The Banjaran Hotsprings Retreat – Review

Stepping into the Banjaran Hotsprings Retreat in Ipoh is like entering a sanctuary of peace.  This high-end wellness resort was one of the first places we encountered on the web when we began thinking about our trip to Malaysia.  Despite spending a good amount of time surfing through reviews and browsing photo galleries, actually seeing the Banjaran and becoming immersed in its tranquility was something altogether different.  To say it was magical would actually be an understatement.

The largest hotspring lake at the Banjaran

Getting There:

Flying from Vancouver to Southeast Asia is always an adventure.  Our journey took 25 hours from start to finish (and that was with excellent connections).  We flew into Kuala Lumpur and then got on a charter bus for Ipoh.  The bus depot is connected to the airport and there is no need to buy tickets in advance.  There are several companies at the depot with prices that vary from about RM 30 – 45 (about $10 US).  The bus ride was another three hours north of KL but on plush, comfortable seats.  Needless to say, by the time we arrived at the resort, we were fatigued and ready for some serious R&R.

The Grounds:

The Banjaran is situated about 10 km outside of Ipoh, the main city nearby.  It is located on an enormous property surrounded by tall mountain cliffs and natural hot springs.  The resort has done a breathtaking job developing the once derelict area around the pools and caves.  The entire area can be traversed on foot in about 10 minutes, but there are endless delights to encounter and distract along the way.

For a wellness retreat, we couldn’t imagine greater attention to detail or thoughtfully designed amenities.  There is a large yoga pavilion offering daily classes, as well as a sweeping deck upon the main hot spring.  There are also special pools for reflexology and a series of ponds where you can have your feet cleaned by tiny fish that come to eat away your dead skin (a popular past-time in Asia–and outright hilarious!).

In between dips in the pools, there are also three separate caves to explore depending on your mood.  The largest is the thermal steam cave, heated by the steam from the springs, and a wonderful place to detoxify and relax.  The meditation cave is a stunning feat of nature with awe-inspiring height and colours, lit gently to offer a quiet place of reflection.  Finally, there is a smaller crystal cave outfitted with meditation pillows and sparkly rocks, perfect for meditative practice or respite.

There is also an extensive, luxury spa on the property that we did not visit, since there were already so many incredible wellness opportunities available and included in our stay.

Narrow footpaths and wooden bridges connect each of the above features.  A short walk around the retreat becomes a feast for the eyes as you regularly encounter monkeys, birds and colourful butterflies at every turn.  Surrounding everything are the impressive cliffs above, mottled in lush greenery.  The expansive hotsprings radiate with steam that can be seen hovering in the air; there are several vantage points with which to take in the views.  In short, the Banjaran invites a deep appreciation for nature, all the while inviting you to partake in self-care at every corner.

Yoga practice on the hotsprings deck

Dr. Fish – eliminating dead skin from Robin’s feet

Open air yoga pavilion

The Villas

There are two types of lodging available at the Banjaran.  Both are enormous and luxurious, but we opted for the more expensive option, the Garden Villa.  This was due to our desire for a private plunge pool.  We have rented villas before (in Bali) and this one was definitely the nicest one we have ever experienced.  It was tastefully and thoughtfully designed with the pool opening up from both the outdoor living area and the master bedroom.  The pool water was chilly but made for a refreshing dip during the late morning sun.  But our favourite part of the villa was the outdoor jacuzzi attached to the washroom.  Fed with hotspring water and completely private, it allowed for a delightful soak at all hours of the day or night.

The service we received during our stay was second-to-none.  We were brought fresh fruit and water daily, and our room was refreshed two or three times per day.  For a short three-night stay, we were extremely comfortable and did not want to leave!

Outdoor jacuzzi of the Garden Villa, fed with geothermal hotspring water

Redefining the meaning of “plunge pool”

The Food

 No resort is perfect, and the only place where the Banjaran lacks is in its food.  (Disclaimer: we are from Vancouver, a city known for its culinary delights, and we have developed an appetite for excellent food–at times, this could come across as snobbish, and if so we apologize!).  Based on the Banjaran’s lavish property and first-rate amenities, we expected the dining “wow” us in a similar vein.  This was not the case.

Breakfast was the best meal of the day and is included with the room rate.  It includes a modest buffet with a small selection of fresh fruit, pastries, pancakes, salad and oatmeal.  There is also a complimentary a la carte menu featuring western and eastern breakfasts, and the congee was particularly satisfying. Otherwise, this is a basic breakfast served in a nice open-air restaurant.

The same restaurant, Pomelo, is used for lunch and dinner, and these meals left little to be desired.  Every meal we ate here was forgettable and, based on quality, overpriced.  The menu also feels small when the Pomelo is the only lunch/dinner place on the property.  There is nothing within walking distance nearby (although there are strip malls along the highway and a McDonalds relatively close-by), but for a 5-start resort, the Banjaran is lacking in dining options.

On our last night, we opted to take dinner in Jeff’s Cellar, the resort’s exclusive restaurant built right into a limestone cave.  The ambience here was gorgeous and the experience unique without being gimmicky.  That being said, this restaurant only offers a set dinner menu that will set you back about 315 RM per person ($100 US), which can be enjoyed with exorbitantly-priced (and very mediocre wines).  While we will give the restaurant kudos for food presentation (each dish was brought out beautifully; see photos below), once again, the quality was simply not there.  Both of us would have preferred cheap hawker food to what we were served at the Banjaran.

