This was our second time to Sandalwood. My wife and I first discovered this place when we went there for our honeymoon in April 08'. We were so impressed by the whole experience that we decided to go back again on another trip with our friends recently in December 08'. Our friends fell in love with the place too and kept thanking us for taking them there.

All the staff are amazing, never have we experienced service like this anywhere in Thailand (we travel to Thailand for holidays at least 2-3 times a year). Not only are they extremely efficient at catering to all your wants and needs, they are also genuinely warm and friendly and always smiling. Most of the staff have pretty good command of English which was excellent, we never had to repeat ourselves or had a hard time explaining what we wanted.

The view.... get ready to be blown away by the view. Breathtaking!!!
All the villas come equipt with everything you could possibly need and more and all of them offer an amazing view of the sea and neighboring islands. No words can fully describe how unbelievable it is, you just have to go and see for yourself.

Special thanks to George and Mary for being such wonderful hosts, we look for to seeing you again next year for sure!

We have just returned from our stay in Sandalwood from 4-9 Dec 08. Its the perfect place for an escape from the rush of life, to unwind and consolidate your thoughts.

Scenery/View
We were greeted by the most spectacular view of the horizon and Samui after a seemingly long ride uphill. As one of the owners, George, puts it: nothing you see on their website is photoshop-ed.

Location
The estate is located between the busy Chaweng and Lamai, on a hilltop. While transport down the hill may not be at your fingertips (if you did not rent a vehicle), the Villa provides a 11am shuttle down to Chaweng. The best part about the location is that you enjoy fresh, clean air, as well as peace and quietness, away from the noise and air pollution of Chaweng. No coughing while you breathe; no thumping while you sleep.

Villa
We stayed in Plumeria. It was spacious, really. The bedroom was nice and huge. The bathroom even had space for a table n flowers!! A private balcony was our favorite place for having breakfast while gazing at the beautiful horizon. There was also a private infinity pool. Overall, a very romantic and private room.

Service
For the out-of-this-world experience and service standards, this is where you must see it for yourself. Service excellence is based on attention to details and intimacy. It is hard for us to explain them in words, but we'll list a few examples to give you an idea.
We stayed in the Waterfront Bophut hotel on our first night, and had informed Sandalwood about it. On the second morning, we received a call at the Waterfront's reception from Sandalwood asking us whether we would like to check in early, and that they would pick us up from the Waterfront at a time convenient for us. They took initiative and were very thoughtful.
They were very accomodating to all our requests. We had asked for the bedroom to be cleaned early on one morning as we were having a pre-wedding photoshoot. Not only did they cleaned it at 8am, they also folded 2 towels into a pair of kissing swans on the bed.
The cooking stoves in Plumeria were not working, so I approached Pon, the GM. She told me that since it was not working, if I passed the ingredients to the restaurant, the chefs would cook anything I wanted, at no charge. Which hotel would offer you such 'compensation'? If it was not working, some may even say: so be it!!
Sandalwood has a taxi service (performed by 3 taxi drivers) that would send you back to the Villa at 400B. After a sunset dinner along west coast (pretty much the furthest from Sandalwood on Samui), we called all 3 taxi drivers but none were available to pick us up from so far away. The last one told us to call the reception. Strangely, the reception managed to get a taxi for us. When the taxi arrived, we were shocked. George, one of the owners, had drove to come pick us up. Now, picture the CEO of say, Hilton, picking you up - impossible. No one can do service better than Sandalwood. No one.
We could list more examples, but it would not be necessary. Their service is very accomdating, personal and intimate. Its truely THE best we've experienced.

Overall
If you are looking for an escape for your mind and body, this is clearly the choice. The view, the space, and absolutely, the service. You won't want to go home. That's how we felt. And we're not alone.

Truly first class in every respect. Very attentive staff, wonderful food, excellent accommodation! If you are looking for a relaxing, tranquil and peaceful retreat, look no further. The spa offers a comprehensive, inexpensive range of treatments provided by friendly staff. Would definitely stay again.

What a great place. Two families with 4 teenagers between us stayed for a week with Sandalwood. Could not fault them. The service , accommodation, restraunt, pools and views were excellent. Not a big resort . Enjoyed the peacfulness. We stayed in Leelavadee and Amarin. Had the verandah and spa on Leelavadee and complete privacy and then enjoyed the infinity pool and outside bath tub on Amarins deck. Yes Leelavadee is the oldest villa but was great size for a Family with 3 teenagers , clean and the best views, maybe a cooler in the lounge area would be handy although we spent most of our time on the verandah. Amarin was alot newer not as big but very comfortable. No problems being situated on the cliff. Always utes going down to Charwang or Lami daily , 15 minutes drive . We would ring staff to come and pick us up when we were ready to return to the quite. Ate in the restraunt most nights.... If we couldnt be bothered to walk the steps our food would come to us........ 100 Bart for room service. Food fantastic and prices reasonable. Great variety western ect for kids....... Thai was the best.........Day spa was worth every cent........... Spent leisure days beside the pool. Sandalwood organised island trips, snorkeling ect , shopping tips ect ect............. Pon is fantastic as The General Manager and we wanted to pack her up and bring her home............... Her and her staff think of everything. We had no problem with communications all part of the experience in a foreign country. Pon can speak fluent english and her staff will always try. .........We will be back..