On this week’s Just The Tip, we’re 5 sharing 5 insane luxury resorts we’ve stayed at across the globe that we highly recommend for a splurge vacation! We share what amenities and views mae these next-level, and share some tips to cover the cost with points vs. paying cash out of pocket so you can experience the finer life without breaking the bank!

1. Thirea Suites – Oia, Santorini, Greece
   • Cliffside resort, all rooms face the calendar and sea
   • Private patio with dining table, day bed and pool
   • Private plunge pools, hot tubs
   • Spacious rooms with mini kitchens
   • Breakfast brought to your private patio every morning at your desire time, beautiful spread of baked goods, eggs, coffee, juice
   • Listen to the Greece episode where we stay here for more travel tips and guides to Greece.
     
2. Atlantis The Palm – Dubai, UAE
   • Stayed here in January 2020
   • Iconic luxury resort set on Dubai’s famous Palm Jumeirah
   • Rooms + suites with sweeping Arabian Gulf or skyline views
   • Private balconies, marble bathrooms, high-end amenities
   • Unlimited access to Aquaventure Waterpark & The Lost Chambers Aquarium
   • Dozens of restaurants on-site, from celebrity chefs to beachside bites
     1. We did a Tasting Dinner at Ossiano – 9 course tasting menu called metamorphosis 
   • Private beach, world-class spa, and incredible pools

3. Phuket Marriott Resort & Spa, Merlin Beach – Phuket, Thailand
   • Stayed here in January of 2025
     1. Used our free Marriott Hotel nights when we opened the credit card to stay here 
   • Beachfront haven tucked away on a private stretch of sand
   • Spacious rooms with garden, pool, or ocean views
   • Multiple pools, including swim-up bars + lagoon-style designs
   • On-site reef for snorkeling right from the beach
   • Daily breakfast buffets with global + Thai specialties
   • Holistic spa, fitness classes, and sunset dining on the sand
   • Shuttles to take you to the main beach area in Phuket 

4. El Establo Hotel – Monteverde, Costa Rica
   • Stayed here in April of 2024 
   • Mountainside hotel with sweeping cloud forest views
   • Large rooms + suites with private balconies to watch mist roll in
   • Two heated indoor pools, hiking trails, and zipline onsite
   • On-site restaurants with locally sourced Costa Rican cuisine
   • Shuttle access to town + Monteverde’s major reserves
   • Perfect base for wildlife spotting + adventure activities

5. Elephant Plains Lodge – Queen Elizabeth National Park, Uganda
   • Stayed here in September of 2022 
   • Safari lodge perched above open plains with panoramic park views
   • Incredible wildlife viewing right from your room
     1. Saw an elephant while sitting on the balcony 
   • Spacious cottages + suites with private verandas
   • Infinity pool overlooking the savannah
   • Daily game drives + guided walks available
   • Dining experiences featuring fresh, locally sourced dishes

6. Papallacta Hot Springs – Papallacta, Ecuador
   • September of 2021 
   • Mountain retreat set high in the Andes with dramatic volcanic scenery
   • Rooms + private cabins steps from natural thermal pools
   • Healing geothermal hot springs fed directly from the surrounding mountains
   • Private soaking pools available for select rooms
   • On-site spa with volcanic mud treatments + hydrotherapy
   • Restaurant featuring locally inspired Andean dishes
   • Perfect base for cloud forest hikes + wildlife spotting

Contains affiliate links, thanks for supporting Travel Squad Podcast!

Must Visit International Luxury Resorts – Episode Transcript

0:35

Speaker 1

And get ready to embark on a new adventure with us around the globe.

Hey squaddies, welcome to this week’s Just a Tip.

Today we’re talking about 6 international resorts you’ll want to experience.

0:47

Speaker 2

The first international resort that I am dying to tell you about is the Rea Suites in EA and that’s in Santorini, Greece.

This was one of the first times I ever said I am going all in on a luxury resort.

I saved on other parts of the trip, splurged on this one, and it was so worth it.

1:06

It’s a cliffside resort.

All rooms face the caldera, which is the sea in Greece.

Here, absolutely amazing views.

You go to sleep looking at the water.

You wake up with the water and it’s that quintessential grease look with these like billowing patios and stairways that everything all blends together with the coloring of it here with the stone, absolutely gorgeous.

1:31

You have your own private patio with a dining table out there, a day bed and a pool.

The pools very different sizes.

It could be a small hot tub type pool or a big plunge pool.

Everyone has their own pools here and even though they’re somewhat close together, just because of the architectural design of it where there’s really no hard corners, everything kind of flows into each other.

1:51

You don’t notice your neighbors at all.

The room is incredibly spacious.

It just goes back and back and back.

Huge bed, kitchenette, dining table, beautiful bathroom, the huge tub.

The best thing about this resort was the breakfast.

2:07

The breakfast buffet, I may even say.

