The first day in the Phuket area of Thailand must have ranked near the top of the saddest days ever for a travel journalist.
My buddy/camera man Steve and I landed, rented a car, and drove a few hours to Krabi and a resort hotel property I had contacted earlier in the week. The plan was to stay at The Phulay Bay Resort, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve property, and write about it. But sometimes when you’re flying by the seat of your pants on tour, things don’t work out. Unable to pinpoint my arrival date until the very end, Phulay Bay was totally booked by the time we arrived. (In fact, as we’ll see later in the blog, our timing couldn’t have been worse. Thailand was overflowing with tourists who had come for the Chinese New Year’s celebration. The hotels were full time and time again.)
Regardless, I was determined to experience this Phulay Bay of which I had heard so much. So we toured and sampled the best of the best for one long afternoon.
Ping In Pool
Opulent! One of my favorite words, which I seldom get to use, was quite fitting. Phulay Bay was above and beyond what I had heard. Our tour began with an almost ceremonial walk across the steppingstones of a huge reflecting pool, with a decorative temple frame serving as the backdrop.
In so many words, Phulay is where the rich come to play and not so such much mingle. The property is beautiful — highlighted with vibrant hues, architectural hints of several exotic lands … grandeur … solitude … zen.
After a tour, we drank from the sweet Wi-Fi fountain, snapped photos, and dipped in the luxurious pool in the late afternoon. The sea was calm. The swimming pool and the sea appeared to become one as they reflected the softening light and the likenesses of the palm trees surrounding the property.
The property is a maze of pathways, hedges, stone walls, villas, flowers, fountains and reflecting pools … a labyrinth of serenity … and Wi-Fi. It was a great consolation that although we didn’t spend the night at Phulay Bay, we did sample flawless wireless Internet for hours at a little bungalo of a bar, down past the massive swimming pool, overlooking the Andaman Sea near the Malacca Strait.
So, we tested the Wi-Fi, the cold beverages from a blender, blogged, sent out tweets and people watched among a jetsetting crowd. The speed boats delivering tourist were just regular enough to get our attention — but not too much of a distraction in paradise. Better yet, the wooden Thai longboats whizzing by added a nice rustic element to the picturesque blue/green waters.
What sort of clientele would such a property attract? Well, it was very much a tale of two cities … as we compared our Asian brand rental car coupe with the multi-million dollar yacht anchored just off the shoreline of the hotel. The private yacht speaks volumes. Well … actually the shoreline was as much mine as it was that of Phulay Bay. I think it is very cool, that in Thailand, the beach belongs to no one … or everyone … not the hotel. So, despite the exclusive nature of the hotel, the beach had a great variety of tour boats, fishermen, wanderers and such, passing through.
Marta
Stop me. I could go on and on … Do not get me started again on those little get-acquainted drinks — a lemon ginger treat.
But, alas, there was no room and we moved on as the sunset turned the sea pastel. In our favor, up the road, there was a collection of hotels … various one-of-a-kind resorts and upscale chains as well. We bypassed a Sofitel and pulled into the Sheraton Resort At Krabi Beach for our next place to rest. We found the hotels, after a few wrong turns, which coincidentally put us in the middle of a big construction project on the back roads … a job site of American giant Haliburton, by the way …
Phulay Bay — very exclusive, one of the best swimming pools this side of Las Vegas, and a user friendly Wi-Fi experience for an out-of-place pair of Wi-Fi vagabonds. As previous mentioned, and we stand by it, Phulay Bay — 7 pings … perfect in every way.
Know what I sayin?
