The Suit & I @ The Sheraton Beach Resort Langkawi - Day 1

10.21 a.m -- Currently at The Airport Starbucks, awaiting 'the cute suit' to arrive from Kuala Lumpur to pay me a visit or rather check on me. Elisa (Shasha for short) is the head of Sales & Marketing for Rahsia Estates Sdn. Bhd. and is down from KL to the Island of Langkawi to meet some of the prominent folks of the Island with me. Some to mention include Mr Wicky Sundram Executve Director of the Royal Langkawi Yacht Club and Datuk Azhar Mansor, the first Malaysian to sail solo around the world. The Cute Suit plans to also do some research on Rahsia Estates competitors and reki other resort developments on this Island. Coincidentally, the day she arrives is also the same day I check into my new temporary residence on this mystical island.

The Sheraton Beach Resort Langkawi has generously invited us to stay 2 nights at their resort free of charge! And in exchange I will do a complete blog article on their entire resort and its facilities.

Phew, after getting Shasha out of the airport and into the taxi, we made our way to the Sheraton Beach Resort Langkawi. On to way to our destination, we chatted about how my trip has been so far and Shasha's agonizing flight into Langkawi. (Sound familiar?) She also passed me a package from my little sister; a batch of home made cookies, which were absolutely delicious! Thanks sis..!

We arrived at Sheraton’s security check point and entered into a lush, green forest like paradise! The entrance porch of the hotel was stunning and as we got out of our taxi, we were greeted by their cheerful bell boys and charming hospitality host. They welcomed us with warm smiles and genuine warmth. That took a lot of our stress and tiredness away from us. We could exhale and relax.

Once inside the main lobby, the receptionist showed us to the luxurious and comfortable lobby lounge. The plush sofa seats and arm chairs were a pleasure to look at and to sink in. The softly playing elevator music in the background almost lulled us to doze off! We met with the head of sales and marketing of the Sheraton, Puan Norsidah who was a soft spoken and very welcoming lady. She introduced herself formally and spoke to us about Sheraton's 'Back To The Community' program.

This program basically “gives back” to the Langkawi community youth by inviting youths of the island to join Sheraton’s community program and take part in team building exercises and also when completing the programme, will be given jobs at the hotel, such as being a waiter bellboy or front desk staff.

"With this program, we hope to give back to the community, by giving the native youth of Langkawi the opportunity to learn and experience working in the hotel industry, it may not be a glamarous job but it definitely will put these kids on the right track!"

Puan Norsida then went on to explain to us how The Sheraton Resort have an open policy in terms of hiring staff whereby no one is discriminated from a chance at getting a job at the hotel as long as they have the right credentials , training and attitude. Puan Norshida mentioned how one of their bell boys is a “little person” but his size did not matter to the Sheraton. He always takes his job seriously and does not let his size affect his job quality

After getting acquainted with her, and also collecting our room keys, we then hopped onto our buggy, and was then driven to our respective rooms (which luckily for us, were side by side!) Once at the room, I was stunned by the room size and layout. The room was spacious and very comfortable. The smell of aromatherapy oils and the faint sound of the sea at my balcony made me feel completely at ease and relaxed!

After settling into my room and taking some photos, I met up with Shasha to explore the hotel. We started from the lobby where we checked out their comfortable business centre called 'Link' equipped with free wi-fi and up to date computers. We then made our way to their spacious and contemporary style all day restaurant called Feast. This restaurant offers Ala carte dining, international buffets, interactive cooking stations and a beautiful garden view, making eating at this restaurant not only a pleasure for ones palate but also for ones eyes.

We made our way down the stairs from the Feast Restaurant to their nightspot fun pub F&B out-let called Chime. Known as THE place to be when the sun goes down, whether it's chilling out at the sexy outdoor ( under the stars ) cabana or dancing inside to the music spun by their resident DJ, Chime was a really awesome place. I was already planning in my head to go back to The Chimes when it opened in the evening! Perhaps, I may invite Shasha to come along with me.

A short walk off Chime, onto their outdoor timber boardwalk, we came upon the infinity pool canopied by huge leafy trees. Quite a sight to behold! The pool area was divided into a smaller children's pool and in the main pool was a bar! Drink while you swim! How cool is that!!

By the poolside, there was a man making batik art on the spot! He was very friendly and even offered to let us try our hand at batik making. But both Shasha and I declined as we didn’t want to embarrass ourselves and ruin his master pieces so we moved on to Sheraton’s private beach cove. Because The Sheraton supports the island's eco friendly status, they did not destroy the natural rock formations on the beach and instead created a fascinating beach cove with sandy nooks and crannies for the guests to explore and enjoy also giving the beach a more natural and untouched look!

400 metres, 3 bottles of water and 2 tired tourists later, we were sticky, exhausted and had achey feet.. but it was all worth it to check out the hotel surroundings! We decided to wait for a buggy (which come by the main entrance to pick up passengers regularly) and headed back to our respective rooms to rest up for an international buffet dinner with the executive assistant manager.

After a refreshing nap and armed with a worked up appetite, Shasha and I made our way to the Feast Restaurant for a casual dinner with Mr Kumar, the Executive Assistant Manager. Once seated at the restaurant, we were greeted by the very friendly Mr Kumar who took us around the restaurant, where the buffet was showcased and then sat us down for dinner! The spread at the international buffet was huge! From asian delights such as chicken rendang and mongolian style barbeque, to their signature succulent roast lamb and paprika potatoes. Yum! I've dined at a few hotel buffets but this one was definitely worth remembering. I could tell that the chef and sous chef took so much pride in their creations, walking around the buffet tables making sure all the trays were replinished and serving their barbequed meats with the biggest smiles, making us feel comfortable about eating at their restaurant.

Stuffed to the brim, and now in need of some deep hibernation before tomorrow's packed schedual, we thanked Mr Kumar for the memorable meal and went our seperate ways. But before heading back to our rooms, we decided to check out the other restaurants in the hotel grounds, which include The Spice Trader, an Arabian and Indian themed restaurant which overlooks the Andaman Sea, and The Captain's Grill which is located on a pier so close to the ocean you can feel sea breeze gently caress your face while enjoying the best seafood the island has to offer.

It is now12.32 a.m, Shasha is in her room, completely knackered from her long day, and I'm fully satisfied with my entire day. It has been very tiring.. but to get to sleep on a bed THIS comfortable, definitely well worth it. Going to reenergize as tomorrow I will be exploring the rest of the hotel including the different rooms and their Spa! Woooh. But till then..

Harith The Cosy Beach Bum

Kindly Sponsored by Rahsia Estates Sdn. Bhd. & The Sheraton Resort Langkawi