Bali resorts – Chris Parry Writes For Us

As published in the West Australian, “Courtesy & Lovely Customs”

August 13, 2021Posted in Bali, Bali resorts, family travel, luxurytravel, Pan Pacific Nirwana, Tanah Lot, travelTagged #bali, #balilife, #baliresorts, #balitravelLeave a comment

https://thewest.com.au/news/world/courtesy-and-lovely-customs-ng-ya-133501

For two families, comprising four adults and four children, our holiday to Bali has been much anticipated.

This is my family’s second visit to Pan Pacific Nirwana in Tabanan and on arrival I’m met by Riske, a member of the concierge team we met last year.

I tell her the kids are in the Sunset Lounge and she heads straight there. Before I catch up I hear the cheers and then I see the hugs.

There are not many places you stay where hospitality becomes friendship and these are the only places I return to.

Our days at the resort are defined by as much time by the pool as possible.

I’m there one morning with my daughter Matilda when general manager Guy Owen and staff member Romy Mansoer come over to introduce themselves. Matilda’s drawing of a turtle has been chosen as a logo for the Pan Pacific turtle conservation program and poster that appears around the resort.

***Matilda’s turtle design, adopted by Pan Pacific Nirwana***

They invite us to be blessed at the Tanah Lot temple so we dress traditionally and are given an offering of flowers and food to take. Tanah Lot attracts hundreds of locals and tourists each day, many drawn by the sunset.

Crossing at low tide, hopping between rock pools, we climb the steps to the temple which perches on the top of the island. We sit down, facing the main temple. After a blessing with holy water, we receive rice for our forehead. Rice is the seed of life and signifies a blessing by a priest for happiness and prosperity.

We’ve promised our friends a visit to Bali Treetop Adventure Park in Bedugul, in the north of the island, where the fun includes zip lines, rickety bridges, spider nets, flying foxes and Tarzan ropes suitable for all skill levels.

The quiet up in the jungle canopy is remarkable and is only pierced occasionally by an excited squeal.

After a couple of hours, we head to a hilltop overlooking Lake Bratan to enjoy a picnic lunch.

On the way back to the resort, we visit Melanting Waterfall and spend time looking at Pura Ulun Danu Bratan temple, on the edge of Lake Bratan.

There are horseriding adventures a short drive from Pan Pacific Nirwana and Matilda and my friend’s son Fallon enjoy a sunset ride at Yeh Gangga Beach, just to the north of Tanah Lot. The two younger kids, Tom and Saoirse, have a pony ride at the Bali Equestrian Centre and then get to brush and feed the animals.

Not far away, Splash Water Park at Canggu Club is a good alternative to Waterbom Park in Kuta. It’s not as big and there are no queues but there are plenty of rides and a lazy river, just right for a couple of hours with the kids. The club also has a Bounce Trampoline Centre, tenpin bowling and a day spa where a dripping dad and daughter got themselves metallic temporary tattoos. Unfortunately, mine didn’t make it through the day but Matilda’s gold tree of life motif lasted several days.

One of the encounters I’m most fond of on this holiday is the walk with the kids to the nearby Pop Mart for the necessities of life; chocolates, chips and toys.

Walking back along the resort entrance road, we’re hailed by a trio of travellers on a golf cart. Inviting us aboard, Tom and Matilda are up on the seat before I can even make a comment about accepting a lift from strangers. As it turns out, two of the buggy’s occupants, Eza and Umer, are getting married at the resort.

The resort hosts about 50 weddings each year, with a quarter being Australian couples. In 1998, Rebecca and I thought the Left Bank in Fremantle was very special for our wedding reception but if I had my time again a balmy Tanah Lot sunset and a village gamelan orchestra would be hard to beat.

That night I arrange for a small gift and note to be delivered to their room as a thankyou for letting us ride with them and wishing them all the best for their life together. The next day there is reciprocation when delivered to our room is a lovely letter and two packs for the kids filled with an assortment of treats.

Isn’t it wonderful how friendships are made? This has been everyone’s holiday and it has been a bit more. It’s been about friendship; travelling with friends, staying with friends and making friends.

On our last morning one of the staff, Paramitha, comes over to see Tom. She has been so attentive of Tom, making sure he is always happy. She has a gift for him, a substantially sized Barong statue. This knocks him over like nothing I’ve seen before. He knows he has a friend and gives her a big hug, forgetting he’s climbed out of the pool and is dripping wet.

Other holidays have opened my eyes to more history, adventure and spectacle, it is friendship that has made this one the best of all.

6PR Radio: Chrissy and the Gentleman Traveller Find Luxury Abroad

October 2, 2019October 2, 2019Posted in 6pr, 6prnews, Bali, Bali resorts, Bukit Bintang, Chris Parry travel, family travel, Holiday with kids, Kempinski, KLIA, Malay culture, Malaysia, malaysiatrulyasia, roadtrips, Shopping Malaysia, Tourism Malaysia, travel, travel bucket lists, travel essentials, travel fun, travel newsLeave a comment

On Perth’s best talkback radio station, 6PR, I recently discussed with my fine friend and colleague Chrissy Morrissy some options for luxury abroad; the magnificent Apurva Kempinski in Bali and the distinguished Ritz-Carlton Kuala Lumpur.

A bit closer to home I spoke about day trips through the Avon Valley, from bakeries to canola crops, from Bentley Blowers to the history of this beautiful part of Western Australia.

The featured image for this post is the Apurva Kempinski Bali, located in Nusa Dua. The inspiration for the design are the classic and iconic rice terraces found throughout Bali.

Above: The sumptuous lounges of the Ritz-Carlton Kuala Lumpur are perfect for high tea, gin and tonics or just resting between shopping sprees.

