THE STONES HOTEL LEGIAN BALI: HOTEL REVIEW

I can't believe that it has been one freaking month since my last Bali trip. Indeed time flies and I am just stuck in between having my soul there while my body's here and looking back the old photos and all the calories that I have consumed, damn I ate so much in Bali I always gain more pounds everytime I got back, not to mention I spent one week there. It was fun but I might have to start considering gym right now ._.

One of the highlights of that trip was staying at this gorgeous hotel called The Stones. I stayed the whole week in Legian and I spent the longest here (about three nights). The location was very strategic as it's located at the heart of Kuta and Legian beach, just where most of the tourists go. It's a walking distance to the Beachwalk Shopping Mall.

This hotel is relatively new comparing to the other more 'legendary' names in Legian, this year and actually this month marks its two year anniversary (HAPPY BIRTHDAY!) and I was fortunate enough to have the experience of staying here and pampered myself with what they had in store, and here I am sharing it to you right now. The Stones is actually one of Marriott's group venture called "The Autograph Collection" so basically it's a five-star property, only the concept, the ambiance and the energy of this hotel are slightly different than the rest of the Marriott hotels which mostly are more classy and serious, well this hotel is classy, but different kind of classy: FUN CLASSY!

Likewise, this post is going to be photo heavy so complain less and enjoy the visual tour <3.

The entrance to the hotel. Unexpected enough, before actually getting to the hotel you'd have to pass some of the retail outlets.

The lobby area

The check-in was very smooth and easy. It took me probably less than 10 minutes to complete everything and being escorted to my room. What's even better than I got served these welcome goodies! Their homemade popsicles and it was pretty tasty and refreshing! So far I'm impressed.

I don't know if it's just me who's lacking of experience but it was clearly not my usual idea to have the bathroom area welcoming me as I opened the door. The bathroom area was not exactly spacious, just standard typical with separated shower and toilet area, private sink for one and a closet. The rest area (bed area) consist of one comfortable king size bed, iPhone/iPod speaker dock, telephones, large LED TV with access to the international channels (I LOVE HOTELS WITH ACCESS TO E CHANNEL AND ASIAN FOOD CHANNEL!!!) and a little working area in the corner with a table and a chair, but the best thing about the whole room was: the access to the pool view via the terrace while having your private bathtub time (yes, their bathtub is located outdoor). The upside was totally having the pool view and it's unique because I personally have always been a fan of outdoor bathtub, but the downside is that your "neighbors" might see you, but it's okay for the thick-skinned. However, they also provide curtains for privacy.

Curtains closed means it's time for me and only me.

I appreciate hotels that actually supply bath salts. Why don't all five star hotels do this?

Eye pampered! Bali was seriously flirting with me.

Postcard perfect!

Massive pool they got there! Funny thing is that I don't like and probably will never swim in public, the thing is I'm just not used to do the communal swim. I like my own private bath tub time or private pool.

Room complimentary, but to be honest I didn't have so much of these because I got a little stressed out and worried remembering how much I ate throughout the week and four days staying in The Stones equals to finishing a can of Yupi bears and one diet coke.

Yupi bear

Chupachups <3. I've always been a fan of their cola candy!

Time to jump in!

Decided to stroll around the pool and tour the hotel. The more I toured the hotel the more I feel like I was in W hotel, which is good because W Bali is one of my favorite hotels ever, it's nice to have that slight touch of W's ambiance in Legian.

The poolside bar

Fresh mocktails for me as complimentary from the hotel! Thank you so much!

This one was the most unique in presentation because they used the pineapple as the glass, the beverage was very refreshing with a little hint of sour.

This will be on the upcoming post! Publishing it very berry soon!

I was quite hungry but I wasn't in the mood and lazy enough to go out and eat somewhere, and not forgetting the fact that I was alone made me lost my will! So I decided to order the room service! As you can see, I think the presentation was very cute! They actually use the take out boxes (which until now I still find it fashionably and attractively delicious) and delivered by the room service staff dressed in delivery guy costume, I think more restaurants should apply this to theirs! I ordered their The Stones Nasi Goreng (IDR 99k) and it was very good and I did ask for the spicy one. The portion was quite big and came with chicken skewer, sunny side up, pickles, fried chicken, and crackers! Wasn't care about being sinful late night I bet my tummy was laughing very hard that night and pretty much ended the day watching cable TV and slept the night peacefully.

