ANANTARA VACATION CLUB @ MAI KHAO PHUKET

September is full of weddings as it is the '8th' month in the Chinese calendar, which is considered an auspicious month for weddings. As for us, we've just celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary at Anantara Vacation Club @ Mai Khao Phuket :D When we were there, we also met a couple of Malaysians who were there to attend some weddings too; one on the plane and one staying in the same resort. Usually when we travel, we always like to be on the go, visiting the points of interests/landmarks but this time we thought, let's try somewhere we could just chill, relax and spend some quality time celebrating together with our baby princess. After hearing some recommendations from friends and browsing through a few options, hubby booked Anantara Vacation Club. I've been to Phuket a couple of times previously. I find it kinda commercialized, mostly catering for the Mat Sallehs (A term often used by Malay speakers as a colloquial expression to refer to white Caucasians). I personally prefer Krabi more, but the reasons why we chose Anantara were because hubby had never been to Phuket and the photos we saw online were pretty awesome!

We arrived at Phuket International Airport in the afternoon. The resort had arranged to pick us up from the airport, with a car well prepared with cold face towel and drinking water. The journey took about 15 mins. The staffs were exceptional, in terms of service. From reservation til check out, all was good. After enjoying our welcome drinks, we were taken to our one room apartment suite on a buggy. As my hubby had informed them that we were there to celebrate our 5th wedding anniversary, the staffs took the effort to do some simple room decorations and there was also a complimentary fruit cake, which was delicious. So sweet! 

The main entrance. Anantara Mai Khao Phuket Villas, JW Marriott Phuket resort & Spa and Marriott Vacation Club are also in the same area.

The suite was spacious. It includes a fully-equipped kitchen (Sort of a priority to me ever since we had our baby!) with induction cooker, fridge, microwave, rice cooker, electric cooker, electric toaster, glassware, crockery, cutlery and utensils - basically everything you need for cooking, well, except ingredients :P. Though our LO is turning 2 soon and I'm being more lenient on letting her eat outside food from time to time, I still cook most of her meals myself. What's even better is that there was a washing machine and a dryer too, so guests could travel lighter. 

The living room + dining area. The wines are not complimentary, ya? Lol.

The fully-equipped kitchen which comes with washing machine and dryer.

The bedroom.

The simple deco and complimentary cake :D

The spacious bathroom.

The view from our balcony.

This time round, I brought over some rice, a carrot, dried scallops, dried white baits and Cheerios (as breakfast cereals and to snack on) over. Breakfast was included so she could also eat bread, omelet or porridge. You can get ingredients like rice, cooking oil, spices etc from the lobby/reception, at a much higher price, of course. They are listed under the 'mini bar'. For those who want to cook for your little ones but do not wanna purchase from the resort (like me), fret not. There's a shopping area called 'Turtle Village' directly opposite the resort with 3 restaurants/cafes, some shops selling souvenirs, swimwear, bags, and a mini mart which sells fresh veggies, fruits, wines, food stuffs and meat (slightly pricier compared to outside supermarkets). I wouldn't buy meat from them though. From the looks of it, they have been frozen for God-knows-how-long :P  

Since we've just arrived, we didn't do much that evening. Just went over to Turtle Village and had our dinner at the Bill Bentley pub. Despite the name, this is a great place for families. No smoking is allowed in the pub and they have games like air hockey, table soccer and billiards. They provide a selection of draft beers, and their menu is based on traditional pub favorites and some options for those with a taste for Thai. Draft beers are buy 1 free 1 during happy hour. Kids eat for free when the accompanying adult spends THB300 and above. We ordered the Snack Combo Platter: Pub wings, cheesy garlic bread, bacon-wrapped sausages, deep fried calamari & chicken satay to share. LO's spaghetti bolognese was free since the platter cost THB500. We were famished so I forgot to take pictures of the food before digging in. Oops. If you are in Mai Khao, I would recommend you to stop by this place - good food, friendly service and nice atmosphere with music. After dinner, we headed to the mini mart to buy a carton of fresh milk, some snacks and beer.

The next morning we woke up late, late enough to miss the breakfast session. It was really difficult to wake up coz the bed and pillows were so comfy (Also, thanks to the wonder of blackout curtains)! Luckily we were told beforehand that in case we miss the breakfast, we could use the vouchers (worth THB560 each) at any of the three restaurants; Chaam, Crust wood-fired pizza or the poolside bar, at anytime of the day. Guess they knew their beds were thaaat comfy and perhaps this happened to many of their guests before, eh? Lol. But what made us extremely excited was the bright sunlight coming through the window when we drew the curtains open! Why? Few days ago when we checked the weather forecast, it was showing rain/thunderstorm almost every hour and everyday. We were a little disappointed but I told my hubby, "Try to think positively. Maybe we'll bring sunshine to Phuket, who knows??" And yes, Lady Luck did smile on us! :D We quickly got up, ate some light snacks, fed our LO cereals, got ready and headed out to the beach. 

