PureandCure review: Marleen's wellbeing stay in Thailand

Arrival and first impression

From sleeping on the water among limestone cliffs to a private pool by the sea, the shift from Khao Sok to Aleenta could hardly have been bigger. Dusk is already falling as we arrive in Phang Nga. Aleenta sits right on the sweeping beach of the Andaman Sea. No high-rises, no mass tourism, no sprawling complex, just individual pavilions with rooms, suites and villas, tucked away among the greenery. It feels small and personal, more like a boutique stay than a resort. Peaceful. And all the more welcome after our stay in Khao Sok. The beach is the first thing I see as we reach our room. And immediately the last thing I want to stay away from. Bar the odd passer-by, we have it entirely to ourselves. For my two teenagers, 14 and 17, the private pool at our villa is a hit.

The location: Phang Nga, not Phuket

A small misconception worth clearing up: Aleenta Phuket isn't actually on Phuket itself, but in Phang Nga province, about half an hour north of the airport and an hour and a half's drive from Phuket Town. That makes more of a difference than the map suggests. Where south Phuket is packed with beach clubs, traffic and mass tourism, this stretch is wonderfully quiet. No touts, no rows of sunbeds, no noise. If you know Phuket's busier side and are deliberately avoiding it, you'll be right at home here.

The wellness programmes and the team behind them

What truly sets Aleenta Phuket apart from your average luxury hotel is its wellness programmes: detox, relaxation, sport & fitness, mental balance and weight loss are the best known. Everything is tailored to the individual. Heading up the wellness team is Anton, a German-Italian Mayr doctor with more than 30 years' experience in the F.X. Mayr method. Mayr doctors are a rarity outside Germany and Austria, so having one on staff at a resort in Thailand is something special. Alongside Anton is Prati, from India, a yoga and pranayama teacher who also leads the day-to-day guidance.

Personal guidance, down to the last detail

Each programme is put together specifically for the guest, and that goes well beyond simply asking what you'd like. Dr Anton looks at what you want, but also, and perhaps above all, at what your body actually needs at that moment. It starts with food: not just what you eat, but how much, how well it digests, and in what combinations. The structure of the whole programme is tailored to you too: the intensity, the order of treatments, the moments of rest. One-to-one sessions with Anton and the wellness team mean the programme shifts with how you're feeling, rather than following a fixed schedule you simply work through. That personal approach carries through into the spa itself: serenely designed, with calm treatment rooms for massages and a magnesium pool for floating sessions.

The first question: what does your body need?

It's often the first question I ask the wellness team: how, and where, do wellness guests (those who've booked a wellness programme) eat when they have specific dietary requirements? That might mean someone wanting to lose weight with light, healthy dishes, wanting to juice-cleanse (detox), or wanting to exercise a lot and eat mostly protein instead. Anton explains: "During the intake consultation and medical check-up, we establish the wishes, the goal, but we also look at the body. What does it need? We take all of that into account. From there, we put together a tailored menu plan. We pass this information on to the chef, and the guest can then decide where to have their meals: in the restaurant, in the room, on the beach. One important question for the guest is: which of the three meals matters most to you? That's different for everyone. Whichever meal that is, becomes the main meal. Everything else is smaller portions."

Staying without a wellness programme? Eat exactly as you like

That personal touch isn't reserved for only wellness guests. Staying without a wellness programme? The menu still offers plenty of choice: fish, meat or vegetarian, European dishes and Asian. At breakfast, alongside the extensive buffet, there's a whole range of small dishes you can order separately — from French toast to eggs however you like them, to salmon, avocado, miso soup or a healthy granola. The food, I thought, was excellent. The coffee too, for that matter! Anything's possible, and nothing is too much trouble for the staff. Nothing is imposed on you either — the choice is entirely yours. It was lovely eating breakfast here: the kids picked whatever they fancied, while I enjoyed the healthier options.