 I am going to do a separate post on the restaurant and food review because they deserve one freaking good post! Generally I super duper love the breakfast I think it's one of the best hotel breakfasts I've tried...ever! Just so you know, The Stones has three restaurants under the roof: The Stones Kitchen (photo below) where I had my breakfast and lunch among my stay, Big Fish bar & Grill and The Long Rice Table.

Teasers of the upcoming post!

I had bliss and fun staying in The Stones. I must say that generally they're good. The service was awesome and I love how the staffs were really helpful and attentive. You know, I love to test out the services to see how fast and attentive they were and The Stones' staff managed to pass my standard MWAHAHA, if they're bad I'm still going to point this out because this post is a bloody review. It took less than 30 minutes for my meals to be cooked and delivered to my room and when they came, still very warm, hence they're tasty and flavorful. When I asked for extra bath gel they delivered me two bottles in less than 10 minutes. Not only that, I also adore the smiley staffs around the hotel and always greeted me in a very proper and polite way (NOT POINTING MYSELF TO BE PRINCE LIKE OKAY). I don't think I have any downside to share about this hotel, the only thing I didn't like was the array of retail outlets that I have to walk through before reaching the hotel. Somehow it cheapen the look of the hotel and made it appear less-exclusive. Other than that, everything is completely fine!

Thank you for the beautiful 4 days stay! I couldn't wait to go back here, or at least to have scrumptious breakfast and lunch at The Stones Kitchen! Till we meet again!

Thanks for reading guys, if you have any questions please feel free to drop them in the comment box!

Ah, how I miss waking up lazy, stress-less and free from any pressure! Couldn't seem to find it in Jakarta :"(.

The Stones Hotel, Autograph Collection
Jalan Raya Pantai Kuta
Banjar Legian Kelod, Indonesia 80361
0361 - 300 5888
Pricing: $$$
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Map for The Stones Hotel - Autograph Collection

Kupu-Kupu Barong Villas and Tree Spa Ubud

I am in the mood to blog about my recent Birthday trip, this post is going to be photo-heavy just like the rest of my travel diaries!

This trip was actually very spontaneous. I felt so damn stressed out weeks before my birthday because of the works! I am currently working on a project which I couldn't tell much because I want to keep it as surprise, plus the blogging and ads to earn some money and sustain the living (sounds so sad huh) and I was at the point where I felt extremely tired and waking up feeling very unhappy every single day for around two weeks.

And I thought to myself I needed a bloody good break and I couldn't think of a better, close and convenient destination than Bali and for some reasons it had to be in Ubud! It had to be! I wasn't in the mood to meet a lot of people and socialized, I wanted something that's a little more reserved, mild but unbelievably relaxing and refreshing.

When Hans spent on a good holiday, Hans spent it well! I want to create my own version of eat, pray, love.

I looked online for flights and hotels and eventually booked myself Garuda Indonesia flight back and forth (it wasn't crazy expensive and I have always been a huge fan of  GA!), I spent around IDR 1,5 mil. for the tickets. When I was browsing through the internet, I found this hotel which surprisingly I never heard of before and I should feel ashamed of myself for that - initially wanted Hanging Garden but no occupancy :( - I proceed to book myself a luxurious and gorgeous Ayung River Club villa in Kupu-Kupu Barong, those pictures on their website got me hooked badly and yes I expected the view to be as grand as how I imagined it looking like. I stayed for two nights and spent around IDR 12 mil. (excluding the meals I had in the restaurant).

I took the afternoon flight because I still had works to do in the morning FML and I wanted this trip to be completely work-free (thank Goodness it was). I arrived in Bali around 5 PM, it took another 2,5 hours (after traffic jam) taxi ride from the airport to the hotel. I spent around IDR 300k for the taxi fee, this so you can predict the budget estimation if you want to have a trip in Ubud.

