CHECK IN
After a harrowing 13-hour delay that turned my late afternoon arrival right into a late morning one in Ho Chi Minh, I am ushered to a seat on the entrance desk and supplied a refreshing welcome drink after employees rush to seize my baggage. It goes with out saying that the pleasant {and professional} employees are a part of Sofitel’s boutique MGallery expertise, and the vibe is immediately calming as you are taking within the lodge’s grand foyer, which sits adjoining to a lounge housing a grand piano and overlooking a leafy courtyard. The central lodge isn’t removed from the airport – about six kilometres – however the site visitors on this metropolis of virtually 9 million folks means a sluggish crawl by means of town to achieve the lodge (it sometimes takes between 15 and 40 minutes).
THE LOOK
This luxury lodge is a respite from the hustle and bustle of town exterior its doorways. Paying homage to the French Indochina period of the Thirties, the lodge combines glamour, mystique and luxury with trendy aptitude, such because the spectacular gentle fittings and trendy Vietnamese artwork.
THE ROOM
I used to be delighted to enter the room after my lower than glamorous flight, ravenous and caffeine disadvantaged, to find a mini-high tea consisting of tiny focaccia with cheese and sundried tomato; tropical fruits, and petite fours – irresistible, tiny chew sized items of sunshine zesty cheesecake, and variations of French chocolate pastries. The Nescafe pod machine was much less good, however did the job, nonetheless. After taking depart of my room to discover within the afternoon, the housekeeping fairies got here in and changed my towels, my water and my espresso pods, and hopefully forgave the mess Hurricane Kylie had left in her rush to discover town for one solitary afternoon.
However I digress: the gorgeous artwork deco rooms have distinctive curved home windows that provide views of town. Comparable in type to different Sofitel properties, the toilet and bed room with king sized mattress are separated by curtain solely, with separate cubicles for the bathe and bathroom, marble benches and tiles and toiletries from Balmain Paris.
FOOD + DRINK
That is a type of inns the place it could be completely acceptable to spend each meal consuming inside its partitions. Breakfast is spectacular, with an array of breads and pastries and home made jams, brilliant tropical fruits, child banh mi, and a signature salmon pho, served on vibrant Vietnamese crockery. Mesmerising views of town beckon from the crowded Social Membership rooftop bar on a Friday evening, however I really feel extra at house within the speakeasy type bar downstairs, with its superb classic bar, mismatched upholstered armchairs, low lights and teak cubicles. I order a Vietnamese mango and bourbon cocktail and it arrives topped with flowers and a rosemary sprig resting on a mattress of dried pineapple and drizzled with raspberry. The Eurocentric bar snacks are simply as handsome and equally scrumptious.
OUT + ABOUT
You are proper within the coronary heart of town right here, with a number of the metropolis’s main points of interest a brief stroll away. Meals distributors line the streets, and there are additionally loads of cafes and markets, in addition to town’s extra iconic vacationer points of interest such because the Put up Workplace, the Reunification constructing, Notre Dame (closely cloaked in scaffolding at time of go to, strive the pink Tan Dinh church as a substitute). As a repeat customer, I used to be pleased to prowl the streets to pattern town’s wonderful road meals.
THE VERDICT
The gorgeous French Indochine design of this lodge will transport you to an period lengthy gone.
THE ESSENTIALS
Deluxe rooms begin from $175 per evening. 78 Nguyễn Thị Minh Khai, St, Quận 3, Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh 070000, Vietnam; hoteldesartssaigon.com
HIGHLIGHT
The Social Membership’s speakeasy and the rooftop pool are unmissable.
LOWLIGHT
Lacking certainly one of my two evening’s keep courtesy of 1 price range Australian airline’s ridiculously lengthy delay.
OUR RATING OUT OF FIVE
★★★★
The author stayed as a visitor of Accor Inns.
