In Reply to: Hotel Sanur Beach vs Gazebo Cottages posted by ruthrat on Saturday, 10. December 2005 at 06:57 Bali Time:
Sanur Beach Hotel: located at southern end of Sanur. Pros: Excellent location close to a lot of seaside cafes, such as Donald's, and a short walk to Anita's, Cafe Kesuma, Mama Putus etc. Large grounds, massive swimming pools. Loungers and umbrellas on the beach and around the pools. Other great restaurants on the road in front the hotel as well as Kodak money changers, photo developing, lots of internet providers, laundry services, tailors, beads, souvenirs, fake bags shops etc. Hardy's Grosir a short taxi/bemo ride away. Good security at entrance to hotel. Cons: if you like an intimate atmosphere, this is not the hotel for you.
Gazebo Cottages: located in the centre of Sanur, also close to restaurants, beach cafes, and all the amenities you might need while on holiday. We stayed there four years ago and since then they have renovated some of the superior/de luxe rooms. At the time we did not like the room we were allocated, but ended up in quite a nice room (although a bit old and dark) in front of the pool.
Pros: nice beach area in front of hotel with chairs, umbrellas. Sunken bar on beach front. Small kiddies pool, one pool behind seaside restaurant, one smaller pool near the road. Nice tea/coffee/bar facing the road. A much smaller, more intimate atmosphere. Cons: the actual rooms might not be to your liking. Not many lounge chairs around pool and on the beach. However, this might be different at the moment.
Which one you'll like best very much depends on whether you want to be in the centre of Sanur or further south. Personally, having previously stayed at the Gazebo, we prefer the area around the Sanur Beach Hotel. In October we stayed at the Puri Santrian, next to the SBH, and will be returning to this area. As it was quite hot, we had all our meals at the beach-side cafes, enjoying the nice sea breezes. Hope this assists you in making your choice.