Phu Chaisai Mountain Resort & Spa, Chiangrai hotels Thailand

*Reviews of recent stays*	*Comment on the hotel*	*The reservation service*
Christopher Strickland 2009-04-17	Phu Chaisai Mountain Resort & Spa, Mae Chan Great hotel. Good location, though when we first entered the grounds we were not sure where the hotel was located. Good view from rooms or anywhere at the resort. Good selection of activity s to chose from. Food was good. Friendly staff and service.	Booking was quick and easy.
Ilkka Kauranen 2009-04-15	Phu Chaisai Mountain Resort & Spa, Mae Chan This resort is something very special! I have travelled round the world, being outside of my own country for more than 6 000 days, and this resort was abel to make a very special impression on me and my family. We are planning to stay again for a longer time. My son said that he wants to stay at Phu Chaisai until the day we die. The place is tranquile and peaceful. It is remote but it has all the conveniences of home. We stayed at a villa which had its own private pool. In addition, a bigger swimming pool is at the disposal of all guests. There even was a Finnish sauna next to the swimming pool, free of charge. The garden is large and well-maintained. The mountain view is beautiful. The staff was always most helpful and kind. The owner couple is there to see that everything is going fine. To our surprise, the resort arranged a small outing for all of the guests, free of charge. During the trip, we had a chance to go elephant riding and to pick fresh berries in a garden. The only thing that I was wondering about is that how is this place going to make money. There were so few guests there. I hope more people will get to know about Phu Chaisai and have a chance to enjoy the special luxory that it offers. Ilkka Kauranen Finland	Everything when fine!
Kirakharit Singha 2009-01-03	Phu Chaisai Mountain Resort & Spa, Mae Chan For my opinion Phu Chaisai seem the heaven. Previous new year vacation I can stay there only 1 night cause of that period was full by many traveler. That makes me feel a little bit regret. But I desided to visit Phu Chaisai again within this year. I will bring my mom and my brother to visit there with. I want to make them feel and touch the real beautiful resort and happiness when being there. Phu Chaisai has many activities program to welcome us to do it. If you guys have a chance and time, don t waste but go to touch it yourself. Thank you. Jett
Annette Heile 2008-06-29 until 2008-07-01	Phu Chaisai Mountain Resort & Spa, Mae Chan A very special place. Friendly and helpful staff, beautiful setting, and a great place for families because of all the activities (animal farm, rafting, trekking, pottery, crafts...) Fantastic garden, good location, very good food at the restaurant, breakfast ok but not as good. Our overall rating: A must go and see place!	Sooth and easy as always!
M.A. Zegers 2008-05-24 until 2008-05-26	Phu Chaisai Mountain Resort & Spa, Mae Chan Great resort, lovely service, great rooms and superb views everybody should go there!
John Letaw 2008-02-25 until 2008-02-27	Phu Chaisai Mountain Resort & Spa, Mae Chan Nice place, but not the premiere service they aspire to. Room is comfortable and large enough; wonderful mountain/jungle views. Plenty of hot water in the shower (which many resorts can claim.) Peaceful except for construction on neighboring hotel about 300 meters away with much noise from about 9 AM till 5 PM. They are just laying the foundation of the new place, so expect construction noise for another year. Not too intrusive, but still not pristine mountain sounds. Restaurant menu is limited and expensive. I had a good beef stew for 400 THB; my wife had a Thai dish which was fish that you wrap in lettuce leaves. This can be fixed in traditional Thai style, but they didn t warn it would be in northern Thai style which is a noticeably different recipe. She didn t really enjoy it (she is Thai.) The restaurant staff is rough around the edges. One was playing with the resident dog and pond fish in between bringing food. The other gave us some backtalk about moving the mosquito incense closer to our table to keep away the insects. She wouldn t do it for my wife, but when I insisted, then she did it. She got no tip. Pool is attractive, but small. Two people can comfortably swim laps. If any children are playing, no one can swim laps. Most disturbing to me, I ordered coffee in the lounge after dinner. They brought what tasted exactly like instant freeze-dried coffee. It was horrible, and cost around 100 baht. In a land of fresh-grown mountain coffee, this is inexcusable. I had better fresh-ground coffee for 20 baht in local cafes. Since