Guest Reviews

Villa Song Saigon: "Wonderful Gem of a Boutique Hotel – Do Not Miss"

"A beautifully restored French Colonial property, Villa Song boasts just 23 rooms in a low key neighborhood, surrounded by expat residences and international schools. Hard to imagine that not much more than a decade ago, this area was pretty much swamp land! Before going, you really should know what Villa Song is not: - This is not a large chain hotel - every contact you have with the staff is friendly and warm, and chances are you may not know their names but they will certainly know yours. You're not just a face in the crowd. However, for being of such an intimate size, Villa Song has the extras that you don’t often find in similar boutique hotels: a gorgeous long swimming pool for doing laps or sunning yourself by, a pretty decently equipped gym room (machines & free weights), and a spa that doesn’t break the bank. - This is not a property you visit to party at as there's no late night bar or club thumping away downstairs (thank goodness). Along the same lines, don’t expect around-the-clock room service – we certainly didn’t miss it, since there’s a ton of late night delicious eats in this city. - Having said that, this is not the most accessible hotel to popular street eats and the sights, but it's surprisingly easy to get around, thanks to the complimentary hotel boat shuttle that zips you up/down the Saigon River to/from the Cau Mong pier on the border of Districts 4 & 1. These run on a schedule (book at the reception beforehand), and if there isn't one when you need it, an Uber saves you the hassle of dealing with unscrupulous cabbies, and takes you to/from the middle of District 1 within 15min for around US$6- US$7. Now onto what this beautiful property IS: - It is infinitely charming. Every room is unique, and even the same room type will vary in size. You'll get the same awesome water pressure in the shower though, which we loved, and lightning fast wi-fi. Also, in our case, although the Sanctuary room that we were upgraded to was a bit petite in size, we had a wonderful good-sized balcony that overlooked the river...perfect for a mid-afternoon beer (complimentary from the minibar) or a snooze. Breakfasts by the river are a calming way to start the day, no matter what time you decide to rise (!!!), and the food is well- portioned and delicious. And THAT iced Vietnamese coffee...my partner and I will be dreaming of those until our next visit! - It is incredibly service oriented. From check-in to check-out, and for our every want in-between, the staff at Villa Song offer up their help with warmth and smiles...we felt truly welcomed and at home. Besides our complimentary room upgrade upon our late night check-in, we were surprised with a cheesecake plate that was decorated with warm wishes (the trip was a belated birthday trip for my partner) – we were very touched. - It is really good value for money. While it’s not the cheapest hotel around, it certainly delivers much better bang for your buck than you’d expect for similar boutique properties, especially if you can find a deal through a third party website. Bathrooms are fully equipped with toiletries, toothbrushes and other bits you may have forgotten, hairdryers, and in-room Nespresso and minibar is complimentary (albeit with a selection that’s a bit spare), and the value-add of the boat shuttle to town that I mentioned previously takes it to the next level. Thank you to everyone at the Villa Song for a wonderful stay! The next time we visit, we will definitely be indulging ourselves with a stay at one of your beautifully appointed suites. We can’t wait."

Glenburn Tea Estate: "One of the most amazing places we have ever stayed"

"We stayed at Glenburn for a long weekend. It was an unbelievable experience. Set in a truly unique location the estate is immaculately kept. Very nice rooms with magnificent views. The dining room is one very large table where all quests eat together. The food is excellent. The estate arranged various trips for us. They are very accommodating. We took a long walk down hill, several hours through absolutely gorgeous tea plantations. At the bottom Glenburn estate has a little cottage where lunch (with cold beers!) was served. We could have walked back up, but chose to drive back up. Very convenient. its the perfect place to unwind and relax and get a feel for this unique part of India."

The Island Lodge: "Perfect start to our Vietnamese adventure."

