A New Definition to 5 Star Service

137 Pillars property is unlike any place I have stayed (and we travel regularly) - the property is beautiful, peaceful, and a retreat from the world. The rooms are beautiful, spacious, and most impressive is that no detail was too small or went overlooked. Nat, the food and beverage manager, took time to greet us during our first breakfast, gave us some good local spots to visit, taught us how to properly say please, thank you, and bargain for the night/weekend market, and was genuinely interested in how we were enjoying our stay and doing anything to help us. On the two mornings we left the hotel before breakfast began (6:30am), and including the morning we left for the airport, he arranged boxed breakfasts with fresh fruit, croissants, breakfast sandwiches, and juice for us to take with us. His personal attention to detail and service was phenomenal and the breakfast was great.
The entire staff was terrific and very helpful and friendly, with the exception of the one gentleman who was at the front desk the night we arrived and at the front desk again the morning we left. He was curt and borderline rude - the opposite of every other staff person at 137 pillars. The housekeeping staff checked on the room throughout the day to replace waters, coffee, etc. One morning we had washed a few items in the bathtub to get some stains out and hung them to dry. When we came back, the clothes were hung neatly on a drying rack on our balcony and were dry. It is just another illustration of the staff going the extra mile to think of everything and take care of their guests in a manner I haven't experienced at any other hotel. I can not say enough about how wonderful the staff was.
The next time we come to SE Asia, I will go out of my way to add a few days onto our trip to go back to Chiang Mai - for the sole purpose of staying at 137 Pillars. Thank you to the amazing staff for such a phenomenal stay.