Bamboo Village Beach Resort and Spa***
Our brief comments:
The Bamboo Village opened in 1998. It's three-star ranking is misleading - the Vietnamese categorize hotels by size and number of facilities, not quality.
The difference is obvious as soon as you enter the stylish reception building. We rate it at our Deluxe level.
In keeping with its name, bamboo features throughout the resort and particularly the original hexagonal thatched bungalows.
These are not to everyone's taste, but they have real character - the polar opposite of a conventional hotel room. The resort has several clients who come year after year to stay in them.
Each bungalow has basic furniture and terra-cotta tiled floors. Most have a small bathroom with a shower, but three have a bath instead! Most have an exterior wooden seating area with deck chairs.
If you're inclined towards more orthodox accommodation, the Superior Lodges contain fourteen standard rooms. At 40m2, they're large but sparsely furnished. The bathroom is small, but has a good shower cubicle and an 'instant' water heater. Avoid the ground floor rooms - no windows!
The Senior Villas are several steps upmarket - very spacious and with calm decor. The bathroom is good, and the shower cubicle excellent. The beds are firm and good quality. Ground floor rooms have good patio - upper floors have balconies.
The Queen rooms are bigger again with more furniture, a good bathroom with a bath/shower combination, and attractive soft furnishings. We thought the faux-bamboo ceiling was a bit kitsch, but others might love it.
The Connecting Delixe rooms are simply two Senior Villas combined, one double and one twin, with a connecting door. Two
bathrooms, but showers only. They'd be attractive for couples with older children.
The attractive free-form swimming pool is shaded by mature palms, and has a separate children's area. There's plenty of natural shade making sunshades almost superfluous.
There's another smaller pool, equally attractive. Both have Jacuzzi.
The restaurant is a large open-sided bamboo thatched hut. It's a pleasant place to eat, with good furniture, gentle sea breezes, and a good view of the beach. The international menu is good value, but the Vietnamese section is a bit pricey. It's been highly commended for the quality of the cuisine.
An extra bonus is the Water Lily Spa, housed in attractive . Apart from the limited manicure, facial and hairdressing 'spa' combination offered by many hotels, the Water Lily provides a range of massage styles, waxing, aromatherapy, and partial and full body treatments. Their three therapy packages are attractive options.
The 2½hr 'Rejuvenation Vinh Hao Mud Mask' includes a full massage, the 4hr 'Healing Scents' package is built around Asian aromatherapy massage, and the 'Blissful Bamboo Village Day' is a full six hours of mud treatment, body scrub, aromatherapy, and more.
All include a sauna or steam bath, and a green tea and ginger jam tea break, and all are priced to please.
In summary, customer feedback confirms that the Bamboo Village is well above its three-star rating in terms of quality and facilities. If you're looking for something a bit different to conventional beach resorts, this might be what just you're looking for.
Room facilities:
Room Categories |
Superior Lodge |
Bungalow |
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Connecting Deluxe |
Number of rooms |
14 |
23 |
19 |
5 |
4 |
Air-conditioner |
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Satellite television |
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Shower only |
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Bath with shower |
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Bath + separate shower |
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Personal safety box |
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Coffee and tea facilities |
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Laptop connection |
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Free broadband access |
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Extra bed available? |
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Child's cot available? |
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Room size (m2) |
40 |
40 |
43 |
43 |
86 |
View |
garden |
varies* |
sea |
varies** |
sea |
* 12 Bungalows have pool and garden views (7 are 36m2 without a balcony, and 8 are 40m2 with a balcony) - the remaining 11 Bungalows are 40m2 with a balcony and a sea view
** 3 Villas have sea view, 8 have pool and garden views
Additional room facilities:
Hotel facilities:
Outdoor pool (2) |
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Non-smoking floor(s) |
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Pool bar |
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Non-smoking rooms only |
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Children's pool* |
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Vietnamese/Asian restaurant |
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Fitness/health centre |
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International restaurant |
Sauna |
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Patisserie/coffee shop/cafe |
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Massage |
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Business centre |
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Jacuzzi |
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Disabled access** |
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*shallow gradient area
**wheelchair access possible with assistance
Other services and facilities: ''Water Lily Spa', table tennis, billiards, children's playground, baby sitting, express tailoring service, bicycle and motorcycle rental
Water sports: lifeguards, 2 swimming pools with Jacuzzi, wind and kite surfing, golf available at the Ocean Dunes Club at the rear of the Novotel Coralia in Phan Thiet
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