Nourishing the 'Senses'

For those who crave a holiday that promises tranquillity, organic food and a marvellous sea view beyond Samui and Phuket, the Six Senses Yao Noi beyond Phuket is one of the best choices. There for a wine dinner by Regis Marcon of the three-Michelin-star Restaurant Regis et Jacques Marcon in the Haute Loire, I checked into a Hideaway Pool Villa surrounded by trees inhabited by hornbills, which emerge for a leisurely flight in the late afternoon. 

I was particularly impressed by the resort’s environmentally friendly concept, which Six Senses refer to as “Slow Life”. General manager Manish Puri tells me this stands for Sustainable – Local – Organic – Wellness Learning – Inspiring – Fun – Experiences. The idea of sustainability is right to the fore here, with the resort’s gardens and mushroom huts providing the resort’s kitchens with organic ingredients. 

“Guests are here to relax, and be part of nature. Along the way, they learn to maintain sustainability and wellness. A stay here is quite a learning experience,” says Puri. 

The Slow Life concept seeks to highlight positive impacts created by the resort. To reduce daily waste, the resort bottles its own drinking water, using recyclable glass, not plastic, bottles.

Executive chef Anthony Reynolds serves organic food using locally sourced, seasonal and organic ingredients – there’s plenty of vegetarian southern dishes to please non-meat eaters. Reynolds won’t serve shark fins, Atlantic salmon, Chilean sea bass, forced-fed ducks and foie gras for environmental, ethical and moral reasons. 

I’m also impressed by the property’s determination to respect, not overpower, nature. Set on a hill, the villas are tucked away under the thick foliage. You see more trees than the roofs of these villas, suggesting that the original landscape is protected, not altered to accommodate modern architecture.

That’s probably why you get a lot of leaves in your private 18-sqm infinity-edge pool. Overlooking a plantation, my villa stands in a natural clearing hemmed by tall trees. Even when the sun is overhead, there’s plenty of shade covering the poolside terrace, thanks to the thick foliage.

My room has separate bedroom and bathroom with outside shower and a sitting room furnished with bamboo.

There are modern amenities like IDD telephone, espresso machine, tea and coffee making facilities plus wireless internet and land cable access, satellite TV, DVD player plus a Bose hi-fi system with docking station for a personal iPod. I enjoy the Bose hi-fi system and the iPod docking station and the wireless internet is useful. But I personally think the satellite TV is superfluous.

I notice that there are no toothbrushes and toothpaste provided though they are available on request. 

My villa has no sea view: for that I would need to check into an Ocean Panorama Pool Villa.  

After a light lunch, a spa treatment awaits, and I go for a full-body Oriental Massage, an integrative style of full body massage with acupressure & stretching techniques, for 50 minutes. 

In the late afternoon, the Den is a great place to chill out for a myriad of cocktails, Asian tapas and regional dishes. I was there 30 minutes before a rainstorm hit and was entranced by the hornbills flying from one tree to another in a panic, which apparently signifies the coming of the rain. The sea view from here is marvellous.

My experience peaks at the Hilltop Restaurant with the Chef’s Table where you get to know interesting people in the resort. I met an actor on holiday from Germany who decided to come back to the island right away after having seen a Russian crowd at a resort in Krabi. 

I loved the organic food, the quiet, the trees, the pool – and especially the Bose hi-fi system.

 

      At a glance

High points: The resort is located on a secluded island, away from the madding crowd, with plenty of privacy and tranquillity. Every villa has a pool and a butler. The resort’s environmentally conscious stance is respectable. The organic food is healthy.

Low point: Getting to the resort requires a bit of travelling. From Phuket Airport, it’s a 30 minutes’ van ride to the Ao Por Grand Marina where you continue with a 45-minute speed boat ride to the resort. It’s pricey too, with the accommodation really only affordable to the well-heeled. 

Find it: 56 Moo 5, Koh Yao Noi, Amphur Koh Yao, Phang Nga 82160.

Pay for it: Check the website for the best deals and promotions.

Call it: (039) 619 808

Browse it: www.SixSenses.com.