The beautiful Mai Khao beach, overlooking the Andaman Sea.

The picturesque Mai Khao, Phuket's longest beach, was just a few minutes' walk away. The area around Mai Khao is still very quiet and natural. It is one of the few Phuket beaches that continue to welcome nesting turtles. The eggs are rescued from surrounding beaches where the necessary natural and peaceful environment can no longer be guaranteed. If you want shopping and entertainment, Mai Khao beach is definitely not for you. Patong or one of the other beaches south of the airport is more suitable for such activities. But if you like nature, long walks on the beach or just relaxing, Mai Khao is a great place to stay. The sea was not safe for swimming when we were there (Read that the sea is calmer between December and June). The waves were quite huge and roaring so we just stood on the beach and let our LO experience/feel the cold water washing up onto our feet. 

After spending some time there, we headed back to the resort for late lunch at Chaam. We ordered a Hawaiian pizza and Pad Thai. The pizza was thin and crispy, just the way I like it, but I didn't like the Pad Thai. Somehow I felt it tasted like rice noodles being fried in the tomato sauce for spaghetti -_-. 

Hawaiian pizza.

Pad Thai.

By the time we finished our lunch, the yoga session that I was interested to join already started. There are different activities every hour for adults and kids at the resort's activity center, for e.g., yoga, Thai traditional dance, muay Thai experience, coloring, cooking etc. Most are complimentary but some comes with a price. Since I didn't wanna disturb the class by entering halfway, I thought I'll join the traditional Thai dance, which was next, after putting my LO to nap. Unfortunately, I ended up soaking in the tub and it was so comfy that I was reluctant to drag myself out of it and go downstairs :P When LO woke up from her nap, we decided we can't let the good weather go to waste, so we changed into our swimsuits and went for a dip in the pool. Whilst we were at the pool, the Som Tam demonstration was going on and I took the opportunity to learn how to make this yummy green papaya salad. 

The ingredients for Som Tam. Basically you just need to pound, squeeze and mix them all up!

We loved the free bicycle ride service, even though it's free for four hours, it was more than sufficient. The best part, they had bicycles with attached carriers for babies and toddlers, so LO enjoyed her very first bicycle ride with Daddy! Mommy doesn't know how to ride >.< Sshhh! We didn't use the spa or gym but these areas looked quite nice.

The inside of the kid's activity center.

Cooked porridge for LO that night and I told hubby that I wanted some authentic Thai food for dinner (I felt the food at the hotel was kinda 'Westernized'), then my hubby remembered reading on this Kin Dee restaurant - a nearby small family restaurant which does delivery too. We gave them a call and they sent us their menu via WhatsApp (Note: The menu they sent us was slightly different from what we saw on their website). After browsing through, we decided to get the creamy Tom Yum Goong (THB150 for the small one), Jumbo Andaman Sea Prawn in the famous tamarind sauce (THB500), Stir-fry Phuket jungle leafy vegetable (THB100) and Thai fluffy omelette with baby oyster (THB130). We were told it would take about 45 mins for the food to reach but they called to say they've reached about 30 mins later. They deliver for free to the resort (we just need to meet them at the gates) - no additional tax or service charge. 

Tomyum Goong. Sour and spicy - Liked this very much.

Jumbo Andaman Sea Prawn in the famous tamarind sauce. Prawns were fresh but lacked flavor.

Stir-fry Phuket jungle leafy vegetable. Apparently this is only available in Phuket. Not sure what its proper name is but it looks like a bigger version of our sayur manis or Sabah veggie. The taste is a lil similar too.

That night they were showing the movie 'Pan' by the pool. They have this 'Dive-In Movie' session three times a week; on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. We could watch this in the comfort of our suite since our balcony was directly facing the projector screen :P

As I mentioned before, it was really difficult to wake up in the morning but somehow we managed to do that and reached downstairs for breakfast the next day. They had quite a fabulous breakfast spread - a wide variety to choose from but tastewise, so so. We attended the presentation of the Vacation Club program after breakfast (They will take the opportunity to invite anyone or everyone who is there/nearby anyway. If you accepted the complimentary stay offered by certain credit cards or were invited by a friend who is already a member, you are required to attend this). I was curious and was interested to know what and how these so-called time-share schemes work, so we went. The consultants were friendly, informative and professional. The program looked quite tempting and attractive, so much so it caught my attention, for like a second. *Grin*. I would have been interested but I found that most of their hotels/resorts are far from tourist attractions/points of interest, which didn't really suit our style of traveling. Though we decided not to sign in the end, they were still all smiles and polite to us. Kudos!

After the presentation, we went over to Turtle Village and had our lunch at the Coffee Club. Ordered stir-fry minced pork with Thai basil and the pork noodles, so I could share some noodles with LO. Food was so so, but guess what? The portion of the noodles was so small that my LO could almost finish the whole bowl of noodles by herself! Luckily I was still quite full from breakfast. Lol! But my affogato was good though. 

Pork noodles.

Stir-fry minced pork with Thai basil.

