Guest Reviews

The Cabochon Hotel: "The Best Exotic Cabochon Hotel"

"Have spent five fabulous days at the Cabochon Hotel and can't recommend it highly enough. The staff are amazing. From Rin at the front desk to the wait staff they are so friendly and helpful. We even had the head cook in the kitchen show us some special recipes for the delicious chillie paste. The Hendricks G&T were the best! The restaurant is authentic Thai food beautiful prepared and presented. 5 star. The hotel is exquisitely decorated in plantation colonial style. Every detail is considered. The showers are fantastic. Loved every minute of my stay with the cabochon Hotel."

Mume: "A modern take on local flavours"

After soup dumplings galore and night market snacks Mume offered a fine dining version of Taiwanese flavours and it was nice to experience the variety. The setting is sleek and minimalist but the service is warm and welcoming. We sampled a range of dishes from the menu which offers snacks, small and big plates including oysters, warm sourdough, potato with Taiwanese bacon, Ox tongue and crispy Amadi. I normally ignore dessert but they were intriguing and lighter with peach sorbet and crispy almonds and cucumber yoghurt mousse. Totally deserving of all the positive reviews. We would definitely recommend.

Mie Cafe: "One of our favorites in Siem Reap"

We had lunch three times at this wonderful restaurant. It was critiqued in an article by Lawrence Osborne at saver.com, and what a find it was. We loved the tuna tartare with mango, the stuffed ravioli, grilled eggplant with pork, the mango passionfruit sorbet, and a chocolate cake to die for. Also their iced lattes are delicious.

Villa Song Saigon: "Villa Song: a wonderful Art Deco hotel occupying a quiet position on the banks of the Saigon river"

Great hotel, great food (apart from breakfast, which was average), fantastic bedroom and really helpful staff. Annoying niggly problems with signing bills and a trainee at breakfast barely understood English. Nice free mini-bar in room, with water, soft drinks and beer.

Satri House: "Charming and Excellent"

"I've not had such a great hotel experience in a long time, and considering at the pace i'd been travelling in the past 2 months to UK, Africa and Singapore, the staff at Satri house was a great respite in making me enjoy travelling again. I'm sure the magical town has its own charms too, but this great boutique really made the trip much more magical. The location is very good, although not smacked in the middle of the old town, you can get there by foot easily, with just a 10 minute stroll, or 2 minutes on the hotel's bicycle (traffic in Luang Prabang is so light, you'll fell safe even on the main roads). The building itself is a gorgeous colonial building and it's as if you've stepped back in time when you enter the hotel through the corridor of bamboo tress in the walk way. My room was on the ground floor, and was charmingly appointed in a classical style with four poster bed that staff will drape over with the mosquito net during turn down. The bed was firm and comfortable, and there was a pillow menu available too. In room, there were plenty of bottled mineral water to let you stay hydrated. i also like the lack of a TV in the room so you have no choice but to linger in the amazing lawn or pool side, or explore the town. The bathroom has a nice rain shower and another hand held shower faucet, and is spacious. Everywhere you walk on this property, staffs will smile and ask how your day is. Even the property manager, is constantly seen moving around, chatting and talking to guests. One afternoon, I was walking and saw him form a distance - he immediately ended his call on his cell while i was still 50 meters away and greeted me when I approached. It's this little touched that makes one feel so valued as a guest. When I checked in, the staff was so eager to tell me the sights I should visit and offered to help me plan a day trip to the waterfalls, which I had given up trying to go prior to my arrival as it seemed so far, and had it not been the help and information offered, I'd be so sad to pass the trip to witness the amazing falls. I highly recommend this hotel to everyone as it's a great place to stay in Luang Prabang!"

Rachamankha: "The Hidden Treasure of Chiang Mai, Thailand"

Everything about Rachamankha is excellent from the Front desk staff and most especially the General Manager who made sure I have the most comfortable experience during my stay. Its definitely my preferred Hotel to stay in Chiang Mai.

The Island Lodge: "Nature and Charm"

We spent 3 days together with my husband, far from the busy life. The place is very natural and authentic along the Mekong. The hotel is quiet and charming. The French and Vietnamese food is delicious. Michel, Françoise and the staff are very professional and costumer focus. Amazing :-)

Mie Cafe: "A Gem of a Restaurant"

"Amid the cicadas and frogs (they have their own pond, is a superbly done fusion dining experience. Clever dishes that are not overly complicated, good portion sizes and beautifully presented. We enjoyed the frogs legs, the burrita was amazing as was the local Lak Lak beef dishes (a local take on steak au poivre - though this is an injustice). Finished with a refreshing frozen like pie. With attentive staff, this made for a relaxing Sunday in Siem Reap. Any gripes? Nothing major - sometimes service seemed too attentive if there is such a thing and I mean they tend to over check if you're finished on a course."

