Everything was great
I have dealt with your firm for many, many years. I can pick up the phone, pass Keely Papworth the information and she does all the hard work sorting my travel plans (normally last minute as my life is hectic). Tis takes the sting out of planning for me. Through the years I have built a rapport, and have 100% trust and confidence as I’ve NEVER been let down. This is “customer service” done right.
Robert organised everything for a special birthday present for my husband. I gave an idea of which hotels and places we'd like to visit and Robert came back with amazing itinerary and price. Kept up to date on every aspect even when away. Service and support is outstanding and highly recommend using DialAFlight.
Callum in particular excelled; thanks for everything.
So easy to book, always helpful. Took the stress out of two recent long-distance journeys abroad. Thanks DialAFlight!
You take the stress out of finding flights.
As always you make it very easy to plan holidays and multi flight trips at competitive prices. Will carry on using you to book flights
Hotels in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur were great and in very good locations and all flights were on time. Everything worked out perfectly
Our holiday was excellent - thank you for your assistance throughout.
The Lounge at Birmingham we had access to was awful; also, Turkish Airlines need to get their act sorted out in regard to boarding both at Birmingham and Istanbul - chaos. Don't know if you are aware that Turkish Airlines Business Class offer 2 free nights stay in Istanbul (a good selling point)
Fantastic recommendations on hotels and structure of flights. Really happy with our holiday and we will use you again.
As usual Stacey was fantastic. Another unforgettable holiday!
As always the trip was exciting but very challenging in places. The guide was excellent, patient, supportive and very knowledgeable.
Loved the keeping in touch to make sure everything was OK. Excellent service
Bruce has arranged my flights and many of my customers coming to Asia over many years. Always very good communication, alternative suggestions. Solely because of Bruce and his excellent attitude and help I have not searched for cheaper flights which I know are available.
Lucas always does an amazing job - thanks again
An accomplished travel company which puts the client's interest at the forefront of everything it does. Thank you Calvin. I will certainly do business with you again.
Everything worked like clockwork
Molly Smith who arranged my tickets was thorough and helpful throughout the process.
You are the best - that’s why we keep coming back for all our holiday needs.
We were really pleased with Calvin's service and also with the help received when it seemed there was a problem with getting our flight from Chiang Mai.
Overall our flights and holiday were excellent. The arrangements for transfers put into place by DialAFlight took place without a hitch and the drivers were professional. The only change I would have made was our hotel in Kuala Lumpur. The Ritz Carlton is very much in the business district of the city and consequently taxis were needed to visit the various places of interest. Whilst taxis are very inexpensive in KL the traffic is congested most of the time! However, an excellent holiday and we will be booking again with DialAFlight
Flights ran very smoothly, thanks again especially Ash
Excellent service. Manny goes the extra mile!
We have used DialAFlight and never ever had any problems, which is why we recommend them to friends and family. Staff are professional, helpful, friendful and knowledgeable - thank you, and here's to the next one!
There is a medical insurance required by the Qatari government for all foreign tourists which we were unaware of and caused a delay: 5o Riyals per passenger. They did not accept our Amex Insurance cover. Another money making scheme!
Our holiday was fantastic. The hotel Daniel Webb chose for us was amazing and I can’t thank him enough for arranging our flights, transfer and hotel. I’m definitely recommending DAF to all my friends and relations and will continue to use for all my future travel plans.
Excellent advice and all hotels and flights fabulous. We always use DialAFlight and highly recommend to friends.
Very happy with the service
Good efficient service with the knowledge that DialAFlight are always there should anything go wrong.
Just before I settle into one of the Datai's four-hour spa experiences inspired by the Malaysian ramuan tradition of holistic potions sourced from rainforest ingredients, my therapist, Eny, asks what I would rather listen to: music or the jungle.
I'm used to hearing a CD during a massage so I assume both would come out of a speaker, so opt for the latter – and am baffled when my ceremonial flower bath begins in silence. But the more I relax, the more I hear: the babbling of a brook that runs alongside; the strumming of cicadas; macaques calling to each other; humming dragonflies.
I'm sitting on the balcony of a simple wooden hut that's open to the warm island breeze on three sides and nestled in a dappled mangrove forest. I'm wrapped in a traditional hand-printed sarong and being sluiced with warm, floral-infused water.
I move to a warm plunge pool strewn with jasmine blossom, where I sip nectar from a fresh coconut and watch vividly-coloured butterflies fluttering around overhanging branches.
To stay at the Datai, on the Unesco island of Langkawi, is to reassess the meaning of luxury. The Datai was built from trees felled by elephants and is all but invisible above the trees, even from the sands of the tranquil bay it occupies – one of National Geographic's Top Ten beaches. It's in elegant harmony with its surroundings.
The Datai was created in 1993 by Australian architect Kerry Hill and has been recently refurbished to even more exacting standards.
My husband and I stayed in a beach villa with its own pool - and tireless butler, Oscar, who specialised in knowing what we required before we knew ourselves: from afternoon tea and pool inflatables to gin and tonics and a deck of cards for when the sun went down.
In touch with nature
The island's white-eyed leaf monkeys paraded along our fence every day. Stepping on to the sands in early morning, we watched the sleek heads of otters swim-ming past and the occasional eagle above.
As well as beach villas there are rainforest pool villas and a new five-bedroom 'Estate', featuring a games room, two pools and a private chef. The other 121 rooms, on a forest ridge, have sea views across to neighbouring Thailand.
A nature centre combines education section, research facility and general chill-out zone for those interested in the surrounding habitats.
Resident naturalist Irshad Mobarak and his team run guided walks around the 750-hectare site to show guests more than 200 species of birds, 49 types of mammal and 400-plus variations of brightly-winged butterflies.
For a better view of such a busy ecosystem, there's a wooden canopy walk winding through the forest. For a true aerial view, there's a cable car rising to 708-metres high Mount Machinchang.
I loved a mangrove safari by boat, skimming through tunnels of leafy branches and stopping to observe zany-hued fiddler crabs on the mudflats.
For dining, the Gulai House offers classic Malay curries, served family-style.
I recommend the fish and chicken cooked in brass tandoors. The open-air Pavilion restaurant sits on stilts with views across the forest and serves Thai food.
Moorish influences
Down the road from the Datai, Langkawi’s Four Seasons is known for its Ikan-Ikan restaurant, which offers a contemporary take on traditional dishes, including a tamarind-glazed red snapper and freshly-caught green lobster.
The building style here takes inspiration from Moroccan riads and Moorish gardens. Vast shallow pools reflect the blue of the sky, while brass pendant lights and outdoor showers bring the medina to the Malacca Straits.
It exudes a sort of souk chic, with ornamental infinity pools with gushing fountains and brass statues. The GeoSpa has relaxation platforms floating on decorative pools.
The beach villas are built right on the sand, their sunbathing platforms and floor-to-ceiling windows facing the sea. There's an inevitable opportunity for celebrity-spotting here – we saw a TV star of the 'national treasure' order arrive just as we were checking out.
For the fearless, water sports include the X-Jetblade, which recreates flying on a vertical jet of water - or more gently, the vast hammam-style marble baths are alone worth adding an extra day to your holiday.
Of course we had to leave eventually – but Oscar came to wave us off at the airport, saying: 'We don't say goodbye here. Only see you later.'
First published in The Times - April 2019
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