How To Have a Romantic Getaway in Koh Samui, Thailand

"I get girl for you and you", the guy said while pointing to me and my friend Mark. Then he sees our other companion Louis, scrunches his brow and finally says with a flourish: "Lady-boy for you?"

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I was invited at the last minute by Mark and Louis to join them for a long weekend in Koh Samui. It was a sausage fest but it was also a good chance for us to scout the place for some romantic spots when we come back with our girlfriends.

All three of us manly men shared a room at the affordable Weekender Resort whose front-desk staff were Filipinos! I recommend the resort because:

• Great location-- walking distance to shops, clubs and restaurants.


• Clean rooms and toilets that passed my will-walk-barefoot test. Airconditioning, white sheets, tasteful decor, cable TV, slippers, beach towels, in-room safe and complimentary bottled water.


• It's a beachfront resort with a pool!


• Yummy breakfast buffet (bacon, porridge, fresh fruit, brewed coffee and eggs cooked on-demand)


• A very helpful staff

So without further ado, here is my suggested itinerary for a romantic 2 days, 1 night stay at Koh Samui:

Take a leisurely, mid-morning stroll towards the west end of the beach to the Ananta Lamai Beach Resort. Once there, enjoy a traditional hour-long full-body massage or foot massage from the Just One therapists. The traditional massage combined with the great view and sound of the crashing waves is a very relaxing experience.

After your treatment, have a late lunch on top of the huge rock at Ananta Lamai. I recommend that Pad Thai noodles and clear Tom Yam. Nothing beats the view and the occassional cooling misty spray from the sea.

Walk towards grandfather and grandmother (they are huge, natural genitalia-shaped rock) and do some of your shopping at the stalls along the way. I bought some cool cotton pants for only THB300!
Have some drinks and chillax at The Rock reggae bar while waiting for the sunset. Try their excellent Pina Colada served in a fresh coconut!

At about 5:30, head on out, climb the huge rock beside it and watch the slowly setting sun while sipping your drink.

Walk by the seashore back to your hotel while you are bathed in the slowly fading light of dusk. Freshen up and have an outdoor dinner at the classy Samui Jasmine resort where you will be serenaded by a Filipino guitarist.

Cap the night by making a wish and lighting up a flying lantern (100THB). Watch it slowly disappear into the starry night as you walk back to your hotel.

Rating:
Four pawikan points! Bonus points for that funny restaurant guy who wanted to get us some girls and a lady-boy for good time. (We politely declined!)

Extra points because we went during the first week of December which was still off-peak season. Not too many people because it wasn't 100% sunny. It rained a lot but I still had a good romp on the seashore while the storm was beating down on me. It's been a long time since I last played in the rain.

Reader's question: Similar beaches to Laiya?

A couple of days ago, Lori left me a message using the meebo chat widget (see the ChatWithP section on the bottom right):

"hi i'm lori, i really appreciate your reviews its straight to the point and complete with important info (like state of the bathrooms, rooms and the sand) we've been to la luz already and would like to come back but can you suggest other beaches similar to la luz ( meaning affordable price,good accomodation, nice beach and good food) thanks"

Salamat sa tanong Lori but so far I've only stayed at La Luz in Laiya, White Cove in Nasugbu and Terrazas De Punta Fuego. I've heard some good things about Virgin Beach Resort and Sabangan in Laiya but I have yet to try them myself. (Reviews By P runs on a limited budget. Hehehe.)

However check out Anton from "Our Awesome Planet". He has some extensive reviews of places to eat in the Philippines but you may also want to check out his reviews that you might find interesting:

• review of Laiya Cocogrove Beach resort
• Bamboo Beach @ Kawayan Cove in Nasugbu
• Golden Sunset in Batangas
• Malapascua Island in Cebu
• Blue Lagoon Cove in Pagudpud
• Kota Beach in Bantayan Island

Villa Surprise, Cape Town

Villa Surprise's themed rooms, lounge-y garden and friendly staff entices you to be lazy and stay indoors.
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My colleagues stayed at the larger King's room (all decked out in royal purple) which had a four-poster bed, a balcony, a stately bathroom and a view of the mountains. I stayed in the Africa room with native drums that doubled as tables, bamboo curtains, ostrich egg chandeliers, an animal skin rug, a view overlooking the outdoor pool-- the works!

