LDNConsultant

Seoul, South Korea

Since 2006, I’ve never spent more than a week in Seoul. I always preferred to go back to my parents home in California or explore Europe. After constant short visits, my hometown felt distant but for me nothing has changed.

Seoul is a huge metropolitan area and boasts circa 20 million people, but our family have long moved out of Seoul, to a place called Bundang. As Wikipedia states “it’s the first and largest completely artificial city built in the early 1990s” – but the place is still as packed, since many families have flocked out of Gangnam-Gu for more spacious living conditions.

For the next 10 days – it was constant:

• Meeting family
• Preparation for the wedding
• Finalizing the dress & fit
• Studio Photo Shoots

However, I did have some time to go back to couple of my favorite and/or new restaurants in Seoul/Bundang. Even though I lived most of my life outside of South Korea, I always love Korean food (its probably my favorite to be honest).


Home cooked is always the best - first meal prepared by my Mother In Law. Fresh Fish and Sashimi, Abalone, various types of kimchee and others


Korean Beef in the international scene is extremely underrated but the marveling and the flavor was fantastic on this sirloin!


One of my wife's favorite pub in Seoul. Very retro and and the deep fried spicy chicken gizzard was fantastic!


Melting Shop in Cheong Dam Dong. This restaurant has been featured in numerous TV shows and its one of my favorite Korean/Italian Fushion. This is Meseng Seaweed and Clam Pasta

Korean Style Beef Tar Tar on top of flat bread


How could I not have Tuna in Korea - the cuts are far better than what you can get in New York/US. My personal favorite is the cheek meat, the texture is excellent!

Seoul and Korea has so much more to offer than just "BBQ" and "Bi Bim Bab". I would like to say, I probably eat BBQ maybe one every two weeks (at most) but sadly due to our wedding we couldn't really indulge in our favorites which is not limited to - Fried Chicken, Skewers, Pork Trotters and other!!

LDNConsultant

Le Meridien Hotel Seoul

Both my wife and I live quite far away from the wedding venue (Lotte Hotel Jamsil) as well as Cheong Dam Dong (where we have to do our make up before the wedding). The thought of driving early Saturday morning to the hotel as well as make up studio made us both exhausted.

Thus, I began my search for a hotel in Gangnam District, which was a reasonable distance to both the wedding venue as well as the make up studio. As a legacy SPG Ambassador, I will prefer staying at legacy SPG Hotels due to their staff/front desk being able to recognize and deliver the same SPG service prior to its merger to Marriott.

After some consideration, we decided to book the Le Meridien Hotel since this is one of the few full service hotel in Gangnam District.
Room booked: Classic King, Guest Room, 1 King, City View
Room received: Studio Suite, 1 King, City View

This was a former Ritz-Carlton Seoul and completed renovation in September 2017 and the hotel lobby and the main entrance is a 5 minutes walk from Sinnonhyeon Subway Station (currently as of February 2019 – the area near the subway station is conducting massive construction. However the noise and the construction was some distance away from the hotel).

The hotel lobby is on top of a small hill and the hotel entrance and it’s a typical Le Meridien hotel and design (very chic design and entrance). The check-in was very efficient with a dedicated Elite Member check-in desk at the right corner of the main lobby. The staff recognized my Ambassador benefit and presented me to choose one of the welcome amenity:

• 1,000 Points
• Breakfast at the Terrace Buffet
• Welcome Gift

Also they informed me that I was upgraded to the Studio Suite – which I was quite thankful for since my wife and I had a total of 4 check in carriers and 2 carry on luggage. The Studio Suite King was on the small end but it was sufficient for one night at circa 500 sq feet.


As you walk in you have the closet, mini bar, fridge on your left hand side. I loved their hangers - it was extremely nice and sturdy for winter coats.


Since it is a Studio, the half of the section has a sofa, small table and a TV


The other half the room was a King Size bed. Right next to the bed was an USB Plug as well as universal power plus (I'm still not 100% sure why some hotels haven't upgraded to these yet)


As you turn right from the hall way you will see a sink, shower and a toilet. As typical Le Meridien fashion, all the toiletries are Malin + Goetz.




