Hello everyone!
Those of you who follow me on Instagram already know that 2 weeks ago I was so lucky to be invited on a luxury press trip to Cambodia and Laos by Avani Hotels. As I have never been to these countries before I said YES straight away! I’ve also heard a lot of good things about Avani Hotels so thought that would be a perfect opportunity to experience the brand myself. Our trip was quite short – 3 days in each destination, but I am amazed by how much we’ve managed to see so I’ll put my favourite places and things to do in Cambodia and Laos in this blogpost too.
CAMBODIA
First place we got to visit is Cambodia. I was lucky to stay at the newly renovated FCC Angkor Avani Hotel located only 20 mins drive from the airport. What I love about this property the most is the central location – only 10 mins drive from the UNESCO world heritage site of Angkor Wat and right across from the Royal Independence Gardens and Royal Residence. The hotel centres around the former ‘Mansion’ of the French colonial governor, which became the renowned Foreign Correspondence Club and a popular meeting place for local and international journalists, celebrities, and travellers from around the world.
I have fallen in love with the property from the moment I walked in – some places just GET me and FCC Angkor Avani Hotel clearly did! Look at this beautiful entrance! I felt like stepping into an acient fairytale.
The hotel offers 5 different room types ( 80 rooms in total) – deluxe room, deluxe courtyard room ( where I’ve had a chance to stay), premier room, junior suite and governor suite. I absolutely loved the colonial structures with designs inspired by Cambodia’s nature. This hotel had my favourite boho vibes with all the natural tones, wooden floors, rattan furnitures and wooden slippers that I ended up wearing everyday and also brought them with me to London, haha! Our room had a beautiful view over the stylish pool area. Have a peek!
I also need to mention the incredible restaurant and bar that FCC Angkor Avani Hotel has to offer. The main restaurant in the hotel is Mansion Restaurant– a beautiful colonial ( and to me bohemian) style restaurant with outdoor seatings, where you can experience the authentic Cambodian cuisine. I especially enjoyed the breakfasts! I have ordered Khmer noodles the morning we’ve arrived and ended up having it every single day together with a bowl of fresh fruits! Oh how much I miss it!
The hotel also has the beautiful outdoor bar called Scribe, where you can enjoy the most delicious cocktails and admire the nature. It was also my favourite working spot.
What to do in Cambodia?
1. Sunrise at Ankor Wat– absolutely magical, can’t find words to describe it! It’s just something else!
2. Get lost Ta Prohm temple– famous from movie Lara Croft. This place is honestly surreal! This place hold many secrets! You need to see with your eyes!
3. Jewellery workshop with Ammo Jewellery– a social enterprise with a mission to provide specialised design skills to help young and disadvantaged Cambodias unlock their creative potential. I absolutely loved this workshop and had so much fun designing!
LAOS
After an amazing stay in Cambodia we’ve headed to Laos. To be absolutely honest with you, I haven’t heard much about Laos before I was invited for this press trip, but that made me want to go even more. In Laos we’ve stayed at Avani+ Luang Prabang Laos. Another incredible property located in the heart of beautiful Luang Prabang, right opposite the night market and surrounded by dozens of heritage temples and magical Mekong River.
We arrived to Avani + Luang Prabang Hotel at night and even thought I couldn’t really see much, I could already feel how charming, peaceful and elegant this property is. Their 25- metre pool accompanied by sun loungers in a little light impressed me straight away. We’ve headed straight for dinner to their famous restaurant.
The Bistro Restaurant at Avani +Luang Prabang reflects our times, as well as our multi-cultural and multi-ethnic backgrounds. The inspiration comes from classic favourites, and the adaptation comes with local flavours and ingredients. What I loved about this restaurant is that they strive to use sustainably grown products from local farmers using traditional & organic farming & fishing techniques, as well as local artisanal produced sausage, cured meats, cheese & breads (We’ve had a chance to visit one of the farms- the Buffalo Dairy Farm and it was a very interesting experience). The first dinner was a sharing style feast where we’ve got to try many delicious dishes! After the dinner we’ve headed straight to sleep.