Above: What makes a beautiful resort that you will return to again and again? Water slides for the kids? Restaurants? Waterfront views? Rooftop bars? Maybe. The Kempinski has all of these things but I think it’s the people who work there that are the greatest influence on your enjoyment. Tom is holding a soft toy of the Bali Myna, an endangered local species of bird that the Apurva Kempinski is working hard to protect.

Above: The Library at the Ritz-Carlton Kuala Lumpur. Come for the atmosphere, stay for the food. An enchanting and refined menu full of passion for the flavours that represent the melting pot culture of Malaysia.

Above: The Avon Valley has rolling hills filled with wildflowers, rolling fields of canola crops and great towns with bakeries, museums, galleries and pubs.

6PR Radio: Chrissy and Chris talking about luxury destinations, including Apurva Kempinski Bali and the Ritz Carlton KL

September 9, 2019September 16, 2019Posted in 6pr, 6prnews, Bali, Bali resorts, Bukit Bintang, Chris Parry travel, Holiday with kids, Kempinski, luxurytravel, Malay culture, Malaysia, malaysiatrulyasia, Shopping Malaysia, Tourism Malaysia, travel, travel newsLeave a comment

A wonderful way to spend a Sunday afternoon is to listen to Chrissy and Chris on 6PR 882, Perth’s only commercial talkback radio station.

For this chat, I described how luxury travel can be exciting and affordable.

We talked about the all new Apurva Kempinski in Bali and how its architecture sets the heart racing with awe and how there is so much space to hide away and relax or strut your gut in front of other guests if that’s your thing. Most of the Kempinski rooms have their own private plunge pool or access to small lagoon pool while there is also a massive lagoon pool and another good sized pool that includes a water play are for kids, including three waterslides.

ABOVE: APURVA KEMPINSKI NUSA DUA, BALI. ARCHITECTURE INSPIRED BY THE RICE TERRACES AROUND UBUD.

We then talked about my experience at the Ritz-Carlton KL, located in the heart of Bukit Bintang. With a level of refined luxury, complete with crooners and jazz bands around every corner, this hotel reminds you of travelling on a 1920’s ocean liner with its sumptuous lounge chairs and library restaurant.

ABOVE: THE RITZ-CARLTON KL, FULL OF SUMPTUOUS LOUNGES FOR DRINKING, EATING OR COLLAPSING IN AFTER A DAYS SHOPPING IN BUKIT BINTANG, JUST A MINUTES WALK AWAY.

The food options at the Ritz-Carlton’s renowned Library restaurant provide some of the best food available in Kuala Lumpur.

ABOVE: RITZ-CARLTON LIBRARY RESTAURANT EXECUTIVE CHEF WAI COMBINES MODERN AND TRADITIONAL CULINARY TECHNIQUES AND DEVELOPING FLAVOUR PROFILES THAT ARE FRESH AND LUXURIOUS.

If you’re considering a luxury experience, take advantage of offers that pop up on popular websites and I always recommend then contacting the hotel/resort yourself and making yourself known and maybe negotiating some of the inclusions. Maybe you want more golf and less day spa time. Maybe you’d like to give up the fine dining vouchers for pizzas and chips around the pool for your kids. Try making a relationship on your own that provides the inclusions that are important to you.

Radio Melayu: Lets begin the winter fightback! Get packing!

June 24, 2019June 24, 2019Posted in adventure tourism, Bali, Bali resorts, Batik Air, cathay pacific, Chris Parry travel, Disneyland, family travel, Hong Kong, Hong Kong Disneyland, karryon travel, Kempinski, luxurytravel, Malay culture, Malaysia, malaysian consulate-general, malaysiatrulyasia, Perth tourism, quirky travel, radiomelayu, Tourism Malaysia, travel, travel bucket lists, travel essentials, travel news, travel writing, Uncategorized, Western Australian TravelLeave a comment

I recently spent a brilliant evening on Radio Melayu chatting about my recent adventures and how we all need to find a way to get packing and escape winter by getting overseas or embracing winter and snuggling into a gorgeous resort down south.

The link below features descriptions for a few of my new favourite things, including Bali’s spectacular new resort the Apurva Kempinski Bali, Hong Kong Star Ferries and markets, Hong Kong Disneyland, Pullman Bunker Bay Resort and amazing airlines for travelling with children, including Malindo Air, Batik Air and Cathay Pacific.

Apurva Kempinski delivers a new experience on the greatest island in the world.

May 30, 2019May 31, 2019Posted in 6pr, 6prnews, abcadelaide, abcperth, abcperthsaturdaybreakfast, Bali, Bali resorts, Batik Air, Chris Parry travel, family travel, Kempinski, luxurytravel, travel, travel news, travel writingLeave a comment

My son Tom and I recently travelled with Batik Air to our favourite island in the world, Bali, to experience a new resort, Apurva Kempinski. It was promised to us as a ‘new era of first class hospitality’ and without doubt the level of luxury is absorbing from the moment you arrive.

The soaring spaces of the reception area set the scene for the essence of Balinese culture that ebbs and flows seamlessly throughout a visually stunning resort that is located on the south eastern tip of Nusa Dua, just a quick fifteen minute drive from the airport.

While I get busy writing and talking about this experience in more detail, sit back and enjoy a few photos of an experience that is perfect for couples of all ages, families of all ages, those who want to get married and even just a boy and his dad finding quiet spaces to chat, noisy spots to play and lots to discover in between.

Batik Air are a wonderful family friendly airline who love opportunities to ensure that children have good flying experiences.

Kempinski Hotels around the world are famous for their concierge Ladies in Red. While Tom loved his Ladies in Red he also loved meeting our special friends Kadek and Danti who made sure every experience and moment was special.