Guest Reviews

Dewakan: "This is the best, most innovative restaurant in Malaysia"

If there should be a Michelin Star Restaurant in Malaysia. it will be Dewakan. Kudos to the team for a great effort and wonderful food.

Neeleshwar Hermitage: "A resort well deserving a mention on trip advisor"

"Excellent staff lead by a very competent manager who made an effort to speak to guests at breakfast. It gave an opportunity to voice any outstanding issues in person( not that there was any ) Fine breakfast esp Indian food. Appam (indian pancake ) was made on request. Rooms were very clean well looked after . Every evening the room was turned over , mosquito coils set up and water and a bottle of local drink provided. The ambience was of a rural setting with soft lighting to guide us at night to our cottages. Tastefully decorated to a high standard. The landscaping was very appealing. Fine clean clear blue open air swimming pool that was just right for cooling off and swimming. The waiter service was infallible . Very polite English speaking staff made it all the more delightful. Very good avurvedic treatment with in house doctor for advise. In house tailor who can complete a shirt in lass than 24 hrs. Security was good day and night as I found out when walking alone by the beach. Crows are regular visitors at breakfast time and by the swimming pool. But well kept out the guests tables by a very astute guard who used a special technique to scare them away without any harm . The sandy beach is very hot to sun bathe . The sea water is a little unclear but warm and safe to swim. Sometimes the waves can be bigger than usual and hotel uses coloured flags to inform the safety condition of sea to guests. A few go to swim as most stay by the pool. This is a hotel worth a visit . Recommend at least a week for peace and sanity ! Room Tip: Facing the sea single cottage"

Pindaya Farm House: "Lovely place"

My husband and I stayed two nights at this wonderful and cosy place at the country side in central Myanmar. The service and accomodation was excellent and the food very delicious and well prepared. We can highly recommend this lovely place if you are looking for peace and quietness in a nice setting and possibilities to do hiking and biking in the surrounding hilly landscape.

The Island Lodge: "Absolute gem only 2 hours from Saigon airport"

"We just spent 3 fantastic nights at this hotel, relaxing, exploring the island, and eating fresh, delicious food. Can't rate this highly enough, and it's easily accessible from Saigon and the airport. Having said that, we were a bit disappointed as we passed over the huge bridge to Thoi Son island. In my mind, we were heading to a rural idyll, and I didn't see how the island could be rural when it has a motorway passing through one end of it! But 10kms later, after driving through the fruit trees down the one road suitable for cars, we arrived at the Lodge. And the setting is beautiful and quiet, surrounded by lanes through the fruit plantations and houses, and with a view of the ever-changing Mekong. Everybody we interacted with at the Lodge was friendly and helpful, and service was always with a smile. Some of the staff didn't have great English, but there was always someone around who did. The staff make the place, and we were really charmed by them! A special thank you to Giao, one of the waitresses, who remembered our orders from previous days and was always kind and friendly. The Lodge itself is wonderfully designed, with a huge open communal area which is subtly divided into bar and dining areas. The whole place is beautifully furnished and oozes style - I would like to transplant everything from the bar area into my house! We loved that there were so many different seating areas around the grounds, including a couple of pagodas, sofas, riverfront tables and a table right out on the pier for watching the sunset. The pool is warm, long, and spotlessly clean, with plenty of loungers and huge fresh towels. Bedrooms are clean and comfortable, and as stylish as the downstairs area. There were so many other places to sit and enjoy the view that we didn't really use the balcony, but it is a relaxing place to be. The food was unexpectedly good. There is a French and a Vietnamese menu, and food is fresh and well presented. They bake their own bread and croissants on site, and the smell of it in the morning and before dinner was a treat. It's an odd thing to recommend when you're in Vietnam, but the quiche lorraine was one of the most delicious things we ate on the whole trip! It's on the starter menu, but is big enough and rich enough to enjoy for lunch with some of the fresh bread. We also enjoyed the duck, and the tuna. And breakfasts were sublime, with everything made to order. There is a comprehensive wine list, and we also appreciated the fact that the house wine was very reasonably priced and very drinkable - thanks Michel! The Lodge offers tours, which we didn't do, but instead we took bikes out on two afternoons and explored the lanes and bridges of the island on our own. It's hard to believe that the big city of My Tho is only a few kms away when you're cycling around under the shade of the trees, over bridges that are 2 feet wide. At the very far end of the island, as far as the road goes, we stopped and had a drink at Mr Thanh's little waterfront bar and chatted to him about tourism on the island. He was an interesting man with superb English, and his wife makes a delicious cold lemon juice on a hot day. The only negatives: At a Lodge with eco credentials, I would have liked to see drinking water available as refills, rather than endless 500ml plastic bottles. And just be aware that the Mekong view is of a busy waterway full of commercial and industrial traffic, with industrial buildings across the water. In actual fact we really enjoyed watching the traffic and the change of the tides so this wasn't a problem at all, but we hadn't realised it wasn't looking out on to countryside. Thanks to all the staff at the Island Lodge. This really is a gem, and we were so pleased that we stayed for 3 nights rather than rushing through."

Heritage Suites Hotel: "Perfect Place to Spend the Rest of My Life… If only I could."

