Guest Reviews

Chakrabongse Villas: "The perfect oasis in the heart of Old Bangkok"

I have used tripadvisor to plan trips for years, but our magical time at the Chakrabongse Villas has finally inspired me to write a review of my own. We could not have found a more perfect place to spend the final 3 days of a 2 week trip to SE Asia. Atom, the manager, and her staff were incredibly warm, welcoming, and helpful in making our stay in Bangkok so special, and upgraded us to the Garden View Suite, which was lovely. Tucked away in beautiful, lush gardens right on the banks of the Chao Praya river and directly across from Wat Pho and a short distance to the Grand Palace, the Chakrabongse Villas, is truly a hidden gem. Being in the heart of Old Bangkok meant that we could return to the hotel for a quick dip in the gorgeous pool to cool off from the infamous Bangkok heat before heading out for the next excursion. I highly recommend arranging to have dinner at the Chakrabongse Villas for an unforgettable experience - the dinner we had with a private table set up on the terrace right next to the river was the most romantic, and one of the most delicious, we've ever had (the owner is a descendant of the Thai kings Rama IV & V so the dishes are from the Royal Family's own recipes). We also enjoyed our tour of Bangkok's canals in the Chakrabongse Villa's own long tail boat. If you are looking for the perfect boutique hotel that offers a peaceful, historical oasis in hectic and hot Bangkok, then I cannot recommend Chakrabongse Villas highly enough. Thank you, Atom, for helping to make our stay so extraordinary.

Rakkojae Seoul: "Really quite perfect"

There is really nothing to fault with Rakkojae. The rooms and their surrounds are quite beautiful - a pocket of timeless serenity in this busy city. The service is perfectly judged - always helpful, never intrusive. Both the Korean and Western breakfasts were good and substantial. We found it wonderfully quiet but, given thin walls/doors, this does require guests to be deeply respectful of others. This is not a place for loud voices or, fortunately, young children. Some reviewers and travel sites recommend one night in an hanok - this does not do the experience justice or allow you to even come near appreciating the essence of the place. We stayed 4 nights which felt about right, Even so, moving on to our next accommodation - a top-end Western-style conference hotel - was remarkably jarring.

LEOPARD SAFARIS-WILPATTU: "Very good experience"

"We stayed as a family for two nights which allowed for four safari drives. The camp is tented and set on the edge of the park (about 5 mins drive to the park). The camp is incredibly peaceful during the day with an abundance of birds and butterflies, and whilst sleeping arrangements are fairly basic it is perfectly comfortable for two nights. It's definitely worth using the foam ear plugs to get a good night sleep given nature's noise levels increase at night. The food and service were extremely good...we were looked after by a wonderful team led by Danu and Sajit and couldn't have expected or wanted anything more. The safari drives were fantastic...Wilpattu is breathtakingly beautiful and far less crowded than many other parks. Couldn't recommend it more highly. "

MesaStila: "Best Start to 2017 and Beautiful Resort"

"I stayed at MesaStila for 2 nights with my friend. We took the Borobodur package that the Resort offer and beautiful Villa over looking the volcano. It is very authentic atmosphere, beautiful and retreat place. what make the place is more special and made a huge different is their employee. My friend would like to have ""Bakso"" which is traditional Indonesian beef/chicken ball noodles and it is not in the restaurant menu. Ana the waitress at Restaurant have gone out of her way instead of saying sorry we do not have Bakso but have said to us that let me check with the Chef and see what I can do for you. Been a Malaysian who understand half of their language I can understand very clearly when Ana mentioned to the Chef over the phone and politely mentioned"" please chef try to do something to make our guest happy"". To me that is 5 star service!! Afdi our Driver during our stay, very professional from the day he pick us up from Yogja,took us to Borubodur and drop us at the airport, he been very kind, helpful and very informative by explaining to us on surroundings while driving us around. Reception who check us in ( I forgot her name - lady with short Hair) - she is very good and has given us proper Resort Tour and Room Orientation. Lily - the lady who took us for coffee plantation, she is very knowledgeable about the surroundings and the history of the resort. The therapist - I had 2 treatment at their Hamman Spa and I can only say excellent! Everyone should try the ""jamu"" drinks and met the lovely Ibu who prepare the Jamu. For Improvement: Accommodation - Everything is antique in the room, I think the lighting need to have some improvement as it is too dark and combination of lighting with yellow and florescent does not goes well. other than that all is great. Landscaper - my suggestion when we have guest occupying the villa perhaps the trimming or cutting trees will be done when the guest not in the villa as this will disturb the privacy of the guest when they are at balcony. Pillow - The Resort should set up 4 pillow for the bed instead of 2 very soft one on the bed and the remaining is in the closet. Sometimes the hotel guest will not recognize that the second pillow is in the closet. Most of 4 & 5 star hotel now set up 4 pillow on the bed instead of 2. Thank You MesaStila Management, keep it up all the good work. Stayed January 2017, traveled with friends"

Rachamankha: "A stunningly stylish hotel"

A beautiful architect designed hotel in the centre of Chiang Mai. It has an excellent restaurant and a beautiful swimming pool. We stayed in 2 different suites and I would highly recommend one the first floor suites as they are newer and have outdoor seating.

The Hue House: "Dinner"

Probably the best meal so far in Saigon this beautiful Vietnamaurrant sits on top of mastr building .Quite difficult to find but well worth the effort.Xcellnt food and staff very friendly price rang very reasonable

JL Studio: "A magician Chef!"

"With the talented creative sense of Chef Jimmy, a beautiful presentation, a deeply researched concept, a friendly team for service, JL Studio has found the magic formula to surprise. Young chef, young team, new place... yet a solid experience that transports us with brio into the imaginary world of the Chef. CONGRATULTIONS!"

Blackitch Artisan Kitchen: "Great evening! great dinner"

"David takes pride in his small restaurant, making everything from scratch, you can see a lot of what he is working on on shelves next to the walls. Not only did we have an excellent 10 course meal - which was fairly priced considering the care and dedication that he put in, but he made sure to call us a cab (himself!) and make sure we got off in the direction of our hotel...."

Nam Bo Boutique Hotel: "Quaint hotel in a great location"

"On arrival we were invited to sit down & enjoy a welcome drink & snacks whilst checking in. We were then taken to our suite, which was unexpectedly spacious with a separate lounge/dining room & lovely hardwood floors throughout. Blossoms on the bed were another nice touch. However, the highlight of this hotel is the restaurant on the roof, which provides top quality food together with fabulous views of the promenade & Mekong. The breakfasts are exceptional with trays of pastries & fruit, freshly squeezed juices, yogurt & hot food cooked to order. We were there for dinner on Christmas Eve & Santa visited the restaurant & gave us all very nice presents. This was another unexpected treat. All of the staff were friendly & helpful and the service throughout our stay was of the highest quality. We would thoroughly recommend this hotel."

Neeleshwar Hermitage: "Beautiful and Serene"

"This place surpassed our already high expectations ! Some of things that took our breath away - A vast secluded CLEAN beach, Clean sea water, Dolphins swimming. Even the interiors of the resort are beautiful. The rooms are rustic on the outside and modern and comfortable comparable to any 5-7 star property. The bathrooms are beautiful beyond imagination. The resort uses plastic minimally and lives up to its green promise. Infinity pool is gorgeous (...) The library deserves a special mention. Its not some randomly put together library but cleverly chosen selection of literature. It would have been great to have some Indian books for young readers as this resort attracts a lot of family crowd as per our experience. Staff deserves special mention as they were generous and friendly but same time non intrusive. We can't wait to go back as we already feel drawn towards the place once again."