theLuxuryTravelExpert

I recently enjoyed a 5 night stay at Soneva Kiri. It’s one of the most exclusive resorts that I ever visited. IMHO, it cannot get any better than this. The travel experience was mind-blowing from start to end! A few hiccups happened during my stay (1 major one), albeit none of them affected my overall satisfaction).

I made a Youtube clip with my impressions of Soneva Kiri:
I will post some photos in the next post (below this post).

PROS & THINGS I LIKED (A LOT):

• Pre-arrival communication with the resort was excellent: all our emails were answered within 24 hours.
• The transfer from Bangkok to Soneva Kiri is done by the resort’s luxurious private plane (an eight-seater Cessna Grand Caravan). The planes have the Soneva Kiri logo, although the resort subcontracts the flight operations to a local carrier. We arrived at Bangkok Suvarnabhumi International Airport in the morning with SWISS (I was not impressed by that flight though), were met by a Soneva representative, chauffeured in a BMW7 to Bangkok’s other airport (Don Muang Airport), where another representative was waiting for us to check us in for the domestic flight to Soneva Kiri.
• The flight from Bangkok to Soneva Kiri took about 90 minutes and is in fact a very scenic, low flying,sightseeing trip over Eastern Thailand: about half of it takes place over land, and the remaining half of over the Gulf of Thailand’s turquoise waters. The plane lands at Soneva’s Kiri private airstrip on a neighboring island, and from there, it’s another 5 minutes by speedboat to the resort, where the staff waiting to welcome us to paradise, with a smile and a refreshing cold towel.
• Soneva Kiri’s natural landscape is stunningly beautiful. The resort is located on a large domain in a remote corner on the northwest of Koh Kood, Thailand’s 4th largest island located not far from the Cambodian border. With hills covered by lush tropical rainforest, and sugar-white beaches lapped by crystal clear waters, these are IMHO the most pristine resort grounds that I ever visited.
• Because the resort grounds are so spread out (e.g. it takes 2 km from the main facilities to the private beach club), guests are given personal electric buggies to get around for the duration of their stay (one per villa).
• Within Soneva Kiri’s private resort grounds, you will find an incredibly beautiful beach, located along a coconut grove and composed of white, powdery soft sand. The beach (with its beach club, watersports and restaurant) is only accessible to the resort’s guests. The sea is ridiculously clear and has remarkably warm water. The beach is beautiful as the ones on the Maldives!
• While the resort itself is oriented towards the north and east, the beach is oriented towards the west, guaranteeing maximal sun exposure all day long and offering incredible views of thespectacular sunsets.
• The center of the resort, located in the jungle, is a spectacular latticework of pathways and wood pavilions that look like they’re straight out of a Robinson Crusoe fairytale. Here, you find the reception, library, bar, the Dining Room restaurant, jewelry shop. and the resort’s own chocolate & ice cream parlour.
• Soneva Kiri has 24 resort villas and 11 private residences. We stayed in two of them: a cliff pool and an ocean front pool villa suite. Both villas were massive in scale (all of Soneva Kiri’s villas rank easily amongst the world’s largest hotel accommodations). In Soneva’s trademark rustic-chic eco-design, both villas featured a large outdoor living area and indoor, air-conditioned bedrooms, surrounded by spectacular a private pools. The semi-outdoor, en-suite bathrooms were beautifully designed. In all my travels, I have never been more impressed and ‘wowed’ by a hotel accommodation than here.
• A personal butler – called a Mr. or Ms. “Friday” – is appointed to all guests to help you make the most of your stay.
• Breakfast, lunch and dinner at Soneva Kiri are stellar culinary experiences, because of the extravagant restaurant settings, the amazing food, and top-quality service. My personal highlight was Benz’ restaurant, an authentic Thai eatery on stilts in the mangroves nearby the resort (you get there by boat). The resort’s other fine dining venue, the View restaurant, offers Western cuisine, accompanied by incredible vistas of the sunset over the Gulf of Thailand. The resort’s 3rd restaurant, the Dining room, is a less formal affair and is also the decor of the sumptuous breakfast buffet, undoubtedly one of the best that I have ever seen.
• And if the restaurants mentioned above won’t do it for you, then there’s always Soneva’s Kiri Treepod. We did not dine there, but had afternoon tea, and the experience is mindblowing. You are seated in bamboo pod which is lifted high up into the forest’s canopy, and the waiter delivers the food by zip-line.
• There’s a lot to do within the resort: different types of sports (e.g. mountain biking, catamaran sailing, diving, kayaking, tennis, etc …) , a variety of excursions (including a visit to the island’s local villages, cooking classes and a sightseeing trip to Angkor Wat).
• The resort has its own spectacular open-door cinema (in the jungle, above the resort’s water reservoir). They featured 2 movies most of the nights we were there: one for children, followed by one for the adults.
• The resort’s excellent spa is operated by Six Senses. Treatments are very good!
• Everyone, from management to our Friday, was superfriendly and service was impeccable.

