Six Senses Yao Noi Resort — Hotel in Ko Yao Noi

Fictional Mad Men ad man Don Draper once mused, “I keep going places and ending up where I’ve already been.” Even the most jaded of global jetsetters, however, will not feel this sentiment at the Six Senses Yao Noi. This property is sui generis.||||Back in 1998, Swiss developers Germing Frey saw something others had overlooked: a former rubber plantation on the untouched island Koh Yao Noi, one of the 42 islands in the scenic Phang Nga Bay, was perfectly situated to build a resort. First operated as a Kempinski property, in 2008 this property became the Six Senses Yao Noi. With no operations in the United States, many Americans are unfamiliar with this flagship IHG brand, although an upcoming outpost is in development in New York’s Hudson Valley.||||This is a resort situated in the jungle and biophilia abounds. Although it is easily accessible by boat, it is an unspoiled world apart from the mass tourism of Phuket. With this comes welcome residents like majestic Oriental Pied Hornbills (one almost alighted on me as I was splashing about in my villa’s personal pool) and menaces like nasty mosquitos. Although the property does mosquito abatement thrice weekly, I suggest you apply the provided repellant and keep the mosquito coils sparked up, or you may find tell-tale red welts accompanying you on vacation. In particular, if you choose to undertake the complimentary guided kayak tour of the mangrove forest (delightful), make sure you apply repellent to your ankles and sunblock to the tops of your feet (lesson learned) as you won’t be shod. And speaking of the jungle, there are a tremendous number of trees that shed leaves more quickly than a New England hillside in October. Yet you will never hear the unwelcome whine of a leaf blower or snarl of a chainsaw. All of the pathways are immaculately maintained by a team of gardeners who work tirelessly to keep the place pristine. To give a sense of the velocity of leaf shedding, on my departure day, the portion the path shared with an adjacent villa along with its branched path were swept leaf free while the groundskeepers waited to sweep the spur to my villa until closer to the arrival time of the next occupant lest they simply have to start sweeping all over again.||||The density of foliage is such that when the property describes the view of the “Hideaway Pool Villa” as “Jungle,” you should believe it. You might only be a couple yards from another villa or 50 yards from the ocean but you will not be able to see either of them. It is complete privacy. If a room with a view is important to you (and there are some rooms with boffo views, including the most spectacular of them all appropriately and simply named “The View”), make sure you reserve an appropriate room category. All of the one-to-four bedroom villas are spacious, vibrantly decorated and filled with a confounding collection of switches controlling everything from lighting to fans to air conditioning. On my first night I had to venture outside past the pool to the end of the villa to locate the switch to a light that was shining into the bedroom window. Perhaps future room enhancements will include some automation technology to operate the systems and shades.||||This property operates close to full capacity almost all of the time, even during the low season when some of the 56 villas are unavailable for maintenance. When upgrades are available, the resort prioritizes them for what it terms “long staying” and returning guests (who also receive a cute “Welcome Home” plaque outside their doors). Booking through Virtuoso, AMEX FHR or being an IHG Diamond Royal Ambassador will likely not yield outsized results given the number of guests with similar status or higher upgrade proiority. If you are a IHG points enthusiast, however, this may prove to be a redemption opportunity that yields greater value than their customary US$0.005 valuation peg, at least until they adjust the number of points required to keep up with the rising cash room rates.||||Dining here is tasty, plentiful, varied across the three restaurants + room service and reasonably priced, with the notable exception of the eye-watering Andaman Rainbow Lobster at 6,800 Bhat. It could be simple menu price anchoring to make the other items look reasonable, but I’m buffaloed why high-end resorts crank up the price of these nocturnal omnivorous nautical scavengers to the moon and beyond. saw the same dynamic in Maldives. Perhaps some subsegment of guests must regard lobsters as a singularly indulgent vacation delicacy. I suggest you save your lobster consumption for your next trip to Maine. Breakfast is a particular treat, but keep an eye on the mouth-watering Thai mango which is snapped up as fast as a worker can slice it. While there is a pilot program in Florida to grow Thai papayas and mangos, until they become widely available in the US, you’ll be glad you tried them in their home setting. I also recommend the Phuket Noodle with Onsen Egg (order off the menu; it’s a different dish than the one prepared at the buffet noodle bar). One thing to skip here is oatmeal as it is the same instant variety you would find at a Holiday Inn Express. And if ice cream is your preferred way to cool down, you can enjoy as much home made ice cream as you desire all day long for free. For those venturing off property, there are a variety of coffee shops, beachside beer shacks, massage stands, restaurants and even two package stores for hootch for tourists visiting this 95+% Muslim island. Hit up the ATM across from the resort entrance as cash is king at these establishments. You will find these outposts both to the south and north of the resort but be advised that the road to the north features two rather formidable hills if you are on foot or bicycle while the road to the south is basically flat.