NOT LONG BEFORE my wife and I became parents, we were chatting with a friend—a well-to-do Singapore society figure—about our favorite holiday destinations. When the conversation eventually rolled around to which five-star hotel group we all preferred, our friend unhesitatingly answered, “Four Seasons.”
Back then, I’d not had much experience with the brand. “Darling,” she said, “when you have kids, you will adore Four Seasons. They take amazing care of their guests: adults and children. You’ll see.” That advice turned out to be spot on. Over the past 15 years, we’ve brought our daughters, now aged 12 and 15, to Four Seasons in Bali, Florence, the Maldives, and our hometowns of Sydney and Singapore.
On a family trip in Thailand, our most recent Four Seasons sojourn, we double down and take the girls to two of the brand’s resorts: Tented Camp Golden Triangle (packages from Bt 97,000 per night) in Chiang Rai in far northern Thailand, and its sister property in Chiang Mai.
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A private deck, an infinity pool and a view from the Lodge, Four Seasons Tented Camp Golden Triangle. Courtesy of Four Seasons
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Tented Camp suites, within sight of the borders of three countries, are hidden in wild greenery. Courtesy of Four Seasons
Bordering Myanmar and Laos, the Golden Triangle property is the smallest Four Seasons in the world, with just 15 rooms, and was the first of the tented camp resorts to be dreamed up by famed hotel designer Bill Bensley. In keeping with his conservationist approach to luxury, the resort fits seamlessly into the landscape, built into the jungle, barely disturbing the natural habitat. Structures make way for trees, not vice versa. There are no fixed walls (just zipped-up enclosures), no televisions, and in public areas, no air con. This is what Bensley calls “high end, low impact.”
You arrive at the camp via a longtail speedboat—a quick, thrilling trip down the Mekong, with shades of Apocalypse Now. From the pier, you walk down rainforest tracks to your tented suite, a wood-and-canvas structure decorated colonial-style, with copious elephant motifs (think: tusk-shaped door handles and taps—in faux ivory, of course). These are overt references to the camp’s biggest attractions: a posse of pachyderms saved from solitude and servitude in the big cities, brought here to enjoy an idyllic retirement in the Thai countryside, with their mahouts (handlers) and families in tow.
Our younger daughter, Scarlett, says the elephants remind her of me. “Oh, because they’re noble, wise, strong, magnificent creatures?” I ask. “No, Dad. Because they’re large, slow-moving, a bit smelly, and always hungry,” she says. In possession of epic appetites beyond even my own, the elephants join guests for breakfast at the restaurant, where they are hand-fed bananas and cucumbers. It’s a brilliant experience for people of all ages—even cynical, seen-it-all teenagers. “There’s something so soulful in their eyes,” our 15-year-old, Arabelle says, laughing off the occasional spatter of elephant snot, when normally she’s only content being spritzed with fruit-scented potions from Sephora.
Elephant husbandry can be messy business. To save your sartorial finery from mud and mucus, guests are issued rather chic denim mahout outfits. This gear is essential on the My Elephant & Me guided walk across the estate with these gentle giants, where you watch them bathe in the river and frolic in the fields.
Getting so close to the animals really is something special—it’s no surprise that elephant interactions are so popular for family trips in Thailand. I feel like Sam Neill’s Dr. Alan Grant just after he arrives at Jurassic Park, filled with wonder walking among the huge animals, patting their rugged hides—yet acutely conscious not to get under their feet.
There are no velociraptors here, but being in such a natural setting means you do have to be mindful of your surroundings. At the tented camp, there are many uneven tracks and guard rail–free hillsides where you wouldn’t want a toddler (or indeed, an elderly grandparent) unsteadily treading. Wisely, only children aged 10 and above are allowed. We suggest consulting with the resort beforehand if you’re planning on bringing any family members with accessibility needs, to request a tent closer to the bar and restaurant.
FROM FOUR SEASONS Golden Triangle, it’s about three-and-a-half hours’ drive to the more manicured sibling resort in Chiang Mai. En route, I remind the kids to glance away from their phones every now and then, since the mountainous landscape along the journey is utterly gorgeous. As we drive, my girls are engaged in a digital battle for Taylor Swift concert tickets, but I manage to bring their attention to the dramatic scenery occasionally.
A resort composed of tasteful villas and suites set around a picturesque rice paddy, Four Seasons Chiang Mai (pavilions from Bt 23,400 per night) also offers activities designed to engage the whole family. My pick is the traditional indigo tie-dyeing session, which yields me a few crafty pocket squares, while the girls especially enjoy ritually washing the resident buffaloes (a novel way of ‘splashing out’ at Four Seasons). “The pink one is so cute,” Scarlett says, of the resort’s rare albino buffalo, “my favourite colour.” We all have fun shaping clay on a wheel, the girls proving far more adept at this task than their father, who struggles to shape even a grade school– standard side dish.
Depending on your clan’s peccadilloes, there’s plenty more you can choose to do as a family at the resort. Options include rice planting in the paddy; sunrise yoga by the pond; on-site garden tours and cooking classes with the chef; trips to local galleries, artists’ studios, and the craft cluster of San Khampaeng; treks in Doi Inthanon National Park; and expeditions to discover the outstanding regional street food at the nearby markets.
Or you might just want to laze by the infinity pool—that’s perfectly fine, too. One afternoon, I have a lovely time poolside with Scarlett while Arabelle and her mum go for a girls’ pampering experience at the spa. Another evening, we enjoy a delightful sundown, just my wife and me, reading and sipping wine on our terrace, while the girls amuse themselves with YouTube indoors.
You can’t fight the lure of screens and social media entirely—though it was pleasant to see my girls mostly using their phones to shoot video, rather than consume it, on this trip. As Clark Griswold has taught us, you can’t all be forced together, ‘bonding’ as a family, 24/7.
In our experience, the best family hotels provide the space for parents and kids to enjoy some alone time, while at other moments, draw the family close to share experiences they’ll remember forever—like having a hearty breakfast with elephants… or laughing at dad as he inelegantly tries and fails to make pottery.
Our Singaporean socialite friend was right. In delivering these sorts of experiences, the resorts from this trip proved difficult to fault, darling.
Images courtesy of Christian Barker, unless otherwise noted.
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The information in this article is accurate as of the date of publication.
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