I'm a huge fan of bidet!!


My Ambassador informed the hotel that I was traveling for my wedding and my honeymoon. So the hotel did prepare some bottle of wine as well as some cheese!

The room was sufficient for one night and with the location (around major tech and finance companies), it works great for business traveler.

As Ambassador, I was entitled to use the Club Lounge which offered breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea and happy hour drinks. The food and drinks were decent in comparison to lounges in the US and the service was extremely attentive. I wouldn't spend all my time in the lounge but it was extremely quiet post breakfast as well as lunch time to work and make couple calls. The afternoon tea as well as happy hours were filled with guests who were enjoying their drinks and taking numerous photos.

Since it was a day before our big day, both the wife and I did not do anything crazy (just a quick drink and a couple massage). Next day we woke up early circa 7am and headed down to Terrace Buffet on Ground Floor for breakfast. The breakfast was a buffet with a combination of Korean, Eastern and Western cuisines (apologies no photos) but from memory:

• Korean
• Chinese
• Japanese
• Western
• Fruit
• Fresh Juice Counter
• Coffee/Tea Counter
• Salad

For breakfast the offering was immense and tasted much better than the Sheraton Seoul Palace Gangnam. After a checking out, we called the taxi to leave our luggage in Lotte Seoul Jamsil and prepared for our big DAY!!

After a chaotic 9 hours.... all was a quick blur! Now 100% ready for the honeymoon!!


Wedding Photo

LDNConsultant

Seoul (Incheon Airport) – Bangkok

Flight Number: TG 655
Flight Route: ICN - BKK
Departure Time: 10:05 PM KST
Take Off: 10:27 PM KST
Landing: 01:56 AM ICT (+1)
Gate Arrival: 02:04 AM ICT (+1)
Aircraft: Boeing 777-200
Seat: 15B and 15D

After a chaotic and eventful day, we woke up bright and early to have breakfast at Lotte Jamsil Hotel. Since it was Sunday, the restaurant on 2nd floor was extremely packed with kids and family. Luckily since we held our wedding at Lotte Hotel, it included a free room and breakfast. Even thought we arrived at around 9am, the restaurant had a line of at least 15 groups – but luckily the hotel manager saw us and gave us a table immediately (due to us holding the wedding). The breakfast was not that much memorable as well as I didn’t carry my iPhone down to take any photos. It had your usual selection of Korean, Western, Chinese, Salad, Fruit and Noodle Station. The beauty of this hotel is that its connected to Lotte World – a theme park in Central Seoul as well as Lotte Mall.

Wife and I had a quick sushi lunch and we headed back to our room to pack. In preparation for both winter and summer weather, our suitcase was packed with swimming suit, t-shirts, sweaters, coats and parka. For an expected 9:00pm departure, we finished packing and left the hotel at about circa 04:30pm. There are several ways to get to ICN from Seoul:

• Option 1: Taxi
• Option 2: Subway and then Train
• Option 3: Airport Shuttle Bus

The with so much luggage – Option 2 was unrealistic (plus my wife hates walking around – more on that in later TR) and Option 1 with the amount of luggage, we would have had to call a van which would cost circa 110,000 KRW (calling the driver directly and will cost circa $110 USD) or Option 3 which would cost 16,000 KRW per person (circa $16 USD per person). Luckily, the airport shuttle bus was a short 2 minutes walk from the hotel’s main lobby and the concierge was gracious enough to help carry out luggage to the airport shuttle bus stop.

The airport shuttle bus (at peak hours) arrives twice an hour and its extremely convenient. There is ample room for luggage below and the bus has wifi, TV and wide leather seats. From Seoul (pending your location), it will take about 50 – 70 minutes to T2 (KE and Sky Team) and 60 – 90 minute to T1 (Asiana and all other airlines).

With the opening of T2, Korean Airline and other Sky Team airlines moved out of T1. The check-in was nothing special and there was no one in Business Check-In Line.