"Beautiful hideaway in the middle of the Mekong Delta. Room, food, staff and pool amazing; we loved our stay. A special thank-you to the wonderful gardener who jumped fully clothed into the Mekong to rescue my bifocal glasses when they accidentally dropped into river ! Thanks Amanda & Martin x"

The Village House: "Your own little village"

"I loved our stay at the Village House! First, just to make it clear, the Village House is NOT in the actual city of Kuching. It’s in Santubong Village, which I believe was about a 30 minute cab ride from Kuching. I didn’t experience much of Kuching, but I can tell you that being outside of the city felt very nice to my girlfriend and I. As we arrived during low season, my girlfriend and I had this wonderful little place virtually to ourselves. The rooms are not large and somewhat basic, but they were still comfortable. If you are a late starter or like to lounge in your room during the day, the rooms do get quite hot. A better option is to read, work, or internet surf by the pool and take an occasional dip to keep cool. The pool….beautiful. It’s not huge so I am unsure what it is like in high season, but my girlfriend and I shared some wonderful experiences there, including taking a swim during a tropical rainstorm. The design of the property is wonderful and it really does give you a feel that you are in your own village. It is well maintained and cared after by the staff. The staff was very friendly and accommodating, even for my sometimes demanding partner…oi! But I digress…they always did a nice job arranging transportation. We actually arrived when the governor of Sarawak had passed away so several companies stopped running in acknowledgment of the passing. This left us stranded on one excursion. But the staff stopped what they were doing and provided us transportation themselves. That was very kind and we were very grateful. Activities are not too far away. As a matter of fact, for some you are much closer than you would be in Kuching, like the Sarawak Cultural Village, Kuching Wetland National Park, Mt. Santubong, and the AMAZING Bako National Park. I highly recommend the Village House for your stay, especially if you are looking for a peaceful little haven. Stayed January 2017, traveled as a couple"

Neeleshwar Hermitage: "Outstanding"

This place is nothing short of top of the class! The food, rooms, service, amenities, beach and general 'vibe' (coupled with a near-perfect January climate) made for a perfect end of trip experience. If peace and quiet is not for you then the Hermitage is not for you. It might be 'off the beaten track' but it doesn't feel isolated. Terrific staff. Hard/Impossible to fault.

Manukan Island Resort: "Lazy days on the beach"

For the past few days in Sabah we wanted us to relax a bit and chose the nearby island of KK Manukan. Arrival / Room: Already at the pier we were surprised: by private email boat we were taken to the island. Us a cool water was also pressed into his hand the same. On the island you received us very friendly with a cool cloth and a tea / drink. Although we arrived already at 11 am, we moved into our beach villa same. We were told everything and there were apples ready and refrigerate soft drinks and replenished daily free water. Our Beach Villa was the first one up front at the reception and on the way, but the fact that we were on the first floor, the day visitors did not bother us. The room and the bathroom are really very nice, clean and large. It is anything useful present: flip-flops, flip-flops for outdoors, beach towels, shampoo, shower gel, a comb, a toothbrush, etc. The TV has some channels in English. The WiFi does so about 50% of the time works, and if so, then the connection was good. But since I do not know that there is absolutely WiFi, I was pleasantly surprised anyway. Beach: The private beach is very nice, the chairs and umbrellas are great. With us rarely strayed days Visitors on our beach and were usually relatively quickly pointed out by the staff that they are here only allows guests. In the water was only now and then someone Resort stranger. (But was apparently just not much going on). The hammocks were also very comfortable. Unfortunately, on the first two days, a bit much trash on the beach, and although actually some employees were traveling, was not collected the. But from the third day it was all super clean. Convenient to all Villa Beach residents might still be a shower or locker room at the private beach, one could go swimming on the last day even after checking out. but otherwise it is not far to the room, so do not disturb it. Since the seabed is very sandy, the water is not always clear, especially if it is something stormy. However, I found the snorkeling better than expected. You see a lot of fish and a few living coral there still. Restaurant: The breakfast was amazing. One can choose from 6 different dishes as much as you want but until you come to order, you already have fruit, yogurt, milk, cereal, bread, jams are at the table. as we were a few days there, we tried almost everything and it was all very good. The dinner was also very good, but the selection was not quite as big. The live music was not bad, but I found it funny when they are directly at the table, but the Asian tourists found the apparently quite cool. The prices of local I found okay, I had feared worse. The cocktails were not bad either. Other: there are from the infrastructure all it takes, there are two souvenir shops that sell snacks, drinks and ice cream, three restaurants (during the day), and a rental for lifejackets / snorkel / etc, you can book some tours on Downbelow. and the resort also offers a few specials on (dinner on the beach, BBQ, picnic basket, ...) All in all, we liked it really well on Manukan. The day trippers not really bother us, but it is also pretty cool, if you have the island from late afternoon almost alone for themselves. For us it was exactly what we had imagined. We did not want to be so far away from KK, a beautiful beach and a nice room, have to go a little snorkeling and walk a little. Those who place more emphasis on marine life, should perhaps rather long way from KK (eg Mantanani Iceland or, probably best to Semporna). But we have felt very comfortable and special and can highly recommend it. Which is a shame (for which the resort but nothing can), the many garbage which is not only washed ashore from the sea, but is mainly caused by the day trippers. People throw everything away easily or leave it. In addition, an extra is that one should not use plastic bags in the shops but they are used for all sorts of things.

