rachelrZ6169UH
Google
Gorgeous, dreamy resort with amazing service and focus on sustainability and the local economy. I'll note the areas for improvement towards the end of this review. ||General-The resort is located ~45 min drive from Sapa town and is situated at the top of two mountains. We stayed here for 2 days/2 nights, which was the perfect amount of time. Having your own personal bungalow/cottage was nice and felt very private. Do be aware this is very much a resort in nature so there were some ants in our room and bugs everywhere outside. I enjoyed watching the butterflies and dragonflies zoom about, was very relaxing. The room/bathroom was generally clean although there were some very small dark brown stains on the bed sheets. They did include in their pamphlet somewhere if there's a small "imperfection" they won't throw out their sheets due to sustainability. The balcony was nice and led to a beautiful view of the valley.||Do be aware the unparalleled views are the main attraction here, so plan accordingly to the season and go in with the expectation that you might not see everything. I'm glad we stayed for 2 days as the first day it was completely foggy (which has its own charm), but the rain cleared up second day and the sunset was phenomenal. ||Food overall was decent although not as tasty as in Sapa town/Hanoi and more expensive. It does feel like they jack up the prices since there's not really any other food options unless you shuttle to Sapa. The breakfast buffet was amazing and had a lot of variety with its pho station, heated Vietnamese foods, traditional Western breakfast foods, fruits, etc. We had lunch/dinner at the Stilt House a couple of times and it was okay. Dinner at the 360 degree restaurant (reservations only) wasn't bad. Not sure if it's worth the price, but good to try it at least once during your stay. Do get the corn while in Sapa, the corn in this region is absolutely divine!||Spa- We got their highest package which was 3 hours and included a massage, facial, scrub, and herbal bath for $99-not bad at all for a resort. You could choose between different massage, facial, and scrub options. This was very relaxing and a great way to spend your time as we didn't want to leave the resort (more on that later). Our masseuses were kind/skilled and it was my first time getting cupping done. ||Service is amazing/attentive throughout, and I appreciate how they keep track of your bags during the check in/out process and bring them to/back the room. Housekeeping is nice and would stop by to fill up our water (there are water refilling stations throughout the property as well). It was kind of cool we could earn drink tokens by declining room cleaning. The resort is not huge, but getting from one side to the other can be a bit hilly, so there's often employees with golf carts who will take you. ||Amenities-there are two infinity style pools on two levels with hot tubs attached to them. Both are quite clean and well maintained. The pool or the resort in general never felt crowded and there is a poolside bar on the upper floor. The view is dreamy and it's nice to lounge around sipping on smoothies. There were mosquitos in the area so take extra care to cover up with a towel etc if you lay out. There's also a flute player that added to the tranquil atmosphere by playing there or at the Stilt House. ||5PM-Cocktail hour is a nice touch. They rotate the drink and snack every day. ||There's an outdoor BBQ dinner on certain days by the calisthenics park that requires sign up to attend. We didn't try as we were afraid of mosquitos haha. ||Some areas for improvement:|Shuttle-there's a twice daily free shuttle from/to Sapa (requires 24 hour notice signup), but it leaves Sapa way too early at like 1:15pm so even if you take the earliest shuttle you get maybe like 3 hours to spend. Grab/taxi prices are also high because the hotel is so remote. It'd be nice to get later shuttle times. ||The transport from the resort to Hanoi is expensive at 45-50 bucks pp, but you kind of have to use it unless you want to go into town (which is also doubling back). At least it's a very nice limousine van with comfortable seating. ||Activities/Excursions-this is a definitely more of a relax and chill on the resort kind of the place as you can't leave the premises without being followed/pressured. We stepped out maybe like 100 feet to a nearby vantage point and was followed/greeted by the locals who were waiting around the entrance. My partner who is Vietnamese told them no thank you and was scoffed at. If you are interested in socializing and buying from the locals this is for you, but we were hoping to be on our own. ||The excursions looked well put together but seemed on the pricier side (ie $84 pp) especially for Vietnam. A fellow resort guest told me she went on the rice terraces excursion and said it was fun/a workout but was also accompanied by locals through the entire journey and was pressured to purchase from them at the end. ||I'm not sure if I'd come back, but I'm glad I went once!