Every single morning at your chosen time, the staff member brings up a platter of breakfast specifically for you.

She sets it up on your dining table out on the patio overlooking the ocean and you have your coffee, baked goods, eggs, juice and it is the best best way to start your morning.

2:30

I highly recommend splurging on three of suites in EA They.

2:34

Speaker 1

Have robes, Kim.

2:35

Speaker 2

They had robes.

Yes, they did.

2:38

Speaker 1

And then just a question for you, I know you said that there’s different type of private pools and plunges.

When you book your room, do you get to choose what type of pool that you?

2:47

Speaker 2

May get.

Yes you can.

Greece is a major hotspot for luxury resorts.

They have a whole bunch of different caves and private pools type room so if three of suites is booked up for any reason then just look a a little bit elsewhere, but look here first.

This was a great one.

3:02

Speaker 1

And we’ll go ahead and link it in the show notes for you, Squatty, so you can easily take a look.

3:07

Dive into Opulence at Atlantis, The Palm in Dubai

The next resort we want to talk about is one that we all stayed at kind of together and that is the Atlantis, the Palm in Dubai.

So we stayed here in January of 2020.

Kim and Zana shared a room, Jamal and I shared a room.

3:23

This is when we first kind of got into the travel game and Jamal and I used our points to stay here, actually.

3:29

Speaker 2

And I remember you telling me that it was about $400.00 a night to stay.

And I was like, oh God, that’s so expensive.

I don’t know.

But we splurged on it and it’s just like, funny.

Looking back now, I don’t think I would think was hard about a $400.00 a room night.

3:44

Not that that’s like a blink of an eye or anything, but I remember at the time thinking it was so expensive.

3:51

Speaker 1

So we stayed here two nights.

It’s this amazing luxury resort that is on Dubai’s famous palm.

So if you’re looking at an aerial view of this area, the area is shaped like a palm tree.

And so that’s where this hotel is.

And so we got really amazing rooms, and they actually have suites too that have views of the Arabian Gulf or skyline views.

4:15

We had private balconies.

Ours looked over.

Ours overlooked a pool area.

What did yours overlook, Kim Also the pool.

4:21

Speaker 2

Area.

4:23

Speaker 1

Marble bathrooms, high end amenities here and then we got unlimited access to the Aqua Venture Water Park.

We had such a great day at the water park.

We were all laughing.

The little kid in us was really brought out.

It was super, super fun.

4:39

And we also got free entrance into the Lost Chambers Aquarium.

4:43

Speaker 3

Yeah, I mean this hotel of course Atlantis, you can imagine it is a water themed, let alone underwater.

So they do have a paid aquarium.

We got in for free because because we were hotel guests.

But even if you’re just going here visiting, there are tons of areas where they have aquarium walls that you could just walk through and see like all this cool stuff.

5:04

Of course, we’re hyping it up here in this episode.

Of course, international resort places that you need to visit and stay specifically.

But this was a great experience all around that we had when we were here.

So it has dozens of restaurants on site lot several of them from celebrity chefs.

5:22

And one thing that we did too, just feeling with the theme of opulence being at this hotel and in Dubai was do a nine course tasting dinner at Oceano.

And this hotel also has a private beach, world class spa, incredible pools.

So great, great experience at the Palm.

5:38

Speaker 2

Do you remember what else we did that is just iconic to the Travel Squad podcast?

5:43

Speaker 1

We went to Hakasai, yes.

5:44

Speaker 2

We literally, no joke, went to Hakasan at Atlantis.

The palm you.

5:50

Speaker 1

Know I forgot about that until you asked right then and it just like popped in my head.

We went to Hakasan.

5:55

Speaker 3

I knew what you were talking about for for whatever reason, Hakasan did not pop into my head.

Like I knew that’s what you were talking about, but I couldn’t think of the name Hakasan.

And then Brittany just beat me to the punch.

So.

6:05

Speaker 2

That’s we’re due for another Hakasan trip.

6:07

Speaker 3

That we are.

Let’s go back to Dubai and go and stay at the Palm again.

6:12

Discover Secluded Luxury at Phuket Marriott Merlin Beach

#3 On our list is the Phuket Marriott Resort and Spa on Merlin Beach in Phuket, Thailand.

Jamal and I stayed here in January of 2025 and we actually used Jamal’s free Marriott Hotel nights that he got.

When we opened the credit card, Marriott was doing a promotion.

6:30

If you open the credit card, you would get 5 free night stays.

And so we used three of our nights here and two of our nights at the Saint Regis in Singapore.

So this was really amazing.

It was a beachfront property on Merlin Beach and it had its own private stretch of sand.

6:47

The rooms were nice and spacious.

You had garden, pool or ocean views depending on the room that you picked.

There was multiple pools on site.

One of them had a swim up bar that we hung out at and they kind of have like a lagoon style design.

7:02

You can even go snorkeling right from the beach that this is on.

