ElegantSolution

I want to visit angkor wat and relax on the beach for a few days with my girlfriend. Considering Song Saa, SSYN and Amanpuri for the beach. Any views on those choices? I am worried Song Saa is a bit rough and Amanpuri is a bit old and not in top shape. Pretty much ruled out SSYN as not being up to the same standard but location looks amazing!

Thinking Amansara in siem reap but wondering if it is worth the premium. Shitamani and belmond get very strong reviews

offerendum

Amanoi or Six Senses Ninh van Bay could be an option. Good connections to Siam Reap from Vietnam.

quitecontrary

In Siem Reap I suggest the Park Hyatt beautifully renovated by Bill Bensley.

FlyerEC

Would say that Amans are what they are , & as of now , worth your while staying if you expect the best all round . This being the case , if you are intending only to visit Siem Reap only once , then go for Sara . Or PH , then Sara for a return visit .
Amanpuri , though the oldest of all Amans , is not old but a classic with the best beach around . If you prefer a more contemporary feel , select a villa . You can choose from the last phase where the architecture is different & not built in Thai house style . Also some owners have have also decorated their holiday home with a more modern touch .
All exquisite to stay in ..
As has been suggested , N'oi is also an option but the beach sand there isn't as fine as in Puri . Pulo is " too far " to fly to but maybe worthwhile considering if you have the time . Best save for another trip .
It's usually not easy to stay elsewhere after experiencing Amans .

When are you planning on going ? It can make a real difference experience

xray

Just back from Siem Reap and still jetlagged but I did stay at both Amansara and PH. It was actually a last minute decision to add Amansara. I love Aman but the price premium relative to PH did make me do a double take.

I would say without hesitation that as a first-time visitor to REP, Amansara was wonderful and worth the $. The food was delicious, Sally the GM is lovely and our pool villa was so serene. Early morning access to Angkor Wat and the private breakfast at a village house were highlights. PH was nice too but not in the same league and I felt that our perception of REP would have been totally different had we only stayed there.

Had good meals at Khmer Touch and Mie Cafe in town.

Also a vote for Amanpuri where the rooms are still great no matter the age...

Pausanias

Hello ElegantSolution and welcome to these pages. My advice is this: Amansara is worth the cost because it's all-inclusive and the tours to the ruins are the probably the best available. If you stay at the PH or another hotel you will need to add in the cost of meals, drinks, tours etc and then Amansara almost seems like a bargain. Apart from Amantaka in Laos, this is the best Aman I've been to. ALSO - I urge you to stay no less than four nights to do Angkor justice.

If you spend a lot on Amansara I don't think it's necessary to pay Aman rates at Phuket. Yes, Amanpuri is a nice hotel and quite historic considering the influence it has had. But Phuket has several spectacular hotels and so do Koh Samui and the Phi Phi islands.

Also, don't forget Cambodia has a coastline which looks like Phuket and Krabi. There are some fledgling luxury resorts out there at a fraction of the cost of Amanpuri. Phuket is very touristy these days and personally I avoid it.

MacMyDay

In December our holiday went something like: Amanpulo -> Amanoi -> PH, Siem Reap -> Song Saa -> Amansara -> PH, Saigon. It was too much hassle to get from Amanoi down to Song Saa in a single trip, which is why we stayed the night.

To answer the OP's original question, I'd say it depends what you're looking for. I appear to be the anomaly here when I say that I did not think Amansara was good value for money, although that is not to say I didn't enjoy it. Song Saa I do consider good value for money, but at the same time just didn't absolutely love it, mostly due to the fact that we had just been to Amanpulo, which it simply could not compete against. Their staff were not quite as polished, but management really, really care and are omnipresent and I feel they will eventually become a truly top-end resort.

MattEvan

For Siem Reap (and Cambodia, in general), I cannot recommend this tour company enough: https://www.aboutasiatravel.com/

They have conducted detailed crowd studies at the complex, and create "crowd avoidance" itineraries.

xray

Yes, Amansara rates do include tours and half-board which does add value but it's a stretch to say paying $1500 a night is a bargain

It's still an amazing experience and I think it's not to be missed in Siem Reap !

FlyerEC

+1

Sally B & team at Sara will take superb care of all who stay , Amanjunkies or not ..

When at Puri , Harish & seasoned team can arrange off site visits to special spots , & the other tourists / touristy areas can be avoided
These days , we hardly leave Puri save for a meal in Phuket Old Town to dine at Raya in their private room This can be a somewhat mini excursion as you will see parts of Phuket & also see some areas that are covered on a " tour " .
Then one of Puri ' s highlights , one can enjoy her fleet of boats / yachts / junk to the islands , etc .

If you opt for N'oi ' , Sean F , will be on hand as his team , to make your stay in the national park an extra special time . A real feat having an Aman in one of Vietnam ' s largest national parks / reserves .

If one does opt for Pulo on this trip , what can I say , private island idyll & pampered by Tapa T & his extremely capable & warm team .

All these Amans do become like family , for some Amanjunkies perhaps even better , sadly , than family ..

And welcome to FT ElegantSolution !

bhrubin

Having been to Amansara (and 9 other Amans), I wholeheartedly agree that Amansara is worth every penny. We were there in Jan 2014 and absolutely loved it. GM Sally is a treasure, and we had the additional plus of really getting to know fabulous Audrey (F&B) and Molly (chef), too.

Having everything seamlessly included at Amansara makes it SO easy. Having your Angkor excursions included ALSO means you can schedule them at your whim. One evening, we decided to delay our morning excursion and do it at a more reasonable hour instead of very early like they recommend, and that was done--no problem, immediately. We decided the next day to start our afternoon excursion a bit earlier, and that was done. The flexibility of having those excursions as part of the overall tab really made our visits all the more luxurious for us--instead of being committed to a schedule that we couldn't optimize based on temperature, conditions, and/or how much we'd had to drink the previous night.

Plus the F&B is fantastic at Amansara. Their breakfasts alone were to die for, but our lunches and dinners were also amazing.

We did dine at the Park Hyatt, and we enjoyed it--their pre-fixe was fantastic. But the Amansara experience is SO much more than a hotel. The PH was a very nice hotel...but still a hotel. We are thrilled that we chose to spend the money on Amansara.

If you can afford it, stay at Amansara. It doesn't disappoint.

Beach resorts to me are a dime a dozen. Amanpuri hasn't ever much interested me; Song Saa was the place we wanted to go after/before Amansara. Unfortunately, we couldn't fit that into our trip. I love Amans...but Amanpuri has such mixed reviews on service that I wouldn't opt to stay there. I would opt for another beach resort in Thailand or Malaysia that isn't on the beaten path as much as Phuket. It sounds like you may be of similar mind...? So worry less about Song Saa being too rustic and go and try it! It naturally lends itself to combination with Amansara, after all.

glennaa11

I was in Siem Reap recently. Stayed at the Shinta Mani Club. It shows up on best hotels in the world lists all the time. And for good reason. I loved every minute of it. The rooms are quite nice, but no nicer than many hotels. But the staff is absolutely amazing. I've never felt so at home in a hotel. In fact whenever you return there's some one to greet you and say "welcome home". The service is relaxed and friendly. They anticipate your needs beautifully. I would happily stay there again any time. The pool is smallish but you also have access to the larger facilities at the Shinta Mani Resort across the street.

THEJOCK

Has anyone had any experience at Phum Baitang?