Koreans are extremely proud people and they will always try and praise “Korean” made products/services as world class. No doubt ICN was a massive improvement to Gimpo when it was first opened and ICN have made several improvements throughout the year. However, by no means and I agree with Lucky in his OneMileataTime post (link) – ICN is extremely overrated. The frustration starts off at security check point. Between each check in section, there are security check-points. However, ICN doesn’t offer any priority lines for frequent flyers and Business/First class passengers. There is a separate line for VIP/Elders/Disability/Government Officials but my frustration with this airport starts off at security. The security was a breeze (it took about 20 – 25 minutes) to get through security and immigration. The e-gates were not working for me but the immigration line took at most 5 minutes. Post clearing security, you will enter the main terminal lobby and post my last visit (circa 2015) T1’s shopping and restaurant selection has massively improved and included many luxury brands.

Normally, I would make a little room to visit the lounge at airports and especially at airports such as HKG, DXB, AUH, DOH, SIN and LHR, however, the lounges at ICN (both at T1 and T2) are mediocre at best. As Star Alliance Gold and Business Class Passenger, the wife and I tried to visit the Asiana Business Class Lounge in Gate 26 (Central), however it was extremely packed and crowded. With a lack of any seating space and mediocre drinks/food – the wife and I headed to a food court for our last Korean meal.


Cold Korean Noodles with a side of marinated beef bulgogi and a pint of Heineken (total circa 15,000 KRW or $15 USD)

With a scheduled 09:25PM departure, my wife and I headed to our gate at about 20 minutes before boarding at about 8:45PM. We started boarding on time and my wife and I headed to our seats. At first sight, it's just simple: Thai Airways simply does not offer a competitive business class product on its 777-200. While these seats are great for lounging, these “angel lie-flag” seats are not ideal for sleeping. At first the pillow and the blanket were excellent – soft and firm.

The amenity kits weren’t amazing but the contents are below (didn’t actually keep any of it – so decided to take a photo).









Sadly with the current weather conditions in Korea, we were delayed 40 minutes to non other than… “SMOG”. Shockingly, Seoul and South Korea’s air quality has dropped immensely in the recent years due to smog from China as well as numerous cars/plants in the Korean peninsula.

I think the wedding stress and fatigue finally hit and we fell asleep immediately and woke up 30 minutes before landing at BKK.

I’m pretty sure long haul Business/First in Thai Airways is fantastic – however on regional/short haul, Thai Airways business class is well below average. It’s not something I would wholly avoid, but if I had the opportunity – I would have flied KE on this route which offers 777-300, A380 and A330 or Thai Airway’s A350 (which flies this route but it was extremely early in the morning) which offers fully flat business seats.

One thing to state is that BKK immigration line can be tricky. My wife and I arrived at 2:00am and I believer it took a good hour to get through immigration. Thus, if you are flying business, please please please get the priority immigration pass.

LDNConsultant

The Athenee Hotel, a Luxury Collection Hotel (Day 1)

When picking hotels in Bangkok, I wanted to stay at the W Bangkok – however my wife provided a firm veto. We booked the Athenee Hotel on points and applied my 2 Suite Night Awards (“SNA”). As a note, Athenne Hotel is now a Category 5 hotel and now costs 35,000 points in standard category. With several days before the stay, I got a confirmation that by room has been upgraded.

Room booked: Athenne Non-Smoking, 1 King Bed
Room received: Athenee Suite Club Access, 1 Bedroom Suite, 1 King City View

As this is my second time in Bangkok, I’m not 100% familiar with the surroundings. With the amount of luggage we had to carry, I decided to book a car service from the hotel. The options they provided were:

• BMW 7 Series: 3,200 THB per way
• Volkswagen Van: 3,500 THB per way

Just due to the sheer amount of luggage we had, we booked the Volkswagen Van and oh boy we were glad we did (it was just nice not to deal with grabbing a taxi/uber at 3am in the morning).

Without any traffic, we arrived at the hotel at about 3:30am and we promptly got checked in. As you enter the hotel you are amazed by the beautiful entrance – it’s a great mix of modern and elegant décor. The check-in was extremely efficient and they had all the paperwork ready. As an Ambassador - they presented me with a choice of the normal welcome amenity:

• 1,000 Points
• Breakfast at the Rain Tree Cafe
• Welcome Gift

For my amenity, I choice the Breakfast at the Rain Tree Cafe since I'm not a huge fan of breakfast the lounge. Also they informed me that I was upgraded to the Athenne Suite. After quick photos around the room (prior to getting messy), my wife and I feel asleep almost immediately!


