A Walk Through the Rainforest — Datai Style 

From a distance, the rainforest is an expanse of luscious faultless green.

Up close and within, another picture unfolds.

Leaves differentiate from branches which extend from ravaged trunks rising from damp soil. The brush of straggling plants against the leg stirs up an anticipation of an unknown creature’s half-grasp. Mosquitoes buzz as twigs crackle underfoot. The deeper one ventured into the dense overgrowth greater did these elements knit and fuse with the humidity, enveloping us.

In this unlikely setting, the Datai resort defies the imagination by laying a 1,850 acre strip of luxury along the centuries-old forested hillside of Langkawi. Here nestle the resort, a swimming pool and a Thai restaurant, surrounded on four sides by trees as far and high as the eye can see.

Sylvan tones mark the architecture. In a nod to environmental sensibilities, the exterior and corridors are cleverly framed in unvarnished wood and coarse granite. Posh rooms and villas exude an organic feel, enhanced by unglazed ceramic and thick fabrics. Environmental nightmare or sybaritic heaven?

My five-year-old daughter questions nothing. Every fallen tree is rightfully felled; every article of luxury is correctly installed. What’s not to like about it? She and her two-year-old sister dance and chase each other around the pool, not at all self-conscious. Their squeals and giggles ring out as bird calls — and quite consonant with the sweep of the forested background.

My elder girl takes the stone staircase leading down to the spa and beach. She is quite at ease with the overhanging forest through which the stone staircase metamorphoses into a wooden planked bridge raised above muddy soil and a tiny river. A fork in the path leads to the Mandara Spa, itself in the midst of dense foliage.

I must say that the rainforest seen from my semi-open spa treatment room looks brutish and dishevelled — but this is precisely what many guests adore about the lack of any effort to dress up the view.

Deck chairs on a platform (extending from the treatment room) shove me into nature, under trees and over a tiny stream that I wish was more inspired in its flow. Its strangulated waters showed instead its dirty brown bed and stashes of dead leaves.

In spite (or because) of these rough elements, the spa is luxuriously appointed in marble, chrome and varnished wood. Never is decadence thrown into greater relief than by its juxtaposition with wild disarrayed nature. I retreat gratefully from the platform to the massage bed.

What completes the experience is taking the other rainforest path through to the beach. I pass the second swimming pool and beyond that is the Andaman Sea. Here, the cove waters cool me off as I take in the forested hills along the curve of the land — a dramatic view. Nature is now restored to her grandeur and picturesque lushness.

‘Papa! I found some shells!’ My daughter swoops in with glee. She whoopees with the same child-like acceptance as before — of the sea, the broken seashells, and the rainforest in all its detailed imperfections, and busies herself with salvaging crumbling sandcastles. Her evident pleasure says, what’s not to like about all this? Her happiness is pure, perfect.

I look at her with new eyes. Even nature is not as amazing.

Service:  

        Generally prompt attentive service. Check-in/
        check out is notable for its speed and lack of 
 hassle. Guided tours of the rainforest will exhilarate 
      or enervate, depending on your disposition.

Rooms:  

      All have a view of the rainforest, some more dramatic
than others. Sea-facing rooms have their ocean views obstructed by the trees (pity). Choose a room at either end of the main building — their balconies offer the best privacy. Alternatively, free-standing villas in the depths of the rainforest give you the closest experience with nature without sacrificing modern amenities.

Food:     

      Average Thai offerings at the Pavilion by the pool and international selections at the Dining Room.

Overall Experience:             

      In a strange way, the rainforest intrudes into and overhangs the resort which seems so much in its place. The wrap-around effect of the trees is quite special. Guests can choose to stay in this cocoon of luxury or delve into the forest. The rough edges of nature are smoothened out with finesse by the resort. My stay was quite unforgettable.

The Datai, Jalan Teluk Datai, 07000 Pulau Langkawi, Kedah Darul Aman, Malaysia.

Jeffrey Lee

Massage in the wilderness —the Mandara Spa
 

Lobby aglow


Nestled in the rainforest — the Datai


Drinking in the view —  pre-dinner drinks at the Beach Club


Turquoise cove by the Andaman Sea 


In the heart of the rainforest — Datai Villa