A Birthday at Four Seasons Chiang Mai

My friend loves to visit Thailand for reasons I cannot appreciate and we decided to visit Chiang Mai for the birthday celebration.

For this trip, we booked via the American Express Fine Hotels and Resorts (FHR) Programme which include an upgrade, breakfast and a spa credit, as well as an early check in and late checkout.

We arrived at the resort via taxi and was escorted in and seated in the open space.

Checking in was quick and given a string of jasmine flowers for that ‘resort’ feeling, we were promptly informed we had been upgraded to a Pool Villa from the basic room in view of the birthday celebration.

Hooray!

So we were then driven in a buggy to the aforementioned villa, passing by a path of bamboo to a door which is the entrance to 2 pool villas.

The villa was big and extended to a small stream which is not protected, which means people can attempt to enter the villa via that end. Otherwise it was as magnificent as expected.

A big four-poster bed with a sitting area in front, a large toilet with a big bathtub, 2 sinks and a shower, and an outdoor shower as well.

FSCM Pool Villa Room – Spherical Image – RICOH THETA

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And of course, the pool in a pool villa.

FSCM Pool Villa Pool – Spherical Image – RICOH THETA

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There was a pillow menu by the bed as well, and a bowl of fruit at the sitting area.

Looking the spa menu, I realized the spa credit of USD$100 was really not much and booked just one treatment package for the birthday star. Well, I wasn’t surprised at the rates since it is a Four Seasons.

The camera went for the spa as well and brought back the following pictures.

Meanwhile, the hotel staff came to the room and placed some evening snack and more seasonal fruit to the table.

I wanted to book a special dinner by the paddy field for that evening but was told flatly that all the spaces were fully booked for the next 2 days!

Wow. Tons of rich people at the Four Seasons. Unfortunately I’m not one of them but just a normal, amateur travel hacker.

So I ordered room service instead as the resort was pretty isolated and taking a taxi out to town was undesirable.

The food wasn’t really great and I guess that is the price of being ‘captive’ in the resort. Or perhaps I was just bewildered that I couldn’t even get a place for a set dinner.

Sleep was uneventful with the mosquito-net and we sent for the buggy to bring us to the breakfast restaurant.

During breakfast, there were 2 artisans entertaining the guests with their leaf-folding skills.

They leave before the end of breakfast time so be sure to ‘order’ your desired bauble at your first opportunity.

One of the attractions of the resort is the paddy field in the resort and I took a walk around and noted the presence of 2 buffaloes too!

I also took the chance to look at the other types of rooms while exploring the resort.

The post-breakfast walk took me past the bar as well. I noted some flower bowls in the resort and wondered how much effort goes into the arrangement and if they are done on a daily basis.

The swimming pool looks out across the paddy field and was less than half-occupied when I passed by.

Having a pool in the own villa means there is no need to visit the shared pool, unless you also want to use the steam pool and cold plunge pools nearby.

Like my usual experience, the gym was empty, so the small size doesn’t matter.

And so that concludes my first  (and only, in the foreseeable future) stay at a Four Seasons Resort or Hotel.

Oh yes, they didn’t forget a birthday cake.

Happy And Healthy Travels!