November 29, 2023

The girls take Bali

Chiara Di ASIA, TRAVEL Atlas Beach Club, Bali, Indonesia, Seminyak, Travel, Wanderlust 0 Comments

A few months ago my girlfriends and I went on our inaugural girls trip – this year to Bali!

We had been talking about this trip for years, with life, living overseas, kids, Covid and more getting in the way, but we finally made a plan and got away on our first trip since our teens. It was so much fun – we’re now hoping to make it an annual tradition.

We chose Bali as it was an international, short, direct flight from our cities and great for a 3-nighter, though we all commented an additional night would have made it perfect as two days really were travel days with all the prep required for international travel. Our trip was the perfect combo of downtime, beautiful dining, spa time and hitting the dance floor.

We stayed at Serene Villas in their 3-Bedroom Garden Villa with a private pool. The villa was one of seven at the property and it was all very serene, but still a convenient location only a short walk to the heart of Seminyak. The villa was pleasant though a little dated, and had a nice open plan downstairs area overlooking the lush garden and pool, where we spent a lot of the weekend relaxing. We couldn’t hear our neighbours or the traffic, it was pure bliss!

We had our own personal butler who would cook us breakfast daily in our room at a time that suited us. We had to fill in a form the night before with our breakfast selection – everything from nasi goreng to omelette and pancakes was available. The villa also offered a driver service, in room dining and in room massages.

We enjoyed many dining experiences starting with Mama San – a Will Meyrick restaurant serving fine Indonesia food. We shared chicken dumplings, scallop pancakes, crispy soft shell crab, beef rendang, prawn noodles, chicken curry, som tum salad and more – everything was bursting with flavours and spices! We also enjoyed a lovely lunch at La Lucciola, an iconic Italian restaurant overlooking Petitenget Beach offering a range of light dishes and pastas. After a big night, big breakfast and spa treatment I went for the light option of a zucchini flower and prosciutto and mozzarella focaccia. For coffee in Seminyak, you can’t go past Revolver and Sisterfields.

It took us a little while to decide on a beach club for our trip, but we were all very satisfied with our pick of Atlas Beach Club in Canggu. A lot of Bali beach clubs have a reduced fee before 1pm so that’s what we did, arrived in time for that. It didn’t really make a difference though as we spent all day on our sunbed and spent way more than the cover charge. I would recommend booking ahead to have more choice in where you are seated. We enjoyed our pool sunbed (literally in the pool) as it was convenient to swim and dance but it had no shade which we had no choice in.

The cocktails at Atlas were amazing – we indulged in the Atlas Tea and flavoured frozen daiquiris most of the day. We didn’t give the food menu too much of a chance but can confirm the pizzas were enjoyable and a decent size. We enjoyed a mesmerising sunset and there was a great dance floor after dark with hit after hit. We enjoyed a solid eight hours here, but as if that wasn’t enough of a day, we popped into Motel Mexicola for more dancing on the way back to our villa.

It wouldn’t be a trip to Bali without a spa treatment. I started my trip with a 30-minute foot massage (can’t resist when I’m in Bali) from a street side spa, and ended my trip with an indulgent ‘slimming massage’ at Bodyworks Spa in Seminyak. I can’t confirm the slimming side of things had an impact, but the one-hour and 50-minute treatment was very luxurious. It started with a body scrub, followed by being covered in a milk-like clay, a quick rinse off, full body massage and a flower-filled bath to end.

On our final morning, Amy and I upgraded our breakfast to the floating breakfast in our villa pool. The set up was an additional 250,000 rupiah which was worth it for the novelty. We were also given a handmade orchid wreath to wear for the experience – we watched as the villa staff handpicked each flower from the trees in our garden with precision – what service!

It was a wonderful trip and I’m very grateful for the beautiful friendships I have, especially these life-longers. Now we need to decide where to next for 2024!

LWL xxx