There are luxury hotels, and then there are hotels that make you stop in your tracks the moment you arrive. The Apurva Kempinski Bali is firmly in the second category. Travelling here with two young toddlers, I expected beautiful architecture, impressive pools and the kind of service you’d hope for at a five-star resort. What I didn’t expect was how enjoyable the experience would be with little ones in tow:
Why Book Apurva Kempinski With Us?
We’ve booked families at Apurva Kempinski, and one of the best parts of booking through us is that our clients receive additional benefits that aren’t available through a typical booking website. It’s still a direct booking with the hotel, just with extra perks arranged through our advisor partnership.
✨ Complimentary room upgrade on arrival, subject to availability
🥐 Daily buffet breakfast for up to two guests per bedroom
🍽️ US$100 food and beverage credit to enjoy during your stay
⏰ Early check-in and late check-out, subject to availability
We can also offer additional promotions for eligible stays, including guaranteed room upgrades and stay-four-pay-three offers. These depend on the dates, room category and applicable offer, so we’ll help you work out which benefits make the most sense for your trip.
Why Nusa Dua Is One of Bali’s Best Areas for Families
One of the biggest decisions when planning a Bali holiday is where to stay. With two toddlers, I don’t necessarily want to spend half our holiday navigating traffic or searching for a beach where the children can actually play. This is where Nusa Dua really shines. It’s around 30 minutes from the airport, depending on traffic, and is known for its concentration of high-end resorts, manicured grounds and more relaxed atmosphere compared with some of Bali’s busier tourist areas.
The beaches here are generally more accessible for families, and the protected stretches of coastline at the resort make beach days much more manageable with young children. You still get the tropical scenery Bali is famous for, but with a little more breathing room. For families who want a beautiful resort holiday without constantly having to venture out, Nusa Dua is an excellent place to start.
What Makes Apurva Kempinski So Special?
The architecture alone is worth talking about. Arriving at the lobby on the 15th floor, you’re greeted by sweeping views over the resort grounds and the ocean beyond. The scale is almost theatrical, with grand staircases, intricate Indonesian-inspired design and layers of tropical landscaping cascading towards the sea. It feels undeniably luxurious, but there’s also something wonderfully immersive about the way the property incorporates local culture into its design.
The restaurants are another highlight, particularly Koral, the resort’s spectacular underwater-themed fine-dining restaurant. Our toddlers were absolutely ecstatic to sit beside the aquarium and watch manta rays, sharks and schools of fish glide past while we ate. The feeding sessions were a huge hit, giving the little ones something exciting to look forward to throughout the meal. And here’s the best part: the food was genuinely excellent. Sometimes a restaurant has a spectacular setting but the food doesn’t quite live up to the hype. Koral impressed us on both fronts, making it an experience the whole family could enjoy.
Family-Friendly Features That Make a Difference
The private beach was one of our favourite places to spend time. The resort has a protected bay where the water is generally much calmer than on more exposed stretches of coastline, making it more inviting for families who want to enjoy the sea together. As always, conditions can change with the tides and weather, but during our stay it was a lovely place for the children to splash and play.
Then there are the pools. There are so many of them, with shallow areas for toddlers, plenty of space to spread out, and a dedicated children’s pool with multiple water slides that kept ours thoroughly entertained. We also never struggled to find an available lounge chair or cabana, which is a small luxury in itself when you’re trying to keep an eye on two energetic children while enjoying a moment of downtime.
The children’s amenities were equally thoughtful, from bottle sterilisers and children’s bathrobes to portable potties. Our beachfront suite was spacious to accommodate the inevitable collection of strollers, bags, toys and everything else that comes with travelling with little ones. We never felt cramped, and everyone had enough space to retreat for a little quiet time. Even at the restaurants, not once did we feel uncomfortable when our toddlers became overly excited, which made dining out feel much more relaxed.
The kids club is another welcome bonus, with an outdoor playground that gives little ones room to run around and burn off some energy. Children aged four and above can be dropped off at the kids club, which means parents can sneak away for something that feels almost rebellious on a family holiday: a little time to themselves. We took advantage of the opportunity to enjoy the spa, and it was genuinely excellent in our own experience.
One of the biggest perks for us, though, was the sheer variety of restaurants onsite. As a mum of two toddlers, there are evenings when I simply want an easy dinner without having to organize transport, venture off-property or watch the clock because bedtime is looming. Hotel restaurants can sometimes feel like the uninspiring fallback option, but that wasn’t the case at Apurva. Beyond the previously mentioned Koral, there are several other excellent choices, including a hotpot and dim sum restaurant and a beachfront seafood restaurant. We thoroughly enjoyed all of them. Being able to enjoy genuinely good food just steps from our room, without turning dinner into a whole expedition, made family life on holiday feel that much more relaxed.
One Thing to Know Before You Book
Apurva Kempinski is a massive resort built along a cliffside, and that spectacular layout comes with a practical consideration: getting around can involve quite a bit of walking and sometimes multiple lifts between different areas. It’s beautiful, but you won’t necessarily be popping from your room to the beach in two minutes.
I’d strongly recommend bringing a lightweight travel stroller, especially if you’re travelling with babies or toddlers. Buggy transport is available, but it’s still worth being prepared to walk between facilities. If mobility, nap schedules or the distance between your room and the pool are important considerations, let us know when booking. We’ll help you choose a room category and location that makes the stay easier for your family.
Is Apurva Kempinski Worth It?
Honestly, I think Apurva Kempinski offers excellent value for the level of luxury you receive. While it’s certainly an upscale property, its rates can be surprisingly reasonable relative to the scale of the resort, the facilities, the dining and the overall experience. You’re getting much more than a beautiful room: there are multiple pools, a stunning beach, memorable restaurants and enough on-site activities to keep the entire family happy for several days.
For families travelling with babies and young children, I’d absolutely recommend it. It’s grand and luxurious without making you feel as though children don’t belong, and that balance is harder to find than you’d think. If Bali is on your list, we’d love to help you plan a stay at Apurva Kempinski with the right room category, extra perks and a little less of the guesswork. After all, a family holiday should be about making memories together—not worrying about whether your children are welcome.
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