Savannah - ohh - na - na

Somehow I only took a handful of photos all weekend. This was the most picturesque city - how did I miss so many great photo ops?

We got so lucky with the weather, it was in the high 70s/low 80s all weekend with no rain!

All of the fountains were ready for the St. Patrick's Day crowds. We didn't take advantage of it, but in the historic area of Savannah you can walk outside with an open container. Apparently the city has one of the largest St. Patrick's Day celebrations in the US and from what we saw is a favorite spot for bachelorette parties.

There are so many charming houses and streets lined with oak trees covered in Spanish moss. 

But watch out for those uneven sidewalks! Leaves, broken cement, bricks, cobblestones, and tree roots made for dangerous walking. At least it is a very flat city with not too much traffic. 

A highlight of the trip (aside from Leopold's Ice Cream - which is totally worth the line and the stop at the airport for some pre-departure ice cream) was the Savannah Wildlife Refuge.

It is actually located in South Carolina, but it just a quick drive from downtown. You can hike but even better than hiking, there is a 4 mile drive that crawls around wetlands and through oak trees draped with Spanish moss.

 Take the drive - you can see gators, lots of gators. We thought we might see one if we were lucky. Pretty much within the first half mile we saw people pulled over and pointing. Someone said snakes, but once you looked closely it was clear we were looking at baby alligators.

You have to look closely along the shore line in the photo - anything that yellow and black stripes is a baby gator.

We saw the baby gators and medium size gators and big gators! They were in the water and on the side of the shore. It was incredible.

What did I see that was scarier than a big gator?

(Yes, that is a 3.5L BOX of Fireball.)

If you want to end your night on a good note, skip the box of Fireball and head to Artillery Bar in Savannah. The space was really cook and the cocktails were excellent.

Just Add Water - JW Marriott Emerald Bay Phu Quoc Pools and Beach

From the pools (all three of them) to the white sand beach there were endless options for sunbathing. 

It certainly helped that the weather was absolutely perfect - low 80s, some humidity, and a lovely gentle breeze. 

We spent our time here - the shell pool. 

And we did spend a few minutes here in the bubble area - I wanted it to be a hot tub but it was just jets. Something new but a hot tub would have been better, clearly the pool designer should have checked with me ;-)

Of course the bubble tub pool had an infinity edge too. All the pools had plenty of comfy lounge chairs and umbrellas. I'm sure it helped we seemed to be there during a quiet week. 

Not only were the beaches spotless (because there was a team of staff constantly cleaning them) they offered chairs, bean bags, day beds, and hammocks! We could have enjoyed a kayak or paddle board but we didn't...

The water was really warm but there weren't any waves - they have one season where there are waves and one where there aren't waves. We were definitely there during the no wave season. 

 There were so many views out to the water - each one more beautiful than the other. Thanks to the huge team of grounds keepers the landscaping was stunning.

Walking to the pool or breakfast never got old.

 The only way our stay would have been better is if we had been smart enough to stay longer!

Room(s) With A View - JW Marriott Phu Quoc Emerald Bay (Room 6301)

Thanks to MW's extensive business travel and diligence securing status and points not only did he redeem this stay for points but we received quite a room upgrade.

 Our room was in the Department of Anthropology (they had me at Anthropology). The theme was early/ancestral human in the outside areas and that mixed with British Colonial inside the room. 

The walk up to our building from the main path (not the ocean path).
















The steps to our room and our front door - bright colors and artwork for days.

The outside of the building had huge murals that could have been torn from early text books or copied from cave walls.

 Once we opened the door we were blown away. The room was a huge two room suite with a white water view balcony.

The decor was bright and airy and full of whimsy.

Our front entry table.

The living room, or was it a parlor?

And the little bathroom - the ultimate luxury for us (aside from the actual room that was definitely larger than our apartment), two bathrooms!

The bedroom, loved the huge four poster bed and multiple seating areas. There were so many places to sit in this room I never even sat in the side chairs. Pretty much if I was sitting in the room it was out on the balcony to watch the ocean and listen to the waves.

The room had a huge bathroom with the best shower built for two.

And two sinks - another luxury for us.

I didn't take any photos but the bathroom also had a nice dressing area with a large counter for our suitcases. In case there was any doubt, the bath products were some of the best I have had in a hotel.

This was the view from our balcony and my preferred spot for morning coffee. There was a Nespresso machine in the room - a warm up for the tasty Vietnamese coffee offered during breakfast. 

And finally the welcome gifts were really special. Reusable straws, so eco-friendly and local Phu Quoc peppercorns. At night turn down service left us a piece of grilled ginger with honey. The room was well stocked with bottled water, not just two bottles per day. 

We definitely regretted only booking this resort for two nights! 

A Little Bit of Paradise - JW Marriott Phu Quoc Emerald Bay (Guest Areas)

I'm not going to lie, Saigon was very overwhelming. So many people, so many scooters, sidewalks that were uneven not paved and filled with parked scooters. It was hard to cross the streets and I never felt like I could relax.

From Saigon we took a quick flight to an island off the Southwest coast of Vietnam - Phu Quoc.

At this point in the trip I was a getting a bit tired and our night in Saigon didn't help. I was definitely wondering why we were going halfway across the world to go to a beach.

Once we hit the resort, JW Marriott Phu Quoc Emerald Bay, all questions were answered.

Not only was the resort beautiful, the staff was amazing, the decor was stunning, the beaches were picture perfect and the weather was probably the best we have ever enjoyed on a beach vacation.

The resort is on the site of a turn of the century university and it was re-imagined with that university theme. All of the buildings are various departments (the bar is the Department of Chemisty - so clever).

Every corner of every space indoor and out is filled with charming details.

The check in area set the tone for our stay, which was clearly too short!

This was our first view of the resort. Definitely not a traditional reception desk.

MW handled check in while I snapped photo after photo. The check in process included cool towels and hibiscus tea.

Tucked away seating areas and pops of color filled the resort entrance.

 

Our room was in the Department of Anthropolgy. So appropriate!

We were up on the third floor, the ocean view from the balcony was spectacular.

All of the grounds on the resort were beautifully maintained by a large and hard working grounds crew. They were out in force every day. 

Ground floor rooms all had lovely patio seating.

Look at those corner balcony rooms. That is a good spot for a cup of coffee in the morning.

In the evening the best spot for a drink was the Department of Chemistry. The prime spot was an indoor daybed that looked out to the ocean.

I should have snapped a photo of the Dept of Chemistry from the outside. The building itself was really interesting. But I did get a photo of the kids club - those little windows were so cute. Reminded me of Alice in Wonderland.

This was our daily trek to breakfast.

Night was just as charming.

Really no detail was overlooked.

The staff was just as lovely as the decor. Every person was pleasant and attentive. Too bad we were only there two nights!