By the time I arrived, it was quite late and Ubud was raining hence I couldn't really see anything, but it felt a so serene and calming already along with (for me) the awesome weather. The staffs were really attentive and incredibly polite starting from the very beginning to the end of my trip. They greeted me with necklace made from Jepun flowers, a welcome drink: it was a lovely, refreshing fruit punch and warm towel to clean myself after the long haul journey. The check-in was fast and convenient, just common check-in procedure where you have to sign stuff and do a credit card deposit. Five minutes later, the 24-hour buggy came to take me to my villa. I couldn't wait to proceed and actually look at the villa myself.

Must admit, it was pretty scary for me riding the buggy because it was raining and the road felt like this sloppy hill, all because I couldn't see any fucking thing and I started imagining things, just paranoid that the buggy would lose its brake and me falling down but thankfully I arrived safe and sound to my villa, and again, since it's quite dark, I couldn't really see anything except a little private pool and a gazebo, but once I stepped in the room, I was quite stolen!

THE VILLA WAS QUITE SPACIOUS!

To be honest, I expected the villa - with the amount of money that I paid for - to be a little bigger, but since I was all by myself, this was reasonably good enough for me.

It's just that one thing that I don't like from this villa... it's a little romantic for a loner like me :( - and the reason seemed so egoistical - Since the Ayung River Club was actually recommended for honeymooners, the setting of the room was so open and romantic, especially for lovers and sex-enthusiasts. You're going to find the "WELCOME" word made from leaves and flowers, a medium-sized bathtub with petals in it and a bathroom with glass door. It was just... open! I don't suggest this place if you're "just friends" with that someone you're staying with because the only coverage was this see-through curtains and trust me, it wasn't enough LOL! Pardon my jokes but truth be told, it was serene and beautiful, just how I wanted it.

I quite adore the facilities that they have in store, for the next two days I had a private pool for me, a private villa with large LED TV, coffee maker (even though I never touched it), a mini bar, L'occitane bath amenities, a bathtub, and complimentary of fresh fruit delivered to my room during my stay, breakfast for two, free calls and some other basics, but since I upgraded to the Ayung River Club Villa, they also gave me free honeymoon cake (ugh) and champagne, but I rejected those two because I couldn't afford having all just for me, better save them for some others I guess.

I also love one thing about the service: I got my own private butler for 24 hours and he'll take care of me for the next three days of my stay! Call me the lost prince in Ubud (eww).

I was extremely starving but too lazy to have a dinner at the restaurant so I just dial the in-room service. I was craving for Aglio Olio and decided to order it (but with extra mushroom as personal request). It was quite fast to be honest just 20 minutes FTW estimating the cooking and the delivery time to my room, and oh, my villa was located at the lower part of the whole resort and it took around 5 minutes to reach my villa using the buggy.

Vegetarian Aglio Olio

IDR 115k

I didn't expect the portion to be this big, it's more like for two people portion, but it's sometimes better to be given more than less ain't it? This dish was actually pretty good and tasted a little stir-fried Asian cuisine, just different than what I usually had, but I took this as unique. The mushrooms were indeed generously given (appreciate that), tender and juicy. It was a pretty satisfying portion.

Woke up quite late the next day but when I woke up all I wanted to do was to put on my robe and couldn't wait to see the view...

IT WAS BEAUTIFUL!

The size of the private pool was proper enough for me, I like the depth!

Haven't seen this much green for a long time, grateful for this chance, for realizing that I spent a good fortune for personal leisure and to be able to bond with the nature. I was happy :").

I honestly wanted to walk on Ubud's famous rice fields but didn't get the chance to actually go out of the hotel because I was too "PW" with the beauty that the resort offered.

Flare obsession - checked!

All those negative thoughts about how scary the resort was faded to disappear. I was silly enough to actually think like that. It's true that nothing could really beat the beauty of the nature.

This wasn't an important show but for some reasons wanted to do the shot for my current obsession: BLEU DE CHANEL! No, actually have been using this for quite some time but just bought a new one. The green was a good set for photoshoot.

They're also using L'occitane bath products in Verbena! The scent was very lemon-ish with a touch of lemongrass, spicy, zesty, it was just very-very traditional Bali if you can imagine that. They also sold five L'occitance bath products, beautifully set in a custom wood box for IDR 250k.

