[Review] Avana Retreat Mai Chau, the best 5-star retreat hotel in Asia (Vietnam)

After a few days in Ha Giang, we got back in the car to head to Mai Chau for a relaxing long weekend. First stop: Avana Retreat.

Note: this post is NOT sponsored. We paid for everything out of pocket.

Part 1: Travel Journal
Part 2: Practical Tips

Part 1: Travel Journal

Mai Chau is a beautiful valley. It’s about a 5-6 hour drive from Hanoi. It’s a popular weekend destination.

Avana Retreat

“Retreat” hotels are a category of hotels whose main purpose is to rest, retreat into nature, and fully enjoy it. Avana Retreat (5 stars) was voted the best retreat in Asia. It’s “the place to be” right now. Plus, my girlfriend works there, so we got some perks.

Avana Retreat spans two mountains. The villas are hidden behind trees, creating an intimate space. It’s so huge that to get around, you have to call electric buggies via an app.

The hotel has its own waterfalls, its own river, and its own rice paddies, made available to local farmers. They’ve built rest houses for the farmers and help them bring their harvests back to their distant villages up the mountain.

Staying at Avana Retreat is about enjoying nature without forgetting luxury. I love this concept!

It’s recommended to stay at least 2 nights. The drive from Hanoi is so long that 24 hours wouldn’t be enough to fully enjoy the hotel’s facilities.

Despite an early start, we only arrive in Mai Chau at noon (my parents drove us there, but there are shuttle services organized by the hotel). After a delicious lunch at the hotel restaurant (I highly recommend their bun cha), we finally got the keys to our room.

The Room

There are several room categories. My girlfriend doesn’t recommend the cheapest one (which is better for families who need 2 connecting rooms). The category she recommends is the Bauhinia. She gave us the most beautiful one: with a large flowering Bauhinia tree right in front of our private terrace, and 10 meters from the pool.

The entrance to our villa:

Our villa from below

The room is so huge that when I saw it in photos, I thought the lounge area was the hotel lobby 😀 There’s a work desk (very comfortable by the way, JB did some work), fresh fruit, and a huge bathroom with shower and bathtub.

The terrace is very spacious with a dining table where you can see the hotel’s waterfall from afar.

At the bottom of the villa is the 3-tier pool. Across from it, the typical terraced rice paddies of mountainous regions.

It all comes together in a set that’s so luxurious but also so eco-friendly. Perfect for relaxing, having a real vacation, and adjusting to the new timezone.

You can barely see other villas.

The Pool

The pool is three-tiered and mirrors the shape of the stepped rice paddies. And since we’re in the mountains, the pool is heated year-round! Every day around 5pm, there’s a little snack offered near the pool. It’s very pleasant; we go for the snack but also for the view!

The Spa

Rooms in higher categories get 1 hour of massage per person per day, so the spa is pretty busy. It’s set away from the rooms and has its own waterfalls. The massage rooms open directly onto nature.

Since we didn’t book massages, we only get to use the library (there are quite a few French books), the gym, and the yoga space (facing a small waterfall).

Flying Bed – Viewpoint

Before, they set up a giant hammock shaped like a bed, but it was too dangerous for the kids, so now there’s a small wooden platform that serves as a viewpoint. From here, you can see about forty villas hidden behind the trees, and rice paddies just below. The view is breathtaking. Even from here, we can pick up the wifi (to call the hotel buggy) 😀

The waterfall

Legend has it that the hotel owner, a true backpacker, asked the locals if there was a waterfall in the area. They said no. He figured that if there was a river, there had to be one or more waterfalls. He traced the river upstream for 4 hours and found it. From the hotel restaurant, there’s a small wooden path leading to the waterfall. It’s really pretty and you can even book a romantic candlelit dinner at the foot of the waterfall. Swimming is not allowed, though, to preserve the environment.

The restaurant

There’s a mini waterfall and tons of fish and ducks.

I’m not that impressed by the breakfast buffet. I find it lacks flavor. However, the PHO soup they offer is pretty good. You need to order it from the waitstaff (it’s included in the price), preferably with soft-boiled eggs (trung tran).

The hotel has its own chicken coop (which you can visit). Kids can collect the eggs in the morning (though it won’t smell great—that’s the whole concept of a chicken coop). There’s a pond for fishing (you have to release the fish).

The hotel is very secluded, so if you stay for several days, you’ll have to eat at the hotel restaurant. If there are too many guests, they’ll ask you to order your dinner in the afternoon.

There will be activities on weekends. When we were there, there was an outdoor cinema and a show, for example. The schedule will be given to you upon arrival.

See, just exploring the hotel takes several hours. It’s truly a relaxing and peaceful stay.

Room categories

We asked the front desk to show us other room categories just for fun. Here are some photos:

Lantana Mountain Bungalow: two small interconnected rooms. Ideal for families

Bauhinia Mountain Suite: ours.

Ferns Grand Mountain Suite: more spacious, better view from the bathroom. Includes daily massages. Perfect for a honeymoon, for example. If you want massages, you’re better off choosing this category than paying for a Bauhinia plus massages.

Senna One Bedroom Hilltop Pool Villa or Senna Two Bedroom Hilltop Pool Villa (for 4 to 8 people) with private pool on the hilltop, with amazing views of clouds (if any), mountains, and rice paddies. Daily massages included.

Part 2: Practical Tips

Budget

• You can book on Booking (Booking link), Agoda (Agoda link)
• Rooms are cheaper for weekday stays than weekend stays. Expect (excluding promotions)
  • 5,000,000 VND for Lantana (€200)
  • 7,200,000 VND for Bauhinia (€288)
  • 10,350,000 VND for Ferns (daily massages included) (€414)
  • between 14,600,000 VND and 23,000,000 VND for Senna (daily massages included) (€580)
  • and about €20/person/one way for the shuttle
• Meals at the restaurant start at 220,000 VND/person (€9)
• We recommend staying 2 nights to fully enjoy the hotel (no more, no less). Indeed, if you stay just one night and take the shuttle, you won’t be able to enjoy the facilities after checking out, unlike those who come with their own cars.

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