Misool Eco Resort: "An amazing place"

The cottages are roomy and have plenty of storage. The staff is relentlessly positive. The diving and snorkeling is out of this world. Within a short boat ride from the resort are a myriad of sites and even the House reef good enough to snorkel again and again. The food is very good. The resort is located within a huge private marine reserve. This reserve has been a no take zone for about 10 years and it shows with the abundance of life.

Maison Polanka: "Stay here for wonderful personal service. Deserving of a 7/5 rating not merely 5/5"

"I will start with the summary: tranquil garden, great room, excellent F+B, attention to detail, but the wonderful staff is what made our stay in Siem Reap a truly memorable one (in addition to the the magnificent ruins, of course). The small touches such the chilled towels in the car and upon our return to Maison after each of our trips were truly appreciated. They provided a mobile phone with Maison's number preloaded in directory, another thoughtful and helpful detail. We found the staff not merely polite and helpful but genuinely concerned about our well-being. Maison arranged tuk-tuk rides for our trips into the center of town and the drivers were courteous. Our car/van driver was friendly and informative on the ride back to the airport, making us feel welcome in Cambodia even as we were about to depart. We cannot remember all the names of all who took care of us but special thanks to to Kathy and Sorpana (?) at reception for all their attention to us. Of course, we cannot say enough about Francis. From the initial email exchanges to our actual stay he remained on top of everything. We appreciated his meeting us at the airport on our late night arrival, something we did not expect. Initially I had considered one of the larger hotels but chose to look for a boutique hotel instead. I chose Maison based on both excellent reviews and the compelling back story as told on the hotel webpage. Several email communications with Francis were promptly answered; he readily addressed concerns about airport transfers (a hotel van is available; recommended as tuk-tuks and taxis may not know the hotel or its location) transport to the town center (tuk-tuks that the hotel apparently has an arrangement with and will wait for you at your destination in town). Maison Polanka is located on the east side of the Siem Reap river in a quiet secluded neighborhood (the nearby Po Lang Ka pagoda is what presumably gave name to the road and hotel), about 9km away from the airport and 2.5km from the markets in downtown Siem Reap. The Angkor National Museum is the closest site of interest within very easy walking distance less than 1km from Maison. Of course, Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom are much further away 6.5km and 11km respectively. We rode the hotel van for our tour of the temples and took tuk-tuks to town. The hotel grounds are meticulously maintained, heavily wooded and thus shaded. There were flowering plants everywhere including orchids and butterflies were flitting around from bloom to bloom. There were just a few rooms. The largest accommodation was the Khmer House, a stand-alone building. We had booked the the Yellow Room in the ""Maison"" which also housed the Green, Orange, and Purple Rooms. Francis told us that Maison could accommodate at most 15 guests and that the entire hotel has been booked in the past for family reunions. Check-in was smooth; we had the first of many culled and scented wet face towels to freshen us up. We were also given glasses of chilled fruit juice while we waited to complete check-in. We were then led to the Maison building and askedo leave our shoes at the bottom of the stairs. The Yellow Room lived up to what the hotel website promised, as did the entire property. The decor was rustic with sophisticated touches. A small plate of sliced fresh fruit had been left on the desk for us to enjoy. The amenities were as listed on their website. The bathroom was actually on a higher level with a short flight of stairs curving up from the far corner of the room. We had no issues with the stairs but it could get wet and slippery. Having traveled with my elderly parents I have become more acutely aware of the need for secure handholds; a single handrail at the corner where the stairs make a left turn on the way up would a world of difference. The bathroom was spacious. The shower stall was large and even had a small tile bench along the wall. I do not recall how textured the floor tiles were but I did not see a rubberized bath mat with suction cups that other hotels sometimes offer. Again, a small handrail at the level of the threshold of the shower would help steady anyone stepping out of the shower. Not that the the edge of the shower was raised very high, just a couple of inches perhaps. The bed was comfortable and we slept well on both the nights during our stay. There was a narrow balcony that we never ventured out on. We had our meals at the ""Sala"", the open-sided communal area by the pool that served as lobby, living room and dining room. What I had initially thought was the reception desk turned out to do double duty as a bar. There was an adjacent area with couches and armchairs clearly meant as a lounging area for those not interested in relaxing by the pool. As one might expect for a kitchen serving such a small number of guests the menu was not extensive but our meals were well-prepared and delicious. The young ladies serving us were attentive but not hovering over us. We had our not had dinner by the time of our late arrival but I had made arrangements with Francis beforehand and, once we had freshened up, dinner was quickly prepared for us. Should our travels ever take us back to Siem Reap we will definitely be staying at Maison Polanka again."