The villa is designed to be open and airy so much of the silence depends on your neighbors from the adjoining rooms. I could hear footsteps from the room above and a little of the chatter from the garden but thankfully everyone was mostly considerate and kept the peace.

All rooms have wireless internet (ZAR10/day), a small tv with only three channels (shame on you if you're staying here just to watch tv!), a mini-bar, proper queen sized beds (not just two singles pushed together!) and goose-down pillows. T'here's no airconditioning but the weather is cool enough for you to snuggle under the comforter.

Breakfast is late at 8:30 and served by the host Marko. You can have eggs any way you want, coffee, toast, cereals and fresh fruit salad. It's not spectacular really but I can't explain why the food tastes much better if you have it dining under the sunshine, in a peaceful garden with mountains all around, a cool breeze and the twittering of birds.

The guest house is a quick 8 minute downhill walk to Camp's Bay which has a beautiful sunset and rows of clubs and restos. However, getting back is much more difficult. Be prepared for a difficult uphill climb that will leave you gasping for breath!

Conclusion:4/5
Four pawikan points! Although it did not have the sea view and isolation of The Clarendon, it's proximity to Camps Bay and themed rooms make up for it.

Bonus points for Rolf the interior designer/landscaper who did all the rooms! Minus points for the old-school locks which require you to have the key to open the door even from the inside!
***
If you liked this, you may also want to read my review of The Clarendon on Bantry Bay.

La Luz Beach Resort, Laiya, Batangas

Rating:4/5
Though the rooms don't pass my will-i-walk-barefoot test, the clean beach, clear water and good food make La Luz Beach Resort a great weekend destination.
***
I've always been impressed with Laiya, Batangas but it can be confusing to choose among the many different resorts that share this strip of beach.

I won't focus yet on the beach because it's common among all the resorts. But here are 3 reasons (that are unique to La Luz) which make the place a great weekend destination:

1. Great website - It's one of the few resorts which has an uncluttered and easy-to-use web presence. They've got what-you-see-is-what-you-get rates (no hidden fees), precise directions to the resort (the kilometer readings are off by about a kilometer or two) and up to date contact information.

2. Good food - Php900/day includes 3 full buffet meals and an afternoon snack. Each meal has a meat, fish, vegetable dish and dessert. Initially I thought that this was expensive but I realized that i'm willing to pay for the convenience of having a good meal on a beach without going through the hassle of cooking. I stayed for 3 days and the viands never repeated for each meal.

3. Decent rooms - They're not great but it's clean and relatively cheaper than others. You pay per room instead of per person which means it gets cheaper if there are more in your group. We stayed at the Php 2,550 room that can fit four people. It's a tight squeeze for four but it will do.

The bathroom and room don't pass my will-I-walk-barefoot test so make sure you bring slippers. Bonus points for the hot water shower but minus points for the too-thin curtains that force you to wake up when the sun rises.

Unlike Boracay, you aren't constantly hassled by vendors. Instead of massage therapists plying the beach, you call for a booking (php250/hr) which makes it much more organized.

There's no television, no noisy nightlife, no clubs, no thumping music (except maybe for the odd karaoke) it's just you, the sand and waves. The resort is thoughtful enough to have a bonfire set up every night and you can lounge on the chairs, look for shooting stars and listen to the cackle of burning wood.

Bring your own snorkel and have a look at the fish a couple of meters from the shore but don't expect some fancy coral because you'll need to hire a boat to get to the nice spots. Plus points because borrowing life jackets is free. Minus points for the dilapidated state of the jackets.

I wouldn't recommend swimming as there are very sudden drops of the sea floor. This could pose to be a hazard specially that there is no lifeguard.

Just stay within a couple of meters from the shore and you'll be fine. Better yet, just be a camera whore and look for the the hidden places that make for great photo ops.

Conclusion
Four pawikan points. Visit from Thursday to Saturday because the place is pretty empty during weekdays. Plus points for the clear water but minus points for the rocky sand.
Make sure you do the following:

• Try the yummy and refreshing yellow mango shake (P40)
• Head on over to the rock at the west side of the beach which looks great during the sunset.

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If you liked this review, you may also want to read my reviews of Terrazas de Punta Fuego and White Cove Resort.
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Dinner at Friday's, Boracay

Rating:
Can you eat a sundae on Monday?

Or more importantly, can you have a Friday's buffet on a Sunday?

