Guest Reviews

Rachamankha: "Outstanding"

Serene' - the word that best describes Rachamankha at Chiang Mai A beautiful property, lovely staff and an excellent restaurant. The hotel is a 10-15 min walk from the night markets/walking streets. Would love to come back some time in the future.

Locavore: "Taste Bud Experience"

We did the 7 course lunch with drink pairing. It was a great experience and we highly recommend it. Every course was sensational. It was a 2.5 hour food session that we will remember for a long time! Only suggestion would be explanation cards on each dish and drinks written in English as the normal language barrier plus background noises made it very hard to take in everything our waitress was explaining. Thank you Lavacore and see you again next time we visit.

Manukan Island Resort: "Great relaxing break"

"We stayed 2 nights in hillside villa 11. Boat trip over and back was included in the room cost. After a small mix up we travelled over on a day trippers boat which was fine. We were welcomed off the boat and taken through to the small reception room and given refresher towels and a drink while doing the paperwork. We knew we wouldn’t be able to get into our room straight away so had come prepared to swim. The pool was lovely and was never busy so we always felt like we were the only ones there. We relaxed on the beach until our room was ready an hour early. The room was amazing, beyond expectations. Everything was modern and clean. We were shown through and informed that the soft drinks in the fridge were complimentary which was a lovely touch. The view from both balconies was incredible and as our room faced away from the jetty we really didn’t even know day trippers were there until we went for a walk. The TV had a range of channels, the air con and fans worked well, and the hot water was easy to use just by turning on the switch half and hour before you wanted to use it. We were surprised to find the food was cheaper than at sutera harbour resort and just as lovely. We only had dinner at the restaurant the first night. The second night we decided to try the cheap take away stall near the beach mid afternoon and then just had snacks for dinner. The food at this stall was ok and really cheap. We had rice with beef and black bean sauce for 7.50rm. Breakfast had 6 items to order from but then they also brought extras to your table including fruit, bread to toast over coals, yogurt, juice and cereal. It was one of the more relaxing and enjoyable breakfasts I have had while travelling and certainly plentiful. We decided to travel to Sapi Island to go on the coral flyer and Ben organised for us to go on one of the island hopper boats. It seemed quite expensive to us but we were ok with that. Unfortunately the Coral flyer was fully booked when we got there but we enjoyed a snorkel and look around Sapi anyway. The internet was intermittent. We managed to log on in the mornings and evenings quite quickly but during the day it seemed more difficult. This didn’t really bother us as it is nice to be without internet and not constantly checking it. The things that we didn’t enjoy about Manukan Island were way beyond the resorts control so would in no way negatively review the resort for them, but here they are. The water was very murky. That was probably the biggest disappointment. I’m guessing that time of year and number of boats can affect that but for us it was almost zero visibility. We were fortunate to see a lot of wildlife, some more friendly than others. We spotted the birds the island is named after on our way back from sunset point as well as some fireflies. We saw a rhinoceros beetle and some geckos on our balcony. We spotted a couple of monitor lizards around the island. Now the not so nice ones. We had a snake go across our balcony but were assured it was harmless and Ben said he has only seen a handful in all his years on the island. Then we had a centipede in our bath. As soon as we informed staff it was gone within 5 minutes which was appreciated. When we left we were walked out to the jetty and put on the resort boat and waved off. Amongst the boards of day trippers this made us feel pretty special. We were the only ones on the boat and the trip back was smooth and easy. Over all I would highly recommend Manukan Island as a lovely relaxing get away, just don’t expect to spend the whole time snorkeling."

Maduzi Hotel: "Favourite Hotel"

Their service is always impeccable. They revamped their breakfast menu and it's amazing. Apart from healthy options, they added fancy options like truffle quiche. You must try their freshly baked croissant too... you will not regret it. It is literally the best croissant I've ever had. I've stayed in Maduzi for my last three trips to bkk and I plan to come back for my future trips.

MesaStila: "Java at its best"

"MesaStila is one of those places that blows you away. So many things about our trip far exceeded our expectations. The food was awesome. The rooms are beautiful. A highlight was the Easter Egg painting hunt that the staff ran for our two little boys. Yokyo (maybe not correct spelling) was sweet and made sure our little ones felt special. Thank you. We hope to be back. "

CABOCHON: "A Special Spot in Bangkok"

