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We loved our stay at Trogon House and Forest Spa, a beautiful retreat deep in the forest. The architecture is stunning, like a Frank Lloyd Wright masterpiece, all glass and stone and hand-hewn wood beams with gorgeous furnishings all built into the treetops and connected by elevated wooden walkways. One of the advantages of visiting in the shoulder season is that we were the only guests and had the chef and butler to ourselves for dinner by the fire (food was excellent, personalized service even better). On site massage was a nice treat as well. Highly recommend staying here!

It started already when we booked the place with ***********. The hotel did not accept their payment and on multiple attempts could not be reached by phone. Finally we got an email response about three weeks before arrival. Nerve wrecking. As well their system seems to be hacked as we got another payment request one day after check in. Not safe. The hotel is nice, nothing fancy, and definitely not five stars, 2-3 stars at best. Certain spots were dirty in the room and we had to clean ourselves. There was a huge sauce spill at the pool patio which was not cleaned during our entire stay. Filthy. Restaurant subpar, breakfast to forget about. On December 30 we waited more than one hour for our simple breakfast just to receive the wrong order and cold food. As well the apricot jam provided was already opened and used by another guest (!). Huge hygiene problem and lets me wonder what else is going on in the kitchen. Thankfully we did not eat there more often. The waitress was apologetic, defensive, started crying for no reason and clearly lacks training and professionalism. The breakfast selection was minimal, the buffet dismal for a supposed five star hotel. On December 29 we attended the bar and met some nice local people. I ordered a scotch and wanted to call it quits after that. Sydney the bartender was very pushy and asked me about ten times if I want another one. My answer was always no. To make things worse he suddenly asked me if I want to pay for tequila shots for a local couple. I was astonished about his predatory behavior. Me and my wife did not feel comfortable or safe around him at all. On check out, December 31, my wife got approached in the lobby by the same waitress who screwed up our breakfast, about wanting a tip. Staff clearly lacks emotional intelligence, training and guidance by non visible management. I don’t think we will be back or recommend this place to friends. I will choose future stays more carefully and will only rely on official rating sites, and not the rating the hotel provides themselves.

I would love to give 4.5 stars and if we came in summer it would be 5 stars. The gardens are stunning specially the aloe garden and the peaceful, mossy path leading to the chapel. The staff were wonderful and the open glass conservatory for breakfast was the most beautiful breakfast room we have ever experienced. The olde-worlde accommodation felt cozy with the weather cold and raining but with the fire raging. But because of the large amount of rain there was a damp smell in the room. One of the staff later told us it was the thatch roof being a bit damp and I wish they had told us that earlier. With the rain having stopped the small was better the next morning. Our only criticism was the blanket placed on top of the duvet. I know it was to keep us warm in cold weather but a beigy-brown blanket did not give us a “clean” feel.