What 11003 DialAFlight clients thought of Asia

Fantastic service from Elliott from start to finish. Would definitely book with you again in the future

The staff at DialAFlight are always helpful and supportive

Excellent customer support and great recommendations for restaurants at my resort

Good service all the way

Brilliant trip - superbly organised. Great value for money. Ticked all our boxes. Highly recommend.

Excellent service from start to finish and the aftersales is second to none. I have used them for a number of years and can't find a better service and value for money provider

Thanks for providing up to date information

Very good professional service.

Your service with Warren is simply fantastic. Just a shame that Heathrow is a disgrace. Thank you for your great service. We had an awesome holiday.

Excellent service - great app and all backed with the security and comfort of a direct number to call in case of any emergency while away

We would like to thank Stacey - a big thank you again for another great holiday

Jonathan never lets us down with our trips, excellent service, thanks again

Shelley Dimes is a superstar. My trip was organised to perfection and could not be more pleased with her help, advice and planning

Marshall as always was fantastic dealing with my family's booking. On this occasion the Emirates flight from Bangkok to Dubai was less than satisfactory but that is no reflection on DialAFlight's masterful booking admin

Spencer Ormerod was brilliant and kept us informed throughout the booking process.

Marshall is always on the ball. Looks after his customers very well.

Alan is brilliant. I have been booking through him for over 5 years and I love having someone to talk to at the other end of the phone.

Zoe delivers as always!

Fabulous company - efficient and highly professional

Will use DialAFlight again.

Tristan Chatburn was extremely helpful and professional. Highly recommended

This was the best holiday ever - thank you for everyone who helped us.

Calvin is always there for my travel plans, he is great!

Oliver and the other members of the team were really helpful and accommodating. They were very informative about the country we were travelling to. If I was unable to speak to Oliver someone else was ready to step in and deal with me

Callum was extremely helpful and efficient in every way. I will definitely be booking future holidays with him

Everyone very helpful, can’t wait for my next flight

Excellent trip both ways. We were worried about having to wait until a day later for our connecting flights but The Novotel Hotel at Bangkok Airport was a super experience. The free shuttle on both occasions took us directly to the booking hall for the airline we had to book with, so no problems at all.

Thanks for your all your support. Your service is the best.

Good service all round.

Will definitely use again and recommend. Excellent dialogue with Charlie Miles - it wasn't just a case of taking the money and that was it. He kept me informed throughout, well done..5 star service

A tranquil haven

A foodie love affair with Thailand

Chef Raymond Blanc rekindles his devotion to the country that he says has some of the finest, and healthiest, food in the world

This year was the first time I've ever taken a long holiday. I was away for a total of three-and-a-half weeks. Everyone was surprised that I took such a long break - last year I managed just three days off.

I decided it was time to relax and get away from running my hotel, the Belmond Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons in Oxfordshire - life is too short to work all the time. I wanted to rediscover a part of the world that has long fascinated me - South East Asia. This region has the most beautiful food, an extraordinary climate, and the people are so warm and friendly.

The food at my hotel has a strong South East Asian influence, particularly the area around Chiang Mai in Thailand. And about 25 years ago I discovered the resort of Chiva-Som in Hua Hin, one of the best spas in the world.

Along with healthy food, a healthy body is essential

It was the place that ignited my interest in nutrition - something I've developed at Le Manoir with my Raymond Blanc Cookery School.

All those years ago, staff at Chiva-Som were connecting food with health, and within the spa they had the best yogi, the best acupuncturist, the best medicine. For me, visiting here is a way to get back to good health.

Another key element is really learning how to breathe properly so that you 'reconnect' with your body. So each day at Chiva-Som involves detox, exercise, swimming, massage, acupuncture, and, of course, some wonderful spa treatments.

Good food is at the heart of maintaining good health - something the Government is beginning to accept with its plans to give every child a quality, nutritious meal every day.

By staying somewhere like Chiva-Som, you soon realise the benefits of eating good food. This place is a foodie heaven - meals made with herbs grown on site, spices and grain.

Nutritional food is complemented with a day of invigorating exercise

During my stay I ate an awful lot of quinoa, fresh, crunchy salads, and different types of rice. The chefs also cooked me lots of fresh fish and delicious vegetables.

The kitchen garden at Chiva-Som is magnificent, although perhaps not as amazing as ours at Le Manoir, because we are obsessive about our garden.

The garden at Le Manoir isn't just a showpiece; it actually has a huge impact on our gastronomy as well. We have eight people working in the garden during the winter and 12 during the summer.

One of the key things about the Chiva-Som experience is meditation. I find meditation very difficult because I always have about 50,000 things in my head at the same time, so to try take them out and meditate - oh my goodness, it's so hard!

Once I was enveloped in the heaven that is Chiva-Som, I was very happy - I had no desire to venture outside. In the resort you are asked not to use your mobile phone outside your room. And that's perfectly correct - after all, you're staying in a place that is calm and restorative, so mobile phones are inappropriate. I must say, however, that I felt the urge to tweet the whole world what a great time I was having!

Wandering through Chiva Som's gardens is an aromatic delight

After a few days of Chiva-Som you become completely Zen-like. At the end of my stay I kept asking myself why I had to leave this wonderful place.

The good news was that my holiday wasn't over. Next we headed to another fabulous get-away-from-it-all resort - the Belmond Napasai in Koh Samui.

Situated between verdant tropical gardens and the shimmering sea, this is a resort that deserves to be described as paradise. Standalone villas sit within 17 acres of tropical gardens, rich with cashew and coconut trees, hibiscus and bougainvillea.

Tempting aromas of fresh local cuisine drifted through the air, and staff greeted every request with a warm smile.

To finish the holiday, we had two wonderful days in Bangkok, staying at the Mandarin Oriental, another heavenly place.

I love Bangkok for its antique shops - you can't keep me away and I always buy something.

The managers at Le Manoir get worried about what I'll come back with: on a previous trip I managed to return with a huge bed (it came back in a container - there wasn't room to bring it with me on the plane!)

Over the years I've bought all sorts of lovely antiques - my house is full of them. This year, I bought only a delightful Buddha made from lapis stone, and a beautiful opium pipe which will join the collection of other pipes in our Opium Room at Le Manoir.

Already I can't wait to go back to Thailand. To me, that's the sign of a perfect holiday.

First published in the Mail on Sunday - September 2016

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