LE CHAMP TU LE RESORT HOT SPRING & SPA — Hotel in Yên Bái Province

Like many places I’ve stayed in Vietnam, this resort is close to being what it is trying to sell but ultimately it misses the mark.

The good: When we arrived by motorbikes we were welcomed in by security and followed signs to reception where we were given hibiscus tea and given a rundown of the property and its amenities. Our bikes were moved to an appropriate spot for us and we were driven to our room. The bungalow we stayed in was comfortable and had almost everything we needed. We asked for two more pillows for the bed considering the pillows were on the thin side and they delivered them to the room. The bed was very comfortable and the curtains blocked out the sun so we could sleep in if we wanted to. The pool was cleaned each day and the view from the infinity pool was pretty spectacular. The restaurant is right behind the pool so you can easily order drinks while relaxing there. We were frequently the only ones there so it was quite peaceful. The breakfast was very good and had a balance of Vietnamese dishes and Western options. The juices, mocktails, cocktails were all quite tasty. The staff are all very friendly and try to accommodate English speakers. The property sits above a town and looks out onto the valley. When the weather is good the views are immaculate.

The bad: Some of this might be nit picky but when you market yourself as a higher end resort you set yourself up to receive criticism. The resort is not very walkable but we managed a couple of times to walk to the pool/restaurant and back. The buggy system is simple and the cars came on time but it would have been nice to feel like exploring on foot was a feasible option. The hot spring is located by the river at the bottom of the resort and across the street so you actually exit resort grounds each time. Hot springs are nice enough but there is no easily accessible point into the hot spring so I’d imagine someone older would have difficulty. Or they could ask for one of the private tubs to be filled up of course. When we were there two couples were just walking around the hot spring taking photos of each other and talking instead of enjoying the water and peace. The safe in our room malfunctioned twice so we had to call the front desk to send someone over each time so they could reset it. The sliding door on our bungalow wouldn’t close properly at first so we couldn’t lock our door. I realized it was because the door was off the track so I had to lift it back into place. We must have been there during a quiet season because when we got a buggy to take us to the bar at the top of the resort there was no one there. We noticed this too late and our driver had already left which made us have to call for another buggy. When we asked later why no one was there the staff member just walked away and never returned. The restaurant doesn’t bring you water once you sit down and when we asked for water it took several requests for the water to finally come. I had the steak one night and although it was the most expensive item on the menu it was the least appetizing thing I consumed while at Le Champ. The steak was done as requested but looked quite sad. There were two mushy cuts of carrot and two broccoli florets on the plate that I’m sure were microwaved and a bit of mashed potato’s that equaled maybe an 1/8th of a cup and was spread on the plate with a fork. We were the only ones in the restaurant each time this happened. The resort is surrounded by rice field farms and the villagers are noticeably living in varying levels of extreme poverty. If you aren’t able to just turn a blind eye the juxtaposition it will likely not sit well with you. The resorts location also means you will hear what is going on below in the town very clearly. Dogs barking, karaoke blasting from speakers, music and spoken word audio recordings are almost constantly playing from the homes in the area. And of course, smoke from the burning trash. Just because you’re in a resort, doesn’t mean you are going to experience peace and quiet. I haven’t found that anywhere in...

Very Good, but with room for Improvement

This is the only 4-star “resort” in the area, which is famous for its mineral hot springs. We came from 2 nights at a rustic homestay which we thoroughly enjoyed, but the creature comforts offered at Le Champ was a welcome treat.

The Good: Rooms and common areas – Our Glenwood bungalow was beautiful. The air conditioning worked well, no mouldy smell. Comfortable bed. The pool area, reception and grounds were all in good condition. Golf cars are ready to take you wherever you need to go.

The restaurant – We had 4 meals: two lunches, a dinner, and the included breakfast. All the food were tasty, and generous portion size. And the prices were reasonable.

The activities: Aeris Hill, on the property, has ziplining, rope walk through the forest, and rock climbing, all for surcharge. We tried the ziplining and would definitely recommend it. The mineral pool (included for guests) was truly mineral water (not boiled chlorinated water), and was clean and well-kept.

The staff – except for the young man at the reception front desk (which I will get to below), everyone provided amazing service. Particularly notable are the young ladies who made arrangement for our transfer back to Hanoi. Kudos.