Up bright and early the next day for breakfast


The entrance of the room and on the right side there is a bathroom (sadly the toilet's power to drain was slightly questionable at best)

Immediately as you turn left, you have a desk as well as section for fridge/coffee/water

The living room area

Immediately from the living room is the bedroom and the master bathroom

The lovely king size bed. I will once again comment that I love hotels with universal + USB plugs!

I thought this was plenty of room for our luggage (oh boy I was mistaken)........



The hotel and the room was elegant and my wife loved the decor and the color. Now a quick shower and to bed!

LDNConsultant

The Athenee Hotel, a Luxury Collection Hotel (Day 2)

For someone who slept at 4am in the morning, I sure did wake up bright and early at 7:30am and after a quick shower I discovered that inside the wooden box in the living room – it contained dried mango, kiwi and walnuts. These were fantastic little snacks to give me energy throughout the trip!



Before going down for breakfast at the Rain Tree Café, the wife and I decided to visit the Royal Club Lounge on the 26th Floor. The Club Lounge offers:

• Breakfast from 06:30 AM – 10:30 AM
• Afternoon Tea from 02:30 PM – 04:30 PM
• Evening Cocktails from 04:00 PM – 08:00 PM
• Evening Hors D’Oeuvres from 05:00 PM – 08:00 PM
• Light Snacks from 06:30 AM – 11:30 PM

At first sight the lounge is HUGE (it is probably 2/3 of the entire floor) and consists of:

• Coffee/Drinks Bar
• Dedicated Concierge Area
• Tons of Seating
• Buffet/Food Serving Area

Drinks and Bar area in the lounge - didn't manage to visit the lounge during Happy Hour. However, their coffee in the morning was excellent

2n half of the seating area

Dedicated Concierge Area in the Lounge - which was extremely helpful in booking us a dinner reservation

Dining Room Area

Breakfast in the loungIMG_5336.jpege was quite extensive - western (e.g. eggs, sausage, pancakes, waffle), asian (thai, chinese, dimsum), fruit, bread and pastry

Post touring the Royal Club Lounge, my wife and I headed down to the Rain Tree Café for breakfast! It was much more extensive than the Royal Club Lounge offerings


Make your own oatmeal station

Cold meat and fish

Salad Toppings - my wife is a huge fan of the seaweed salad

Fresh salad and dressing

Freshly squeezed fruit & vegetable juice station was available and it was fantastic

Bread and fresh pastry

Bread and fresh pastry

Ice Cream in the morning

Cheese section

Egg Station - scrambled, omelette and others

Skewered meat and fish station. It was freshly grilled and the flavors were fantastic!

Roast Meat

Customize Noodle Station

Indian Breakfast Offerings

Chinese breakfast offerings - dimsum and congee

Additionally, there is western (e.g. bacon, sausage and etc.) as well as Japanese (e.g., miso soup, grilled fish and etc.) options. I loved the breakfast options at the hotel - the food was always fresh and with the numerous options available, no one will get bored!

After breakfast, my wife and I made a quick trip to the supermarket at All Seasons Place to do a quick shopping. In humid countries, I'm often bitten by mosquitos and Thailand is no exception! Two hours into the morning and I saw several bites on my leg and my ankles. I recommend Soffell - which you can buy at the local 7-11, connivence store and pharmacy.

After shopping, my wife and I decided to get a massage at the Spa (located on the 4th floor). As an Ambassador I was given:

• 15% discount on my massage
• Extra 15 minute massage of my choice (e.g. head, back, neck & shoulder)

For a hour 45 minute (which 15 minute was complementary) massage + discount it was a total of 5,000 TBH (2 people) - I thought it was reasonable. For reference, my wife and I aren't a fan of humid weather and instead of touring the typical tourist areas of Bangkok, we decided to spend a relaxing afternoon at the pool


Calm and peaceful

For lunch, we ordered the wagyu beef burger, pizza, beer and cocktail from the Bar on 5th Floor. For reference Marriott elite members are entitled (depending on the level) to 10% (Silver), 15% (Gold) and 20% (Platinum Elite, Titanium and Ambassador) to food and beverage across SPG/Marriott hotels in Thailand.

