The Ritz-Carlton Koh Samui

Описание: Although it was gloomy days of rain, the arrival into our room was heartwarming. Placed on the table was a chocolate birthday cake, and in our bedroom a birthday message for my wife. We found a mini bathrobe hanging on the wall, and there was a mini vanity kit with small rubber duckies for our child. Just thinking about it now and typing this out brings me delight. Our villa is elevated up in the middle tier on a steep hill. We wished we had the highest, for the view from up there would have been super awesome. Getting around the resort, one needs to call for a buggy. The terrain is hilly, and the driveways are of steep inclines. Most of the villas are located sea facing and high above rocky shores. And the suites are in a couple of buildings further inland. Staying here, if budget allows, villas are the ones to be in.

We asked about the kids’ club. Well, a kid’s club is like a petri dish and it’s hard to tell the difference between which are children, and which are viruses. Like most resort, because of the pandemic, the club was closed. The staffs told us that even if it was opened, it is not that big of a place. We should be out in the activities for children that are held throughout the resort at different times of the day. One of the highlights of staying here, is the in-house swim reef pool. That was the action I had looked so much forward to for months to do with my kid. The experience of being able to swim up close with the fishes was a lot of fun for me. Some curious ones came so close I could have easily touched them, which I must not. The water over at the bay was not of good visibility. Swimming in the reef pool was definitely the next best thing to do. Reef man (the staff) told me there used to be sharks in the pool, but some guests have sharkaphobia (proper scientific word: Galeophobia). So, no more sharks.

Breakfast. Behind where the ocean pool is, a slight distance up the slope, that was where it was served. There were quite a few families during both days of breakfasts. They were a balance of domestic travelers with foreigners of western and east Asian roots. Buffet it was, and every single Thai dish from the line was tasty. I recall the delicious sweet and sour fish, and the fried fish with Chinese celery. Yes, I am a fish person, I love swimming with them, I love eating them too. High level of safety standards was in place. Every dish from bacon and eggs, cold salad to those in warmers, staffs in mask served them out in plates without us having to scoop them up on our own.

Few Marriott chains still honor the Marriott Kids’ privileges where children get to enjoy free ice cream. They still do it here and we had it by the pool side. The pool run lengthwise to the shoreline. There is a rocky outcrop right in the center of the bay dividing the shoreline into two beaches. The sand is not of fine white. Though coarse, the beach was well kept and free of rubbish. For swimming in the sea, the reef man did caution us about rocks that are aplenty below the waterline. In Ritz, one can be assured of privacy. This bay is geographically enclosed on both sides by rocks. Facing east, the beach is great place to enjoy the sunrise. And a good sunrise we did have on the final day. From our villa, I watched the sun broke through the storm clouds. The entire side of the hill was painted in yellow. It was an alluring sight. The sun kept the clouds away throughout the day. Those were the best moments, and we savored every bit of it without leaving the villa. The resort is very near the airport. We did not have to leave in advance for our flight. We had a late checkout as our flight was in the evening. As we drove into the downhill for our reluctant departure, the reception staffs left their post and lined up to wave us goodbye. We wanted to just turn into the carpark and extend our stay. But unwillingly, we had to close the vacation with smiles and friendly waves back to them.