I was too lazy to go up and have a breakfast and I took advantage of the service and dial my butler to bring my breakfast to my villa. Didn't I sound like a bitchy demanding prince? That's the part of the service OK!

I must say that the staff here were all well-trained, my butler came with another butler and she put all the food on her head with a round plaited mats, beautifully aesthetic acrobatic... and this is what I had for breakfast! I asked for continental breakfast.

The egg was cooked and seasoned perfectly, just loving the soft texture. The chicken sausage was ZOMG the smoothest, juiciest, fluffiest muthafuckin sausage I've ever had! I could remember vividly how juicy and chewy it was when you bite it the juice exploded in your mouth. The hash-brown and sauteed mushroom were also good!

The pastries weren't actually the best in texture but they did tasted pretty good, a little salty-buttery but that's a good point.

Lazing around after breakfast watching television before strolling down and browsing the whole resort (of course for photo purposes too!). The area's surrounded with trees and flowers, I was actually quite happy to see so many greens on this trip.

I noticed there was a wedding ceremony happening and it was just the perfect petite romantic spot :).

The restaurant venue, it was not extra spacious but so serene and comfortable. The key to perfect Ubud getaway: serene.

They call this "sesajen", not the statue, but the flowers and spices believed as the sign of praise to the Gods and if you ever saw this on the street, DO NOT STEP ON IT! I mean it.

The guests at Kupu-Kupu Barong were complimented with the privilege of daily Afternoon Tea from 3-5 PM, it wasn't the glam Afternoon Tea you probably had in mind, just a simple traditional tea time while bonding with the nature along with the view and the sound of the river, heartwarming I must say.

The tea time consist of traditional cakes, loving the one in the middle: cream puff like pastry but wasn't exactly it. It was quite good.

I had nothing to do and it was still around 4 PM and I got a very stupid story to tell you guys!!! I was fuming mad at myself. So I was actually planning a trip to Alila Ubud and for some reasons (that I didn't know) I was super confident with my own thought and didn't do any research. I thought the Alila Ubud was the one I was expecting. The one with the gorgeous ocean view and gazebos perfect to take pictures at (I believe you have seen this one that I meant on your friends' Instagram) so without any doubt, I booked the hotel taxi to take me to Alila Ubud...

When I arrived, I actually had a bad feeling already because everything was so green, almost rice-fields everywhere I looked at and the entrance to the hotel was actually quite long and I didn't see any ocean at all, when I proceed to the concierge and ask her (at that time), where I could sit and enjoy the sunset, she looked confused and told me "We have no ocean view and sunset". I swear I felt like a goddamn thunderstorm just hit on me and I wasn't alive for like 5 effin seconds... still curious, I then walk around to the pool and yes, it wasn't the one that I was thinking about *blood tears - roll my eyes they're at the back of my head*. THAT ONE SHOULD BE ALILA ULUWATU AT DESA PECATU! I then called the taxi to pick me up and drove me back to the hotel. It was a freaking IDR 160k not worth spending. All because I was so stupid.

Logically speaking, Ubud was located on the top part of Bali, not exactly Puncak (in comparison) but halfway to Puncak and it's on the way to the mountainous part already. I still can't believe I forgot that logic.

Lesson to learn: DO OBSERVE! You might not be as smart as you think you are *talking to the mirror pointing to myself*.

BUT... while waiting, I managed to capture some beautiful shots! *defensive*. To be completely fair, Alila Ubud wasn't bad at all, it's still very relaxing, calm and serene. I love the fact that not too many people in Ubud hotels on the regular basis, and most of the resorts were actually villas so it felt a little more private. 

A photo of the buggy leaving, for some reasons this photo felt dramatic post the silly Alila-gate!

This was my room door, not exactly mine because mine was villa #17 but this door looked better.

It was around 5.30, yes no sunset but I was in for a quick dawn deep! The water was quite cold and I asked my kind butler to help me with this photo. He was actually quite good in photo taking :).

After this I took a bath and had a dinner at the hotel's restaurant to tried some of their menus I've been super curious at by the time, but I decided to make a separate post about it so you better wait :).

Around 12 AM when I was watching the television, it came as a big surprise that the kind staff from Kupu-Kupu Barong actually gave a birthday cake!!! This was the cherry on top on the service for me, and yes it's because they managed to deliver a big big smile to the birthday guy!

