Have you ever stayed at a hotel that was so average that it’s hard to say anything good or anything bad about it? The type of place that has good things that are canceled out by the bad things, the type of place that leaves you puzzled when trying to tell people about your stay?
Recently, Marley and I were in Bali for a father-daughter holiday for a few days, and we stayed at the Melasti Resort in Legian, Bali.
Address: Jl. Padma Utara No.10, Pantai, Legian, Bali 80361, Indonesia.
The Melasti is a sprawling old-world resort that occupies a whole block between JI Pantai Legian, the street that runs along the legian beach, and JI Padma at the back of it. This is a Bali resort in need of some TLC, different areas of the resort were built at different times, some looking newer, some looking older.
Most people pick the Melasti for their Bali holiday accommodation for its location, with the beach out front, shops and restaurants behind it. And yes, the location is really, really good for anyone staying in Legian.
What was the room like at the Melasti in Legian?
Let’s talk about the rooms. We stayed in a superior twin room. The room was big enough to have 2 beds and a seating area with a coffee table. The beds were as expected in Bali, on the firm side.
The air conditioner worked really well to keep the room cool and the TV had some good channels including a movie channel, sound right?
Ok, now let’s get to the negative side of things, the bathroom. The bathroom had a shower bath, you know, where you have to step into the bath to have a shower.
Well, that was okay, except there was no shower curtain which meant the water went all over the bathroom making it extremely hard to use the toilet especially if you needed to sit down to do your business.
We had to lay towels out everywhere around the toilet so our pants wouldn’t get wet on the floor. I am sitting down the beach having a coffee and the phone rings, its Marley asking what happened to the roof in the bathroom.
During the night part of the roof cornice in the bathroom fell down, yes part of the roof fell into that bath and all over the floor.Just don’t look up as you will see the mold growing on the roof! Maybe the cornice falling down helped get rid of some of the mold.
What was the pool like at the Melasti Resort?
There are 3 swimming pools at the Melasti to start off with, i only used the one near our room, which for orientation is the one closest to the front of the resort with a big statue in the middle.
The pool was deep in places up to 10 foot deep, there was a shallow area for kids and a swim up bar. The water was quite refreshing as some pools in Bali you find the water is warm like a lukewarm bath.
The pool is surrounded by slate, the slate is in a state of disrepair. When you get out of the pool in places, it’s like walking on stones as the crumbling slate sticks to your feet which can be quite uncomfortable. Not a big thing but just a general sign of disrepair I guess and not something that you would expect.
The breakfast at the Melasti Legian Resort
Big, big breakfast area at the Melasti right at the front of the resort. It doesn’t overlook the beach as there is a wall along the beach. The breakfast area is open air, so expect it to be hot and humid, especially in the morning when Bali is at its most humid.
Most open-air breakfasts in Bali have some sort of fans to keep you cool, but the ones at the Melasti were either not turned on or very few and far between so that they did not make any difference.
On both mornings I went to breakfast, I sweated through the experience. On the second morning after it had been raining, the tile floors became very slippery to the point where i nearly slipped over.
The range of food was okay, you will certainly find something to eat. What I did find was that most food in the warmers seemed to have been there for while was not really hot at all.
I tried breakfast at different times during our stay and it was the same both mornings, both times the food was not hot.
It is not all doom and gloom at the Melasti. You can get a room at the Melasti starting around $50 Australian a night, which is great value for its location. As i mentioned earlier you can access Legian beach, day spas, shopping and enjoy the sunset each night just out the front.
The grounds are nice and green, even lush i would say. The staff were really nice and friendly, very helpful and always asking if you needed anything.
Would we stay at the Melasti again? Yes, if it was only for a few days. If you don’t go in with high expectations you will be fine. Go in with a realistic outlook that this place is old and cheap and most times you get what you pay for when staying in Bali. For my teenager in Bali it was an ideal location, shopping, food and beaches, all things teens love.
If you’re the type of traveler that can overlook the small things then the Melasti will provide you with a good location and a reasonably comfortable stay. Just do not look too hard for its shortcomings as you will find them!
Thank you for reading!
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