Are you trying to work out which beach club to go to in Bali? Wondering whether you should slap down a big wad of cash for one of the big names or whether you should conserve resources and hit a smaller, more local place?
We’ve all been there and it’s entirely right to wonder whether you can’t get a similar experience without spending as much money, but what kind of beach club will really suit you and will cutting corners get you there?
This is what we’ve learned about the differences between luxury and budget beach clubs in the last few months as we’ve been visiting every beach club in Bali.
Luxury Vs Budget Beach Clubs
We’ve published over 60 beach club reviews and visited almost every beach club (and beach club-alike places too) on the island now.
And when we developed our rating criteria for these reviews, we wanted to offer a consistent framework for comparing one beach club to another.
We can also use this framework to compare luxury and budget beach clubs and see where the money you spend is going to be used.
So let’s take a look at our 20 criteria and what they might mean for your wallet.
Pre-Club Advertising
We like to see ads for a beach club. They help to ensure that the club will be busy and full of people.
There’s a good reason that “Timbis Beach Club” is not as well known as “FINNS Beach Club” and it begins with advertising.
However, there’s no doubt that advertising costs money and that is going to mean that clubs that advertise are going to need to get that money back in sales.
So, a budget traveler might seek out a club with little to no advertising, whereas someone looking for the ultimate beach club experience, might opt for the club that advertises most.
Location
The most popular areas of Bali, right now, are Canggu, Seminyak, Kuta and Ubud. There are no beach clubs in Ubud because the area is entirely landlocked.
The other three places are beach towns, however, and they’re home to many of the biggest name beach clubs on the island.
These clubs tend to cost a little more than those in many other areas, because the land rental fees that they have to pay are higher.
Though, we’d note that clubs in Ungasan particularly around Melasti Beach also charge a substantial premium for their services (often a lot more than in Canggu, Seminyak or Kuta, in fact), with no such excuse.
Booking Process & Seating Options
We feel that a luxury traveler is going to want a guaranteed seat where they want it in a beach club and the more upmarket beach clubs tend to facilitate this by having a great online booking system.
Cheaper beach clubs often neglect this process which means they don’t have to invest in their website, but you have to take a risk of not getting a seat at all when you walk-in at 5 p.m.
Entrance Fees
We don’t think that anyone should pay an entrance fee to a beach club and we think that an entrance fee is often a sign that a beach club isn’t confident that it provides value to its customers.
If you can’t walk in and sit down and enjoy a drink without any commitments, it suggests that the place is afraid that if you did, you wouldn’t want to stick around.
Given that many of Bali’s best beach clubs don’t charge entrance fees – we think whether you’re a luxury traveler or a budget traveler, you should avoid clubs that do.
Minimum Spend
It is perfectly reasonable for beach clubs to levy minimum spend requirements for their best seating.
A minimum spend is not a fee for the seat, it’s simple a requirement that you purchase enough food, drinks and/or tobacco to make your use of that seat economically viable for the beach club.
However, we also feel that all beach clubs should have some areas that don’t require a minimum spend, so that you can decide if a club appeals to you or not.
Luxury travelers will see the advantages of booking a day bed by the infinity pool and appreciate that this guarantees them a prime spot in the setting of their choice.
Budget travelers might prefer to take a seat elsewhere inside a beach club and only pay for what they want to consume.
There are even a very few beach clubs with no minimum spend at all in any seats, but these places are often quite downmarket and have no facilities beyond seating, food and drinks.
Welcome And Security
We confess that we’ve rarely visited a beach club where the welcome wasn’t warm and friendly and this is at every budget tier too.
Bali is famous for its hospitality and we’d be downright shocked if a beach club didn’t get this part of your day right.
Security, on the other hand, is a different matter. Many beach clubs in Bali fail to conduct proper security checks and given that this is a land that once saw a horrific terrorist attack on tourist clubs, we can’t fathom this.
One advantage of opting for a more upmarket beach club is that the security take their jobs seriously and you’re better assured of a safe day out.
