La Residence d'Angkor, A Belmond Hotel, Siem Reap

The whole hotel facility is amazing! One gourmet restaurant and another more casual. Three bars and two pools. Each very different. One spa, and treatments lovely. And the grounds and decor are fantastic! Now for details... This hotel is two different facilities, on opposite sides of the street. One is more sophisticated and the colour palate is black and white. Exquisite art work everywhere and a pool with a whole wall of cascading water. This was good, because it kept this pool a little cooler, whereas the other one was HOT - sort of like your bath at home!! The other hotel, on the opposite side of the street, is more casual and the pool is in the direct sunlight all day, hence why it is so hot. But it is surrounded by grass and lots of umbrellas, so it is definitely nice. The rooms in this part of the hotel are larger, and overlook the big pool. Three complaints though... the electrical lighting in the rooms is CRAZY!!! There are switches all over the place, and no rhyme or reason as to which one turns on or off what! There is even a 'master' swtch that turns off everything, including the airconditioner, hich is absolutely necessary! When you accidentally switch it off, you have to call maintenance to turn it back on!! Very poor design! The shower is massive, and beautiful. However, it is also extremely slippery stone and we were constantly on guard not to fall. All they need to do is sand the stone so it isn't so slippery and it would be much safer! And finally - the beds are as hard as a plank of plywood!!! Everyone was complaining and had numb fingers and arms because their circulation was cut off in the night!!! We ate at the fine dining restaurant one evening and had the four course set menu. Nothing short of fabulous, and I would go back again and again if I could!! Also ate at the casual restaurant and it is good for lunch, but not so good for dinner. All staff, everywhere, are lovely, helpful and so gracious! We had a spa treatment and it was nicely done and the spa area is lovely, too. I would definitely stay here if I was going to Siem Reap again. Fantastic pllce.