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LUXURY HOTEL INSIDER

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The Luxury Hotel Insider: Exclusive luxury hotel deals, features and special rates from the luxury hotel experts at Five Star Alliance.
Named one of Tripbase's Best Luxury Travel Blogs for 2011, below are Five Star Alliance's newest articles featuring exclusive information on luxury hotels worldwide including special offers and deals at the world's best hotels.

| By: Rachael Weir

Featured Journeys: Thailand

Featured Journeys: Thailand

From world-class cuisine to luxury retreats, Thailand is a country offering a bounty of arts and cultural experiences, fresh flavors, Michelin Star restaurants, and picturesque beaches. In this edition of Featured Journeys, we highlight a multi-destination itinerary beginning in the northern region of Chiang Rai where guests can explore the Golden Triangle, then on to the cosmopolitan destination of Bangkok, and finishing on the island of Phuket. 

Chiang Rai

The northernmost province in Thailand, Chiang Rai is a broad valley with tree-lined riverbanks. Separated by Laos to the east and Myanmar to the west by the Mekong River, Chiang Rai offers a lush setting for travelers to relax and unwind before or after trekking trips to the Golden Triangle and Chiang Saen. 

Anantara Golden Triangle Elephant Camp & Resort

Country Suite at Anantara Golden Triangle Elephant Camp & Resort

Overlooking the border of Myanmar and Laos, Anantara Golden Triangle Elephant Camp & Resort is a luxury resort perched on a ridge in northern Thailand. Offering a tranquil jungle setting, the property is home to an award-winning elephant camp for rescued elephants with scientific and conservation programs. There are 40 room and 15 suites, including 6 family suites, all of which feature indigenous artworks, teak furnishings, and modern comforts like rain showers, soaking tubs, and balconies with daybeds. Guests of the resort have access to an array of one-of-a-kind experiences including cooking and cultural activities, spa services, and elephant encounters. 

FIVE STAR ALLIANCE PERK: Guests booking the "5 Star Signature Package" rate or "Best Available Rate" will also include a $100 Resort Credit per room/per stay (not combinable, not valid on room rate, no cash value), complimentary WiFI, and full breakfast for each guest daily. 

In addition, this hotel offers exclusive 2019 FIVE STAR ALLIANCE SUITE & VILLA PRIVILEGES that can be combined with the FIVE STAR ALLIANCE PERK (if requirements are met). 

2019 FIVE STAR ALLIANCE SUITE & VILLA PRIVILEGES: Guests booking a stay of 2 or more nights in a villa or suite receive a $100 Spa Credit per stay. This offer is valid for stays of at least two nights through December 31, 2019 in Deluxe Suites. 

Check availability at Anantara Golden Triangle Elephant Camp & Resort

Explore more Chiang Rai Luxury Hotels

Bangkok

From palaces to street markets such as Chatuchak Weekend Market, Sampeng Market, and Pahurat Textile Market, Bangkok is a city with a variety of tourist attractions. There are famous temples including the well-known Wat Phra Kaew, Wat Pho, Wat Arun, Wat Phu Khao Thong, Wat Ratchanadda, Wat Traimit, Wat Benchamabophit, Wat Bowon, and Wat Sutat, as well as popular museums in west Bangkok like Don Kai Dee Benjarong Village, Phra Pathom Chedi, Sanam Chandra Palace, Don Wai Floating Market, Sampran Riverside, and Thai Human Imagery Museum. While in Bangkok, visitors will also want to explore the city's prime nightlife scene. 

The Siam Hotel

The Siam Hotel Pool

In the historic district of Bangkok, The Siam Hotel is set amidst 3 acres of lush gardens on the Chao Phraya River. Close to the city's top historical sites and cultural attractions, the property offers guests a private urban retreat with an extensive arts and antique collection, luxurious suites and villas, award-winning Opium Spa, Muay Thai fighter program, and Sak Yant tattoos, which are a sacred Thai tradition. Plus, the property offers the Chon Thai Restaurant serving traditional Thai cuisine within a cluster of three 100-year-old Thai teakwood houses, Deco Bar & Bistro with international comfort cuisine, and the poolside Bathers Bar overlooking the Chao Phraya river. 

FIVE STAR ALLIANCE PERK: Guests making reservations with Five Star Alliance will also receive a $100 food and beverage credit per room/per stay (not combinable, not valid on room rate, no cash value if not redeemed in full), a selected welcome drink for two on the first evening at the pier or Deco Bar, an afternoon treat from 3 – 4 PM at Deco Bar or swimming pool for guests staying in a pool villa.

Check availability at The Siam 

Explore more Bangkok Luxury Hotels

Phuket

Located in Southern Thailand, Phuket is a beach destination on an island in the Andaman Sea. Easily reachable via a one-hour flight from Bangkok, Phuket offers some of the world's top beaches including Rawai, Patong, Karon, Kamala, Kata Yai, Kata Noi, and Mai Khao. For one-of-a-kind sunsets, visitors should head to Laem Phromthep Viewpoint, considered to offer some of the most picturesque sunsets in Thailand. Strongly influenced by the Chinese, travelers to the island will see Chinese shrines and Chinese restaurants around the city, and there is a Chinese Vegetarian Festival held yearly, as well as an array of international influences and trendy nightlife scene. 