After afternoon massage and relaxation at the pool - we were ready for dinner at one of my favorite restaurants in Bangkok. The House of Sathorn at the W Bangkok. The House of Sathorn is housed in a historic building in Bangkok and it served as site for the USSR/Russia Embassy until 1999. After it went through an extensive renovation and it reopened in 2015 as House of Sathorn. The restaurant has been ranked as Asia's Top 50 Restaurants and offers an innovative Asian fusion dishes.


House of Sathron Bar


Garden Area


Freshly baked bread

Australian Wagyu Rib- Eye with a side of water spinach and Thai Style deep fried baby chicken

Atheene Hotel called the restaurant ahead and informed them it was our honeymoon. They provided dessert on the house

After quick GRAB ride back to the hotel, my wife and I caught a quick movie and went to bed. Even though our night wasn't filled with bar hopping, night markets and shopping - my wife enjoyed her first stay in Bangkok

Conclusion:
The hotel was fantastic - it was situated in a mostly business and Embassy district, but it was elegant and the service was impeccable. For people who enjoy the quieter side of Bangkok and located a short taxi/GRAB ride away from bars/restaurants, I would highly recommend Athenee Hotel.

fotographer

What a wonderful report, so far.. nice photos, enjoy your honeymoon

LDNConsultant

Thanks now slowly writing my trip report in NYC - hopefully you are enjoying it

farbster

Very nice report. They're hard! I have two that are backlogged and hope to get to them soon.

I noticed that your report featured pictures with you before the wedding band and also after

Keep up the work! If there are any other wedding pics and there were traditional Korean elements, I'd be interested to see.

Mazel Tov!!

LDNConsultant

Thank You - this is my first (but not my last) trip report and I didn't realize this would be so much work but now that I have so much free time (taking a career break) hopefully this should be done soon!

We actually didn't have a korean wedding after this one since that would require so much prep and time! But also a very keen eye on the wedding band

mavisretreat

looks awesome

SQTraveller

I've flown their short haul flights but on long haul planes - they are notorious for swapping planes a lot so you might get TG'd!

How come it still took you an hour to get through immigration if you were travelling business class? It's never taken me that long when I travel business

And yes it does indeed look fantastic. The breakfast in particular seemed really great

I don't normally eat beef, and yet this looked particularly appealing!!

RTW4

Fantastic trip report. CONGRATS on your marriage! These are extraordinary photos.......

LDNConsultant

Thanks - was planning this honeymoon for sometime and glad you enjoying the TR!

The immigration individuals at BKK insisted that I needed to obtain a priority pass slip from airline + business class ticket boarding pass to use the priority line (which was quite annoying). The breakfast was great and its very extensive - highly recommended!!

Thank for the comment and hopefully you are enjoying the TR. I think I'm 1/3 done actually ahahhaah

LDNConsultant

Bangkok – Koh Samui

Flight Number: PG 961
Flight Route: BKK – USM
Departure Time: 06:15 PM EST
Take Off: 02:46 PM ICT
Landing: 03:56 PM ICT
Gate Arrival: 04:06 ICT
Aircraft: Boeing A319
Seat: 9D and 9E

I was extremely excited for this flight not because of the experience but because of the destination. I always wanted to go to Koh Samui and I was fortunate to go for my honeymoon (what could be better)! In preparation for our flight, we checked out of Athenee Hotel at 11:30AM to give us ample time to arrive and check in at BKK. However, we called our GRAB at 11:00AM but it failed to show up after 20 minutes and it kept cancelling on me. Thus, I asked the hotel concierge to book us a taxi and it cost a total of 600 THB (I think next time when I arrive to BKK, I would definitely just use GRAB/Taxi).

