The hotel

Food:

Authentic Thai dishes are created are served in the elegantly designed Pavilion restaurant overlooking the Andaman Sea, or served on the terrace of your villa. Enjoy international and Asian cuisine at The Dining Room, governed by Swiss chef Hans Wismer, former chef at the Peninsular Hotel in Hong Kong and also a keen golfer who may join you on a round. The Beach Bar serves alfresco light snacks and theme buffets by the sea.

Accommodation:

54 rooms and 18 suites of five-star luxury starting from $360 US per night. Located on the Datai Bay seafront, spectacular coastal views can be enjoyed from private verandahs. The spectacular Resort Hotel, with its impressive furnishings and decoration, is designed to integrate with nature rather than intrude on it. Built on stilts like a traditional Malay village and accessed by a series of open-air forest paths from the lobby, the 40 wooden villas comprise private decks with sun lounges, elevated verandahs, and spacious bedroom and living areas. Some have private 3 x 4 meter plunge pools and all have amazing bathrooms crafted from Langkawi marble. Chic guests, including Jodie Foster, are drawn to the resort's scenic beauty and world class spa.

Facilities and activities:

Rugged and beautiful, the island of Langkawi, on the west coast of Peninsula Malaysia, is being carefully developed for international tourism. New marinas, a golf course and cable car add to the island's pristine beaches, coral reefs and forest covered interior. Pantai Cenang is the most popular beach, with a good range of accommodation and restaurants, followed by Pantai Tengah. Burau Bay and Datai Bay are the location for some of the island's more exclusive resorts.

Resort facilities:

Datai is an idyllic retreat by the exclusive Datai Bay within an ancient virgin rainforest. Located above a secluded cove with its own white sand private beach, it's the perfect place to sit and soak up some sun while enjoying the crystal-clear azure waters of the Andaman Sea and Thailand in the distance. The resort's facilities include tennis, two swimming pools, beach club, fitness centre, spa, massage, shops, eateries, and a beauty salon. The fitness centre has its own expert physiologist, Tony Metcalf, who offers classes in Pilates, Fitball and pool exercise plus deep tissue therapy, nutritional advice, and personal fitness programs.

Beach activities:

On the beach try snorkeling, windsurfing, sailing (on catamarans and hobie cats), island hopping, deep sea fishing, and scuba diving.

Jungle trek:

The resort can organize a trek into the surrounding jungle, a nature walk, or exploration by mountain bike. Knowledgeable guides will point out interesting aspects of the area's rich flora and fauna on a 'rainforest by night' or 'jungle trekking' tour.

Nature trip:

For an afternoon out, head north of the resort to the Crocodile Farm, open daily from 9am to 6pm. Take a close up look at huge saltwater crocodiles and check out the 'Man versus crocodile' shows, performed daily at 11.15 am and 2.45p.m. Halfway between the Crocodile Farm and the Datai Resort is the Temurun Falls, a famous local nature spot with clear spring water gushing from the top of the hills.

Mandara Spa:

The Mandara Spa is named after an ancient Sanskrit legend of a sacred mountain from which flowed the water of life - the elixir of immortality and eternal youth. Located in the heart of the tropical rainforest, it was rated the number one overseas hotel spa by Conde Nast Traveller and among the magazine's Top 100 resorts in the world.

While the elixir of eternal life may be a marketing gimmick, you will definitely reap benefits from the spa's blend of Balinese and local treatments and the mysticism of Langkawi's ancient rainforests. The air here is thick with delicious aromas: lemon grass, lime leaves, star anise, fragrant jasmine buds, and essential oils. To start, you relax with a chilled face towel soaked in cucumber, peppermint, and ginger tea before being lead to one of four private spa villas in the jungle near a mangrove stream. Mandara's ancient Asian inspired treatments make use of indigenous herbs, with the emphasis on being pampered and succumbing to its beautiful jungle environment. Treatments include Balinese Massage using stimulating Bali coffee, Warm Stone Massage, Rainforest Harmony and Salt Radiance, or body scrubs made with clove, cardamom, ginger, or tangkal ali leaves (containing nature's Viagra) - all given in an open-air hut. Be sure to try the Mandara Massage - a four-handed massage and simultaneous body scrub, facial, and reflexology treatment.

Background to the course

Architect:

Landmarks BHG and E&G Parslow (Australia). The course was opened in 1992.

Type:

Jungle and seaside with fairways of Bermuda grass and greens of Tifdwarf.

Landscape:

Surrounded by towering tropical trees and nestled on the edge of the rainforest, on the headlands, the views across the Andaman Sea are spectacular. Small islands dot the horizon while in the distance, stretching across Datai Bay, you can see Thailand. Situated in the Gunung Mat-chin-chang Forest Reserve, this championship course has been carefully wound around the 1000-year-old rainforest to avoid cutting down the stunning trees.

Pro-shop:

The pro shop is of a decent size with most major brands in stock. And remember: this is a duty free island so prices can be quite reasonable.

Course facts

The club protects its celebrity visitors' privacy but needless to say, with world leaders and Hollywood stars staying at the Datai resort, you never know who you might bump into. However, the course is rarely overcrowded with anybody other than four foot long Monitor lizards, pretty and shy Dusky Leaf monkeys and rather less timid Macaque monkeys - who apparently like fluorescent golf balls.

Playing the course

The course might seem short at 5,994 metres but the extremely narrow fairways are surrounded by impenetrable jungle which eats balls for breakfast, lunch and dinner. If the ball goes into the jungle, you might as well forget it, and as a result this makes for a stunningly beautiful but challenging par 72. If you add in the 19th hole, things get even worse. Rather than a comfortable bar, the 19th is a real hole with a 175 metre drive entirely over a tidal cove across a shallow beach, a mean bunker and onto an awkwardly sloping green. It can be used as an alternative to other holes, especially if one is closed for maintenance. But it's really played for fun, settling draws, or for a bet. If you've got this far on the course, why miss it out?

Score card

Address:
The Golf Club Datai Bay, P.O. Box 6, Kuah, 07000 Pulau Langkawi, Kedah Darul Aman, Malaysia

Website:
www.dataigolf.com

Telephone:
+60 4 959 2700/2620

Fax:
+60 4 959 2216

Course and lengths:
An 18-hole, par 72, measuring 5,994 metres

On the course dress code:
Smart-casual golf attire

Tee times:
7.30am to 4.30pm

Green fees:
18 holes MYR180 ($48 US), 9 holes MYR 130 ($34 US)

Other costs:
Buggy hire MYR 40 ($11US), club hire MYR 30 ($8 US).

Course facilities:
A clubhouse, pro shop, restaurant, driving range, 9-hole putting course, locker rooms and buggies.

Location:
It's a 25-minute flight up the Straits of Malacca from Penang to the beautiful group of islands known as Langkawi. Langkawi's government doesn't allow people to bring their own vehicles onto the island, possibly because this is a duty free zone and it stops mainlanders loading up with booze and cigarettes. Getting around is a matter of hiring a local car or taking a taxi but both are very reasonable. The Datai Resort is a 30-minute tropical drive through the Malaysian wilderness from Langkawi International Airport.

More information

Adventure Golf: Malaysia