||||Prior to visiting, I recommend signing up for the IHG Intercontinental Ambassador program (US$225/annually) to be treated to either a complimentary guided excursion or a massage for two from the storied spa regarded to be among the finest in Southeast Asia. You’ll make up the annual fee and then some with a single massage alone. The spa facility is indeed beautiful, nestled in the jungle in a classic Thai longhouse. Upon entering, I was given a form to fill out assessing my current level of stress and other preferences. I selected a 90-minute “medium” “relaxing” with the addition of hot stones. Well, perhaps something was lost in translation. The first 45-minutes were delightful. But then I think the therapist transitioned into the “Movement Restoration Massage.” She hopped up on the table and began pressing, pulling and stretching with all her might, rending me asunder in a such a fashion I felt I might cleave in twain. In fairness, throughout the session the therapist continually inquired as to how I was doing and whether she should lighten up. But I thought, “When is the next time I’m going to be in Thailand” and bid her to continue. At the conclusion, the only question the therapist asked was, “Did I make you cry?” The spa indicates it deploys “an intuitive mix of science and human awareness, where our high-tech and high-touch approach defines a service that is crafted around the individual.” Upon departure, my therapist suggested that I was in need of immediate additional intervention and recommended I return to the spa the following day. I demurred. YMMV but unless your métier is body builder at a circus, you might want to think twice about ordering a “Strong” massage here. The spa menu (which has illustrations reminiscent of the opening credits of The White Lotus) advises, “we will take you as deep as you would like to go.” Be careful of what you wish for. ||||As for your fellow guests, you’ll likely find them relaxed, rugged, in fine fettle, fit and yoga-ready. The fitness center and yoga studio enjoy steady use throughout the day. The guests are not as uniformly American as those depicted on The White Lotus; they’re more of a mix of families and well-heeled couples in a Knives Out meets Agatha Christie mystery meets characters from the board game Clue – many of whom could have been lifted straight from a XXIO golf advertisement. With names like Duncan and Tobais, Eugenia and Tate, guests here hail from all over the world. This is reflected in the expansive library offerings available 24 hours a day. One day I was studying the bookshelves trying to discern a familiar title when a staffer gently informed me I was looking at the German language section.||||Sustainability is a top hallmark of the Six Senses brand. As CEO Neil Jacobs put it, “Every hotel has a sustainability director. That’s not the same as having a green team that meets once a month. This person touches every single department of the hotel and sits on the executive committee of the hotel. That just elevates the importance of the function within the organisation at the hotel level.” Indeed you will find no single use plastic here (or any sous vide food preparation requiring plastic) and from lemongrass straws to chicken coup to mushroom hut to garden and farm, this property walks the walk of sustainability. But there is one area where I believe the resort throws sustainability to the wind: transport. After making a booking, guests have the option of having the hotel arrange transfers to and from the property. And they are great: super convenient, timely, professional, friendly and fun. But one of the choices offered is whether guests want a shared or private speedboat – and many guests select the private option! I can understand if you happen to be Lalisa Manobal or Timothée Chalamet, you might require a private boat to accommodate your entourage and escape the paparazzi. But if you are just another anonymous rich person, why on earth do you need your own private boat to separate you from the other anonymous rich people with whom you will shortly be/or just have been sitting on the beach and dining with at the restaurants? These speedboats are not rinky-dink dinghies but powerful, luxurious, speedy craft with dual 200 horsepower motors that could easily accommodate 15 – 20 passengers… or more. Upon departing the property in my “shared” speedboat with another couple, a private speedboat with two other guests left the dock simultaneously. We raced each other across Phang Nga Bay and thirty minutes later arrived at the same dock in the Ao Por Marina at precisely the same time. Private land transfers make sense for people going to different locations and/or at different times. Duplicative boats going to the same destination at the same time do not. Unlike the fictional shared boat in the White Lotus Thailand, smoking is not allowed and no one on the shared boat was anything other than polite and pleasant, even with an impecunious piker like me stowing away. Years ago, the resort created its signature mellifluous jazz-filled 300-chicken coup to provide guests with fresh organic eggs onsite and reduce the carbon footprint from shipping them in each day from the mainland. While the same approach won’t work for guests, perhaps the Six Senses Yao Noi Sustainability Director can use this experience to develop a carbon offset for purchase program to diminish the environmental impact of those guests requiring their own personal nautical conveyance.||||Finally, here’s why they should have shot The White Lotus Season III here: all of the villa splendor of the Four Seasons Koa Samui + the breathtaking background of the karsts! Until coming here, my favorite pool with a view was the basking pool at the Post Ranch Inn in Big Sur, California to watch the whales swim by 1,200 feet below. But the karsts have won me over. This pool may well be the “Best Hotel Pool View” in the world. These “humpbacked limestone mountains” stand sentinel in Phang Nga Bay, at once immutable and yet ever changing over the course of the day. There’s nothing at all like them in North America or Europe. And the exteriors of the karsts are just the beginning! Inside the karsts are “hongs,” roofless interior chambers, hosting jungle vegetation, mangrove trees and even barrels of monkeys. What Mike White would have made of the mayhem. The good news is that while the crush of The White Lotus tourist trade descends on Koh Samui, Six Senses Yao Noi remains pristine and unspoiled. If you are looking for repose, reflection, reinvigoration, relaxation, renewal or a combination of all of the above, it’s highly likely you will find them here. It awaits your visit for sybaritic service, nature immersion, cultural connection and discovery of a new place guaranteed not to end up where you have already been – a destination worth the...