After a 30-minute drive to BKK, we were headed to Bangkok Airline Check In Counter. The check-in was very efficient, however with the amount of luggage (each individual was allowed 1 check in luggage of 20KG each and any more will cost depending upon the destination), we had to pay an extra $60 USD for 1 extra luggage of 23 KG. After quick security, we were headed to one of the priority pass lounges in the BKK’s Domestic Terminal.

Note: Everyone whom flies Bangkok Airways is entitled to lounge access. The Boutique Lounge (opposite of A3 Gate) is available to everyone, however with Priority Pass (courtesy of Chase Sapphire Reserve), individuals are allowed access to Blue Ribbon Club Lounge (it’s a business class lounge for Bangkok Airways).
It’s a small lounge but it was SO much better than waiting at the gate. The self-service area has numerous options:

• Dimsum
• Cold & Hot Drinks
• Alcohol drinks were available on request
• Hot Food were available on request. This time the food was comprised of – 1. Shrimp Wonton Noodles, 2. Curry and 3. Duck Breast Noodles

Lounge (courtesy of Lounge Buddy)

10 minutes before scheduled boarding, my wife and I had slowly walked to the gate. The check-in was efficient and we were bussed to our gate.


Bus to aircraft

As usual little bit tighter than Lufthansa First Class but this will do for an one hour flight


Not bad for 1 hour flight

Welcome to paradise



After a quick one hour flight, we finally landed in Koh Samui! Welcome to island paradise! After a quite long wait at luggage carousel (3 check-in luggage), my wife and I headed to the airport meeting point to be picked up by the hotel car service. The hotel car services prices and options were:

• Mercedes Benz: 2,700 THB (1 way) and 5,000 THB (Round Trip)
• SUV: 1,200 THB (1 way) and 2,000 THB (Round Trip)
• VAN: 1,700 THB (1 way) and 3,200 THB (Round Trip)

Due to our luggage, we ordered the SUV and the driver was waiting for us at the meeting point. Its always nice to be greeted at the airport and whisked off to the hotel in a cold/AC car!

LDNConsultant

Vana Belle, a Luxury Collection Resort, Koh Samui (Day 1)

When picking a hotel in Koh Samui, I wanted to stay a quiet resort (within the SPG/Marriott portfolio). As usual, my wife veto the W Koh Samui straight away as well as the Ritz Carlton (due to not offering breakfast as a welcome amenity as well as the resort not having beach access) – we deicded on Vana Belle, Koh Samui!

We booked the Vana Belle Koh Samui using my company’s corporate code which allowed:

• A much discounted rate in comparison to prepaid rate (for my room type it was circa 20% off)
• Breakfast
• Flexibility in the booking (could cancel the booking a week before check-in)

Room booked and received: Tropical Pool Villa, 1 King Bed and Butler

The car ride took about 30 minutes and we finally arrived at the Vana Belle Koh Samui. Before entering the resort, all vehicles go through a quick security prior to entrance. From the main gate it’s a quick 2-3 minutes drive before arriving at the resort entrance.


Welcome to the Vane Belle, A Luxury Collection Resort, Koh Samui


We were greeted by out Butler (Tong) who was extremely helpful and informative throughout our stay. Before actually checking in, Tong performed a quick hand washing welcome ritual. It was stated that this is to “wash away any bad fortune/luck” and after the ritual, we were taken down stairs to the check in area. At check in area, we were offered a cool and refreshing drink and Tong continued with the check in process.




Resort Lobby


Wow this is truly paradise!

Check In Area

Fresh Cold Towers and Marriott Ambassador Benefit/Check List

Our cold refreshing coconut drink

As an Ambassador - they presented me with a choice of the normal welcome amenity:

• 1,000 Points
• Breakfast at the Kiree Restaurant
• Welcome Gift

Additionally since this was our honeymoon Tong stated that he arranged 2 free drinks a night at the Lobby Lounge (which was a nice touch and my wife and I often went there for our night drinks).

For welcome amenity – I chose the Platinum Gift which is a Khunchon Waree which is a:

• A marine based creature, which has combined features of an elephant and a fish. With quite a strange combination; the creature has only elephant head, 2 front legs of an elephant and the body of a fish, the creature is able to swim swiftly under water.

