Outrigger Laguna Phuket Beach Resort

Hey everyone!

So finally I'm going to blog about my Phuket trip which happened 2 weeks ago! Sigh, has it been that long? I'm already missing the beach, the serenity & the amazing resort I was staying at.

Which is the Outrigger Laguna Phuket Beach Resort. 

More on the awesome resort later.. 

So here goes the start till the end of our mini-vacation:

Shunxiong & I arrived at Changi airport about 12pm to check in for the flight & to take a quick bite.

Can you tell our excitement!?

We were so happy when we found out that we were able to take a break from our hectic lifestyle in Singapore for some relaxation at Phuket.

My outfit that day.

Very casual because I knew I was going to hit the beach/swimming pool once I get to the resort.

Waiting to board the plane..

Yay!! 

Up in the skies, & in less than 2.5 hours, we are landing!!

I'm so glad that Phuket is so near Singapore.

& taking a plane over to this beautiful island is so convenient & pocket-friendly too!

We were picked up by a mini van & in about 20 minutes or so, we arrived at our resort.

The super luxurious beachfront resort - Outrigger Laguna Phuket Beach Resort - which is located at Bangtao beach! This resort re-opened in April 2013, which was just a month before I went!! All the areas have been completely renovated with modern interiors and I love how they subtly blend it with contemporary Thai touches. You'll see more of that when you read on later!

To make this a truly family friendly resort, Outrigger Laguna Phuket Beach Resort enhanced and modernized their Water Park and other sport activities!

This was what greeted me when I came down the mini van and I was already very impressed because as our vehicle was turning into the resort's driveway, I could already see that the resort was really 5-star quality & boy, was I right!

The front desk area where guests checks in.

Within seconds, we were served with a cooling beverage & I thought to myself "how welcoming". 

We were also given these garlands of orchids as a Thai tradition.

I really love tiny gestures like these from the hospitality service line because it is all these small efforts that makes a big difference.

Gotten our room keys & we couldn't wait to check out our rooms!!

Walking, walking to our rooms from the entrance..

this area is the "ICON" where I came during the night to enjoy some drinks & the live band.

The awesome lagoon view from the walk way.

I could already feel the worries/problems/stress I have when I was in Singapore slowly disappearing.

Because.. 

how could it not be..

when you are..

staying in a room like this!!!!

When I set foot into our room, thrilled was an understatement of how I was feeling!! 

I love the day-bed area and also..

we had a sliding door which led to the outdoor area & we could see the pool & beach!

Also, before I forgot to mention a super important point..

this entire resort offers complimentary wifi!!

I LOVEEEEE IT!

Because I was able to instagram and update my twitter/facebook on the go to share with my friends & family members back home on how much fun I was having!!

& here's the bathroom.

It's really clean & spacious, just like the room and not to mention modern too!

Super cool shower area which is concave so you can soak yourself in if you want to.

After exploring my room, I quickly unpacked because I want to feel that this is all real.

Like it is really happening!

I'm really lucky enough to be staying here!

So I got all my clothes out of my luggage & hung it in the wardrobe.

There. 

I felt like I was home.

Still very elated by the amazing experience I was having.

& guess what.

I'VE YET TO EVEN SEE THE REST OF THE RESORT!

One picture of boyfriend & I in our room before we went to meet the communications manager, Pooh, for a tour around the resort!

So Pooh began to bring us to different rooms in the resort for us to see what Outrigger Laguna Phuket Beach Resort has to offer with the different types of rooms!

This is the 1 Bedroom Suite with Seafront view.

The above picture shows the huge living room space which consists of a dining table, coffee making machine, tv, sofa & work desk area.

& this is the bedroom.

SOOOOO cozy & luxurious but yet not over the top!!

So this was the view after stepping out of the sliding door.

Direct seafront view!!

Pretty awesome, if you were to ask me.

If I were to live here, like permanently stay in this resort, I would never leave my room. 

& here's the very spacious bathroom with a sunken roman bathtub!

Every girl loves a huge bathroom.. because we all know that we can spend hours in there.

& next, would be the Club Premium Seafront room.

The interior decorating looks similar to the one which I was staying in but it is slightly bigger! 

& also what I did not have was...

the very pretty seafront view directly from the balcony.

One side was facing the sea, the other side, the pool area.

NEXT!

We began to tour the outdoor areas of the resort.

What is Koh Kids?!

It is this day care centre which Outrigger Laguna Phuket Beach Resort came up with, where parents can have their kids under professional supervision for a few hours so if they want some alone time! 

I used to be a childcare teacher, so when I saw the area (it is really big, I didn't capture the other side of the room), I was impressed! Because it really looks like a proper day care centre!

I think that this is an amazing facility that Outrigger came up with because even though the entire family is here for a holiday, I think it is still very important for the mom & dad to have some alone time where they can be away from the kids for a couple of hours and just focus on themselves. To go back to the times where they were dating and fall in love with each other all over again before returning back to their mom & dad duties!

