Alila Seminyak — Bali, Indonesia

An aerial view of the hotel with a view of the beach
(Image credit: press)

Bali’s charms impinge in earnest the moment you leave the one-street towns, bar strips and plasticky souvenir joints, and turn either inwards towards the green-draped valleys and terraced rice fields, or head towards the coast.

The newly opened Alila Seminyak takes its cues from its perfect beachfront location a short walk from Seminyak town’s hippy slash hipster collection of smart restaurants, art galleries, itsy local spas, and surf-shops.

As a group, Alila flies its eco-friendly flag high, eschewing air-conditioning for sea-breezes and natural ventilation. Brief in hand, architect Gaurang Khemka and his team at Singapore firm URBNarc have created a secret garden amidst the hustle and bustle of Seminyak, laying out the resort’s 240 rooms around a sequence of naturally shaded public spaces that are dominated by four swimming pools, one of which literally sits atop the entire length of the restaurant. The low-slung green-roofed four-storey buildings are clad in vertical green walls, and landscaped terraces courtesy of Gaurang, alongwith Chang huai-yan and Lee Berlin of the deliciously named Singapore-based outfit, Salad Dressing.

For our money, the best rooms in the house front the ocean, the floor to ceiling glass doors sliding open to uninterrupted views of white-foamed surf. Less sedentary types may enjoy a spin around town in the resort’s vintage Volkswagon Kombi, but between a lomi-lomi treatment in the fragrant, mood-lit spa, beach yoga, and a chilled cocktail from the beach bar, why would you?

An image of the guest room with a view of the private pool

(Image credit: press)

An image of a guest room balcony with a view of the sea

(Image credit: press)

An image of the bathroom in the guest room, showing the sink, bath and a robe

(Image credit: press)

An image showing a lounge and dining sections of the guest room with a view of the sea

(Image credit: press)

An image of the guest hotel room

(Image credit: press)

An image of the hotels open-air guest lounge

(Image credit: press)

An image showing the guest communal pool

(Image credit: press)

An image of the guest lounge

(Image credit: press)

ADDRESS

Jalan Taman Ganesha No. 5
Petitenget
Kerobokan Kelod
Bali

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Daven Wu is the Singapore Editor at Wallpaper*. A former corporate lawyer, he has been covering Singapore and the neighbouring South-East Asian region since 1999, writing extensively about architecture, design, and travel for both the magazine and website. He is also the City Editor for the Phaidon Wallpaper* City Guide to Singapore.