Alila Seminyak vs W Bali: Which One Should You Book?

Two beachfront five-stars, ten minutes of sand apart, both with Potato Head for a neighbour, both charging proper money, and almost nothing else in common. I've stayed at both: Alila Seminyak came out at 9/10, W Bali Seminyak at 7/10.

The W is the fun, energetic one: a DJ in the lobby, a dancefloor built under the beach, and a pool running like a beach club by eleven in the morning. Alila is the tranquil escape from Seminyak without leaving Seminyak. Infinity pools, calm tones, wood and brass in place of pop art, and service good enough to be the reason you rebook.

So. The W is the better night out. Alila is the better hotel. The distance between those two sentences is about five hours of sleep a night.

Location and the beach

Both score an 8, and this is the one category where they nearly meet. Alila sits more centrally, Potato Head one side and Ku De Ta the other, with more of Seminyak on foot. W is up at the Petitenget end, where Seminyak Square is a walk that starts at five minutes and finishes nearer twenty. You'll do it once. Both have a noise problem, well it's Seminyak.

The beach is a draw, because it's the same beach. Rough surf, real rips, grey sand, monsoon plastic from November to March. If swimming in the sea is the plan, you want Andaz Sanur.

The rooms

Alila gives you less floor and more care: real woodwork, brass against leather-clad walls, a soaking tub in a nest of greenery. Nothing shouts and everything works.

The W's argument is square metres, and it's a strong one, 64 of them in the cheapest room. Then you touch things. The bathrooms are fifteen years old and they know it, the TV isn't smart, coffee means a plunger, and there's no socket within reach of the bed. Space you'll notice on day one, wear you'll notice by day three. 9 versus 7, and it isn't close.

Dining

Everyone assumes the loud hotel is the one that can cook. Wrong way round. Seasalt at Alila is the best resort food in Bali as far as I'm concerned, and the Beachbar, which would headline anywhere else on this coast, is the warm-up.

The W owns the morning and loses the evening. Breakfast at Starfish Bloo is the widest spread I've seen at a Bali resort, and FIRE at night is priced for people with nowhere else to go. Cocktails go back to the W without an argument: WOOBAR has a glass floor you look down through into a dancefloor built under the beach. Structurally silly and I love it.

Kids

The two look similar from the road and are opposites here. Alila has a real kids club, supervised, 8am to 8pm, free to walk into, with about half the activities charged at 80,000 rupiah a child.

The W has nothing. Not a room with crayons. Children are barred from WOOBAR after 4pm, and somebody at the front desk told me, quite cheerfully, that this is a hotel for "young people who love party". I believe her.

Service

The widest gap on the card. Raise a problem at Alila's desk and it's fixed in minutes. The W's warmth is genuine but consistency is a lottery.

Choose Alila Seminyak if

• You want to sleep, and still walk to Potato Head when you feel like it.
• The finish matters. It's newer and better kept by a distance.
• Dinner is a priority.
• You're bringing children. Alila has the club, the W has an explanation.
• You're honeymooning, or you've had enough of phone tripods at breakfast.
• You'd rather the hotel were the backdrop than the entertainment.

Full write-up, including which rooms to avoid, in the Alila Seminyak review.

Choose W Bali Seminyak if

• You intend to be out past midnight and the beach club is the holiday.
• You want the most floor space per dollar in Seminyak.
• You sleep through anything, or travel with earplugs and no shame.
• You want a bar until one and a spa at three in the morning.
• You're buying on a deal rather than at peak.

Full write-up, including which room to book, in the W Bali Seminyak review.

My recommendation, by trip

Honeymoon: Alila, and it isn't close. The W will play music at your partner at six in the morning.

Group trip built around going out: W. The thing that costs it two points stops mattering if you're not asleep at 1am anyway.

Children under 12: Alila. A real club, and quiet at the hours children sleep. For a bigger programme, and if you can accept Nusa Dua, Grand Hyatt Bali.

Long days on the property: Alila if you want the day to be yours, W if you want the hotel to run it.