This is definitely one of the most beautiful resorts we have ever visited. The views from the hilltop are stunning, and the jungle-like mountain landscape is just amazing. There are only 51 rooms. Colorful butterflies swarm around, accompanied by hornbill birds swooping down over your private pool. It is a natural paradise! I would give 10 stars for location, scenery, and beauty!||But paradise comes with swarms of mosquitoes! You basically get eaten alive. We chose to travel in mid-April because our guidebook and Six Senses told us it was the end of the dry season. So we figured: the season with the fewest mosquitoes. NOT!
 The resort is lush and green—meaning: it probably rains a lot all year = lots of mosquitoes. And the resort is situated right next to a large Mangrove area (swamp). 
I was even bitten by one of the black-and-white tiger mosquitoes (Aedes Albopictus). They bite any time of the day, even in broad sunlight. 
Each table in their three restaurants is equipped with salt, pepper, and mosquito spray. Under each table, mosquito coils are also provided. So the resort does quite a lot to protect guests from these blood-sucking beasts.||One big issue though — and a serious warning: The mosquito spray is filled with alcohol. We didn’t know. So we used the spray and walked out into the sun. The alcohol dissolved the sunscreen we were wearing. As a result, our daughter got severely sunburned on her entire face and had to be treated with hydrocortisone. We did reapply sunscreen many times a day, but my daughter’s chemistry teacher later explained that alcohol on the skin keeps dissolving the sunscreen.
Suggestion for Six Senses: Please add a warning to the mosquito spray (“Do not use in direct sunlight”) and provide a full list of ingredients on each bottle.||SERVICE at Six Senses Yao Noi|
All the staff are very friendly and polite. We have been to another Six Senses resort five times before and have had four different GEMs (GEM = Guest Experience Maker). Most of the staff at Yao Noi did a really great job. However, the GEM service didn’t work as expected. We’re used to seeing the GEM at least once a day at breakfast (or maybe dinner) to check in. At Yao Noi, we mostly ran into her by accident—on the stairs, on our way to the buffet, or to our room, etc. Most of our contact was via WhatsApp.
 We do like that personal contact and making the best of our stay in collaboration with our GEM.||We had an excellent shared boat trip to Phi Phi Island and a free guided tour through the mangroves — both were really great.
 |Guide Buss, Captain Bao, Boatsman Mutti, and guide/beach manager Philip all did a great job.||FOOD at Six Senses Yao Noi|The Hilltop restaurant serves extremely basic food at sky-high prices. The price and quality are so far apart that it’s shocking. Cold seafood pasta, uncooked prawns, and soggy crispbread just aren’t acceptable for a resort of this level.
 |Suggestion: Hire a new chef and create a truly gourmet menu. The view is stunning, of course—but you can enjoy that all day. In fact, it’s best at sunrise.||The Nithan restaurant serves modern Thai food, which is delicious and more reasonably priced. Compliments to Chef Braden Reardon.||Our best dining experience at Six Senses Yao Noi, surprisingly, was buffet night! Wow —the food was delicious and well-prepared. The grilled lobsters were superb. The glazed duck and all the hot dishes were excellent. A truly memorable evening!||The main restaurant offers a mix of international and Thai cuisine. The food is good, and the quality and pricing are well balanced.|
Restaurant manager Yaya did an outstanding job — perhaps the person with the strongest Six Senses spirit at Yao Noi! Frame and Bank also did a good job.||The BEACH
|The sandy beach is nice—the water is not. It’s extremely murky. Fishermen harvest jellyfish right off the coast. When they remove them, small stingy pieces get scattered in the water, causing stings. A warning flag is up most days. Paddle boards and kayaks are free.||The ARRIVAL Service|Probably the poorest arrival service ever offered by a luxury resort. “Pay more money or sit on a non-existent bench in the arrival hall for four hours.” Don’t greet your guests in the arrival hall if you don’t plan to provide any service that reflects the resort’s standards.||ICE CREAM
|Six Senses resorts are often loved by children for their free ice cream. At Yao Noi, there were only 12 flavors. If the quality of those 12 had been excellent, that would’ve been fine. But sadly, the quality was pretty terrible. The texture was “floury” and not creamy at all. It resembled wet sand when your sandcastle falls apart.
