In Reply to: padma hotel posted by nusaduadanny on Monday, 31. July 2006 at 14:17 Bali Time:
Hi there, We were there for 2 weeks in Sept/Oct last year, We were really pleased with our accommodation. We were in the Deluxe Garden Chalet room 505. We had our own courtyard right near the Taman Bar and we'd sit there of an evening and listen to the jazz band. The breakfast is the best we've ever had. We also had the club benefits and sometimes we'd sit in the Italian restaurant above the club rooms and have our breakfast overlooking the beach - sublime. The pool is massive, with a great swim up bar - very expensive though. The Padma was pretty full when we were there with a lot of Japanese, German and Dutch people. The seats around the pool were like gold and people would 'save' seats - but not really a huge problem. If you book 7 or 14 nights you get a voucher for a buffet for 2 people - we went to the Balinese buffet (special for their equivalent to Christmas) and also to the Japanese restaurant - both meals were amazing. We didn't eat lunch each day as we were still full from breakfast. We'd go into club rooms during the day for cold drinks, or tea/coffee and biscuits. WE'd have afternoon tea in the club rooms between 3 - 5 and then cocktails with yummy snacks from 5 - 7pm. After that we'd go out to dinner later! It was great to use the internet in the club rooms also. We were there when the bombing occurred last year and the Padma were great, passing on message from concerned family and friends and putting printed updates in our room each day. The security was increased, but I laughed as it was so easy to get into the hotel through the laundry entrance unchecked! What we learned last year was that security is only a state of mind! We continued our holiday regardless and whilst a little scared, still had a wonderful time. We ate at Drops quite a bit, just down the road and also at a Moroccan place called Khaima which was fantastic. We're going back to the Padma next year in Feb and June and have requested the same room. Also, a little tip if you're budget conscious - Loji Supermarket is in the Street behind the Padma, we'd stock up on beer, soft drinks and snacks each day and would get our laundry done at Pelangi Laundry just a little further up from Loji. Hope that helps.