Romyen is beautiful, and wonderfully relaxed. We stayed in Bungalow 3, and loved lounging on the veranda, retreating into the sitting room as the afternoon wore on. The cottages have a refreshing rustic simplicity, with pleasant, quirky décor. The gardens are delightful, with crickets, geckos, birds and frogs providing a soundtrack. We ate all of our meals there during our stay, with no menu but with home cooked food prepared based on what was fresh in the markets, and special diets sensitively catered for. It is not possible to describe the simple loveliness of the place.
And the people, from the owners through to the young lad who insisted on carrying our bags, are fantastic - helpful, informative, friendly and never pushy. We could not have hoped for better hosts.
Unfortunately, Romyen's neighbours were a nightmare. Across the rice field, hundreds of meters away, is a karaoke bar which could be heard well into the night. Not a problem during the day, but a serious issue at night unless you are accustomed to blocking out such sounds: the bass notes reached into our room, and the wailing of the louder singers mixed with these. For my partner (who is sensitive to sound, and suffers from migraines) this was a big problem; for me it was a serious irritation.
It is tragic that such an utterly wonderful place should be undermined by selfish neighbours. All the work and tangible love that the owners and managers have put in to this place should make this a "five stars, no question - must visit" place. But the neighbours are sabotaging this.