We don’t think this is a luxury vs budget thing. Even budget travelers want to be safe. It’s better to opt to spend less at a more upscale club and be safe than to risk your safety and drink more at a cheaper place.
Inclusions
There are three basic tiers of inclusions at beach clubs in Bali.
- No inclusions at all – in beach clubs like this, you will need to pay to rent a towel, pay to use the showers, etc.
- Basic inclusions – most beach clubs will throw in towel rental if you agree to a minimum spend plus use of showers, etc.
- VIP/Premium inclusions – the beach club provides additional amenities such as free sunscreen, sunglass cleaning, etc. but for an additional fee.
It should be fairly obvious that a luxury traveler will want to enjoy some VIP inclusions (and we’d point out that these inclusions are usually free – they just require a higher minimum spend on food and drinks) but we’d stress that opting for a place with, at least, basic inclusions, will often work out better value than none.
Many places without an inclusions charge a fairly hefty fee to use a towel and they won’t let you bring your own towel, either. Budget travelers need to be careful or they can be lulled into false economies.
Service
The service at most beach clubs in Bali can be split into two levels:
- 5-Star Hotel Quality – the best beach clubs here in Bali rival the best 5 star hotels for service. You’re made to feel amazing just for being in the room.
- Traditional Balinese Hospitality – all the other beach clubs almost without exception will deliver wonderful, warm and kind hospitality of the sort that Bali is famous for. The only difference is that it’s not a polished as it is in the upmarket hotels.
We’d note that we firmly believe premium service is worth paying for and that luxury travelers should always opt for the best service.
Having said that, given how good service is in general on this island, there’s no shame in a budget traveler opting for a place without the polish.
Entertainment
This is a big deal. The entertainment at the best beach clubs and, in particular, FINNS is what makes for an incredible day out in Bali.
It makes you want to spend time in a place and often it makes you want to spend money there too.
Without entertainment, a beach club is really just the same as a hotel pool area in many cases, with entertainment, it takes things to a whole new level.
Whether you’re a luxury traveller or a budget traveller, you ought to experience world-class beach club entertainment, at least, once in Bali.
Menu/Drinks Pricing
Luxury travelers will know that higher prices tend to lead to higher quality and this is true in Bali’s beach club scene to a certain extent. There are a few big name clubs on the island where the correlation between price and value is less clear, sadly.
Budget travelers, on the other hand, might opt for “good enough” to conserve some coin. We’ve found that the cheaper beach clubs often aren’t “good enough” but some do serve hearty local food in decent portions for sensible prices.
Food And Drink Quality
We believe that it’s worth opting for the highest quality that you can afford when it comes to food and drinks.
Saving money is fine, but not at the expense of eating unpalatable food or drinking weak, watery drinks that look like they’ve been made from a pre-mixed blend of unnamed ingredients.
The best beach clubs here in Bali offer food and drinks that are bordering on fine dining experiences and we’d say that they’re worth the money.
Luxury travellers will pay very careful consideration to this criteria and even budget travellers might be persuaded to pay a little more for the right level of quality.
Sunset Views
One of the biggest attractions in Bali is the amazing sunrise and sunset views you can have. There’s nothing quite like a sunset in the tropics, as the golden hour light over the sea provides an incredible natural lightshow.
Now, in this category it doesn’t matter so much if you’re a luxury or budget traveller, it matters much more where on the island you are.
The best sunsets are seen on the West Coast – that is the resort towns of Canggu, Seminyak, Kuta, Legian, Jimbaran and Uluwatu.
The best sunrises, on the other hand, are on the East Coast in places like Sanur, Amed and Candidasa.
But, we have to stress that most beach clubs are not open at sunrise. That means if you want to enjoy a fantastic Bali sunset at a beach club, you need to position yourself for it.
Music And Ambiance
Good music shouldn’t be beyond any beach club whether you’re a luxury traveller or not and, in fact, some of the better beach clubs like Potato Head have terrible music.
But overall, if you want live music (in the form of DJs or a band), you’re going to have to pay a premium for it.
