4 Day 3Nights Phuket Rest & Relax Families Trip, 26 – 29 Nov 2010

This was the Tan Clan inaugural families trip and I must say – it was a successful trip. We were a party of 8 adults, 2 children, 1 toddle and 2 infants. First time we managed to go on a short vacation with all of us included.

Day 1: Friday, 26 November

Singapore → Phuket (MI 754 )Dep: 1320 / Arr 1405

It was a 1hour and 45 minutes flight from Singapore to Phuket. We were seated all near to one another. It was the 1st flight experience for my youngest niece – Taeia Tan. She took it really well.

Upon arrival at the Phuket airport, we were met by the Holiday Inn resort representative and we had 2 minivans for our families transfer.

We checked into the hotel and was given a Superior king-sized bed for our family. The other families had queen sized bedroom. My 2nd brother in law booked a family suite for his family.

As usual the 1st activity was swimming. Yeah, the children were all very excited and had great fun at the resort’s kid’s pool. Even the 2 infants also came in for a quick water play.

In the evening, we had dinner at the Hard Rock café and then adjourned to the hotel lobby for the welcome drinks. Then we called it a night and had good rest.

Day 2: Saturday, 27 November

We had an enjoyable buffet breakfast and then the children went to the kid’s club and had some fun at the club.

Then we headed to the poolside again and they played for some time before we went back to the room to change.

Lunch was arranged at Jungceylon shopping centre. This shopping mall was huge and it housed many familiar brands – Robinson and Carrefour can be found in this mall. It’s very close to home shopping. We had lunch and then explored the shopping mall. After that, some of us took the Tuk Tuk back to the hotel and we decided to walk back. It was about 10minutes walk to the hotel and along the streets, there were plenty of street shopping and amazing discoveries.

In the evening, we went by to the beachfront and we negotiated a deal for a Banana Boat ride. Together with my 3rd brother in law, his wife and my Father in law, Anthea tried her 1st ride on the Banana Boat. The ride was very fun and they were overthrown at the end of the ride when they were near the beachside. She enjoyed the ride so much and kept telling us about the fun of it.

We had dinner at the Thai restaurant in the hotel. Then we headed back to the rooms for a good night rest.

Day 3: Sunday, 28 November

During our last trip to Phuket in 2008, we did Safari tour. So this time round, we decided to try something different. We booked our family of 2 adults and 2 children for the ATV (all terrain vehicles) tour. It was a 2 hours of thrilling ride in the mountainous terrain.

As it was drizzling in the morning, it made the slopes very slippery and muddy and these add on the excitement of the rides.

After the 2 hours, we were all dirty and tired. We headed back to the hotel for a quick bath. Then had our cup noodles lunch in our rest before resting for the afternoon to regain the energy.

For dinner, we headed out the beachside for some seafood dinner. It was a simple and nice meal by the beach. After dinner, we took a stroll back to the hotel. On the way, we even stopped for Haagen Das Ice cream.

Day 4: Monday, 29 November

Phuket → Singapore (MI 753) 1455/1740

We woke up to a nice and relaxing buffet breakfast. After that, we started to pack and got ready for our home going flight.

We took a minivan from the hotel to the airport it cost us THB 1200. Then it was checked in time and home sweet home.

Overall, the 4D3N had passed by very quickly. We had so much fun and great families bonding time with the extended families. So it was a really good experienced for the Ace family.

For now…we look forward to our next families travel, would this be Beijing 2011?? To be continue….

4Days / 3 Nights Phuket Family Special

We are back from the Phuket – “Pearl of the Southern Thailand”. It was a very interesting and eye-opening experienced for our family.

We would like to share our experienced with all of our friends and families.

Day 1: Wednesday, 25 June

Singapore → Phuket (MI 754) Dep: 1320 / Arr 1410 hr

Upon arrival at Phuket airport, we were transferred to our hotel – Laguna Beach resort.
Welcome drinks was served while the hotel reception assisted us with the checked in. We had 2 rooms and we were upgraded to Sea view deluxe room. The rooms were very spacious. There are 2 queen sized beds in the room, with an additional sitting/dining area inside the room. Also each room comes with a balcony.

It started raining upon our check in, so we decided to have a quick rest before dinner. As recommended by Louis & Eve, we went to the Watermark restaurant for dinner. We had a very good meal of Tom Yum goong, keeyo wan; Pan roasted golden chicken breast on creamy parmesan risotto, Chinese aromatic duck kway teow. The children had the children set and ice-cream was included. The dinner was delicious and we had a great time watching the huge yacht that was at the dock. The restaurant provides free shuttle transfers to the hotel.

Day 2: Thursday, 26 June

PHUKET Safari (including ½ hour Elephant ride)

After a good hotel buffet breakfast, we met up with the local tour representative for our Safari tour. We were brought to the Siam Safari meet up point. Together with few other tourists, we boarded a special jungle car for our ride up the jungle.

