Happy to tell you guys that me and Tom are now officially working with one of our favourite protein bar brands, Naked Fit Fuel. We are joining their team as their new brand ambassadors. So excited to see what this can bring for both parts and I’m positive we can make a great team.
Being their brand ambassador of course means I can give my readers a discount so if you would like to make an order for some amazing natural protein bars and protein cookies in Thailand use my code NFFANITA or use this link and the code will automatically be added at check-out. There is of course also an option to order the protein bars world wide but just keep in mind that they might arrive slightly misshaped due to the heat… though this will not have any effect of the taste or nutrients in the bar.
Perfect on-the-go snack!
My favourite flavours:
Protein Bars:
Banana
Goji-nuts-seeds
Peanut butter brownie
Protein Cookies:
Banana
Strawberry
Black sesame
Matcha
If you’re looking for a yummy more healthy snack to replace your sweets, but not too worried about it being super high protein, the cookies are the right choice for you. It’s that yummy that it has replaced my cookie and late night ice cream consumption and I can’t complain getting an extra 12 grams of protein in.
Though if you have troubles hitting your your daily protein requirements and don’t want to have shakes or tons of chicken every day, it can be great with something a bit higher in protein, which is where the bars are great with 20g+ of protein.
Since posting our photos from our oh-so-amazing trip to Pai, we’ve been getting so many questions about where we stayed, where we had our sunset picnic and not least, where that fantastic bathtub picture overlooking that lush green garden was…
I’m happy to tell you guys the wait is over!
I think we can officially agree that I am the slowest blogger ever. But you know what they say… slow and steady wins the race.
Usually the company of the sun is enough reason to love the sunset, but it was an incredible feeling to level up to this luxurious experience.
As always I love to surprise Tom for his birthday with unknown locations and this year was no different. Although, this year Tom chose the location himself, I kept the experiences and hotels as a secret. But I usually like to keep the destination a secret too.
You can see some our previous birthday trips here: PAI & SARABURI.
In this post I’ll be focusing on the places we stayed. As you already know, during our last trip to Pai we stayed Yoma Hotel, Puri Pai Villa and the pool villa at The Quarter and even if these were fantastic, I had to go for something new this time around.
I’ve always wanted to stay at Pai Village Boutique Resort & Farm, but during our previous trip it was fully booked. Though the price might insinuate it, Pai Village does not have large, fancy and modern rooms, but the location is everything and their reviews were amongst the best for all the hotels in Pai. I loved the vibe of the hotel. As the name already reveals, Pai Village has their own farm in which you will get free access to when staying at their hotel. It’s a nice boutique style hotel, with cute huts nicely situated in a beautiful garden in the middle of Pai centre, all air-conditioned of course. I would recommend to get the bigger rooms. We had the Deluxe Village room and it was an ok size for the both of us with a nice little balcony to hang out at.
I need myself one of these outside areas… I could lie out there all day. It was such a nice change from Bangkok and the polluted air!
So lush! This is where you can hang out for breakfast, afternoon tea and snacks and just chill in the nice fresh air. Right before walking into the garden where the huts are located.
All wooden details <3 at the Blue OX bar area!
The Blue Ox restaurant was amazing, and so was the breakfast buffet in the morning. What really stood out at this hotel from the moment we checked in was the service. The staff there is so intuitive and helpful with everything.
Birthday boy <3
I contacted the hotel prior to checking in to make sure they could provide a champagne breakfast surprise and they did so without any hassle. It was super easy to arrange, which most of you know from living in Thailand, things usually aren’t unless it’s part of the regular menu.
They even made this cute little room decor. Tom loved it, as you can see…They also have a bunny coffee shop where you can cuddle and feed these cute bunnies!
Pai Village is my favourite hotel in all of Pai. The perfect location, great food, good wine selection, nice rooms, but the most important thing; impeccable service. They really made us feel loved!
Day 2, The Oia Resort, Pai
This is what you are greeted with at the entrance. A majestic views overlooking the rooms and the man made water feature that runs through the property.
The Oia Resort is a Greek themed hotel located a couple of kilometres from the centre of Pai. I think there were about four buildings inspired by a different place in Greece. We stayed in Corfu! The hotel offers 24 hours pickup service, but it’s probably easiest to get there by yourself if you’re only a couple of people travelling. The best way to go would be to rent a bike.