Villa Song Saigon: "Villa Song January 17"

"We have stayed at Villa Song 4 times now and each visit has been excellent. The Management and staff are friendly and helpful. Breakfast is worth getting up for. I always enjoy my stay here due to the extremely comfortable beds and pillows. Stayed January 2017, traveled as a couple"

Locavore: "A.M.A.Z.I.N.G"

"It's just crazy how the guys and gals in the kitchen put together the meals. We enjoyed every single bite of our 7 course meal which turned out to be something around 16 courses! The drink pairing was perfectly fitting to the dishes. Service was nice and we had a great talk with the chefs while they were cooking since we were sitting at the kitchen bar, which was also an amazing experience. Thanks to the whole team and we are definitely coming back if we ever go to Bali again (and that might happen as well)"

Amata Lanna: "Hidden paradise"

"2 minutes walk from a charming river temple, this wonderful traditional thai-sytle hotel on two storeys is highly recommendable, to say the least. Set around a beautiful inner courtyard dominated by a large frangipani tree with star-shaped white flowers which fall from time to time into an oval swimming pool, you can sit and relax after a long day's sightseeing, contemplate the early morning over a delicious partially outdoor breakfast among huge ferns and thai garden ornaments, or sit and sip beer or free lemon-grass tea in the evening by the swimming pool with the trees lit up around you. The rooms, set around the courtyard, are spacious with 4-poster beds and thai furniture. If you want more light, go for the upper floor, but you are destined probably from all rooms to see the greenery from the windows. I thought the staff could have become my personal friends the way they were so personable. They had two bicycles that were for lending without charge and transport free to the airport in at least one direction. One night I got back very late and didn't want to go out on the dark streets alone, so I suggested getting a couple of mangoes to the night staff from the mango bowl in the reception area. Since they never charged me for this, the least I can do is write a review! To make one request for improvement I would ask for mosquito nets on at least one window in the hotel rooms so that you can enjoy the evening air in your own room in the cooler months without the risk of insects coming in. However, this is not probably a feature in many thai hotels, including all top hotels, as most people these days just want the air conditioning, which of course this hotel has."

Heritage Suites: "What a surprise"

"We didn't know where we going to be taken with a bit of a ride to get here on some back streets. As son as walked through the door we were greeted with towels and drinks and felt very much at home. We were upgraded to a better room due to it being low season so very nice. Service was impeccable and the place was spotless. We loved having the pool to come back to and yes we did swim au natural the night the manger dared us to being not many people booked in. :) We also had cocktails this night as she was doing a training for the staff so a very nice evening. The food was awesome could not fault at all. we would totally recommend this place and would happily come back here."