Introduction
Seminyak is where you stay in Bali if you came to eat, shop and go out. The best restaurants on the island are here, the beach clubs are here, and so is the worst traffic. It's the loud side of Bali, and honestly the beach itself is nothing special: grey sand, and most days the sea is too rough to swim in.
So your hotel is where you get your peace and quiet. You want to be able to walk to dinner, and you want it calm when you get back. There are five luxury hotels on the beach. I've visited all five, they're very different from each other, and this is only my personal opinion!
The short version: Alila Seminyak is the one I'd book for almost any trip. The Legian is the most luxurious, if you don't mind the price. The W is for a party, and Potato Head is for couples who came for the beach club. The Oberoi is the one I'd skip.
Alila Seminyak
If I could only recommend one hotel in Seminyak, this is it. Alila sits right in the middle of Seminyak Beach, with Potato Head on one side and Ku De Ta on the other, and somehow the vibe is so tranquil. The infinity pools are amazing (there's even a rooftop one that most guests never find), and every client I've sent here has come back raving about it.
Then there's Seasalt, which I think is the best resort restaurant in Bali. Order the wagyu short ribs at dinner! The service is great too, and there's a proper kids club, open 8am to 8pm and free to walk into, so it works for families.
The drawback is the neighbours. The rooms at the back pick up the bass from Potato Head, even with the balcony door shut, so ask for a room on the other side. The Deluxe rooms are a let-down too. They're in a separate building, across a bridge from the pools, the restaurants and the beach. And breakfast is good at the buffet but surprisingly ordinary if you order a la carte.
My tip: skip the Deluxe rooms and book a suite. They don't cost that much more.
Who it's for: couples, honeymooners, and families who want Seminyak with the volume turned down. 9/10
Read our detailed 9/10 review for Alila Seminyak here.
The Legian Seminyak
The Legian is probably the most luxurious hotel in Seminyak. It's all suites, they're huge, and every single one faces the sea. There are three beautiful infinity pools stepping down to the beach, and the service is just incredible. The pool guys move your umbrella as the sun moves, and someone comes round to clean your sunglasses!
The drawback is the price. It's pretty expensive, and on some days it can be double what Alila charges. The vibe is also more classic, traditional Bali than brand new and contemporary, so if you like your hotels modern you might find it a bit old-fashioned. And there's only one restaurant, which is fine but nothing special. You'll end up eating out most nights, which is easy, because Seminyak's best restaurants are five minutes away.
My tip: ask for a high floor for the best sea view, and skip the pool villas at The Club, which are across the road from the beach.
Who it's for: couples and families who want the most luxurious stay in Seminyak and don't mind paying for it. 8/10
W Bali Seminyak
The W is the most fun hotel in Seminyak, and WOOBAR is the reason. It's right on the beach, it's the place to be at sunset, and it has a glass floor you look down through into a dancefloor built under the sand! The whole hotel has that vibe: loud, colourful and a lot of fun.
The dining is great too. Breakfast is the best spread I've seen at a Bali resort, with a buffet plus as much as you like from the a la carte menu.
The drawback is the noise. On club nights the bass comes through your closed balcony doors until one in the morning, and the lobby DJ starts up again at six. I got about five hours a night. There's also no kids club, and children aren't allowed in WOOBAR after 4pm, so I wouldn't bring a family here.
My tip: if you need quiet, book a villa. They're huge, with a private plunge pool behind high walls, but you don't get an ocean view.
Who it's for: couples and groups who'll be out past midnight anyway. 7/10
Read our detailed 7/10 review for W Bali Seminyak here.
Couples Only: Desa Potato Head
You probably know Potato Head as the beach club, and that's really what it is. It's more of a restaurant and beach club destination than a hotel, with two buildings of rooms attached. If the beach club is the whole reason you're coming to Seminyak, staying here does make sense. You roll out of bed and you're there. Hotel guests get their own pool right on the beach, breakfast is a la carte and you can order as much as you like, and the staff are lovely.
But as a hotel, it's not great. It's loud. The beach club goes until midnight (2am on Fridays and Saturdays) and the rooms facing it get the music, and on Saturdays the pool club next door throws its own party too. The cheaper rooms are tiny, with a shower and no bath, and the bathrooms are looking tired. The sunbeds are gone by 9am, and staying here doesn't guarantee you a daybed at the beach club either. The food is expensive for what you get. And annoyingly, Grab can't pick you up at the door, so you have to take a buggy out to the main road first.
So come here for dinner and a day at the beach club, absolutely. To sleep, I'd rather stay at Alila next door and just walk over.
My tip: if you do book, there are two buildings and both have changed names, so check which one you're getting. You want AM House (it used to be Potato Head Suites, and Katamama before that), where the suites are more than twice the size of the studios at OMA House next door.
Who it's for: couples who came for the beach club and don't plan on sleeping much. I wouldn't bring kids. 6/10
The One I'd Skip: The Oberoi Beach Resort, Bali
I'll be fair to The Oberoi first. The gardens are the loveliest in Seminyak, the staff are so kind, and breakfast is really good (order the masala dosa). They bring sorbet round the pool in the afternoon, there's free afternoon tea at four, and it's a five-minute walk to all the restaurants.
The problem is the rooms. They're just very dated. They haven't had a proper update since the 1990s, the bathrooms are dim, and the whole place feels like a hotel from another era, and not in a charming way. There's also only one pool for the entire hotel, and no sunbeds on the beach. For this you pay a bit more than Alila, which is a much newer and nicer hotel. I just can't see why you'd pick it.
Who it's for: honestly, only people who stayed here years ago and want it exactly as it was. 6/10
So Which One Should You Book?
Honeymoon, or travelling with children? Alila Seminyak, and ask for a suite away from the Potato Head side. Want the most luxurious hotel and don't mind paying for it? The Legian. Here as a couple for the beach club? A suite at Potato Head, or the W if you want the later night (I compare it with Alila side by side here). Skip The Oberoi until it's been renovated. And if what you really want is a beach you can swim at, go to Sanur instead.