The rooms were spacious with a huge bathroom with quite the perfect bathtub to chill in during night time. Not great lighting though, hence no pictures. And to my favourite part about the room, the outside deck to chill on with your feet dipped into the cold water. Sunset was amazing from there!
H a p p y B i r t h d a y T o m! All the rooms on the first floor has decks to hang out on, and your own kayak too!
Great vibes all around at this hotel and a nice breakfast selection too. They had fresh Cape Gooseberries so say no more! My only issue was that it was kind of half finished at some places. They were definitely missing some decorations on the walls in the rooms and pillows both in the seating area inside and outside on the deck.
If you stay on the patio/deck area outside your room at 10 AM you can have fruit delivered in a boat right at your door step.
I think this is a great hotel if you are travelling as a family or just looking for a good experience out of the norm!
Reverie Siam is situated on a gorgeous property not far from the centre of Pai, by the river banks. It’s a colonial style hotel and they’ve followed the theme well throughout the whole property.
There’s a nice chillout area for the adults to hang out by the river and two nicely sized pools situated on a grounds disguised as natural stone pools. Both pools use a salt water system.
Even if you’re not staying at the hotel I would highly recommend you to visit the Silhouette Bar which is the bar/restaurant at Reverie Siam. The food and cold cut/cheese spread is something you won’t find other places in Pai. Oh, and the wine selection is great! They also do some amazing cocktails and it’s reasonably priced.
For anyone asking where the bathtub picture was from, this is the place, but make sure you get the villa as this is the only room with this feature.
If you want to make your experience even more special you can book the sunset champagne experience that we had. It’s worth it! It’s one of the most stunning sunsets I’ve ever witnessed. If you’re looking to stay somewhere luxurious in Pai (with the best rooms we’ve seen so far), Siam Reverie is your safe bet!
Still downloading all the content from our Pai trip last week. We got tons of footage and are so excited to share it with you guys. I thought I couldn’t fall any deeper in love with Pai than I already had, but this place never ceases to amaze me.
I love the lifestyle, the weather, the people, it’s just all around incredible. Pai is known for being a backpackers dream and there’s a lot of people who has the impression that this is a hippies paradise and a party destination and I’m sure it is. But from my perspective, not being there to party, it still is pretty awesome and I haven’t been affected by this vibe at all.
Pai has so many other things to offer, nature, lush green scenery, fresh air, beautiful hotels and properties, delicious foods and plenty of cool cafes and restaurants which I will be digging deeper into in my next post.
Had to get Tom a bday cake from Pai’s #1 bakery… only thing was that the minimum order was 2lbs cake. Safe to say we ate cake every day! It’s lemon cheese cake. SOO GOOD.
Pai has so many cool hotels! I ended up booking a different one for each night. This is from our private villa at The Quarter. Loved the hidden pool.
We are going back to Pai!
So excited to be going back to Pai next week for Tom’s birthday. It’s one of our favourite places in Thailand. For those of you who don’t know where Pai is, it’s located in the north of Thailand past Chiang Mai. In the province of Mae Hong Son. Mae Hong Son is known as one of the mountainous provinces in Thailand. So you can believe me when I say that the scenery is perfect wherever you turn your head.
The usual route would be to take a plane to Chiang Mai and get a bus from the centre/airport (has to be organised with your airline and only Air Asia offers this at the moment). Pai is famous for the 762 narrow and winding turns you have to conquer to get through the mountains before you arrive. It’s part of the charm, and so worth it. Though, if that’s not for you, there’s still an option to fly all the way with a small plane on a local airline called Kan Air.
There’s no secret that I love music festivals and luckily for me, Thailand has many.
808 Festival, Together Festival, Maya Festival, Mystic Valley, Transmission festival and Wonderfruit to name a few along with some amazing solo artists visiting us frequently. There’s no end to the crazy line-ups coming here. Most festivals have a focus on music, mainly EDM, House or Trance, but Wonderfruit, along with the focus on music, also puts emphasis on so much more. There are talks, activities (yoga, meditation, art classes), culinary experiences and more, but it’s also the feeling of just stepping onto the grounds. It’s nearly a perfect experience from start to finish. A wonderland with something for us adults, youngsters and families alike.
