Koh Phi Phi Islands

Located 45 minutes boat ride from Phuket or Krabi - Southern Thailand, Phi Phi Island was made famous by the movie "The Beach" staring Leonardo de Caprio. These islands are stunningly beautiful with beaches of powdery sand...

Sala Phuket Resort & Spa

Sala Phuket is a stunning new pool villa resort, featuring private swimming pools in its 63 villas and suites. This sino-portugese architecture design resort has won numerous awards since its opening not too long ago. Located on Mai Khao beach, a national reserved, which mean no commercial activities on the beach. Sala Phuket is just 10 minutes from Phuket International Airport.

We love our Sala Pool Villa No 48. It is located at the secluded end of a long pathway. The pool and outdoor bath area is stunning especially with lighting at night. We spent the whole day in the villa as it is so comfortable and relaxing. Good place to read a good book, have a cocktail, and have a no-bikini line sun tanning.

This resort is so exclusive that we hardly see or hear anyone accept going to the restaurant for our meal. The restaurant is located next to the swimming pool and facing the Andaman sea. The food here is fantastic. We tried the Sundays Fisherman's Catch... A whole mud crab is steamed in saffron broth with wine, garlic, sweet peppers, and potatoes. Rock lobsters and tiger prawns seasoned with cajun spice & herb oil and char grilled over coconet wood...yummy!

The spa is good with attentive staffs. I especially enjoyed the snacks and ginger tea after the spa treatment. I like the design of the whole spa area from the feature wall, wood carving wall and table, furnitures, and floor tiles... all well put together. Walking thru the misty path to the massage treatment room was an experience.

Sala Phuket is very suitable for couples retreat as it's very excludie and there are not many families and kids around. If you want a lot of privacy and exclusivity, this is the resort to stay in. I must say that it's one of the best designed hotel in Phuket.

http://www.salaphuket.com/

One Island One Resort - Pangkor Laut Resort

The Spa Village at Pangkor Laut Resort is a unique retreat that offers extensive range of treatments from China, Japan, India, Thailand, Bali, and Malaysia. 22 beautiful Spa Villas situated over the sea offer direct access to the Spa Village. We enjoyed every moments when we set foot on this private island with only one resort. It is a great weekend getaway or a spa retreat vacation destination.

We are most impressed by the Spa Village. The Spa Village Bath House bath rituals experience is really relaxing. It starts with a "Foot Pounding", a traditional practiced in the feudal China for relief of pain and blood circulation. Followed by the "Malay Bath", we walk thru a waterfall bath and four types of herbal inhalation - Passion, Calming, Uplifting and Detox.

After the herbal inhalation, we were refreshed and was ursher to an outdoor hotwater jacuzzi next to Japanese bath house. After 15 minutes of dipping in hot water under the trees canopy, it's time to enter the Japanese bath house for a "Japanese Bath". I am talking about sitting on a small stool and pour water over yourself with a dipper... You basically use the Goshi-goshi cloth with bath gel to scrub your body in the bath.

Lastly, when you are done, you will be ursher to a pavilion with your partner for the "Shanghai Scrub". Previously offered extensively to males in Shanghai. The body is vigorously scrubbed with a body brush and rinsed with sizzling hot water.

When we have completed the Bath Ritual, we were escorted to the library pavilion by the beach. We were then served with ginger tea and snacks. While waiting for our massage, we found overselves some interesting books about the histrory of the island. After about 10 minutes, it's time for a massage. I had the best massage ever.... Hawaiian Lomi-Lomi Massage. Pangkor Laut Resort is indeed one of the best Asian spa retreat for couples.

The Chedi Club, Ubud Bali

WR's favorite exotic spa resort 2008 is The Chedi Club at Tanah Gajah, Ubud Bali!

I stumble upon this development after two months of search in the net. My wife and I spent 4 days in the beautiful resort. Don't ask how much we spent on the trip as we pempled ourselves with spa treatments, massage, and good food.

Only 20 suites within Nestled within an exclusive estate surrounded by lush greenery and verdant rice fields, The Chedi Club at Tanah Gajah in Ubud, is among the best Bali luxury resorts and hotels. Surrounded on all sides by green rice fields, it is a haven of tranquility. There are 20 elegant villas and suites at this charming Ubud hideaway, one of the best Bali resorts, with even standard suites sporting generously large bedrooms and bathrooms with bathtubs, outdoor showers, and private terraces. Guests at the Spa Villas with private massage suites, saunas and cold plunge pools, can enjoy morning massages, afternoon spa treatments and a spa breakfast for two.

The Restaurant menu offers a harmonious balance of delectable Balinese and Indonesian cuisine utilizing the best and freshest ingredients harvested from the resort's own bountiful herb and vegetable gardens.

A personal butler was assigned to us on arrival. He even took us for paddy field trekking & a walk to a nearby wood carving village. Because of low density with only 20 suites on a land size of 5 hectars, we really enjoyed the privacy and exclusiveness of staying here.

http://www.ghmhotels.com/hotels/hotel_home.asp?hotelid=12&section=home

Ritz Carlton Bali (now rebranded as AYANA Resort & Spa)

The Ritz Carlton Bali (now rebranded as AYANA Resort & Spa) set on 77 hectares of lush tropical gardens above Jimbaran Bay. The resort enjoys majestic views and at a secluded location, yet is just 10 kilometers from Bali’s airport. This resort is the most spacious and one of the most acclaimed Bali luxury hotels. For a completely indulgent Bali luxury romantic vacation, escape to a private oceanfront villa, dine at it's lavish restaurants, or just relax by the poolside with no schedule except your next treatment at the Thermes Marins Spa and award-winning Spa on the Rocks. A world of discovery and Balinese hospitality awaits you at this Bali resort hotel.

The spa was great and I particularly like it's architecture and design. It is also an eco friendly resort. I discover it one day while having our dinner at the restaurant. We were sitted at one of the pavilion by the large lily filled pond. There were fishes, frogs, and lilies all over. All of a sudden, a fish jump out of the water and a four feet long giant iguana appeared and was searching for food at the pond. The waiter told us that there are many wildlifes visit the resort and there are allowed to romp freely without disturben.

The service of the resort was second to non as we experienced it during our four days stay there. One of our most memorable moments was during a hot sunny afternoon while we were both sun-tannig by the poolside. Looking towards the infinity pool with the Indian Ocean as the backdrop, some guest were hanging out at the edge of the pool enjoying the magnificent view. While waiting for our cocktail drinks that we ordered earlier, we were offered cutted fresh-cold watermelons.... it was refreshing especially under the hot sun.......the next moment, the same waiter went into the pool (in his uniform) with the fruits tray and walk towards the guest who's hanging out at the pool edge.... Now that's cool!

Recently I read a book call "The New Gold Standard" by Dr Joseph Michelli, author of best selling business books including “The Starbucks Experience.” He uncovers the secrets of world-class leadership in this book “The New Gold Standard: Five Leadership Principles for Creating a Legendary Customer Experience Courtesy Of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company.” This is the first time the award-winning global hospitality and lifestyle company has shared such detailed information on its corporate culture and service philosophy. This includes discovering how to engage customer loyalty, measure results, and retain the best talent in a service economy. This is a great book and I learned a lot from it that I can apply at work or business.

In 2009, the management of Ritz Carlton started the Bulgari Hotel and therefore, no longer managing this property. It is now rebranded as AYANA Resort and Spa by another operator. If I have the chance, I will definately come back to see what's new here.