Beautiful boutique hotel next to the river

“We returned with our 4 yrs old for a second time to the Island Lodge and stayed three nights. I believe it’s the best thought through boutique hotel I ever came across in SE Asia. The river view rooms are in 2F, right above the open restaurant, the very good size pool is next to the restaurant and everything is right next to the river. Basically wherever you are and whatever you do, you will have a river view (obviously not from the garden rooms). It is the perfect place for doing absolutely nothing. Food and drinks are good and you should be able to find something on either the French or the Vietnamese menu. The rooms have a good size and are very clean, the pool is great and big and never felt crowded. All the staff are very friendly and they will help whenever they can. The Lodge offers a few tours, which are not so bad if this is your first time to SE Asia. There are some areas which could be improved though. I had the manicure/pedicure which was really not that great. Sitting with hand and feet tucked into tiny bowls for quite a while was not very relaxing. I had the impression they want to offer the service, but the location is not really prepared for it. The manicure/pedicure itself was just ok. The other thing which bothered us one morning 7ish was to wake up to Vietnamese techno music played loudly in one of the neighboring houses. I hope this was because we stayed the days right after new year with all the schools off. Nevertheless, the Island Lodge is a fantastic place and we will be back.

Stayed January 2017, traveled with family”