we had a rental car, we ate the rest of our meals in town (except breakfast, which was included in our package.) I ordered a virgin fruit drink for my wife (alcoholic drink, but leave out the liquor) and they charged full price. Any other place would discount for leaving out the liquor. Thus, we essentially paid 180 baht for pineapple juice with grenadine. grrrrrrr!!!!! Note: The drive from the local highway on their private driveway is long (nearly 1 km) and confusing. Most of the road is dirt, with plenty of potholes. Heavy construction ongoing which led me to believe we were lost on the wrong dirt road. It branched in many places with unclear markings of which way to go. Do not attempt this the first time in the dark. My 2nd time up was much more comfortable, being assured I wasn t lost in the wilderness. In summary, I would stay there again IF the price were about 30% cheaper. I wouldn t plan on eating many meals there.	R24/siamservices/sawadee.com is ok, often the best prices online but not always. I ve used them 3 times; they ve always delivered as promised though twice I ve had to follow up to get them to email me the voucher. The hotel was expecting us on arrival on the terms agreed. Nice service! :-)
Mr Adrian R Wilson 2007-02-07 until 2007-02-15	Phu Chaisai Mountain Resort & Spa, Mae Chan We have nothing but praise for this resort. The staff-from Management to gardeners and drivers- were charming and so caring. The gardens were a delight and the atmosphere so peaceful and calming; it was a tonic just to wander around the resort. Room facilities were very good with regular linen changes; the verandahs had superb views. Food was good- we only had Thai dishes- breakfast buffet (outside) was particularly good. The Spa was great; in a secluded spot with excellent staff- most therapeutic.	Most efficient.
Chris USA 2006-07-02 until 2006-07-06	Phu Chaisai Moutain Resort & Spa, Mae Chan The setting is wonderful w/ impressive mtn top vistas. The open air main dining area is comfortable for both cocktail hour and meals. The grounds have impressive gardens that are a delight to explore. Our accomodation was a Japan-style w/ small doorways which I kept hitting my head on. Our private pool, however, was a real treat. The open air spa is a dream in a peaceful setting though make sure a fan is on to keep the odd mosquitoe from you. I recommend lunch poolside adjacent to the spa. Criticism: food service is inconsistent.
Amratlal 2006-01-20 until 2006-01-22	Phu Chaisai Moutain Resort & Spa, Mae Chan Absolutely beautiful resort in stunning setting. We had a deluxe cottage, which was extremely pleasant. The room was spacious, the bed comfortable, and awakening to the sight of a beautiful sunrise was magical. We enjoyed the private balcony, although we didn t use the open air shower. Loved watching the different birds and butterflies in the foliage around our room. The walls were a bit thin, but fortunately there was no karaoke weekend to bother us! The shower was excellent -- the best we d had in Thailand. We enjoyed lovely spa treatments at the spa -- and they were very reasonably priced. The pool was lovely as well, although a bit cool. A couple of negative comments pertaining service. Servers were very friendly, but overall service was inefficient, as if the staff needed direction and/or more training. Not one of our food orders was accurate. At one dinner, my husband s food came right away -- he d finished his before we finally tracked someone down to ask about mine, which was practically cold. If they improve the quality of their restaurant and the delivery of service, this could be a top notch place. One more comment: it is quite out of the way -- we didn t realize how much until we arrived at the bus station in Chiang Rai. We should have booked the pickup service before we arrived.	No problems whatsoever, fast and efficient.
Marilyn Perlman 2005-05-05 until 2005-05-06	Phu Chaisai Moutain Resort & Spa, Mae Chan We have traveled a lot and have booked both luxurious accommodations and less expensive places. This was one of the best places we have stayed, but we love wildlife, so it was okay with us to share our bedroom with a fat, foot-long gecko. We rented the pool villa just after the high season ended, so we felt that we really had a good deal. The pool was pretty big for a private pool, and the villa was great. Lying out by the pool and listening to the birds and insects and looking at the stars was great. We were pressed for time on our trip and only had one night here, but wished we had more. The staff were very nice and allowed us a very late checkout so that we could enjoy our stay for as long as possible.