Yoga, boxing and more: the daily activities

Every day, four different holistic and sport activities are on offer: yoga, meditation, Thai boxing, sound healing, tai chi, pilates, it varies. Click here for an example. Book a wellness programme and you can join in with anything that appeals to you. Staying purely on a room-only basis, one activity per stay is included as standard, and you can book extra sessions for a supplement. I myself took part in a pilates class, a Thai boxing session and a mobility yoga session. That last one I loved: stretching through the hips, core and legs, on the beach, in the morning. I was the only one there, which made it all the nicer as a one-to-one session.

The rooms: from Grand Deluxe Villa to Beachfront Suite

Aleenta Phuket has 65 units in total, spread across the grounds, which only adds to the boutique-hotel feel. The entry-level category is the Grand Deluxe Pool Villa, 34 of them, each around 83 m². These sit on the other side of the road, a little further from the beach and the spa. If you'd rather be closer to the spa, just let us know, we made sure that was arranged for us with an upgrade. If you'd prefer to be right on the beach, go for the Beachfront Pool Suite, 63 m², with its own pool and sea views the moment you wake up. See the full range of Aleenta Phuket room types here.

What makes Aleenta Phuket special?

It's not the name Phuket, but precisely the absence of it. This spot is peaceful, set along a stretch of coast you'll have almost entirely to yourself, while the airport is only half an hour away by car. On top of that, there's a wellness programme with a Mayr doctor who looks well beyond a simple wish list, and a kitchen that adapts just as easily to a family as it does to a strict diet. For anyone looking not just for a peacefully located wellness hotel right on the sea, but for whom personal guidance matters just as much, this is a strong match.

Read on to discover everything Aleenta Phuket has to offer.

Practical information

• Airport: Phuket International Airport (HKT)
  
• Transfer time from the airport: approx. 30 minutes
  
• Distance to south Phuket: approx. 90 minutes
  
• Distance to Khao Sok National Park: around 2 hours to the harbour, plus a 2-hour boat ride
  
• Best period for quietness, lower prices and an empty beach: May – October (rainy season)
  
• Best time to travel: November - April
  
• Type of guest: 30-plus, mostly couples and solo travellers. Occasional families too.
• Number of rooms: 65 units, spread across the grounds
  

Best time to visit Aleenta Phuket: rainy season or dry season

My stay was in July, right in the middle of the official rainy season, which runs here from May through to October. The photo above shows how it looked more often than we expected: a flawless blue sky over an empty white beach, captured exactly as I saw it that morning. During the week we were there, we also had the odd tropical downpour, but it clears just as quickly as it arrives. The upside of this season: it's quiet, and you'll have the beach almost entirely to yourself. The sea is a touch choppy, though; in the afternoons, at low tide, we were able to swim. If you'd rather travel in the dry season, between November and April, the sea is calmer and you can swim all day long. What stays the same either way is the sound of the sea, just twenty metres or so from your terrace. 

Exploring Phang Nga area

Phang Nga Bay, with its distinctive limestone cliffs rising out of the water (not to be confused with Khao Sok National Park), is just a short boat trip away, along with the well-known James Bond Island and a handful of smaller, local islands. Khao Sok National Park, where we spent the days before Aleenta, is also within easy reach. For those wanting to venture further: Koh Yao Noi, a small island that's still fairly undiscovered, and the somewhat more popular, better-known island of Phi Phi (familiar from the film The Beach). We didn't visit the latter ourselves, as the sea can be a little rough during this time of year, July. One more tip: a day trip to the Similan Islands, around two hours further by boat, with the clearest water you'll find in this region. These islands are only open from October to April.

Read on to discover everything Aleenta Phuket has to offer.

About Marleen

This blog is written by Marleen, founder of PureandCure.com (established in 2005). She travels around the world in search of the best Health & Wellbeing Hotels, Spas and Retreats and shares her insights, experiences and observations through her blogs.