So for this thoughtfulness, I give Outrigger 2 thumbs up!!

We then headed over to 'The Club'.

This is a "VIP" clubroom for guests who booked up to Two - Bedroom Villas.

& they will be able to check-in & check-out at the private lounge, relax in the guest rooms with special amenities, enjoy breakfast & evening refreshments in the exclusive dining room, and have access to a personal concierge!!

Talk about being privileged! 

This is super VIP treatment you will be getting.

They also have a little shop in the resort for the guests' convenience to purchase any necessities in case they did not bring it along for their trip.

Spot me in the mirror. 

Haha, no mirror can escape me.

The tour ended in about an hour, & Shunxiong & I hurried back to our room & changed into our swimming attire!!

We had no time to waste because we wanted to swim right away!!!

The view of the pool from our corridor.

There are also little shops tucked away at the side of the pool area which sells many items which you may need!

As much as I wanted to jump straight into the pool.. because the water looked sooooo inviting!!, my boyfriend was starving so we decided to have a quick bite..  

at 'edgewater' bistro, situated at the resort's spectacular waterpark pool.

An alfresco dining from morning to night! 

Hungry souls waiting for our food!!

Boyfriend's wood-fired roasted pizza, which he really enjoyed!!

& mine!

THE BEST CLUB SANDWICH I'VE EVER HAD.

I am not kidding.

Check out the amount of ingredients were in my sandwich! & they were all oh-so-fresh.

I'm seriously having a huge craving for this now.

I've eaten tonnes of club sandwiches because, during my flying days, I'll always have club sandwiches when I'm ordering room service because I always feel that this dish can never go wrong. But the one at Outrigger really surprised me. Because it was too good!!!

With our bellies filled, we can finally swim!!!

I've lost count of the number of times Shunxiong & I climbed up the water slide & came flying into the water. We felt like kids once again. So carefree and not a care in the world. 

I believe, a getaway like this is good for the soul. 

:)

I can't remember how long it has been since I last swam before this trip.

Because of my busy lifestyle back in Singapore, I barely have time for such recreational activities.

I'm so thankful to be able to have this short getaway at Outrigger Laguna Phuket Beach Resort!!

We really had an amazing time.

After swimming, we went to check out the sunset & captured all the beauty of it before it was gone.

The view was needless to say, 

breathtaking.

Didn't wanna waste a good sunset.

So we took a couple of pictures with it.

We just sat by the beach chairs and admired the sun setting slowly.

It felt really good to be able to slow down our pace in life and take time to observe the things around us.

All these while, I was thinking to myself, even if I had to pay for this trip, I would because it is so worth it.

Went back to our room to shower & change for dinner!!

We had dinner at the 'Locavore' which offers all-day dining. The stylish contemporary decor sets the stage for exquisite dining experience & they were serving seafood buffet that night!

Boyfriend attacking the buffet stand.

Check out the array of fresh seafood.

These were just part of the food we had.

I didn't have the chance to capture everything we ate because I was too busy, well, eating. Haha.

Everyone definitely have room for desserts.

That's me at the "cooked food" area.

& after dinner, we didn't want to call it a night so early, so we headed over to.. 

'ICON'!

From the above picture, you can see how this terrace lounge looks like in the day & in the night.

Super romantic please!!!

It is a paradise for people who loves to have a drink/cocktail before hitting the sack.

The ambience is really very enchanting.

With the voices of the live band singers in the background while shunxiong & I have our conversation. The place is cozy and I love the asian sophisticated decor of the entire area.

We had heart to heart talks that night.

Taking a walk down memory lane, discussing our future and most importantly, savoring every moment we had right then.

I ordered a girly cocktail & he, a beer.

Rocking chairs + romantic dim lighting + live music from the singers + all these under the starry skies = what's not to like?

We then retreated back to our rooms & turned in.

The next day, we woke up bright & early!

Like, 9 in the morning & went for breakfast buffet at 'Locavore' again, and after we were done with breakfast, when we were walking back to our rooms to prepare to head out, we saw....

Candy, the elephant!!

Candy takes a walk around the resort twice a day. Once in the morning and another time in the afternoon and guests like us are able to interact with her!

Candy is really well trained & smart.

You can check out the video at the end of this blog entry because there's a part in the video which shows Candy doing a trick or two!

As both Shunxiong & I did not research much for this trip, we were pretty clueless on what to do at Phuket. But fret not, we were told by Pooh, that we can actually go to the concierge and ask them for help in planning our itinerary!

& the people at the front desk were all so helpful and smiley. They showed us the map of the entire Phuket and took their time to slowly explain to us the places of interest there and what we should do/visit and even helped us plan our route. 