THANK YOU SO MUCH I WAS SUPER TOUCHED...AND HELLO 23 :").

I wasn't sure why but I usually have bad bad bad insomnia and trouble sleeping, but whenever I travel, I always managed to sleep earlier and have a terrific one, I guess this should be a perfect excuse for me to throw away my lumpy bed. The next day I woke up quite early, not because I was diligent but because I wanted to pee but once I went back from the toilet, I noticed the light felt very gentle carefully sneaking in from the window. I grabbed my camera and took pics...then proceed to go back to sleep.

This was taken around 9 AM, gotta have a quick breakfast and unpack because it's the third day already and I gotta left the hotel.

Three days and two nights after, the Jepun flowers remained quite fresh and 'alive'.

It was just a perfect day as a 23, and I got another surprise coming right up! Not exactly from the hotel but more like "at the hotel". When I was taking pictures of the river and point my lens to different direction. I saw something that a 23 year old guy like me should do shouldn't see. For the first time ever, I actually saw real humans making love at the fucking pool with my own goddamn eyes, I literally froze feeling in between drowning in laughters and deep sin because that's something private that I shouldn't see but HEY THAT'S NOT MY FAULT! Who asked you to make love at the pool, I was your risk darling, but I swore I didn't look at them for a long time, if I was evil enough I would have snap a picture of them and uploaded it to my social media but I didn't, so win win.

Then I thought to my self, 23 is not bad and I couldn't get a sweeter opening to amazing blessings I would get years to come! How luckier can I be? MWAHAHAHA! Okay nuff with the X-rated story and I believe that the peeps from Kupu-Kupu Barong wouldn't dare sharing this post on their site LOL!!!

It was a bright day and I wanted the seats with the best view at their very own La View restaurant. It's one of the top 50 restaurants with best view. Woohoo!

So I learned that they didn't have buffet for breakfast, so it's actually an ala-carte and you could choose between intercontinental or local breakfast, but I asked for both :p. The fried rice was really good and I didn't know why they gave me two sunny side ups, but I took it as their generousity. The blueberry yogurt was also good, and the crepe was quite decent.

After I finished packing and stuff, proceed back to the concierge and proceed the check out. It was fast and smooth, again. My next destination was to Seminyak as I was going to stay for one night in W Bali (one of my most favorite hotels ever) and while waiting for my taxi, a group of lovely talented artists (musician and dancers) came and I asked them for pictures... which mostly happened to be candid LOL.

Took a pic of the adorable butler, thank you for being so helpful among my stay. You're going to be remembered.

I HAD JUST THE PERFECT STAY IN KUPU-KUPU BARONG

That, if I have to put the experience into a nutshell.

I was completely satisfied with everything that I paid for, they were all worth it. The villa, the service, the food but most importantly, I felt really happy and that's something more priceless.

My trip might not be the most affordable but I would rather pay for luxury and then get comfort rather than staying somewhere I didn't want to at the first place, I signed up for this so there I was...and don't take this as arrogance. I felt so bad that I didn't try their spa, but from what I noticed, their spa started from IDR 700k-IDR 3,5 mil (for couples and three hours service).

As I grow older, birthdays are not always about surprises and greetings, I found birthdays are a pacing line for me, for me to realize that life goes on and time doesn't stop and you better start chasing your dreams and woke hard for what you want as well as having fun and appreciate life. I still can't believe I am now 23, it was just a blink of an eye that I was a 7 year old dreaming of becoming 20 something :").

But most of all, thank you God for this life. For the family that I respect and love so much, for the friends, for the past, 2014 and (hopefully) brighter and brighter future. Let's cheers to that and echo... AMEN!

Kupu-Kupu Barong Villas and Mango Tree Spa by L'occitane

Jl. Raya Kedewatan II, Kedewatan P.O. BOX 7

Ubud, Bali 80571

Indonesia
0361 - 975 478
reservation@kupubarong.com

WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | TWITTER | INSTAGRAM

FIND ME HERE

FACEBOOK || TWITTER || INSTAGRAM || GOOGLE+

email: eatandtreatsindo@gmail.com

Map for Kupu-Kupu Barong