Teens a tween and Thailand
The first part of our trip we stayed at the Intercontinental Phuket Resort which is on the stunning Kamala beach. This beautiful hotel was a great choice. It’s flanked by jungle covered hills one side and the stunning Kamala beach the other. Sunsets here are especially spectacular. The rooms are luxurious and, depending on room type, offers stunning views of the Andaman Sea. They are generous in size with huge comfortable beds and a luxury bathroom that can either be open plan or closed off with sliding doors. Breakfast was equally impressive. I loved the Barista station, it had the best coffees I've experienced in a hotel, whilst my youngest was spoilt with waffles, pancakes and a plethora of tropical fruits. Lunch times we loved the Pine beach restaurant, and if you really didn't want to drag yourself away from your lounger, they would serve you without having to move a step.
The hotel has seven dining options, with the Thai restaurant, Jaras being Michelin Guide recommended. The hotel is also a great location for exploring some of the local beach restaurants located a short walk along the beach. We found one we all loved and by the end of the week we were sad to leave the wonderful staff who were so friendly and cooked the best green curry I’ve ever had. We mixed our time relaxing at the hotel and exploring Phuket. The highlight for us all, especially my girls was the Green Elephant Sanctuary. This ethical sanctuary rescues abused Elephants, whilst protecting and caring for them. The sanctuary allows you to get up close to these majestic loveable animals. You get the opportunity to feed them which didn't last long as they hoovered up all the bananas super quick! Then prepare to get muddy and wet as you give them a mud bath before finally scrubbing them clean. All while learning interesting and fun information about their lives. We all really enjoyed it, as did the Elephants.
We also visited the Sea Caves and canoed around Hong Island - the scenery is so stunning. We stopped at Panyee Island, known as the Sea Gypsy Village, for lunch and then visited nearby James Bond Island famed for the filming of the Man with Golden Gun. It is beautiful however super busy. We asked the hotel to hire us a driver who took us on a Phuket island tour, taking in Big Bhudda, Wat Chalong (Phuket’s most revered monastery) before ending in Phuket Old Town.
Singapore
A 2-hour flight from Phuket and we landed into Singapore. I was intrigued to visit after so many years, it has seen many changes most noticeably the Marina Bay Gardens which ceased to exist when I last visited. Singapore, after a day of getting lost, is relatively easy to navigate. Taxis are reasonable, however as there are five of us, we opted for the MRT. We purchased 3-day SGD cards which allow you to use the whole network and are great value for money as well as providing much needed air conditioning. We stayed at Clarke Quay which had good transport links, a large selection of restaurants plus the kids were pleased as it was opposite a shopping centre! We purchased a GO CITY pass which had a selection of some of the most popular tourist attractions. You just prepay and select how many attractions you would like then download the app. It’s very straightforward. My highlight over the four days was the Marina Bay Gardens both at night and during the day. The Cloud Forest is stunning, the indoor waterfall is spectacular, and the Avatar experience is fun for all. Supertree Grove twice a night offers a bedazzling free show called Garden Rhapsody where the trees all light up set along to various soundtracks. Ours was retro fever - who doesn’t love a bit of disco.
Another highlight was dining at the Marina Bay Sands hotel. We booked Lavo on the 57th floor which offers amazing views whilst dining in a buzzy Italian restaurant with great music. It’s more expensive than a regular Italian however the views and atmosphere more than make up for it. The chocolate cake is so ginormous the five of us couldn’t even finish it!
We also visited the Night Zoo. It’s a bit of a journey to get there, and my advice is eat before you go as by the time you arrive back into the city its quite late. It’s quite a novel experience seeing nocturnal species, especially the Tasmanian Devils. Our final day we spent on Sentosa Island; you could easily spend a few days here as there is so much to do. From water parks to beach clubs and of course Universal Studios. We took the cable car over which gave you access to the cable car network on the island for fantastic views. As it was our last day, we spent some time at one of the beach clubs, took the cable car up to Fort Silso and had fun whizzing down a man-made track on the Skyline Luge.
Overall, they gave the trip a thumbs up. They still missed their friends, moaned about the Wi-Fi getting up early and walking lots but that's teenagers for you. Flying home, I asked what their highlights were, they all loved the Elephant sanctuary. Although my youngest daughters highlight was the ginormous chocolate cake at Lavo.. like mother like daughter.