We stayed for 8 nights as a family with 2 kids (7 and 11) at the Novotel of Benoa for spring break, and enjoyed our stay. It was our first trip in Bali. The setting of the Novotel and its decoration in traditional balinese architecture is nicely done : we enjoyed our breakfast time on the open air terrasse with seaview, just like the light dinners almost at seaside. Food was good and correctly priced, breakfast was very good. Hotel staff was smiling and helpful, especially at the kids club. Free wifi connection in the room was stable and I could have 2 hours lync work meetings using wifi without issues, even if the upload speed was limited, and it took some time to upload our travel picture on the net. Benoa Novotel is split by a road, and we stayed at the garden side, that had 2 pools and and "crocokiss" bar restaurant. Crossing the busy road was an issue, even if there is always a guard making sure you can cross safely. We could not think of letting the kids go to the kids club by themselves because of the road.
We appreciated that there was a few restaurants, small shops and small Spas very accessible outside : you are not trapped with no alternative. You can also easily walk the beach up or down to check for other watersport offer than the one directly .
The garden side room was correct, clean and with a balcony, but a bit small for a family of four (we chose Novotel for the 2 kids in room no issue policy). And it was not that well isolated for sound : from inside you could hear very clearly people passing by and talking or occasionnally slaming their door. Still the garden side was generally quiet, and we slept well.
Overall we enjoyed a lot our stay at the Novotel and would gladly return for a few days to rest and enjoy seaside. The only thing that will make think twice while chosing hotels in my next Bali trip is the location : perfect for family seaside rest and close to the airport, but not so conveniently located to discover the rest of the Island as traffic is not good in Bali, and you are stuck in the south at the end of the Tanjung Benoa half-Island.