Thomas Mannion 2005-02-01 until 2005-02-04	Phu Chaisai Moutain Resort & Spa, Mae Chan The setting of the hotel is beautiful: very green, high up in the mountains, with plenty of nice decorative touches throughout. Just walking around the resort is enjoyable in itself. The mountain views are impressive. The health spa is very pleasant and reasonably priced compared to some luxury resorts. The pool is OK, though a little cold at this time of year. It is well located to catch the sun. We booked the resort s transfer service from the airport which was very efficient. Note that it takes about 35-40 minutes. We also booked a one day tour of the region through reception, which was good value and stress-free. My wife & I stayed in a bamboo hut which was full of character, but also had no soundproofing & the gaps in the walls mean that you have to be prepared to share with some of nature s uninvited guests (ants, etc). The food was quite nice, though not as good as many other resorts we have visited. One chicken dish we ordered was not properly cooked, i.e. the meat was still bloody, which not acceptable. There was no TV in the room: admittedly, one doesn t come here just to watch the box, but long evenings can be a bit dull with no entertainment. Except, that is, for the last night, when a coach party of guests arrived for a corporate event, which led to the other guests being shunted from the main dining area to the bar (with no advance warning). We were then treated to a very long & tuneless evening of karaoke, etc. All of this took place just a few metres from our non-soundproofed bungalow. The intrusive noise didn t stop until 23:00 and really spoiled the last night of our honeymoon. It s nothing short of digraceful that the staff hadn t thought to put us in a quieter part of the resort to avoid this inconvenience. The offer to move us elsewhere during the evening was too little, too late. Phu Chaisai charges premium rates and needs to provide a correspondingly high standard of service, which was sadly not evident.	Booking service was efficient & we had no problems.
Wouter Vervaat 2005-01-20 until 2005-01-23	Phu Chaisai Moutain Resort & Spa, Mae Chan After 4 days in crazy Bangkok, Phu Chaisai came as a shock: we actually had to get used to the quiet, serene, lovely surroundings in Northern Thailand. Lovely hotel with beautiful pool area. However, the rooms are a bit basic inside. I know this is the philosophy of the resort, but there is a difference between upscale-basic and basic-basic. They are leaning towards the latter, though prices are quite high for Thailand. The worst part was karaoke night for a business group. How can you do this in a quiet, natural resort like this! Some strategy decisions should be made here. Overall a nice stay and good to unwind after Bangkok.
Amala Menon 2004-12-22 until 2004-12-23	Phu Chaisai Moutain Resort & Spa, Mae Chan This is a beautiful resort. I would recommend it v.highly. It is a back to nature feeling yet with all modern conveniences with lovely cottages and views. Would recommend driving though since there is nothing nearby and going anyplace from here would probably be hard. Or use the place to just stay there alone. Would love to go back.	Bookings were smooth and reliable. But not enough directions were given and finding the place could have been hard late night due to the narrow roads and approach.
Florence Quinn 2004-08-06 until 2004-08-10	Phu Chaisai Moutain Resort & Spa, Mae Chan Would not recommend it. The food was horrible, how can you be in Thailand and eat the worst Thai food ever? With the resort being so remote from anything you either starve or eat rice and vegetables, which were ok. Another very disappointing aspect was that there was a karaoke room (yes!), not quite what your expect from a tranquil retreat away from it all. It was extremely quiet otherwise, until they let out the karaoke die hards which you could hear from anywere in the resort. And it was not good singing, more like the sound of dying cows......apart from that beautiful views, very nice gardens and bungalows which naturally blend with nature.
Teresa Van Der Stoep 2004-08-04 until 2004-08-07	Phu Chaisai Moutain Resort & Spa, Mae Chan we had a great time, this resort really felt like paradise! The tour with lex was very interesting. The mountainview was outstanding
David Lee 2004-08-02 until 2004-08-05	Phu Chaisai Moutain Resort & Spa, Mae Chan Beautiful location with wonderful staff, a friendly smile from everyone all hours of the day. We went knowning that the hotel was away from the major cities of Chiang Rai & Mae Sai but even so the distance to both is minimal.	Quick, polite and efficient. Thank You