|Suggestion: Hire a Sicilian ice cream chef to train your staff and invest in proper ice cream-making equipment. Also, create a welcoming ice cream parlor with chairs and tables where guests can gather and enjoy themselves. Consider transforming the bar area next to the reception into a large ice cream parlor—no one seems to use that bar anyway.||THE ROOM (Villa No. 22)|
The room had the classic Six Senses decor and was absolutely stunning. It was large, spacious, with multiple showers and a huge bathroom. Even though the villas are built very close to each other along the mountainside, they feel extremely private and well-designed. Housekeeping was also good.
The biggest disappointment, however, was the view. It was nowhere near what was promised for an Ocean Pool Villa, according to the website photos.||The Spa|
We all had massage treatments. The therapists were very skilled, but they didn’t speak any English, which made communication quite difficult. There are no showers at the spa, so when you leave, your clothes get stained by the Tiger Balm or oils used during the treatment.|The free yoga sessions were great, but unfortunately overcrowded. The yoga platform is beautiful with an excellent view, but the experience was disturbed by music and noise from the gym below.||Summary|
All in all, a mixed experience. It’s too expensive for what you actually get — but the location alone still makes it somewhat...

Truly a wonderful experience. We arrived during a heavy rain period, the buggy’s and GEMS were ready. Umbrellas everywhere, luggage and us quickly taken to our wonderful, perfect with amazing views villa. Waking up to the sunrise on Phang Nga Bay every morning was such an amazing way to start the day. Our GEM, Tanya, was beautiful, ensuring that we had everything we needed, helping with bookings etc and even bringing us milk for our tea. All the staff here are delightful and happy. Happy to chat and love to have a joke/tease with us. Something we really appreciated] Watch the sunrise, have a swim in our pool, off to yoga, then visiting the chickens for our eggs in the morning for breakfast. Our perfect way to start our day. We loved walking around the resort, there is the mushroom hut, many herb gardens, through the butterfly garden or the Mangrove Forest walk, it was always enjoyable. Watching all the butterflies and hornbills was fascinating, ensuring we did it every day. While you are going for a walk, grab an ice cream, you will not regret it. I do not normally eat ice cream, but I believe I had at least 2 a day, as they were so tasty. [My years’ worth of ice cream in my 6 days here] Book an Island buggy tour, a great way to see the island, really the best way to see the island. We did the James Bond movie night, from the cute bowties on the menu, wonderful staff and excellent food it was a night to remember. We watched a few movies on the beach, such a wonderful experience with great popcorn. The staff even give you towels if you are cold. :) The spa, wow, wow again. The ladies are wonderful, ensuring the massage experience was what we were after. Talks first on the types of massage, including the pressure, then to our joint room. I really suggest having a massage with your partner, it is just a wonderful experience. Island hopping by Longtail boat, what great fun. The guide knew the right spots for us to stop and snorkel. Lunch on a deserted island. Everything and more. The staff at the water sports centre will help you out. Always friendly and helpful. Hubby kayaked, enjoyed it, even though it was low tide every time we went. [He kayaks at home] He also gave the stand-up paddle board a go, it was great that you can give it a go. The Den - a beautiful spot to enjoy a drink or two. Had a great lunch here on our last day. Hilltop Reserve - This place is about the view, the view while you are in the pool, or sitting watching the view while enjoying a drink. Ensure that you pop in for a drink just before sunset, you might just catch an amazing sunset. Even though the sun sets behind you, the colours that are reflected in the sky can be amazing. We were lucky the time we pop up here. [See my photos I have to mention I have a couple of food allergies. Both restaurants ensured that all the staff/chefs knew. I was well looked after, staff double checking with the chef when I ordered. The Dining Room - Food, service, & staff, everything is perfect. They know how to make you feel special. Try the Spiced Cauliflower soup and Confit Phang-Nga Duck leg. The Living Room – Again, with the Food, service and staff everything is perfect. Breakfast is a delightful buffet, we especially loved the fresh eggs cooked any way we wanted. Dinners, we loved dinners here, our first night we decided on the ‘Chefs Degustation Menu’ [think that is what it was called] it was brilliant, you have to try it. The chef has decided on all your courses, so that everything is perfect with all the dishes you eat. All meals we ate here were divine, I especially loved the duck in the Tamarind & Jasmine tea sauce. If you want a resort that makes you feel special, then you have come to the right resort. There is so many little things I could mention that are amazing, but I won't, as these will be surprises for you...