So the concierge booked a cab for us which took us to Patong Beach and we spent the entire afternoon there. We walked the entire stretch of shops along the beach and went to the shopping mall called "Jungceylon" where we had Thai massage and ate some authentic local food. My favorite would be phad thai, tom yum goong, and pat krapao.

We took a cab back to Outrigger Laguna Phuket Beach Resort at about 4pm and we decided to swim again! But this time round, instead of just swimming in the waterpark pool of the resort, we walked down the beach & jumped into the ocean! The sea water was so clean, unlike the muddy brown one we have back in Singapore. So I just spent my time swimming, floating in the sea. 

I didn't even want to get out when Shunxiong said he had enough and wanted to go lie down by the beach chair instead. I told him to go ahead and I continued floating in the sea. I think I've fallen in love with the sea. It's like all my worries were forgotten when I'm out there floating. Just let go of myself & have the waves take over control.

Where to find such pretty scenery?!

We felt like we were so far away from Singapore but in fact, we were just a 2 hour plane ride away.

Back in Singapore, buildings are all climbing one higher than the other. It is so hard to get an unblocked view of the skies.

We ordered drinks from the bar by the pool.

Nothing beats having ice cool drinks to beat the sunny weather.

Got to witness another divine sunset.

The skies were clearer compared to the day before. 

It just felt so good to stand here, with my hand in Shunxiong's, admiring the sunset together. Looking out at the open sea together. I felt like the sun is our future, our goal, and we were there, looking at it, working towards it together with the same understanding. 

That night, we decided to have dinner by the beach.

& to 'edgewater' we went.

Everything was perfect. The setting was great, each table were placed quite a distant from one another so you wouldn't have to be worry about other people listening in on your private conversations. Even though we were outdoor, I like how it isn't too dark. There were enough spotlights which allows you to have enough light to see what your food. & we were dining by the beach. Like, RIGHT BY THE BEACH. 

With the waves as your music, what else is there you need?

Okay, well we do need yummy food! 

We were first served warm bread.

& it was damn good!!!

I had to stop myself & Shunxiong from eating more than 1 bread each because I was afraid we wouldn't have room for our actual food!

So the above was our starters.

Pan seared scallops with spinach & smoked duck salad.

I loved both the dishes. The scallops were so fresh. In fact, everything was fresh. The duck was yummy and so were the veggies!! I love my veggies.

I'm not lying because, just take a look at the picture above and you can see we wiped the plates clean. 

& now its time for our mains.

I ordered the grilled salmon & Shunxiong had the lobster aglio olio.

I was super pleased that my salmon came with a salad as a side because as mentioned, I love my veggies. I finished my entire salmon because it was grilled to perfection. Really crispy on the outside but when I bite into it, the salmon flesh is actually tender and pink. Not too tough. & the lemon butter sauce that it came with, genius.

Boyfriend enjoyed his pasta too but after eating half of it, he found it too spicy for him. Haha, he can't really take spicy food but he managed to finish it all because he said it was delicious. Like, too good to stop eating even if it was burning his lips & tongue. HAHA.

After dinner, we took a stroll along the beach and found this tiny cozy bar by the beach.

I think its really cool and we sat by the wooden tree branches/chair and continued our heart to heart chats.

So this is all that I have to share with you guys for my Phuket getaway..

and I wanna give...

a mega hugeeeeeeeeeee THANK YOU!!! to Outrigger Laguna Phuket Beach Resort & Nuffnang sg for making this happen for me.

I didn't know this short trip away from Singapore would be so rewarding. Having travelled quite a bit and stayed at countless 4-5 starts hotels before, Outrigger was really a breath of fresh air because I've always stayed in hotels which were in the cities. Never once by the beach. & this was really an eye opener for me.

I wouldn't consider myself as a "beach" type of person. Because I don't do much sea sports and I am not a huge fan of the sun, but!!! all my thinking changed once I came here. Like, I didn't even care if I was getting dark because it was so relaxing to be swimming in the open that staying fair was the last thing on my mind.

This little trip was like an "escape" from our usual mundane stressful lives back in Singapore for Shunxiong and I. We spent so much time together and just enjoying each other's presence. I can't say for him, but I for one fell in love with him over and over again during this trip because it is hard not to with the romantic ambience!! 

I'm encouraging this short holiday because I feel it really refreshes your mind and you will feel fully recharged when it is all over and ready to face whatever challenges you have back here in Singapore. Over these 2 nights, we managed to really let go and pampered ourselves. Which we so deserve. In fact, everyone of you reading this right now, go on a yearly trip. It doesn't have to be a far away country. Even a short one like Thailand where you just pull yourself away from your hectic lifestyle is good enough.

Here is a short video that I did with compilations of footage that I took during the trip.

I hope watching this video is able to show you more on my experience at the resort.

Here's a direct link to the resort that I was staying at: 

http://www.outrigger.com/hotels-resorts/thailand/phuket/outrigger-laguna-phuket-beach-resort

Thank you for reading this super long blog entry of mine!

:)