Not so Good:

The value – Our one night at Le Champ cost us 10 times the price of our homestay in the area. I’m not saying I wouldn’t pay it the next time, or that you should avoid coming because of the price alone. But when you charge that much, you’ve made yourself a luxury resort, and as such, there are certain things that consumers would expect. For example, the place is called Resort and Spa, but there is no spa service available. Also, they could provide drinking water at restaurant meals. These are things that a resort can do for minimal cost to provide better value and service, and elevate its status to a truly luxurious resort.

Our reception – we arrived at 11 am on the day of check-in, much earlier than the usual 3 pm check-in time. Our room was ready. I’ve travelled a lot, and have never paid for early check-in. If the room wasn’t available, we’d store our luggage. If the room was available, all hotels, high-end or economy, would let us know there is an early check in fee, but allow complimentary early check-in. All hotels I’ve been to except Le Champ. At Le Champ, the young man at the front desk said there is a customary 20% charge for early check-in, and to waive it, we had to provide a five-star review, on the spot, so he can see we’ve done it. Can you imagine!? How would you have felt? Essentially, he had a choice to extend genuine hospitality, but instead, he asked for a bribe. My wife provided her 5-star review, but as you can imagine, that's not true hospitality. I’m not sure if that’s a hotel policy (he was taught to do so), or the young man was acting of his own initiative. Either way, it indicates a very poor in-house training program. It does seem there is a section of the tourism industry in Vietnam that still doesn’t understand the concept of hospitality and friendship, even though they say they do (please see my picture of a local news article about Le Champ). Had our young man shown true hospitality, not only would my rating be a 5 anyways, but the story I would be telling friends would be quite different from the one above.

Normally, such incidents would get them a 2-star rating. But realistically, we had a good time, and everything/everybody else was good, it wouldn’t be right to let one person spoil it all. So, my rating of 4 reflects our very good resort experience, but certainly with room for improvement. Would I come back or recommend Le Champ? For sure, but one or two nights might be enough, as I believe there are other areas and facilities to explore, including some excellent local homestays.

Thanks...

Room (in Heritage): Our room was clean and very comfortable, giant bed, like a USA double queen wide. Mosquito net over bed makes it tropical and pretty but not necessary as we didn't see any. The view was spectacular, completely unobstructed which makes it so rare. Great shower. The only nitpicking thing (hence 5/5 for room) is there was no body lotion, a bulkier item that I need but almost all hotels have them.

Hot Spring: Just wonderful, gorgeous view.

Getting Around: To get around the vast place, you'd need to call reception for pick up and drop off. Waiting for the electric cart is fine. However, our first evening, it was raining and dark, we asked to be dropped off at the bar. He did, only to let us know that we'd still need to climb 3-4 flights of stairs to reach the bar, so a big miss there. I asked how handicapped people could access this as it seemed like a law requirement, he chuckled (?) or simply didn't understand my question. Speaking of which, this is the 1 star loss in review due to the severe lack of English-speaking personnel.

Restaurant: The other 1 star loss is here. Service was slow, our waitress kept apologizing, adding something about it being busy. Well, it wasn't busy, only 1/3 full if even that. They were understaffed. The food was okay good, not great, nothing to write home about. But here's the BIG LOSS: our dinner was included in tour package. No one came to offer us the normal courtesy of water/coffee/tea, so we went to the bar 20 minutes later to order 1 water and 1 chamomile tea. We sat down and had to WAIT for these 2 items, when they did not arrive after 5 minutes, I had to wave down the waitress. One cold bottle of water arrived (same brand as the two bottles that we get complimentary in our room) and one hot tea, not chamomile which ironically she had repeated back to me to confirm, it was Earl Grey. Fine. But then we were given a bill for the water and tea! I spoke with the waitress about this (after having to wait for her to be available as the other 3 servers behind the bar spoke no English). She tried to explain... I told her that a MEAL should include at least a non-alcohol beverage. To be charged extra for water and tea is just sad. Either up the price of our "included meal" or stop giving us a complimentary plate of fruits to make this happen.

So, stunning views, comfortable room, courteous staff. The whole restaurant experience,...