Same same, but different
This year they changed the location of the festival, but it was still held in the same area, at Siam Country Club. There was much more land to play around at, but unfortunately the ground was still not in optimal condition. Some bumps along the way can get annoying once you’ve had a drink too many. Or are walking around half asleep waiting for the sun to rise. Because you do want to catch sunrise at the solar stage! I’m sure it’s going to get better next year. That’s one thing Wonderfruit never fails with, and that’s improving and evolving every year.
Life changing experience
I got to experience the festival with a new set of eyes this year, and it really made me appreciate the work that goes in to the details. Every structure is carefully planned out to make it the perfect trip through the wonderland we all know as Wonderfruit. This year’s entrance was grand, with inviting wooden letters reaching out for you as you entered the ground. From there on a path of adventure was laid out for you. Firstly, with dancing umbrellas welcoming you, waiving their arms at you. If you actually stopped to enjoy every structure at the festival, as we chose to do on Friday, it can take you hours before you actually get in to the main ground. Everything is just so beautiful. People dressing up in colourful outfits, full of glitter, having fun! Seeing the smiles on your friends faces… on everyone’s face. Pure bliss.
Solar stage for sunset and sunrise
Then, it’s solar stage for sunset. Sunset is the most beautiful thing about the festival. It has to be done at Solar stage. At least on the main days (Friday and Saturday). Sit down in the grass. Look at the structure that is solar stage as the sun sets. Amazing tunes to go to the beat of the sun slowly setting in the fields. It has to be experienced. Creatures of the night dancing in sync with the music. Fire show around the grounds. Thai dancers lurking around the stage. Dragons dancing at your feet. It’s like they are performing just for you and you are in the centre of everything. I tell you it is life changing.
Dance into the night and eat your heart out
From there on you just dance into the night. Eat at all the amazing food that is scattered at stands and food trucks around the grounds. Drink all the drinks you please. On the last day… typically.. I found my favourite drink spot there. In the Thai area there were some creative Thai infused beverages. It’s so crazy with Wonderfruit how every day is a new experience, and you always stumble onto something new.
Where to stay
We never stay overnight the premises though. As in we don’t sleep there, but we do stay until sunrise! Though I’m sure it’s a great experience if you are able to get the air-conditioned tents while they’re still available or bring an RV. We got a villa with a bunch of friends this year, which probably will be what we do next year as well. A lot of the people we’ve met were more than happy camping on the grounds as well, so if you are not like myself (who needs air-con to sleep) then you will be just fine. There’s showers and toilets at the campgrounds. Though, if you want a fresh bathroom, clean sheets, and cold air, just google the location and you’ll be fine staying anywhere in an approx. 15 km radius.
No plastic!
Sustainability focus
I also want to add that Wonderfruit has a large focus on sustainability and this year they upped the game with reusable cups that you could pay extra for at the entrance. And in return you get a 50 baht discount for drinks inside. As well as moving one step closer to saving the world of course. A great initiative that should be followed by other festivals too. If not that, at least no plastic cups. All those drinks that gets bought during festivals…
H a p p i n e s s
Best festival in Thailand
Of every event in Thailand, of any event I’ve ever been to in the world, this is definitely the best one. It’s something to look forward to all year. So thankful for the people behind Wonderfruit and the great people who participates in it. Really, if you haven’t been you have to go!
Went for Natalie Glebova ‘s amazing birthday party in Pattaya last weekend. We started off with a white party at Cafe Del Mar with Natalie on the decks for the perfect sunset set. Most of you probably haven’t heard about Cafe Del Mar yet, but it’s a pool club located right on the beach in Jomtien. I love the venue at and in my opinion it’s the best place to go out in Pattaya area. Great vibes, great drinks and the venue is nice and open!
The second day we sailed away into the sunset with the perfect catamaran, tunes and crew for the occasion…
Probably the best birthday Weekend I’ve ever joined. Such an awesome crowd!
Tempted to rent a catamaran in Pattaya? You can rent the same one or a smaller one from Ocean Marina Yacht Club.
