I want to go to FS tented camp but I find their 'adventure' dull.
The location looks fab as does the resort but the adventure part doesnt interest me. I think that if I go I would have to create my own adventure itenary and avoid the set 'adventure' for the most part. The Mahout training would bore me.
At Amanwana I thought the waterfall trip, the snorkelling at the volcano crater and with the turtles and the Komodo visit and the many other interests on Moyo great. I dont scuba dive by the way.

Keep in mind the resort is a good distance from Chiang Rai.... 3 nights is really perfect here. If you must have 4 and the resort is at full occupancy it will be hard for you to get in with additional elephant time. Perhaps an additional spa treatment. To be honest with you, I found the long tail boat ride and the city visit very lame. I skipped the Opiuim centre in favour of some pool time.

Ok, so the pool and spa were good, but not the adventure part. If added adventure is an additional spa treatment you could be anywhere...

The draw is the elephants, in a more or less natural enviroment. In fact, the draw really is the physical plant and enviroment. There isn't any hardcore adventure or death defying stunts.

I beg to differ. We're on the way back from Aman-i-Khas now and saw 5 different tigers over the course of 7 game drives. And the park itself is much more beautiful than most of what we saw in S. Africa and Botswana.

Trip report coming soon!

P.S. We've always thought that Amanwana would be awesome for luxury/adventure when combined with the sailing to Komodo Island.

We did four nights here in August and are really glad we splurged on the extra night. We also skipped the Opium centre and the city visit because they didn't really grab us, and we skipped the Burma excursion for political reasons. We heard from others who went on these outings that we made the right call. We did spring for the cooking class and really enjoyed that immensely. Spa experience was sub-par but I get the sense that we just had bad luck and others have had better experiences.

For what it's worth, I recommend going for four nights and doing just the activities you enjoy and at the pace you enjoy. If you go for 3 nights and do all the activities they plan for you, you barely have any downtime to just relax and enjoy yourself.

Highlights were the elephants, lounging on our terrace, meals which were consistently excellent, the cooking class, sundowners at Burma Bar, and that bathtub.

Downsides were the pool and the spa experience. Really absolutely worth the trip but having done it once we're more likely to keep trying different places now.

Like the OP, we came back from the Tented Camp wanting to find other properties that delivered luxury but still broke loose a bit from the standard resort idea. So we'll be spending this new year's eve at Aman-i-khas, combined with a few nights each at Amanbagh, Amarvillas, and - we hope - the new Aman in New Delhi if it's open.

Don't be so sure. It's bareback riding unlike the usual sit-in-the basket thing. I found it came surprisingly naturally to me, and they entrusted me with the only male elephant there (named "Lucky Boy" for obvious reasons) who was a lot of fun but a real challenge to keep on course, especially with the added pressure of being in lead position/

Thanks very much for the feedback. I think I had assumed that the cooking class was included (as I had assumed most things were), so I'm a little surprised that you were required to "spring" for it.

No, not free. There is a specific list of activities you get free depending on how many days you are there (spa treatment, airport tranfers, elephant, village excusion) but other stuff - cooking classes, extra spa treatments, etc are additional although priced reasonably I though.

If gardens are your thing, you can take a car to visit what I seem to remember is the King' mothers summer house.

To be honest, I remember reading somewhere that there is actually quite a lot to do in the local area. FS is very cagey, however, and doesn't put anything in your room telling you what is available should you choose to leave the complex. It is part of the 'stagey' nature of the place (which I loved, by the way) - ie they deliver you to the property by boat, when actually it is substantially quicker and easier to get there by car. There is no practical need for the boat ride at all.

When I was there I did not want to do the village excursion and they happily let me take the cooking lesson in exchange (for free). Of course, this was soon after the opening of the place, so things may have changed since then.

perhaps something like this >

http://www.centurionthemagazine.com/...nd-targhee.pdf (page 3)

http://www.blueparallel.com/

I take back my comment, then - that is AMAZING that you saw so many tigers. maybe I will go back. We only saw footprints.

I'll mention another resort: The El Questro Homestead in the remote Kimberleys Region of Western Australia.

It is not that easy to get there (closes intentional airport is DRW) and you will need a 4WD for the last stretches. Or have the lodge pick you up from Kununurra. The lodge is closed during the wet season but during the dry it is a magnificent place.
The property is huge and most places are only accessible by helicopter it basically is its own national park.
Will and Celia Burrell turned the 1MM acre cattle station into this property and sold it to Voyages a couple of years ago.