Revue de presse – Condé Nast Digital
Ratanakiri’s Terres Rouges Offers More Than Red Dirt.
Last year, Claire Duffet gave us the low-down on the Siem Reap Hotel Scene. But this year, she’s taking us off the beaten path to some of Cambodia’s Remote Hotels. Any questions or suggestions? Let us know.
Banlung is Cambodia’s most far-flung provincial capital and retains the Wild West atmosphere of a rough, rural town that once gripped the entire country. It’s at least 12 hours’ drive (or a precarious propeller-plane flight) from Phnom Penh, over roads that are mud pits during rainy season and dust clouds during dry season.
For those who make it to the country’s northeasternmost region, tucked in the jungly « dragon’s tail » between Laos and Vietnam are rewarded when they arrive at Terres Rouge, a lakeside resort set on expansive, green grounds with a pool, spa, and a restaurant with fantastic French cuisine.
Pierre, a former paratrooper who came in with the French military alongside UN forces in the 1990s to help establish peace in the civil war-torn country, owns the place. He’s not always around, but the eccentric owner has loads of funny tales about his years as an expat and arranges tours to nearby sights, such as Yaklorm lake, a perfect, crater-form circle with crystal water perfect for an afternoon’s swim.
Terres Rouges boasts lovely, wooden rooms in both a two-storey building and a row of private bungalows. Spacious verandas with lounges provide plenty of opportunities for lazing around and enjoying the Birds of Paradise-filled, lovely gardens.
The enormous, stone, semi-outdoor bathrooms in the six bungalow suits, with rainfall showerheads and giant tubs, transform bathing into an indulgence. Pencil drawings of Khmer scenes adorn the walls of the various rooms. This is the place to splash out on a scrumptious French meal in Ratanakiri, in the open-air restaurant lit by antique lamps.
As reward for the pain of accessing it, the prices are remarkably reasonable for the high-quality of the facilities provided, ranging form $40 to $85 per night.