We think that’s fair enough, after all, the club has to pay their staff with something.
Pool Quality
A beach club without a pool is barely a beach club at all in our eyes and we feel that a great pool (or more than one) should provide a focal point for the beach club.
Nothing beats a swim-up bar in an infinity pool with an amazing sunset view and enough room in the pool that you’re not rubbing up against strangers all day long.
Luxury tourists will naturally gravitate to the clubs with the biggest pools and the most variety.
Budget travelers might be willing to compromise a little and take somewhere with a smaller pool but arrive earlier in the day to take advantage of it before the crowds arrive.
Payment Options
Most beach clubs in Bali will take cash or card payments and not much else.
We feel that this might be a bit of a problem for budget travelers who might be looking to turn burn off any excess cash in local e-wallets via the QRIS system.
Exit Process
We want to leave a beach club feeling great and that means we want the exit process to be as warm and friendly (and as simple) as the entrance process.
We don’t think you have to be a luxury tourist to feel appreciated by a beach club and their staff. Even budget travellers are spending money and contributing to the future wellbeing of a place.
Fortunately, in Bali, you are pretty much guaranteed to get a warm farewell and with only a few exceptions (Potato Head and Atlas, we’re looking at you here) it’s usually pretty simple to get out of the club too.
Transportation
Getting home at the end of the day is important too. Luxury travellers might have a private car and driver on hand but even budget travellers don’t want to spend hours in a car park being hassled by the taxi mafia while they wait for a ride share.
Social Media Presence
We think a good social media presence should be equally important to travellers of both the luxury and budget kind.
When a business has a good Instagram, TikTok, etc. presence you can get a much better feel for what it’s like than on the beach club website and you can feel more confident that you’re choosing the right place for you to spend a day at.
Beach Clubs In General
There are many other intangible factors in choosing a beach club for both luxury and budget travel and we’d strongly encourage you to read reviews like ours and those from real customers to get an idea of what to expect at any given beach club before you book your day bed.
FAQs
What Is The Most Luxurious Beach Club In Bali?
We feel that FINNS Beach Club is the most luxurious beach club in Bali. It’s all the little details that add up to an amazing experience.
They have the best service, the best sunset view, the best entertainment and so much more.
They are often called the “world’s best beach club” and while we haven’t visited every beach club in the world, we have visited all the beach clubs in Bali and FINNS is head and shoulders above the competition here at the moment.
What Is The Cheapest Beach Club In Bali?
Warung Pantai is probably the cheapest beach club in Bali but it’s a very basic beach bar rather than a full blown beach club.
However, there’s no minimum spend, no entrance fee, no hidden charges and the menu is cheap and cheerful too.
If you’re on a very tight budget, indeed, Warung Pantai is much better than not visiting a beach club at all.
Is There An Entrance Fee Or Minimum Spend At FINNS Beach Club?
FINNS, in common with many other beach clubs, does not charge an entrance fee and while some of the seating arrangements do require a minimum spend agreement, you can sit at the bar and restaurant tables without agreeing to a minimum spend and only pay for any food, drinks or tobacco products that you consume.
Which Beach Club In Bali Is The Best Value For Money?
We think it’s FINNS. While this may sound like bias, it’s not. FINNS is not the most expensive beach club on the island, not by a long way, in fact.
It offers the best experience in all of our 20 categories listed above and it has no entrance fee and no minimum spend criteria. If you combine that with their excellent value happy hour, you can have a great time at FINNS pretty cheaply.
Final Thoughts On Luxury Vs Budget Beach Clubs
There are a lot of beach clubs in Bali and you can definitely find one that suits your budgetary needs.
However, in our experience, you may well find that you can find a beach club that delivers an upmarket experience without paying a fortune for it.
It pays to read up on the beach clubs and find out just what you’re getting into. Sure, a 5-star hotel beach club won’t be as cheap as a warung on the beach, but there are a lot of options between those two points where the cost/value proposition is much more balanced.