Both Anthea and Anders were very excited as this was their time to a real Jungle. The ride up the jungle was quite a thrill and the children kept making noise (like they were on a roller coaster). Luckily the few tourists on our car were quite accommodative and after a quick chat, we realised that they were from SG too...haha. They are a family of 10 pax and the woman we chat with mentioned that they are US citizens and her husband is working in SG. She was a very nice lady and even volunteered to help us take family photo.

The Safari tour was very interesting and it included:

- How coconuts are processed to make coconut milk and oil
- How Thai Curry was made
- How rubber trees are tapped to produce natural rubber latex
- How monkeys are trained to pick coconut and learn about buffalos
- How young baby elephants are trained. Anthea and Anders had the chance to feed the elephants with fruits that we bought at 50 Baht.

-Trek on Elephant back in Chalong Highland. Anthea and Anders thoroughly enjoyed the elephant ride and I know the memory of this ride with stay with them for a long, long time. As the elephants were trekking in Chalong Highland, at some point along the trek, we were able to get a good view of Phi Phi Island.

After the Safari tour, we were transferred to a jetty for our cruise on a traditional wooden junk in Chalong Bay. A sumptuous buffet lunch was served on board the cruise. The cruise was very relaxing and the children had a great time riding with the Captain of the junk.. : P

We were transferred back to our hotel after an active, educational and rewarding adventure.

In the evening, we decided to go to Phuket town for dinner and also to see the place. After checking a few options, we finally decided on taking the Local Taxi. There was a “taxi stand” in front of the hotel but the drivers had never once crossed the “borders” and touts. I believed there must have been a mutual agreement. We agreed on the price of 1500 baht for a return trip for our party of 4 adults and 2 children.

The trip to town was about 30 minutes from the hotel and the taxi driver dropped us at the Robinson shopping centre and we would meet him at the same venue for return. We walked around the area and decided to eat Pizza, as requested by Anthea. Luckily, my parents were fine with Pizzas and Pasta.

After dinner, we took a walk around the area and we saw many roadside stalls selling Thai local dishes. I was telling my parents that all these stalls reminded me of my childhood days when SG was still very “kampong” and we ate from all these stalls.

We ended at Robinson shopping centre and there was a counter selling all the local products. I took the opportunity to buy some to bring back SG for the family.

We met up with the taxi driver at the time arranged and headed back to the hotel. Upon arrival at the hotel, the driver was very kind to tell me that for his car, we will only need to pay 1200 Baht. We had a good night rest after a fun filled day.

Day 3: Friday, 27 June

Phuket City Tour & Phuket Fantasea Theme Park

After breakfast, the local tour guide met us at the hotel lobby. Together with us, there were 4 British tourists on the city tour. The tour provided us with the opportunity to be familiarize with the holiday island and take in the island natural beauty as we drove along the beach roads through Patong, Karon, Kata and Rawai beaches. When we drove passed Patong, I was quite impressed and told Adrian that if we ever visit Phuket again, we should stay in one of the hotels there. We had a photo stop at Karon viewpoint and the views were magnificent.

We had another stop on top of the mountain where people worshipped the God. There were a lot of elephants sculpture and according to the guide, people who had their wishes fulfilled will return to thank the God with the small sculpture.

After this, we visited the Buddhist Temple – Wat Chalong. Tourists of different nationalities were offering their prayers at the temple. I also prayed for good health for the families.

Our next stop was the Cashew nuts factory. It was a real treat for the children as both of them get to sample different kind of cashew nuts and local products. At the same time, we were shown how a cashew nut is hand pick out by the local. No wonder this nut is so expensive. We bought some goodies from the factory outlet.

Then we were brought to a GEM Factory. Honestly I would think not many tourists will buy gems during these kinds of exotic vacations. Nonetheless, we were provided with free drinks… : P

The tour ended with this as the last stop and we were transferred back to our hotel. It was bright & sunny when we reached the hotel, so I brought Anthea and Anders to the swimming pool. Adrian brought my parents for a Tom Yam lunch at the restaurant by the beach.

The pool was lovely and it even had a slide. Anthea tried it and she loves it. We played for a while and went back to change and rest before our next event. The children had cup noodles in the hotel room and they simply enjoyed the meal. (Ps: I packed along some cup noodles and they came in handy..hee.)

We were picked up at 6pm to Phuket Fantasea theme park. Upon arrival at the park, we went to collect our tickets and entered the park. We went for our buffet dinner and it was really a grand feast. The foods served were international and included some Thai dishes. Coffee & tea were also served at the dinner buffet. I ordered a glass of Red Wine for my dad. After a full meal, we walked around the theme park, there were many carnival stalls and tourists were enjoying the games. We had the chance to take a photo with a Baby Tiger @ 400 baht.

