Centara Grand Beach Resort
But a great hotel is not defined merely by its facilities.
It is of course its service. And service here is second to
none in SE Asia. From comfortably seated check in, to
creatively varied turndowns complete with a new snack
or amenity each night, discrete but attentive service,
things like an unexpected amuse bouche at dinner,
a thankyou note from the chamber staff written in
silver on a freshly plucked leaf from the exotic gardens
permeating the property. And my personal favorite
especially given the tropical setting, a bucket of ice
every evening. A freshly concocted Gin and Tonic on
the balcony during the dusky interlude of each day’s
transition to evening’s culinary delights never tasted
quite so good.
It would be a travesty on my part not to mention how
all this is done so well day after day, and what a pleasure
it was to learn some of those secrets from Katejiraporn
Kaewngarmsa AKA - “Apple” and Jan Weisheit. Two
extremely personable and immensely talented managers
that seem to be everywhere all the time.
As Peter said to us, he has never worked with staff that
cared so much about an event and who came up with
new fun ideas year after year. You get the unmistakable
feeling that they look forward to this event more than
any other. They clearly transcend a business partnership
and truly like working with each other.
Of course the real beneficiaries are the guests.
THE GOLF
This Year there will be four courses in play including two
of Thailand’s best courses, Banyan Golf Club, Hua Hin
and Black Mountain Golf Club.
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Destination Golf .TRAVEL
Sam Sakocius with Ian Morgan, Golfasian
Banyan Golf Club, Hua Hin.
We visited Banyan first and from the moment you
arrive you are attended to. This was on a Monday with
no special events going on but we were greeted with
friendly helpful smiles and a flurry of activity on our
behalf. It is said that the tenor of a club comes from
the top down and it could not be truer here. I looked
forward to meeting Stacey Walton, Golf Club Manager/
Director and it was immediately evident that the
warmth and hospitality of the place has its roots in the
front office. Affable, gregarious, and knowledgeable, we
learned a lot in a brief visit and tour before we got on
the course.
The Centara Masters is their biggest event and always
in the back of their mind for things that matter, like
nursing then stressing the course right before the event,
(Professional Tour style) so that the playing conditions
are as good as they can be. Or extra training sessions
so the entire staff is at the top of their hospitality game
when the phalanx of players arrive.
The course itself is quite interesting with a balanced mix
of straight forward, strategic, and quirky holes that will
keep you on your toes. A study of the yardage book
and a good rapport with your caddy here is essential to
a good round. The surrounds and course are lush but
play is mostly hard and fast so when the wind kicks up,
shifting your game to a bit of low trajectory links style,
will serve the scorecard well. Of great help is the first
class GPS positioning System on every buggy. It has an
interactive touch screen so that distance information to
every feature or hazard is readily available and exact.
I need to mention the club facilities. Like the
course, quirky and fun, a bit of a mashup blending