Amanpuri

Amanpuri

Set on a hillside, Amanpuri is a luxurious place of peace. Interiors feature original artworks, hand-loomed silks, fragrant orchids, and custom-crafted furniture. Elegant dining options highlight Thailand cuisine, as well as fresh Japanese sashimi at Nama restaurant, Italian cuisine at Arva, along with Mexican snacks and cocktails at the Latin American Bar. There's a black-tiled pool, as well as the beach and water sports in the Andaman Sea such as snorkeling, kayaking, and jet-skiing. 

FIVE STAR ALLIANCE PERK: Guests booking the "5 Star Signature Package" rate will also include continental breakfast for two daily in the Dining Room or through room service and a $100 USD hotel credit per room/per stay. 

In addition, this hotel offers exclusive 2019 FIVE STAR ALLIANCE SUITE & VILLA PRIVILEGES that can be combined with the FIVE STAR ALLIANCE PERK (if requirements are met). 

2019 FIVE STAR ALLIANCE SUITE & VILLA PRIVILEGES: One lunch for up to two people per room, excluding alcoholic beverages and gratuities, once during their stay (value $100). Note: Nama, Amanpuri Japanese restaurant is not included. This offer is valid for stays of at least two nights through December 31, 2019 in Ocean Pool Pavilion, Premium Ocean Pavilion, 2 Bedroom Pool Pavilion, 2 Bedroom Garden Villa, 2 Bedroom Ocean Villa, 3 Bedroom Garden Villa, 3 Bedroom Ocean Villa, 4 Bedroom Garden Villa, 4 Bedroom Ocean Villa, 5 Bedroom Garden Villa, 5 Bedroom Ocean Villa, 6 Bedroom Garden Villa, 6 Bedroom Ocean Villa, 7 Bedroom Garden Villa, 8 Bedroom Garden Villa, 8 Bedroom Ocean Villa, or 9 Bedroom Ocean Villa. 

Check availability at Amanpuri

Explore more Phuket Luxury Hotels


| By: Five Star Alliance

Anantara Golden Triangle Resort and Spa
Anantara Golden Triangle Resort and Spa
has introduced 187 Pounds of Adorable. Born on March 3rd at the world famous Elephant Camp at Anantara Golden Triangle Elephant Camp & Resort outside Chiang Rai, the 85 kilogram baby elephant, nicknamed Nong Sam, stands 84 centimeters tall at the shoulder and measures 129 centimeters from forehead to tail. The bouncing baby boy was born at to forty-five year old Boon Jan, and is her fifth son. He was nicknamed by his mahout (elephant carer), as is tradition, meaning "three" in Thai and alluding to his birth date on the third day of the third month. Being a Garieng elephant, Nong Sam will choose his own formal name at the age of three in a special ceremony involving bits of paper wrapped around sugarcane. Anantara Golden Triangle Resort and Spa  

National Thai Elephant Day takes place every year on March 13th. The aim of the day is to draw attention to the elephant which is the national animal of Thailand and plays an important part in culture, religion and tradition. A weeklong celebration at Anantara Golden Triangle Elephant Camp & Resort kicked off with more than 60 children and novice monks from local orphanages and schools invited to the resort to learn about the importance of elephant conservation and affording them a rare opportunity to meet the elephants up close and personal. 

Surrounded by the natural beauty of Northern Thailand's rugged hill country, Anantara Golden Triangle Resort and Spa is a luxury nature retreat set amidst 160 acres of lush tropical jungles overlooking the winding Mekong River and the border with Burma and Laos. The Elephant Camp offers guests such unforgettable experiences as mahout training courses, elephant trekking ,and other conservation activities. 

 

View rates, details, and more images of Anantara Golden Triangle Resort and Spa >>

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| By: K. Clare Johnson

 Exterior of Anantara Golden Triangle Resort and Spa

Tired of the mundane macchiatos at your local Starbucks? Got some cash burning a hole in your pocket?  
Anantara Resorts has what you need to feel caffeinated and lighter in wallet. The luxury hotel group has
introduced Black Ivory Coffee (affectionately dubbed Elephant Poo Coffee for reasons that will become clear
in a moment) to its resorts in the Maldives and in Thailand's Golden Triangle. While picking coffee beans out of
animal poop isn't new (civets, those hipsters of the animal world, have been pooping out coffee beans since
before it was cool), coffee beans via elephant dung is.

Resident elephants at Anantara Golden Triangle Resort and Spa

How is this rare and precious coffee made? The process begins with selecting choice Thai Arabica beans that
have been picked from an altitude of 1,500 meters. Said beans are fed to the rescued street elephants that live
at Anantara's Golden Triangle Asian Elephant Foundation (GTAEF). Enzymes found in the elephant's digestive
system break down the protein in the coffee bean. Since protein is one of the main factors responsible for bitterness
in coffee, the resulting bean has almost no bitterness.

Beans expelled by the elephant are handpicked out of the dung by mahouts (elephant trainer and carer) and their
spouses. After some time drying in the sun, the coffee is refined at the GTAEF. The roasted beans sell for around
$1,100 a kilogram with eight percent of all sales are donated to the GTAEF to help with veterinary care for rescued
street elephants. Approximately 10,000 beans are needed to produce one kilogramme of roasted coffee.

Elephant at Anantara Golden Triangle Resort and Spa

When it is served to guests at Anantara's Golden Triangle, the coffee is hand-ground and brewed tableside using
technology developed in 1840's Austria. Now all this coffee needs is a fun nickname. #Dumbochino? #Elephalatte?
#Pachyspresso? We'll keep working on it.

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