CONS & THINGS TO KNOW

• While most will love the spectacular transfer in the resort’s private plane, the thought of flying (overwater) on one engine in a small plane (albeit with 2 pilots) for 90 minutes can make people – including myself – nervous. And it doesn’t help when there’s no safety briefing (where are the life jackets?) and when the pilot is reading the check list of an engine failure during the flight and in clear sight of the passengers (which was the case during our flight). Having said that, you don’t have to fly to get to Soneva Kiri as you can also get there from Bangkok by car (3 to 4 hours), followed by a 40 min boat transfer. So, your flying phobia should not be an excuse to skip this exceptional, highly recommended resort. I made a seperate Youtube clip aboard the resort’s private plane if this helps to ease the nerves: • The first night, our villa ran out of hot water, and that’s not what you want to happen when you pay more than 1500 USD per night. Since the staff could not immediately fix the issue, and since no other villa was available, we had no other option than using the bathroom of the spa, and moving to another villa the next day. I understand this can happen, and the management was very apologetic about it and offered us some extras (which was difficult given the fact that our package included so many things already). I still feel that when this kind of unexpected, unacceptable and major inconvenience occurs, the best thing a hotel management can do is simply wave the charge of that night (or refund it), which did not happen.
• Most of the resort’s villa are located in the jungle, where wildlife is present. It’s just a fantastic addition to an already exceptional resort, and you should feel lucky when you get to spot one of the more elusive wildlife creatures. However, some may find the presence of wildlife uncomfortable or the noise it makes at night annoying. More troublesome are the mosquitos and sand flies which are for real in the rainy season (May to October).
• The resort has 24 one-bedroom villas, ranging from the ‘cliff pool villa suite’ (lowest room category) and the ‘bayview pool villa suite’ to the ‘ocean front pool villa suites’ (highest room category). We stayed in 2 of them: a cliff pool and ocean front pool villa suite. While we loved both villa types, we felt that the ocean front villa suites – which are the most expensive one-room villas – have a slightly misleading designation, as they are not really ocean front but are built around an inlet of the sea (more like a lagoon); in addition, they have a rather dull looking garden in front of them as well as some kind of a ‘beach’ (which is non-existing at high tide and more of a mudpool at low tide). In fact, we could only see the sea from our ocean front villa suite through a small gap in the foliage (see photos).
• All your other trips will pale in comparison to (the memory of) a Soneva Kiri vacation :-).

theLuxuryTravelExpert

xracer

Thank you for taking the time to post the review and video/pictures.

I have always loved the concept of this place. I just wish it wasn't so, so rustic. Those completely open-air bathrooms are a real no-go for me. But I know there are those here who love that rustic look and feel, and for them, this place seems pretty much perfect.

TOMFORD

Thanks for the pics and videos. The place looks amazing!

pricesquire

Interesting bit of anecdotal, third-party evidence: My boss (Michael Holtz, who wouldn't mind me saying this) claims this is the best resort he's been to in Asia. Period. (This is a man who travels 250 days a year, all at lux hotels). I tend to think he's onto something, despite the rustic look of the place.

offerendum

I would opt for the car Transfer, especially as 15kg lagguage is not my world (more 45) But I must say I really would like to stay at Soneva Kiri, it´s on my list!

Aventine

Me too. Just can't do it either.

pricesquire

It's worth noting that FSGT also has open air bathrooms. Screened in, yes. AC, no.

Ericka

I've often wondered about this resort. Thanks!
Did you happen to do any snorkeling while you were there?

LuxuryRogue

Thank you for this very interesting report.

From the fotos, my initial impression was not so "rustic". In the OPs description of "Soneva’s trademark rustic-chic eco-design" I saw predominantly chic, colorful design. It does appeal to me. But then, I haven't been at the Soneva Kiri yet.

MacMyDay

Thanks for the great report.

We were looking to go here last year, but chose Song Saa instead. Unfortunately whilst there, I discovered that I just wasn't as much a fan of the rustic look as I hoped; I don't think I'll be taking that chance again.

Is there any relation between the Mr./Ms. Friday and http://www.gili-lankanfushi.com/mald...rfridayconcept ?

MikeFromTokyo

Of course it is the same thing. Gili Lankanfushi was originally Soneva Gili@:-)

xracer

I assume you mean Four Seasons Golden Triangle.

If so, your statement is not completely true. Yes, the shower is outside. But the main portion of the bathroom (sinks, changing area, tub, closet) is inside the tent, which is A/C. The WC is also inside the tent.

For me, personally, the part of the bathroom that I wan't to be enclosed and temperature controlled is the area where the toilet/sinks/changing/closet is. I'm fine with an outdoor shower.

Sorry, did not mean to take this off topic.

Kagehitokiri

great videos/photos, thanks
any of villas from beach?

http://www.soneva.com/residences/son...ces-masterplan
https://www.mrandmrssmith.com/luxury...eva-kiri/rooms
not all soneva bathrooms are outdoors

Aventine

Still won't be able to do it!