My affogato.

We discussed about the program over lunch and I told my hubby I wanted to go over to Marriott Vacation Club to have a look and compare. When we finished eating, we took the buggy service to Marriott. 

The first thing we noticed was the swimming pool; 3 lavish pools and waterslides in the kids' pool! The beach is easily accessible from the main pool. Their kids club was large; they had a 'teen zone' with a pool table, X-box, PS3/4, Wii, a movie room, as well as all the usual toys and crafty things. There's even a turtle shelter within the resort with some educational programs so they could educate anyone who is interested on what they do to protect the oceans and the turtles. Unfortunately, the shelter only opens during weekdays and we were there on a Saturday. There were quite a few restaurants/cafes there too, including a Japanese and an Italian restaurant. So it would seem there are more things/activities to do here. Perhaps we'll plan for a stay here next time so we can truly compare the services and facilities :)

For our anniversary dinner that night, hubby made a reservation at Sea.Fire.Salt restaurant. Located inside Anantara Phuket Villas, Sea.Fire.Salt (This is the second outlet, the first is in Maldives) is an interesting restaurant, majoring in seafood cuisine. With great views and a perfect ambience, it’s the kind of place you dress up and look good for a lovely lunch or dinner. We were interested in one of their highlights: the Himalayan Salt Brick. The waitress explained to us that large pieces of this pure pink salt are selected from the pristine Himalayas and transformed into salt bricks. They are then being heated in an oven at  200°C, and due to their extremely high mineral content, they make a perfect cooking plate, mildly imparting some of the salts' best qualities and giving the meal an added depth. We ordered 1/2 dozen oysters, Salt Brick Mediterranean Vegetables in garlic & coriander marinade and mixed seafood. The fresh seafood were grilled til half-cooked before being further cooked on the piping hot salt brick - Interesting and scrumptious! Do take note not to leave the seafood on the brick for too long as the longer it's there, the saltier it will become. The portions were quite huge - we should have ordered one set of the mixed seafood to share, instead of one set each. There were complimentary appetizer and dessert too, so that was one darn full and perfect anniversary dinner! I would highly recommend this place to everybody!

Complimentary appetizer: Fried fish with tartar sauce.

Fine de Claire No. 3, shucked on ice with shallot & cabernet vinegar, Thai spicy sauce & fresh lemon (THB750).

Salt Brick Mediterranean Vegetables in garlic & coriander marinade (THB750).

Mixed Seafood - sea bass, tiger prawns, scallops and baby lobster with citrus & coriander marinade (THB1,500).

Complimentary dessert: Coconut macarons.

By the way, the restaurant offers a salt sommelier who pairs your dishes with different types of salts from all around the world. We managed to sample the Hawaiian red clay sea salt, smoked mushroom salt, tomyum goong flavored salt and also the black truffle sea salt. Feel free to ask for samples and if you find something to your liking, you can buy a small bottle to take home :)

Some of the samples we had.

There were 16 different types of salt.

The last morning after breakfast, hubby took LO for another round of bicycle ride before packing and heading to the airport. She's only turning 2 next month so she couldn't really participate in the activities provided (Other than playing with some of the toys) since most of them were for ages 3 and above. However, she enjoyed dipping in the pool and the bicycle ride very much. In fact, I think the one who enjoyed the most during this trip was her. Haha. She went round saying hello to everyone, be it the staffs or other guests, played ball with a lady from US whom we met while enjoying our beer at the poolside bar and the staffs at the activity center liked her very much, saying she's so sweet and knew so many words at such a young age. Of course mommy felt damn proud of her too! :P

And so...that marked the end of our anniversary trip. We definitely came back feeling more refreshed but man, I was glad to be back in the city, honestly. Lol. We've just spent the whole 4D3N relaxing in the resort, without stepping foot into Phuket town or Patong. Anymore than that, I think I'll probably start growing mushrooms (Chinese way of saying bored to tears), but that's just ME. Haha. 

All in all, I would say I don't mind having this kind of vacation once in a while though I still prefer our usual way of traveling - stay in somewhere convenient, visit famous landmarks, try famous food and shop for what I like. This is why I thought their vacation program didn't suit us. For those who like spending a week or more doing nothing but chilling and relaxing in a hotel/resort, then it's probably worth investing in their program. 

Tips:

1. If you decide to stay in Anantara for, say, a week, I would suggest renting a car so you can drive around the island. Car rental cost about THB1,300/day. The hotel receptionist told us that the taxi fare to the nearest hyper market (Tesco-Lotus) or the Central Festival Phuket Mall would cost us THB800 - 1,000 one way, so you do the maths :P
2. Booking using Citibank credit card would get you a discount of up to 40%. 
3. Some credit cards do offer complimentary stay (with certain requirements) but part of the deal is to attend the vacation club program presentation.
4. If you happen to have friends who are already a member, get them to invite you. It will be compulsory for you to attend the presentation, but hey, you'll get to stay for free! Who's complaining, huh? :P