If I had to describe a heavenly
place to spend a romantic (or family) holiday, it would be this one: it meets
all the requirements.
Magnificent beach, impressive rain
forest, stunning room, good food, good spa, impeccable service, memorable
sunrises and sunsets...A tranquil, hidden place in the middle of nowhere.
Datai Bay is located on Langkawi, an
island to the north-west of Malaysia, less than an hour's flight from Kuala
Lumpur.
Four years ago, I stayed at The
Andaman, a Luxury Collection Resort. It is surrounded by a ten million year old
rainforest and by an eight thousand year old coral reef. The architecture
blends beautifully into its environment.
The hotel entrance is at the bottom
of the hill - we arrived in an open style lobby and
reception. On arrival, we were welcomed with instrumental music, and we
were served drinks and given a refreshing towel.
The hotel has four restaurants:
fresh seafood, Malaysian, Japanese, and the main restaurant, which serves a
daily breakfast buffet and specialises in Italian cuisine in the evening. I
found the food quality very good, but not gastronomic.
I stayed in a standard bedroom:
large, beautiful and modern, with plenty of natural light coming from the large
glass doors. The room had a balcony from where I could view the lush garden and
the swimming pool. The lovely bathroom was very large
with excellent toiletries. I also loved the attention to detail: on the
small table in the bedroom, there was a plate of fresh fruit which was replenished
every day, along with a welcome tray of chocolates and bottles of water, daily
papers etc...
I was enchanted with Datai Beach, arguably
one of the best beaches on Langkawi, which is quiet, secluded and clean. This
remote beach is difficult for the public to access, so it is only shared by two
hotels: The Andaman and the Datai Resort.
Every day in the morning I walked
the entire length of the bay before taking a dip at the beach. After, I would
sunbathe on one of the many readily available beach chairs. In the afternoon, I used to spend some time at the resort’s lagoon-style pool. During our stay I
enjoyed watching the sunset while having a cocktail on the beach.
Another
memorable experience was my long walks along a paved
path that led up to the V Botanical Spa villas located on the hillside. From
there, the view of Datai Bay and the Andaman Sea was breath-taking. A “must do”
at The Andaman is its Spa - V Integrated Wellness. The Spa treatments were
excellent and worth every penny. I loved the massages and was able to choose
the oil I wanted. The environment was gorgeous.
The Andaman has a number of
activities on offer, from rainforest nature walks, coral nursery visits and cooking
classes to golf and kayaking. Nevertheless, if you want a thrill you can always
visit the Crocodile Farm, one of the two main tourist attractions on Langkawi…While
I was at the hotel I admired a wonderful wedding from a distance, which was a
perfect intimate celebration for about 30 guests.
But, my nostalgic review would not
be complete without my friends...the monkeys. Those clever creatures, who stole
my fresh fruit every day, were so cute and funny. Completely unafraid of
humans, they used to approach me and escort me on my way up to the Spa on the
hillside. They were an entertainment in themselves. I loved to watch them and
hear them leaping from tree to tree or from balcony to balcony.
Note: All the photos were taken with my
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W50 compact camera.
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