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Health and wellness
We can’t get this far into the review without mentioning the Apurva Kempinski’s biggest asset – not the size of the lobby. This is, of course, the series of pools. The largest, a 60m adult pool, a stone’s throw from the private beach, has allure and Instagram factor that many visitors crave from Bali. It is also a perfect vantage point to admire the size of the property, and the ideal location to spend a morning, afternoon (or entire) relaxing. Walk towards the steps up to the lobby (don’t worry there are lifts), there is another adult pool, which is used for the aqua-classes, and a separate children’s pool.
The Spa, located one floor below the main lobby, is much like the rest of the hotel i.e. is expansive. This does not mean sparse, rather space for privacy. The London-priced treatments are popular with guests, so we recommend having a look through the menu on your day of arrival (or ahead if possible) to ensure that a treatment can be booked in. We tried a couples’ 60 minute massage followed by body scrub. The masseuses checked the temperature of the room, music, and pressure and kept treatments for us both in sync. These Balinese women were very professional and made sure our comfort remained their focus for the entirety of our treatments. A refreshing ginger tea in a calming lounge with sea breeze afterwards overlooking the ocean left us entirely relaxed to the point of oblivious to anything beyond our gaze. ‘Happy hour’ discounts are often available on spa treatments, details of which will be on the resort daily wellness programme.
Our only minor point of note about the spa is that the reception desk has only two guest chairs and is very un-air-conditioned. Combined with being very popular, guests can, like us, end up queuing stood up sweaty for some time simply to say “hi, i’m here for my treatment”, surely there must be a better way to greet guests straight away.
Besides the pool, the Apurva Kempinski boasts an impressive fitness centre, with running and cardio machines overlooking the resort and ocean, and enough machines and freestanding weights to give a well-equipped Virgin Active gym a run for its money. Moreover, this – a hotel gym, has a room set up for aerial yoga. Sufficed to say, we got in several sweaty workouts done, more than enough to get us pumped for the day.
Vada rating for health and wellness 9.5 out of 10
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