"I hope as my first post that a rather gushing review does not come off as unauthentic. I'd be happy for anyone to message me with questions as I really do think the Cabochon is a special place with kind and attentive staff. My wife and I arranged a 50th birthday weekend for a friend and chose the Cabochon as both our hotel and the restaurant for the birthday dinner. We had 9 rooms at the hotel, with 18 adults and 4 children joining. We first discovered the hotel a few years back when some friends living close by in Bangkok took us to dinner at the hotel restaurant, Thai Lao Yeh. Late last year (2015) we went back for dinner on our own and were so impressed we asked to tour some rooms with the intention of possibly selecting this as the venue for the 50th birthday weekend trip. Once the staff showed us a selection of rooms we were hooked. In hindsight I made many mistakes in coordinating such a large group. Rin, who had coincidentally been our waiter on our second Thai Lao Yeh dinner, wound up being our primary contact. Honestly I did not make it easy for Rin, yet he was able to handle request after request and never once let us down. In the end the weekend went perfectly, and everyone in our party commented how much they loved the hotel and restaurant. Let me give some targeted commentary that I hope others will find useful. Restaurant - See my (future) Thai Lao Yeh review. Atmosphere - Historic luxury, so you would think... You absolutely won't believe the hotel was relatively recently built from the ground up. The owner, architect, and builders have done an amazing job not only decorating the entire hotel with vintage pieces, but the actual structure itself (walls, door frames, etc) has been made to look aged. Multiple people in our party commented on this. It has to be seen to be believed. Staff - I have stayed at multiple top tier properties in Sukhumvit and wider Bangkok. The service was 5 star quality, with boutique friendliness. Rin was really a standout for us, but all staff were great. Rooms - The vintage look and feel does not result in any compromises on practicality. The bed was comfortable, as was the lounge furniture in our large balcony suite. The bathroom was spacious, well equipped, and worked as expected. Ground Floor Lounges - Do yourself a favor and have a drink in the lounge. Calling it a ""lounge"" may give the wrong impression. There are actually multiple sitting rooms. Choose your spot, sit back, relax, and soak in the vibe. Breakfast - If you're used to a large hotel's buffet your first impression might be negative, but the selection of fruits, breads, and a main never became boring over the 4 meals we enjoyed on this visit. Pool - It does not compare to the resort luxury of the SGS, but let's be honest the Cabochon just doesn't have the space or army of staff to compete in this area. The pool was practical, well maintained, and proved to be a nice place to hang out with friends and cool down. I can imagine during the hotter summer months it could be a bit too hot to spend extended hours poolside, so if this is your thing then look for another hotel. Location - This is the only area I have not given them 5 points. They are a little further away from both shopping and transportation than some of the hotels centered around Asok or Nana on the Sky Train. You will need to walk 7 minutes to get to Phrom Phong for the closest mall and concentration of shops and restaurants. That said, the peace and quiet of being setback about 200 meters from the street noise of Sukhumvit should be appealing to some. Without a doubt the Cabochon is now my go to Bangkok hotel. The cost performance is top class, the hotel restaurant is honestly one of the best restaurants (if not the best) in all of Bangkok, and the staff are extremely helpful. You can't go wrong if all of my commentary above resonates with you -- really. "

Maduzi Hotel: "Fantastic"

It is good to know there is a little oasis right in the centre of Bangkok. A great location right at the intersection of the MRT and BTS so travelling around is made easy. The rooms are large and comfortable, especially the beds that provide the best sleep. The staff are all very friendly and helpful that compliments the design and creative art work throughout. Breakfast is a treat with plenty of choices to please the palette. This will be my number one choice for a hotel in Bangkok going forward.

4 Rivers Floating Lodge: "Fantastic break from the outside world!"

During our trip of Cambodia (Jan'18), we spent two nights here and thoroughly enjoyed our stay. We drove from Sihanoukville International Airport and were able to reach their reception point in little under 3 hours. The 25 min ride from the reception point to the actual lodge builds up the anticipation in a good way as some of the scenery is just jaw-dropping. Quant little tents with all the required amenities, extremely comfortable and a private deck for yourself, which you can use for enjoying the sun or jumping into the Tatai River wherever you want. With little or no phone connectivity (only Metfone has any sort of connectivity here), you can switch off from the outside world and just spend time with nature. They also take you in a boat to enjoy the sights of fireflies in the evening and it looks magical. You can enjoy the sunset as well (an hour's ride in a boat down the Tatai river) or other trips that they can arrange for you on demand. They maintain a decent DVD collection which you can use (they don't have satellite TV and this is a good change). Paulo (manager) and Narayan were super hospitable and ensured that every little request is taken care of and that you are well looked after. I would recommend this to anyone traveling to Cambodia.

Rachamankha: "You have to stay here……"

"OUTSTANDING, with a fabulous wow factor as soon as you drive into the courtyard. This hotel is a little gem so really I don't want to big it up too much as I wish for it to stay just as it is and always have a room available for me to stay for when I want to pop over to stay for a long weekend...... Paul walker, the GM, leads a great team. The service, food, amenities ( Molton Brown ) rooms, public areas of the hotel are all GREAT. Its a perfect stay for a short break and I will most definitely be retuning"

The Hue House: "Lovely Place with good food"

"Should to come with a special person of you from 04hPm to enjoy the sunset at this rooftop Res, enjoy wine and scenery on this place. Open space with good food. Just take a time to come here have dinner when you traveling in HCMC, will be the opportunity to explore for sure."