aggressive market sellers I've encountered in all of Bali.

The biggest thing though that has compelled me to write is the Service. Staying nearly 2 weeks with my daughters and our Nanny we had ample time to observe.

Anyone who thinks the service here is wonderful hasn't experienced much of Bali. The warmth, friendliness and family-like hosting that Bali is known for is severely lacking in this hotel. I hesitate to put this on the staff themselves (a few of them had sweet moments with my kids), and my opinion after observing for 2 weeks is that this is a management or procedural issue. Staff keep an arms length. There is little familiarity or warmth. After 2 weeks with 2 very recognisable daughters, every single day I was asked my room number at breakfast and stared at blankly like I had just arrived. (I realise this makes me sound self-indulgent, but this is not the usual in Bali. We visit a Cafe twice in 6 months and they remember us).

The most attention you receive here is when they want you to sign a bill, in which case they are over you like a rash - every morning the very second I put my empty coffee glass down I was pounced on as if I was going to do a runner.

Another morning I left my Nanny with my kids and all of my belongings by the pool while I stepped outside to buy something - I had TWO staff chase me out onto the beach path, one through the restaurant exit and another jump out of the bakery door shouting, all because I'd not signed for a coconut! So embarrassing. Made to look and feel like I'd done something wrong. I was a guest staying for days longer and was clearly not finished at the pool with my family still being there. Clearly this could have been sorted later. Not a big deal.

A further time I was told I would have to pay cash and was not permitted to sign as I needed to pay a deposit. (Despite not actually ever being asked to pay one). Again, I was staying nearly 2 weeks. Treated like a stranger or criminal. It took 3 different staff all radioing eachother to "check" and finally my escalating it to eventually be "allowed" to sign my bill. No apology or warmth. Like they were doing me a favour.

An additional time my Nanny was walking with my infant in front of the hotel restaurant and she was rudely shoo-ed by staff, until she explained she was working for a guest inside, then was "allowed" to hold my baby in front of the restaurant.

On another occasion, after checking out 4 towels every morning for over a week, my daughter had been playing with the towel tokens and lost one. Again, something common with kids, and staying at a kid friendly hotel, this shouldn't be a big deal. I was told that due to "rules" I would have to lug my kids to reception and "pay" for the lost card because "what we give you, you must take care". Like i was a child who had done something wrong. Seriously? This ended up being resolved eventually, but the interaction gave me the strong impression staff here have zero autonomy to make decisions that use common sense in the moment.

This hotel and their policies are self-serving not guest-centric...and you can feel it.

Every single interaction Ive ever had in my over 20+ visits to Bali Ive left that person's company desperate to return - be they a driver, hospitality staff, hotel or homestay team. Like Id made new friends or welcomed into a family. And this hotel is the first time I've felt not just invisible, but like I can't be trusted.

Bizarre.

Anyone reading this I urge you to not base your entire Bali experience here. You'll be missing the most magical part of visiting the island... the warmth and being made to feel like family.

This is the first place Ive experienced this way, even after staying 2 weeks.

Other families I met while staying there felt the same. Jarringly obvious comparing the difference in feeling after coming from other stays elsewhere to Segara Village.

On plenty of occasions I entered the lobby to get drinking water, and not a single staff member even looked at me to say "Pagi". Ive never been anywhere in Bali like this.

Management, please empower your staff to make decisions that best suit the moment. It feels like they'll be heavily reprimanded if they don't get a guest signature on a coffee within an minute of them drinking it. Or that they will get in trouble for talking too long with guests. Its all about "rules" and not about people. And sorry, but the people are such a big part of why my family and I adore Bali.

"Fine" stay. Beautiful grounds. Nice pools. Great kids area. But won't be returning.

Great location and spectacular gardens and surrounds. But unfortunately the management has little or no regard for its patrons and allows ear piercing music to blast across the resort and neighbours regularly. For a few extra dollars they’ve lost the custom of many. They could move their hotel to Kuta!