My sister and I shared a bungalow suite and felt very much like queens. She's used to 5-star service, but I'm still a little awe-struck. The room was large with a sitting room, private outside area, and a large king sized bed, with a sturdy mattress and high quality bedding. The service was wonderful. While all of the staff were friendly and helpful, stand-outs for our stay were Sim and Sippa. They were both very attentive to our needs, and suggested things when we asked questions, and Sippa was able to find several options when we told her we wanted to see an Apsara dance. Breakfast is included and is delicious. The coffee was wonderful, the fruit ripe and tasty and the mini croissants and pain-au-chocolats crafted the French way. We ate at the restaurant for dinner once, and we all loved the food. I'm a vegetarian and the chef made sure I could eat eggs and added one to my rice and veggie dish. Tip- get the passion fruit sorbet. To Die For. The pool was lovely and we had drinks two afternoons in a row sitting by the pool. We also got massages while there- they are excellent for relaxing massages but if you're going in for some kind of sports, technical, injury related massage, my advice is to wait for your regular masseuse and enjoy their relaxing massages, which are very good. We had a wonderful time and hope to return one day. The return flight about killed me, but this place is worth another visit.

Manda De Laos: "Elegant dining, beautiful setting, first rate"

We wanted to have dinner at Manda de Laos, but it was sold out for a corporate event. After being convinced that our Caucasian features would prevent us from slipping in unnoticed with this predominantly Thai business group, we settled on lunch. The food was traditional Lao, informed by classic French technique. We had salad rolls, green papaya salad, roast duck, grilled fish, vegetables and plenty more. All was delicious. And the setting is magnificent. It is all open air seating, built around UNESCO Lotus Ponds with tables on little boardwalks surrounding them. When we went by to make the reservation, there was a man in a small boat floating around pruning the rushes and making everything just so. Service was excellent as was the food, the ambiance and the entire visit. We walked by later that evening to see the entire street backed up with vans dropping off the corporate guests and felt glad to have been able to get in at all. I am sure it is lit beautifully at night, but during the day, we could see the lotus ponds in all their glory. Highly recommended, but reserve early. It is pricey for Laos, but a bargain in any other part of the world.

Satri House: "Exquisite experience!"

"Satri House was especially memorable stay for us thanks to GT, Julie, and team. Also, GT sent us the jam as he mentioned in the post! The extra 10 miles they went is absolutely touching. Thank you for the above and beyond experience. Satri House will always have a place in our heart. I am planning to cook me some GT pasta tomorrow!"

Sea Dance Resort: "Relaxation at its best!"

"I stayed at Sea Dance with my family at the beginning of October for 7 nights. What an amazing place! From airport transfer right through to the facilities - absolutely fantastic. Sea Dance is close enough to the center of Chaweng for those who need nightlife entertainment, but far enough away for those who just want to spend their days lazing around the pool with a fine glass of wine while listening to the waves crash ashore. Botique personal service. Almost ever staff member knew us on a first name basis. Even the owner who is actively involved with this beautiful resort. Free use of kayaks and life jackets. Weekly buffets and cocktail events. There is just so much to do at the resort without having to leave! We were fortunate enough to stay in a pool villa. Large rooms with a small plunge pool to cool off on those hot days. This is a place we will miss, but surely not forget! See you all again soon!"

Rice & Zen Boutique Resort: "Heaven on earth"

"We were two rather tired middle aged parents with two of our daughters (aged 18). Sea Dance could have been set up with just us in mind. One daughter is working out in Thailand and we came over with one of her sisters for three weeks. One of them was spent at Sea Dance and I was not joking when I told Faith that when the others left I would be hiding in the wardrobe and planned to stay forever. We booked into a double chalet. So we had two interconnecting double rooms each with gorgeous bathroom and our own private pool. Do not underestimate the bliss of a private pool. We are not talking an olympic monstrosity, even I only managed two strokes from one end to the other. On the other hand, at the end of the day we bobbed around in the pool in the warm evening sun with a G&T and the evils of work responsibilities etc melted away. We spent an afternoon with Doi (my apologies if my spelling is off) learning how to cook green curry, seafood salad and chicken and ginger stir fry. I don't care how experienced you are in the kitchen, this is worth doing. I have been cooking since I was about six, my mother is an expert in historical cooking with a library to match, there is little in the kitchen that surprises or scares me yet even I learned subtle and interesting tips. Back home a week or so I cooked Tom yum. Once I would have needed a recipe - Doi gave me the confidence to create it on my own and my super critical Tom Yum husband loved it! I also had a massage in the spa. This is not your run of the mill five star spa. This is an authentic, no English spoken, work out between you and your masseuse, spa. It was bliss. I had a several massages in thailand from the ""Oh heck put the stick away please"" foot massage in JJ market in Bangkok, to the ""oh please don't wake me up"" and ""I wasn't snoring"" massages in Chiang Mai. A bonus was that I bumped into Doi in her herb garden on my way back to our chalet. Doi gave me a guided tour around her garden, explained what she grew for the kitchen and what she grew for the spa. For an old fashioned gardener like me that was the most wonderful way to end the massage from heaven. there are any number of luxury hotels and resorts on Ko Samui. If you are looking for a personal touch, for a spot of luxury without bankruptcy and any number of wonderful, knowledgeable and friendly staff (Faith is worth twice her weight in gold at the very least) then come to Sea Dance. Or better still ...don't ...so that there will be room for us when we return. Stayed March 2017, traveled with family"

Mie Cafe: "Great Authentic Cambodian Food"

We recently ate here and had some very well prepared authentic khmer cusine for an extremely reasonable price. The fish amok and chicken amok were wonderfully prepared as was the pork mixed with eggplant and not overly spicy beef curry. Nice atmosphere and good service.