📍 Resort Information & Location
👋 My Arrival
When I arrived at Semaya Beach Resort, the location near Crystal Bay looked promising. But problems started immediately.
No Drinking Water Provided
After settling in, I looked for complimentary water bottles - standard in most hotels. There were none. I called the front desk to request some. They sent up two sealed bottles with a bill for 160,000 Indonesian Rupees (approximately $10 USD).
When I complained about both the lack of complimentary water and the outrageous charge, management admitted they "should have" provided water in the room. But here's where it gets worse - they took away the sealed bottles I had ordered and replaced them with refillable containers.
In Indonesia, a 5-star resort should not be providing water in refillable, unsealed containers. Are the containers clean? Is the water properly filtered? Are the people handling it following proper hygiene protocols? All of these worries would be completely avoidable if they just provided complimentary sealed water in the first place, like every other 5-star resort does.
Not the best start to a supposedly 5-star experience.
🍽️ Restaurant - The Raw Chicken Incident
The Night It Happened
My date and I ordered rare beef for dinner. What arrived at our table looked wrong from the start, but we only realized the full horror after taking a bite. The texture and flavor were completely unlike any beef we'd ever tasted.
When we complained, Restaurant Manager Andika Putra came to our table. Despite both of us arguing that this was clearly not steak, he insisted multiple times that it was beef. He claimed it was just "a bad batch" - as if that somehow made serving raw mystery meat acceptable.
Restaurant Manager Andika Putra
What Happened Next
One of us got severe stomach cramps that same evening. The other suffered serious gastrointestinal illness 48 hours later.
Seeking External Verification
Doubting my own senses, I reached out to my friend who's a professional chef. Their response told me it definitely was not steak.
I posted the photo on a social media site that specializes in steak. Within hours, I received dozens of messages all confirming the same thing - this wasn't beef. The ultimate proof? I actually got BANNED from the forum because I posted a picture of non-steak, and they only allow steak photos!
Management Response Timeline
Operations Manager Sindra Sindrawan
The Kitchen Test
We went to the kitchen where management cooked up what they claimed was the same meat. This time, it looked and tasted exactly like beef - proper beef. Yet they still insisted this was identical to what they'd served me two days earlier.
Real beef (Day 3)
What I was served (Day 1)
AI Analysis Proves the Truth
Standing there in the kitchen, I opened ChatGPT and took a photo of the freshly cooked meat. The AI immediately confirmed it was definitely beef.
I then uploaded the photo of my original meal from two days prior. ChatGPT initially thought it was Ahi Tuna. When I clarified it was meat, not fish, the AI concluded it couldn't be beef due to the incorrect color and texture. It added that chicken or pork would NEVER be served raw by a reputable resort.
Medical Consequences & Resort's Refusal
I told them firmly: "I will not be gaslighted into thinking I ate steak. I've been eating steak for 40 years."
The meat was either chicken or pork, each carrying different health risks when consumed raw. Since I didn't know which it was, I had to visit a doctor for stool testing to check for parasites. The worst part? The resort refused to pay for the medical visit, even though they were the ones who served me raw meat.
Reporting to Authorities
After this dangerous food safety violation and the resort's complete refusal to take responsibility, I took the necessary step of informing the local health ministry about the incident. I also notified the US Embassy in Jakarta to ensure other travelers would be warned about the serious health risks at this resort.
🚿 Bathroom Conditions
The bathroom problems started the moment I turned on the faucet. Yellow water came pouring out - not slightly discolored, but distinctly yellow.
The shower was equally disappointing. The "hot" water was warm at best and ran out completely after about 15 minutes. I prefer long, relaxing showers on vacation - that was impossible here.
The Open-Air Nightmare
The toilet had an open-air design with zero sound privacy. This wouldn't normally be a huge issue, but when you're suffering from severe stomach problems after eating raw chicken, it becomes a nightmare. My neighbors could hear every embarrassing sound, and I could hear them conversing from my bathroom.
To make matters worse, they placed smoking and non-smoking rooms directly next to each other. Thanks to the open-air design, cigarette smoke constantly wafted into our non-smoking room.
🧹 Housekeeping Standards
The housekeeping staff, while friendly, had one major hygiene issue - they cleaned the rooms while wearing their outdoor shoes.
Why would staff wear shoes inside while cleaning? These are the same shoes they wear outside, walking on streets and sidewalks. They then track all that dirt and contamination into our room while "cleaning" it. Basic hygiene standards completely ignored.
🚴 Bicycle Rental Safety Hazards
The resort offered bicycle rentals, but the bikes were death traps. They were old with flat tires and broken kickstands that caused them to fall over constantly.
The real danger came from the brakes - they squealed loudly and barely worked. No lights or helmets were provided, which is especially dangerous since the local roads have no lighting at night.
See for yourself:
💪 Fitness Facilities
The "gym" was laughable. It consisted of a tiny, unstable single-machine with extremely low weight capacity and a few plastic "dumbbells" that felt like toys. Completely unsuitable for any real fitness routine.
✋ Final Insult: The Broken Comb
Just before checking out, I used a wooden comb provided by the resort. It broke in half.
