On arrival you reception staff will greet you with an ice cold wipe for your hands and a glass of lemon fruit drink.

So let’s talk about villas. Staff will get you to your villa using a golf cabin. And trust me, you will be surprised by the feeling of a privacy that will be all around you. You will get your own villa with 2 rooms, bathroom, large terrace and a small spa house. Of course there’s also a huge swimming pool, which you will enjoy.

Decorations are mixed Asian and Japanese style. At first look you will think they are old furniture, but they are not. It’s just a style, and to be honest, I loved it. It is a very clean look overall. And villas are surrounded by plants, water and of course huge fences, so no one will disrupt you from yourself.

Of course having such an open area and water will bring in some insects, which might be an issue if you dislike their presence. But they are not very annoying.

Food is very good. And there is no difference if you will eat in the restaurant or they will deliver the food to your villa, which is a nice additional bonus. Basically food is a choice between Thai and Mediterranean.

Also you should try food at Coustiero. If you can wait about 30 minutes, you will get a top quality ingredients and perfect flavour pasta, best in Thailand so far.

Other then resorts and you villas, the place is not a very relaxing. On your way to resort in your taxi/cab, try to not look around unless you reach your destination. Place is a very poor, and you might be disappointed by your thoughts of how poor whole Thai people actually live in there.

A lot of Villas have their own swimming pools. Again, you should keep in mind that Phuket is a tropical island, so you can experience some insects, frogs or lizards. Who knows who will be your guest at your swimming pools soon? Not sure if this is a minus though, since pretty much all intruders that we experienced had non abusive manner.

This place is also highly recommended for honeymoons. Actually it screams “honeymoon” with it’s chapel and privacy. Everyone who has a romantic heart really should give Banyan Tree a chance to prove them they can give you best of the best vacation. You will not want to stay in Four Seasons or Ritz Carlton after Banyan Tree though.

As a small tip, try to avoid La Tratoria - Italian restaurant in a different hotel near to Banyan Tree. People say it’s not good enough.

We got there from Six Senses Hideaway Yao Noi(which is also a very good Spa, but that’s a different story). Our 30 minute boat ride was relaxing, and we were surprised and amazed by the looks of surroundings, while on the boat.

One thing we noticed when we did our tour, was that it was far from completion to our looks. But still, all we had to say was “wow”. Everything that is there, has such an amazing attention to details, that for the first day, we had nothing else then “wow”.

It has both inside and outside spas, and it will really convert most of the “best of the best” luxury spa resort visitors to it’s side.

A few excerpts are:

1. We are able to eat everything we have growing around our villa or property. Yes, it’s that simple. You like this fruit, you can take it and eat it. As fresh as it is. Yummy!
2. Combination of four spas in one. They have both Indian Spa, Indonesian Spa, Chinese Spa and of course Thai Spa. And it’s not just a small area, but a complete spa resorts. They even have a salon called the hair spa. No need to mention color therapy spaces, watsu areas, pilates, kenisis, long awaited feng shui gyms and a lof of other offerings are all there. It’s really easier to list what they don’t offer, then what they actually do.
3. Everything you see around is also screams ecology. A lot of ecologically embedded practices involved.
4. Food is as fresh as it can be. Garden-fresh ingridients, raw food restaurants and spa-celebrity chefs are all there!
5. There is also amazing 7th Sense that is going to be introduces.
6. And of course it is going to be the most expensive spa in the world. Worth it or not? We certainly think it’s worth every cent of the price. But of course, not everyone will be able to enjoy such a Spa for a holiday that is longer then 7 days.