Villa De View Chiang Dao

The garden-grown oranges, chrysanthemum tea, and grape jam made from grapes just a few steps from our villa were such lovely details. We stayed four nights at Villa De View in Chiang Dao and found it hard to leave. The family-run place feels full of care and pride. We got to chat with the owners about how the farm and villa began, which made the stay more meaningful. At the foot of the hills, the villa has mountain views that feel SO close. The days pass slowly, the air is fresh near the national park, and the setting feels secluded while still being close by car to busy Chiang Dao city and the main road. I slept so well here. The bed and pillows were comfortable, the shower was fantastic, and everything felt considered and well looked after. Each room has a heater, a nice touch in the cooler months at the end of the year. There's a café on site for coffee and cakes, and the restaurant serves dinner, so it's easy to settle in without needing to go out. If you want to properly relax, I can't recommend it enough. Returning to the real world after our stay was genuinely hard.

The garden is a real highlight, with strawberries, mulberries, fruit trees, and lovely plantings all around. In the middle, a carefully watered field of red rice steals the show. Have dinner at the hotel and you'll get that unusual rice with your meal, along with other fresh ingredients cooked beautifully. The homemade cheesecake with homegrown mulberry sauce was the best I've ever had. This is high-end cuisine. The property sits among trees, with a stream behind the rooms and a national park across it. Protected forest rises steeply from there to the area's highest peak. Nights are serenely quiet, with only faint running water, crickets, and frogs. If you need a room in this area, I think you'll be very happy here. It may feel like a bit of a splurge depending on your budget, though it's not expensive by Western standards, and I felt well rewarded. I hope you enjoy your stay as much as I did.

The organic garden, with Doi Chiang Dao behind it, was such a lovely place to unwind. The owners are sweet and the staff were always helpful, and that healthy breakfast was amazing. We really felt the stay helped us relax. The dogs were calm; when they did bark, staff came to help. That only happened once, and we felt safe the whole time. 100% recommend.

The bathroom in our room smelled strongly bad throughout our stay, which made it very uncomfortable. We had also paid for a room with breakfast, but after seeing what happened in the kitchen we chose not to eat there. A worker used a small bowl to serve rice, then took some rice with her hand and put a piece in her mouth. She then used that same hand to keep putting rice on customers' plates. It was extremely unhygienic and disgusting to see. We were very disappointed. Cleanliness and food safety should be basic standards at any hotel, and I hope management takes hygiene much more seriously.