This is the question we sought to answer as we took a leisurely half kilometer stroll on the fine, low-tide sandy beach of Boracay towards the legendary Friday's buffet.

Unfortunately, they only have the Friday's buffet on Fridays (oo nga naman) and tonight was Tempura Kaiseki night. What the hell, we were there anyway so we decided to stay and try some Japanese.

This is the closest thing you could get to a fancy dinner-- al fresco dining with white tablecloths, attentive waiters and the calm sound of splashing waves. Relaxing because of the setting but a great ambience doesn't excuse a poor meal!

It was a set meal-- Sashimi, Yakimono and either almond & lychee or fresh fruits for dessert. The portions were incredibly small, the taste was so-so and the almond & lychee dessert was out of stock so I had to settle for the pathetic "fresh fruits" dessert which was half a banana (cut lengthwise), a small triangular slice of watermelon and a couple of cubed cantaloupe.

This dinner for two set me back a little more than php1000! For this price, I could have eaten for two days at D'mall! Definitely poor value for money.

Two pawikan points for this disappointing Japanese set meal at Friday's. Maybe their buffet would've be better.

White Cove Resort, Nasugbu, Batangas

Rating:
I was disappointed at the dilapidated state of UCPB-managed White Cove Resort:

• The sand is not fine at all! Dig a couple of centimeters down and you see that the soil becomes dark and black-- looks like it's not natural and they *ship* sand to this resort.
• Woefully inadequate and poorly designed cabanas. (actually there's no design at all-- a couple of wooden beams and a roof. )
• So-so food and lousy ambience of the open-air veranda (the Coco Bar was closed for renovations). It's basically a cement floor with karinderya-style tables and white monobloc chairs-- plus, there's no view at all! The cabanas, roof and the fact that it's situated a bit in-land ensures you have a limited view of the sea.
• The TV in the room doesn't have local channels--they only show piped-in movies and they only play until 1am!
  
• The general state and feel of the whole place-- the facades of the buildings really need to be retouched and at night, the place is... eerie, like a haunted house.

Nevertheless, I still had a great time not because of the place but because of the company I brought with me! Things I liked about the place are:

• The rates are reasonable.
  
• the rooms are surprisingly spacious, air-conditioned, clean and the bathrooms are beautiful!
  
• no corkage! You can bring in your own food and booze!

If you're on a budget, This is a place that your barkada can go to on a long weekend. It's easy to find because their website provides clear driving directions. Don't expect much from the beach (even the sunset is so-so) but for some good fun, make sure you bring your own videoke mic, mp3 player and speakers, food, drinks and a big barkada to last the whole night!

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If you liked this review, you may also want to read my reviews of Terrazas de Punta Fuego and La Luz Beach Resort.
If you're interested in the latest showbiz chismis, Pinoy celebrity bloggers and other Pinoy food/travel bloggers, have a look at my latest project: whatsikat.com

Terrazas de Punta Fuego, Nasugbu, Batangas

Rating:
Located in Nasugbu, Batangas, Terrazas de Punta Fuego is one of the more beautifully designed members-only resorts i've been to. They don't allow you to spend the night here but it's an excellent way to spend a day trip.

The best thing I like about Terrazas is the way it looks-- from the pool area, the shower rooms and the cabanas, this place seems engineered for photo ops. The design is functional, too with Cabanas offering privacy and maximum loungability (duyans, soft cushions and centralized beach music).

The crowd is mixed composed of families-on-vacation as well as barkadas-on-a-gimmick.

The beach itself isn't that great-- the sand is ordinary (no boracay-ish white sand here) and you can't see through the bottom of the water. Bring a kite or a volleyball, read a book or sun bathe instead.

Lunch is an expensive affair at Cafe Sol-- an ordinary-tasting meal will set you back Php300-400. This is home to the 1 pawikan point sizzling sisig-- the blandest sisig i've ever had in my whole life. Our lunch (with fruit shakes) for four people cost us Php2000! Next time i'm here, i'll try the php380 buffet instead of ordering a la carte. If you want to save money, walk down the beach and have inihaw with the locals.

I give this place 3.5 pawikan points. Plus points for the architecture, pretty looks and relaxing vibe. If ever you're going, make sure to get there early as the cabanas are first come first served. Leave the place by 6 (because the walkways are poorly lit at night) and then have dinner somewhere in Tagaytay.
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If you liked this review, you may also want to read my reviews of White Cove Resort and La Luz Beach Resort.
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