Having spent time in Thailand, I knew this was a terrible omen. In Thai culture, a broken comb during use is a serious bad omen - a warning of misfortune. The superstition says it must be thrown away immediately or the bad luck will manifest.
This perfectly encapsulated the entire stay - even the resort's combs were cursed.
The resort couldn't even provide functioning combs or safe bicycles, let alone safe food, clean water, or adequate gym equipment.
Overall Rating
ABSOLUTELY NOT RECOMMENDED
By the end, I couldn't wait to leave this 1-star joke of a resort.
The Real Problem: Management
The only saving grace is that the service staff were kind. This is a 1-star resort as a direct result of 1-star management.
Management Failures:
• Restaurant Manager Andika Putra - Lied directly to guests about raw chicken
• Operations Manager Sindra Sindrawan - Initially honest, then backtracked under pressure
• No senior management available on-site during crisis
• Attempted to gaslight guests about food safety incident
• Zero accountability for health violations
• Complete failure in basic hospitality standards
This resort represents everything wrong with hospitality management - prioritizing face-saving over guest safety, lying instead of taking responsibility, and operating with standards that wouldn't be acceptable at a roadside motel, let alone a resort claiming to offer a premium experience.
📝 What Other Guests Say
Deeply Disappointing!!!
⭐ 1 out of 5 – Deeply Disappointing and Far from 5-Star
Perhaps the most telling comparison is this: the hotel next door, Seven Dreams, offers an infinitely better experience in every way — from the facilities and food to the service and atmosphere. It only makes this place feel even more disappointing.
This hotel does not match its online presentation. Many areas are still under construction, giving the entire property an unfinished and chaotic feel.
Service was far below expectations. When we asked to speak to a manager about the many issues we encountered, they sent someone who later admitted he was just the restaurant manager — not someone with any authority to address serious concerns.
The spa and gym are nowhere near 5-star standard — outdated, poorly maintained, and clearly neglected.
The location is very remote. Unless you're willing to rent a scooter every day or pay high prices for a driver, you're completely cut off from everything. And if you're hoping to plan a romantic surprise or evening, don't even bother — the hotel offers no support or flexibility for that.
Worse still, the atmosphere felt uncomfortable as a woman. It felt like only the man in the couple was acknowledged or respected, as if he was the only one worth speaking to because he's the one paying. My input or presence as a guest was largely ignored — unprofessional and outdated behavior that has no place in hospitality.
Even small details were overlooked. For example, there is no music system in the room, no ambiance features, and barely any entertainment options on the TV. If you're hoping to relax with a romantic film or soft music in the evening, you're out of luck.
All of this combined made the stay deeply disappointing. This is not a 5-star resort — not in quality, not in service, and certainly not in atmosphere. I absolutely would not return, and I strongly advise others to look elsewhere.
We stayed 3 nights in room 122. The room and bathroom are sublime, with a private pool and incredible views. The à la carte breakfast was excellent, with a wide variety of choices—probably the best we had during our trip to Bali.
However, several points spoiled our stay:
- Construction: A house right behind our room was under construction, with noise from 7:50 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. This construction wasn't announced to us, and no goodwill gesture was offered despite the significant inconvenience.
- Price: The minibar is overpriced (a beer costs 3x the market price), and the restaurant is also overpriced for what's on offer.
- Location: The hotel is very isolated, and access is complicated and expensive. We were charged IDR 350,000 for the transfer from the port. We also booked a half-day chauffeured tour through the hotel to visit two beaches (IDR 600,000), but the car smelled strongly of stale tobacco smoke, and there was no air conditioning, only a ventilation fan turned up to full blast.
- Limited facilities: no real fitness room (just a treadmill, a rusty bike, and a broken machine), no real spa (only two tables set up next to the breakfast room).
- Impassable private beach: covered in seaweed. However, at low tide, with shoes, it's possible to go further out and snorkel, where you can see many tropical fish.
In summary: a magnificent setting and an excellent breakfast, but too many inconveniences related to unannounced construction, the isolation, and the price/quality ratio.
First of all, I have to say that I rarely write reviews. However, in this case, I feel compelled to say something. The hotel doesn't really live up to the impressions you get from the pictures.
Many buildings are half-finished (construction sites), and the beach is practically unusable, as you can't swim or walk in the water due to coral, sharp rocks, and currents.
The service is unfortunately not fully trained. Many employees don't speak English. This makes ordering room service incredibly difficult at times. Which brings us to the next part: the food. The food is, unfortunately, a disaster, to say the least. I've rarely eaten so badly on vacation. Some of the food was inedible (no longer good). Furthermore, many dishes on the menu were permanently unavailable.
Another problem with the hotel is its location. You're ages away from everything and have to either rent a scooter every day or hire a driver (expensive).
Last but not least, it must be said that the rooms and the pool are truly beautiful, and several of the staff members go above and beyond to make our stay as pleasant as possible. A special thank you goes to Putra, who made everything possible during our stay!
Nevertheless, the hotel falls far short of its own expectations, which should be clear to anyone booking here.