The rooms were gorgeous! Will never forget the smell of wood when I stepped in. The decor was minimalistic, natural and light. Avani + Luang Prabang offers 53 rooms in total, with three different room categories – deluxe room, deluxe pool view room and suites. Each room designed to be open-plan, simple and comfortable. Each room is en-suite with a shower and twin vanities- such a great idea when you’re sharing a room with somebody! I’ve stayed at Deluxe Pool View Room and absolutely loved the balcony overlooking the pool. I would normally start my day with a little read, cup of tea, admiring the lush green courtyard.
There’s also a beautiful spa at the hotel with therapies and treatments inspired by Laotian and traditional Asian techniques. I was lucky to have a chance to experience it. I have chosen a full body massage. It was so needed after few intense days! It was lovely!
After the massage we’ve had a couple of hours off so I’ve headed straight to their beautiful pool and enjoyed a little swim followed by a watermelon juice served at the pool bar. They had a great variety of fresh juices and smoothies. Look how beautiful this place was!
What to do in Laos?
1. Visit Kuang Si Waterfall- is a three levelled waterfall. Honestly one of the most beautiful waterfalls my eyes ever seen!
During this trip I was wearing another Mavele bikini! Perfect for a little swim! This model is called Sunshine Fox. You already know how much I love this London based brand. If you’re looking for a new bikini you can have a look at their designs here.
2. Sunset cruise with Mekong Kingdoms – explore the beauty of the Mekong’s powerful waters, admire the incredible views of tropical jungles, mountain peaks, impressive rock formations and authentic villages. Try Laos testing tapas, sip cocktails and watch the sun going down!
3. Dine at Manda de Laos features Laotian Family Cuisine specialties from all regions of Laos. This restaurant is a perfect option for either romantic candle light dinner under the stars, relaxing lunch or magical spot for the cocktail and a sunset watch. It was my favourite dinner during this trip!
4. Experience Alms giving ceremony at sunrise- Luang Prabang’s alms giving Ceremony is a longstanding tradition in Laos Buddhist culture since the 14th century. It takes place daily as the sun rises, beginning on the main street of Luang Prabang. Such an incredible experience!
5. Visit Phra Bang temple- there was quite a few temples around but I found this one especially charming.
Thank you Avani Hotels for having me on this wonderful press trip and giving me a chance to experience the culture and the beauty of Cambodia and Laos!
Post in collaboration with Avani Hotels
Of course I fall in love with this place straight away! Then we’ve headed to see the pink lake first. Was it pink? HELL YES. And it had a magical purple reflection from the blue sky! I had a tears in my eyes already. But I didn’t know what I am going to see half an hour later. After we’ve seen the town and the pink lake we continued driving along the coast. It was so wild, empty and beautiful. We’ve literally passed one car on our way- that’s it. We’ve had a pink lake on one side of the road and the baby blue ocean and white sandy beach on another. It was just incredible. And then suddenly – I have spotted a flamingo. I cried. Got off the car and cried. I start running towards him without even realising I was running on the mud rather than a sand so I went into the mud and lost my shoes haha. But I didn’t care. I was speechless. Seeing a flamingo in its natural environment was my biggest dream. I was so emotional and said „thank you” to my boyfriend milion times who drove me all the way there despite still feeling ill. I wish to say that was it, but it wasn’t. I got back to the car and few minutes later my boyfriend pointed something out of the car’s window. I couldn’t deal. I was screaming, shouting and crying. It was a flamingo float. I have seen hundreds of flamingos. I just couldnt deal! Those of you who follow me on Instagram probably remember the Instagram story of me screaming and crying haha. Ok that was the most beautiful day of my life. I felt like I walked into a National Geograpic movie set! Seeing flamingos and enjoying the little flamingo town was my favourite experiences in Mexico. Some people written on their blogs there’s nothing to do in Las Coloradas, but in my opinion it depends what you’re looking for. As a busy Londonder what I truly need and look for is the contact with nature, pureness, wildness, authentic experiences and this place had it all. Two little local restaurants, tiny grocery store with the sweetest Mexican grandma, the most beautiful local beach- it was only us and local fisherman! I mean what else do you need? To me it was all I could ask for and the most beautiful day of my trip! As I lost my shoes there I truly believe I will be back one day!