Welcome Amenity - Khunchon Waree Glass figure

After check-in we rode the golf cart to our room – which was named Ratri (Cestrum Nocturnum). It’s a small flower with a sweet aroma and apparently the scent gets stronger after sunset. Apparently that’s why it’s called Ratri “night time” in Thai.



Tong also brought us handmade soap as present

Once we arrived at our villa, we were mesmerized by the privacy and the size of the villa. The villa is huge – 2,271 square feet and was ample size for both my wife and I throughout the trip. As per the website, the villas’s 2,271 sq feet consist of circa 600 sq ft (indoor) + circa 600 sq ft (pool) + remaining probably consists of the outside areas.


Entrance to our villa

down we go

As you enter and make a left - ample closet space for all our luggage and clothes. Luckily one of the closet contained a beach bag and mosquito spray

Bathroom and Shower

Bathtub

Double Sink - always useful when coming with the wife

King Size bed as well as two sliding doors to our private outdoor pool. Next to the bed was a small sitting area with a sofa and a table


Our private pool for the stay - the pool circa 600 sq ft which was ample enough for a lap



Our butler Tong surprised us with a bottle of pressco, hand written letter and dessert since it was our honeymoon

After having a tour around the room - my wife and I were pleased that we booked this specific room in cash instead of hoping for an upgrade at check-in. The villa was extremely secluded and private. Along the pool and the beach there are a total of 3 Tropical Pool villas (there are 2 villas right near the pool and 1 villa right front of the beach – which offers no privacy). I would recommend anyone who wants peace and privacy, I would book one of the Tropical Villa and ask for a more private villa.

Post getting familiar with the villa, my wife and I checked out the rest of the property. At first we decided to walk from our room the beach and the pool, but it was quite a bit of a walk (so next time we called a golf cart). When we arrived, both my wife and I were like “WOW – its pure paradise” and it truly was. The pool contains 3 private cabanas that often do fill up quickly and there are numerous pool chairs throughout the beach for guests to use.


Courtesy of Marriott.com (forgot to actually take a photo of the pool)

Just further out from the pool is the main beach which has gorgeous/soft sand. The water was extremely clear but due to the rain (couple weeks ago) there was a lot of trash on the beach (which I was shocked that it wasn’t cleaned by the staff). Fortunately, although this is technically part of Chaweng beach – its much more secluded and only encounter Vana Belle and Sheraton (sister hotel) guests.


Chaweng Beach

For dinner, Tong helped us reserve seafood BBQ (which is only available on Tuesday and Thursday for 2,500 THB per person) at the Panali (which is an Italian Restaurant near the pool). As a reminder (same as Athenee Hotel in Bangkok) Marriott elite members are entitled (depending on the level) to 10% (Silver), 15% (Gold) and 20% (Platinum Elite, Titanium and Ambassador) to food and beverage across SPG/Marriott hotels in Thailand.

Given the quality of the resort, I was really looking forward to food and beverage. Koh Samui and Thailand – which is famous for their fresh seafood – my wife and I went overboard when ordering. Since this was seafood BBQ buffet, we had choice of:

• Lobster
• Fish
• Scallop
• Crab
• Large Prawns
• Mussels
• Beef
• Chicken
• Pork

Patiently waiting for the restaurant to open since we arrived a slight early


Dinner being prepped by the staff

Dessert

Food which consist of salad, fresh vegetable, other hot food, sauce and bread

Lobster, Fish, Scallop, Crab, Large Prawns, Mussels, Beef, Chicken and Pork


And to be honest we went crazy by ordering as much seafood as possible! Once you pick your ammo, the chef will freshly grill them and bring them to your table. The end result was a little hit and miss.


Round 1

The seafood didn't taste as fresh and the chicken/beef/pork was a little tough than expected. However, after having only a light lunch - my wife and I went a little crazy and had probably went back 3 or 4 more times.

After an extremely FULL dinner, we went upstairs to Lounge Bar to partake in our free drinks

Thank You Tong for these drinks

After a quick drink, we slowly went back to our villa to enjoy a quick night swim!