PHUKET… THE LAND OF SUN AND SMILES

So our new best holiday destination has become Phuket. A direct flight straight from Kolkata to Phuket, under 3 hours and there you  are… in a tropical paradise with an endless choice of super luxury hotels, cuisines from all over the world and the freshest ingredients you could ask for. We went in the beginning of July and celebrated Vinay’s birthday there and then we returned 3 months later to get away from the hustle and bustle of Kolkata during the Puja’s. The flight leaves Kolkata at a rather unearthly hour of about 6.30 am but the good thing is that you are sitting by the beach having lunch sipping on a glass of chilled wine by 1pm. 

In July we stayed at  the Anantara Layan which was outstanding… right from the location ( just 20 mins from the airport), to the villas, to the choice of restaurants ( there is an all day dining restaurant by the pool and near the beach which has a super selection, the breakfast restaurant transforms into Zuma at night which may not have the ambience of the Bangkok one but has the same delicious food and cocktails, a super Thai restaurant and a very high end Continental restaurant called Age. The staff are really friendly and one day we had pre ordered some Lebanese food at lunchtime as they required 24 hours notice but when we went they realised they had forgotten. In a flash the manager came up to us and informed us that the whole lunch and any alcohol we had was complimentary since they had goofed up. Now that is called service and because of this kind gesture I didn’t even have a drink!!! We celebrated Vinay’s birthday during this trip and I must say the hotel outdid itself by giving him three cakes throughout the day… does that make him 3 years older?? One thing to note is that since the hotel is situated on the mountain side some villas have about 20-30 steps going up to them after the buggy drops you off. Fortunately I had read this when we booked so we specifically asked for a villa without the steps. We were lucky because our villa no 24 was just a five minute walk from the main pool area, the beach and the breakfast area so it was very convenient. We have our eye on villa 9 on our next trip as this has beach access. 

We have a very fixed and I’m sure some would say boring routine when we go on these beach  holidays. After a leisurely breakfast we go and sit under the shade by the pool and just relax by reading, playing scrabble and cards and I love taking short swims in the pool every hour. I don’t particularly like going into the sea on my own but love just walking on the beach listening to the sound of the waves lapping up to the sand. We have our lunch by the pool and then Vinay goes to have a nap and I usually just stay put and go in time for a cup of tea and we get ready to go out for dinner. A massage on these holidays is a must and we usually alternate between a 90 minute body massage in the hotel spa to a 90 min foot massage at one of the hundreds of parlours dotted around. Since I haven’t slept during the day I normally have a short power nap during my massage and wake up rejuvenated!

During our recent trip we decided to try a different property and stayed at The Intercontinental in Kamala Beach. This is also a wonderful hotel and I would highly recommend it also. I would say that the food and service are all pretty much on par but I found the villa here was slightly bigger with a huge dressing room and the pool was absolutely gorgeous. There were floor to ceiling windows which opened out right to the pool and the pool was big enough to actually swim in… not just float in. On our first night it absolutely poured cats and dogs and I was sure that water was going to seep into our room so I got up a couple of times in the night to check but of course all was ok. There was even full glass windows in the bathroom and a bathtub was situated right along the pool.

The Intercontinental is split into two parts.. the Hillside and the Beachside with a road in between but they are more than happy to transport you in a buggy and have even made a tunnel under the road to make life even easier. Here also we just ate lunch in the beach restaurant which has a massive menu so we didn’t ever have to repeat our meal!! Dinners were mostly out and over the two trips we covered Thai, Japanese, Lebanese, Swiss, French, Seafood, Teppanyaki and I’m sure I’m missing out a couple more. The choice is unlimited!!

I would say that the breakfast at the Anantara was far superior to the Intercontinental right from the different fresh fruit available to the assortment of salads, cheeses and all the bakery items. The selection was a bit more luxe and the service that bit much better. 

We have seen whatever sightseeing is worth seeing on our earlier trips so fortunately neither of us wanted to venture out but there are lots of new activities that have come up to keep the younger generation occupied… meanwhile we are just happy relaxing, doing nothing and just watching the world go by. It is truly Heaven on Earth!!!