The show started at 9 pm. Phuket Fantasea not only showcases the charm and beauty of Thailand, but also enriches ancient Thai Traditions with the wonder of cutting edge technology. The 1 ½ hour show was truly mesmerizing and I am glad we had the chance to watch it.

Day 4: Saturday, 28 June

Phuket → Singapore (MI 753) Dep: 1455 / Arr 1740 hr

In the morning at breakfast, Anthea and Anders had the chance to see the “residence” Elephants and they even managed to feed the elephants. As the weather was very good, we decided to take a swim by the pool and Anthea had fun at the water park slide. Then we went back to our room to change and get ready for our departure pick up at 12.15pm.

The flight back to SG was also very smooth and Anthea helped herself with the juices that were served by the stewardess.

When we reached SG, our usual welcome gang was there to receive us. My eldest brother came to pick my parents for dinner.

Overall, it had been a very enjoyable and memorable trip for the Aces family and I do hope that my parents enjoyed it as much as we did. True to the advertisement promotion – it was indeed a HOLIDAY Planned for the KIDS (Big & small..haha)

The 3 top most things that we did during this trip:

1. See the most Elephants. (everywhere we go, elephants are all over the place, you can feed them and ride on them at your own expense)

2. Tip the most (as recommended on our travel brochure – it is a custom in Thailand to tip for good services and it helps the local eke out their somewhat meager income.)

3. Going on the same road the most (it seem like there is only one road to and back the hotel and so we travelled this road the most)

Off to..Land of Thousand Smiles

We are all set & ready for our family trip to Phuket.

Flights checkin and boarding passes had been printed..haha. : )

Our tour dates are from 25 to 28 June 2008. I am really looking forward to a good relaxing trip. Hopefully can get a TRUE Traditional Thai Massage at the hotel.

Will be in silence mode for the next few days and will catch up with all the blogs reading when i am back on Sunday, till then, lao jer gun !!

Side Track a little :
Today, i heard a piece of Bad News from my Blog Twins - LZmommy . Z hurt his elbow and was due for an operation and i think by now, he should be out of the ops room.

I wish Z a speedy recovery and may LZmommy remains as strong as ever to go through this ordeal. Take Care!!

"Sawasdee Phuket…"

Adrian is clearing his annual leaves end of June 2008 and he suggested that we should take a family vacation before he goes on his LONG oversea work detachment. It seem like his trip may stretch beyond 2008 till end January 2009.

(Honestly, I hope that the detachment will end December 2008 as original plan. I do wish that he will be around when Anthea starts her Primary 1 in 2009)

Again when work is concerns, we have no CHOICE…sigh: (

Likely, this Phuket trip may be our ACES family final vacation for 2008, so I agreed to his suggestion.

The other factors that make this trip possible are:

1. the mid year BONUS and inflation budget that Adrian will be getting… : P

2. I want the children to spend quality together with their daddy. We will soon miss him for a LONG, Long time.

3. I need to re-charge myself badly, so a holiday and a good rest will be ideal way to do it.

With all these in mind, I started sourcing around for suitable venue for a family vacation.

I am not sure if it’s fated or we are plain lucky – I was browsing the UOB Privileges May 2008 booklet and under the Great Escape section, there were package tours for UOB card holders.

One of the tours caught my attention – 4D3N Phuket Family Special from $1368 per family. The travel agent that organized this package was none other than Jetabout Holidays – this is the same tour agent that we booked our memorable Gold Coast trip.

Of course, my 1st action was to contact the same tour consultant who assisted us the last time. She was very prompt in answering my query and I proposed the package to Adrian and he said OK. So Phuket, here we come…. Haha : )

The other good news is my parents are joining us for this trip….yippy. It has been “Donkey years” since I brought my parents for tour. When they agreed to go with us, I was really happy. For the record, my eldest brother is sponsoring them for this trip…: P

We are now booked on a 4D3N Package and prices includes:

- Return economy airfare to Phuket on Silkair
- Choice of 3 nights accommodation with daily breakfast.
- Return airport-hotel-airport transfers by seat-in-coach.
- Complimentary half day Phuket City Tour.
- Phuket Fantasea Park with dinner and transfer.
- Half Day Phuket Safari Tour with Lunch on Junk.

And the most attractive parts of the package:

A holiday planned for your Kids!

Ride on Elephants
Lunch Cruise
Grand Buffet Dinner at Phuket Fantasea
Free Upgrade / Late Check out *
Children dine free*

So it was really the most ideal package for our family of the young, old and middle age travelers… haha. Chinese say: “老少咸宜“. This is the 1st time that Anthea, Anders and myself are going Phuket, so i think it will be an exciting trip for us.

I am now looking forward to another wonderful family vacation experience.

(ps: waiting for some good "lobangs" from my BIL's family as they just had their holiday in Banyan Tree Phuket... : ) ).