That being said, we have a feeling that, due to the Banjaran’s upcoming expansions through 2017, more and better options are surely to make an appearance in the future.

*Note: all of the food offerings were halal (non-pork)

Dining in a cave at Jeff’s Cellar

Beautiful presentation of the black cod

Overall

It would be impossible not to fall in love with the Banjaran Hotsprings Retreat.  For our three-day stay, we continued to rave about the beauty of nature combined with the comfort and style of our villa.  While a trip to Malaysia is certainly not an easy jaunt from Vancouver, we both agreed that we would like to return to the Banjaran in the future.

Drawbacks:

• lack of food options–mediocre quality, high prices
• mosquitos are prevalent (Sandra got close to 30 bites in three days)
• if you don’t like monkeys, you may not enjoy the random visits from these creatures to the outdoor area of the villas.  We happen to love monkeys and weren’t upset when we woke up to our living area covered in monkey faeces from their raucous party in the night.
• it’s not a cheap vacation by any stretch

Highlights:

• perfect for relaxation, stress-relief, wellness and yoga
• all villas are stunning and huge
• service is incredible, friendly and helpful
• quiet–there is peace and tranquility all around, and even though there were several groups staying at the same time as us, the amenities were never full, and the grounds never felt overcrowded (or even remotely crowded)
• Did we say yoga? 😉

Meditation practice in the Crystal Cave

 

Ipoh – Not Malaysia’s No 1 Destination

Our first destination in Malaysia was Ipoh, the capital city of the state of Perak in Western Malaysia, about 3 hours by bus north of Kuala Lumpur (KL). We certainly didn’t choose this destination because of its notoriety, as I don’t believe it has any! The whole town appears to be owned by The Sunway Group, the company that built The Banjaran Hotsprings Retreat where we stayed.

The guide book told us that Ipoh is know for white coffee and poached chicken with fat bean sprouts. Of course we came for neither of these things. We came to visit the Hotsprings Retreat as it sounded like a wonderfully relaxing place to kick back for the first few days of our trip and recover from the 25 hours of travel. That being said, we felt like we’d being doing ourselves a disservice if we didn’t make the trek into town and try for ourselves this white coffee and plump sprouts.

We had the lovely reception staff call us a taxi and we were off! We figured we’d find Ipoh’s signature dish first as we were both a bit peckish (especially me as I spent the past 24hrs with a fever sweating in bed and not eating). We heard that Lou Wong was the place to go for chicken and sprouts, but our Malaysian friend, Andy, and our cab driver told us that the place (conveniently across the street) called Ong Kee was better. It was very Asian-street-food looking with its red plastic chairs and Tiger Beer branded signs.

We were a little uncertain as to the seating etiquette so we wandered up to what appeared to be the dish pit and asked a guy who clearly didn’t speak English if we could have one chicken, holding up a single finger to signify our intention. He kinda seemed to get it and pointed to an open table in the covered patio area where we promptly sat down in eager anticipation of our meal. Unfortunately it turned out that he really didn’t have a clue what we wanted and likely was just pointing us away in dismissal. Luckily a girl sitting nearby who I think was American pointed out that we may have to flag someone down in order to order. So we did, and we did, and then also ordered some drinks from another girl that came by. We didn’t really understand what she was offering except that they were beverages and one of the options was lime. We both opted for the lime beverage, it was interesting and salty.

The moment we’ve all been waiting for! The chicken and bean sprouts arrived and although it was good, it was a little underwhelming after the hype. It was simply poached chunks of whole, bone-in chicken with a bunch of rice and fat bean sprouts. The sauce was nice and spicy and we were supplied with enough additional chillies to probably make intolerably spicy food for a year, and we helped ourselves. The bill came in at a whopping 17 Ringgits or about $5.00 (CAD).

I did wonder how they got their bean sprouts to be fatter.

We decided to move on to our second mission: “Ipoh White Coffee.” As usual the map to the place that claims to have created this famous white coffee (Sin Yoon Loong) was not a great one as I find is common with guide books, but after crossing a bridge and wandering aimlessly for a bit, and sensing that it was about to start with the usual afternoon rain shower, we asked a man on the street. He did some pointing that we interpreted to mean just around the corner and indeed it was.

Sandra looking sad about the rain…

However, we were now across the road from it, and we were right about the rain, just wrong about the usual part. The rain came down in torrents and then got worse. We were trapped across the street!

We waited probably 15 minutes or longer before deciding to make a break for it. The street at this point was a river of about 6 inches deep and the rain was more like a wall of water. Needless to say we arrived on the other side, after slaloming through moving vehicles, soaked. But we had made it to our final destination where we were pleasantly surprised with a couple of cups of white coffee (which wasn’t in fact white, but the same colour as any coffee).
It tasted a lot like a Vietnamese coffee, and was probably instant, but was nice and strong. We then decided to try a couple of pastries and everything was quite tasty! Everything seemed to be about $0.40-$0.50 each. Our total bill came short of $2.00 (CAD), if I recall.

Full on chicken, bean sprouts, rice, coffee, and pastries, our mission was complete so we decided to head back to our resort. Admittedly it wasn’t the most exciting day on the town, but we had lots of fun anyways!