Bought to you by The Surin Phuket
Mr Woog is down at the pool with the kids, so I thought I would pour myself a gin & tonic and let you know what we have been up to this week.
WHICH HAS BEEN BUGGER ALL! Mind you, it did take a few days for my brain to catch up with by body and realise that a resort holiday is about doing just that. Relax to the max.
We arrived late at Phuket International Airport, where I might have been slightly off my face due to a sleeping tablet with a white wine chaser. A car drove us a short trip where I fell into a bed. I was exhausted. I could have been anywhere....
When I woke up the next day, I walked out of our room and stumbled across this...
 |
| Well Hello Sailor? |
The Surin is a resort located north of the popular and pongy Patong. I have visited Patong half a dozen times over the years and was glad to see some more of the island.
The Surin is located on Pansea Beach, a small stretch of turquoise brilliance that, although there is not official private beaches in Phuket, kind of becomes one by default due to the fact that you have to walk thought the resort to get to it.
There are just over 100 cottages scattered from the beach up the hill, and it is in one of these cottages that I write to you.
The way it is designed is quite fantastic in the sense that you feel very private. Until one of your kids starts running and and down the paths wearing thongs and tripping over, causing your partner to have to carry a crying child up to get a bandaid and then you have to deal with the weeping and the..............
Calm and relaxed.
Truth is, there have been many times this week where my kids might have normally sent me through the stress stratosphere, but the hours of decadent spoilings offered by this resort have soaked them up like a super absorbent sea sponge.
(I see the gin is beginning to work...)
The Surin is a case study of relaxed elegance at it's finest. I met with the General Manager Marie-Helene who has been in the top job just a short time. She outlined her vision moving forward, and how she was going to raise the standards of everything at the resort.
Which confused me somewhat. Because I would struggle to find anything that required raising. But I nodded along before asking her where she got her pants from. They were fantastic.
The accommodation on offer ranges from two bedroom bungalows on the beach, one bedroom cottages and studios. The decor is fresh and modern, the air-con kicks ass and the housekeeping services the rooms twice a day.
I have not made a bed since I can remember!
 |
| daybed in lounge room |
A typical Woogie day here looks like this.
- Breakfast. The buffet is large and offers you all the standards plus a fresh bakery section, egg station, pancake and waffle station and surprisingly excellent coffee!
- Back to the room for a while to rest and rub belly.
- Pool and beach time.
- Lunch
- Nap
- Massage and cocktail by the sea
- Dinner
- SLEEP!
Times that by 9 days and you end up looking like this....
Ok, maybe more like this....
 |
| "Yo! Where is your perm-frown gone and what have you done with the fetching black shadows under your eyes?" |
You will see that I resisted the cheap and plentiful offers available for botox sessions. Obvs.
So let's move onto the food, shall we? There is seaside casual, Thai favourites, Italian seafood and basically pretty much whatever you want. This little dish will live in my heart forever....
 |
| Rock lobster, fennel and tomato salad with other delicious things. |
They have a kids menu that does not just feature xxx with chips, xxx with chips and xxx with chips. But enough about them. Here is some more gastro porn....
 |
| Old faithful |
 |
| prawnies! |
 |
| "Have you called Jenny yet?" JENNY CAN GO BITE ME... |
 |
| Can we talk about the fruit in Thailand? |
 |
| No, seriously? |
The food almost deserves a whole other post.
Staff were gorgeous. There was nothing they would not do to make your stay more comfortable. Nothing was too much trouble and they had answers to all inquiries. And they LOVE kids, either that or are extremely good actors.
But this would not be an honest review without a couple of things that are on Marie-Helene's hit list, and mine.
The beds are large and the linen is like silk. If you like a harder bed, then you will be delighted, but I prefer something a little softer.
The Spa is currently being refurbished so an alternative is in use at the moment. This did not detract from the fact that I had the most heavenly facial, fell asleep and snorted.
If you have dicky hips, beware. This resort is built on a hillside and there are stairs. Which is fine with me as it burnt off my daily French Martini. A bit. Maybe just the olive...
Apparently there is a very good gym here, so Mr Woog says.
But to be honest, and I have wracked my brain here folks, there is very little to complain about when it comes to The Surin. You would be clutching at straws...
STRAWS WITH UMBRELLAS AND PINEAPPLE CHUNKS ATTACHED.....
But this place is too classy for such tack. Just normal, elegant thin straws here.
So I leave you now, with quite the heavy heart, as it is back to the mundane for me tomorrow. And to the wonderful folks at The Surin, thank you for having us Woogs.
Like the man says, we will be back!
Can I tempt you?
What is your favourite place to stay?
Have you ever stayed here? HOW GOOD?????
For more information on The Surin Phuket, you can visit their website here - http://www.thesurinphuket.com/
If you want to be a clever cookie and visit on the cheap, follow them on Facebook for their fantastic Flash Sales which they advertise for 72 hours. CLICK HERE.
Woogs stayed at The Surin Phuket as guests of the resort.
This is an unpaid post.
All opinions are my own.
The Festival of 40 is officially over.
