This Thailand resort is fit for a kingdom

IAN STALKER

(Photo above: Dhara Dhevi structures recall the long history of the region.)

No one can seriously suggest that the building of northern Thailand’s Dhara Dhevi resort was a rush job.
The sprawling Chiang Mai retreat was five years in the making, with the owner committed to providing a distinct vacation experience that recalls the region’s long past.
The luxury property’s many palace-like structures include architectural influences borrowed from the Lanna Kingdom, which ruled the region before it became part
of Thailand.

Back in time
“The concept is that of an old city. Our hotel is like stepping back in time,” says a resort spokeswoman, noting that a daytime horse-drawn carriage is available for guests.
The Preferred Hotels
& Resorts property cov-ers 60 acres that even includes rice paddies.
Holman Fong, the resort’s director of sales and marketing, notes the property now has some 350 rugs and carpets, over 1,200 artifacts and more than 1,500 plant species are found on resort grounds.
“This is something that’s so unique,” he says. “You won’t be able to find anything else like this not only in Chiang Mai, but the whole of Thailand.
“It’s a unique kind of experience.”
Fong says guests will experience a distinctively Thai vacation experience, with, for instance, Thai dance performances being performed nightly in the resort’s Thai restaurant.
(Guests can find other restaurants, including French, Chinese and Italian options.)
Guests will also find a choice of bars.

Buddhist motifs
The Dheva Spa and Wellness Centre is 3,100 square metres and highlighted by mouldings and sculptures recalling sacred animals and Buddhist motifs created by 150 Chiang Mai artisans. The entire structure took over three and a half years to finish. The spa includes 18 treatment rooms, and a fitness centre.
Guests can choose between two-storey villas, many with private pools, and residence houses that also have private pools. The guest units have modern features, such as flat-screen TVs. Villas start at 88 square metres and have outdoor terraces.
Resort meeting options include a ballroom that can hold 500 people.
The Dhara Dhevi has an arts and crafts program that invites guests to learn Thai-style crafts, including basket-making and bamboo-weaving.
Other resort features include a cooking academy, kids club, a library with thousands of books and periodicals, and guests are also welcome to plant rice on-site if they wish.
More information can be found at dharadhevi.com .