7:06

Speaker 3

Yeah, this was a great experience all around.

And I know you said like private stretch of beach and everything, but no, it’s literally its own private beach tucked into its own small little Bay.

So you really are secluded here and have your own uninterrupted space that you could just enjoy yourself.

7:24

Obviously, yes, with hotel guests, but in comparison to how many people are at the public beaches in Phuket, this is a nice little reprieve and spot that you can really enjoy.

Obviously there are holistic spas, fitness classes, sunset dining on the sand, so they really do it up good here with all the luxury experiences that you can have.

7:43

We had the breakfast buffet every day.

Originally, we did not purchase this.

It did not come with the room and you had to pay for it.

But because we are Marriott members, when we arrived, they gave us the opportunity to spin a little wheel, a little wheel of fortune if you will, and we landed on the free buffet.

8:01

And let me tell you something, we got really lucky on that because it was actually really good.

I mean, I know we talk about breakfast buffet all the time and sometimes of course you’re staying like Holiday Inn Expresses and they’re nothing.

But this was actually really good with global cuisine, Thai specialties and things of that nature made of a great quality.

8:22

And since you are rather far away from the city center, by far, I mean far to walk, but not far realistically, this hotel also does have free shuttles that takes you to the main beach area of Phuket.

So you have your nice little isolation, great resort in and of itself with the food, pools, spa, etcetera.

8:40

And then easy access to get to the chaos that is Phuca.

And I say chaos in a good way, no doubt.

8:46

Speaker 1

So next we’re going to talk about El Establa Hotel, which is in the Monte Verde region of Costa Rica.

8:51

Unique Cloud Forest Views at El Establo Hotel, Costa Rica

So we stayed here as a squad in April of 2024 and it was actually part of a gate One trip and it was such a nice resort area.

It’s a mountainside lodge hotel and it has amazing sweeping views of the cloud forests that you can explore.

9:07

The rooms are pretty large.

Jamal and I got a room that had king size bed, but Kim and Zana got a family style suite that was two stories.

We had our own private balconies and we were able to watch the mist rolling.

Animals were crawling around outside of our balconies and doors.

9:25

There was also two indoor heated pools that you can actually do some hiking on property, a zip line on site as well.

And they had some really good restaurants that we ate at with locally sourced Costa Rican food.

It was really, really good.

9:38

Speaker 2

That was a great one.

I do remember that.

I’ve never had a two-story hotel.

That was amazing.

9:44

Speaker 3

What was really cool about it too is yours was almost like a two-story loft, right?

And not only that, the window aspect of your guys is like we had tall windows, but yours just because your second story was the loft and that landing your window was really, really tall and high.

10:01

So you guys had this exceptional view out in this area.

We did see some monkeys like rolling around.

10:06

Speaker 2

And my loft also had another bedroom to the side so it’d be perfect for families.

10:11

Speaker 3

Yeah, no, absolutely.

But again, I really loved what these hotels were.

And then the views that you got with it being up in the cloud forest, seeing the clouds roll in the wildlife, it made for an overall really unique experience in this region of Costa Rica #5 is going to be Elephant Plains Lodge located in Queen Elizabeth National Park in Uganda.

10:33

Safari Adventure at Elephant Plains Lodge in Uganda

So Brittany and I stayed here in September of 2022.

And this is a safari style lodge that’s perched above the open plains with panoramic views of the park.

So if you can just imagine any sort of of nature documentary that you’ve seen where they show the savannas and plains of Africa.

10:54

And I know this doesn’t no justice because it’s cartoon, but even The Lion King, you know, when they do the flash scenes and they’re showing plains of Africa, we are perched up on a hilltop looking over a National Park that looks exactly like this.

The hotel in and of itself I’ll let Brittany talk about.

11:10

But what I really loved is you’re perched upon this.

You can see the park and we even saw elephants that were swimming in pools and the lakes from far away.

They have binoculars so you’re really, really close to the action and overlooking everything.

11:23

Speaker 1

So the hotel has a main lobby and you can add on meals here.

All of our meals were included because this was part of a gate one trip that we had.

There is an Infinity pool also overlooking the Savannah and then the actual rooms are actually individual spacious cottages.

11:40

Ours had this beautiful king size bed with other seating around.

The bathroom was amazing.

There was a soak tub here as as well.

And then we have our own private balconies and you can look out there.

I pulled out my binoculars.

I was able to see an elephant while I was out there.

11:58

It was really, really cool.

It’s has easy access to the park, so we were doing daily game drives.

They also have guided walks that are available.

So it was a really cool experience to stay then.

I think this was my favorite stay in all of Uganda that we had.

12:16

Speaker 3

I really enjoyed it, Brittany.

And you said the soaked up, we did have it, but you forgot to mention that it was right in front of the floor to ceiling glass window that overlooks the plains in Savannah down below.

So you could just see the wildlife.

That in and of itself such a great memory and experience.

12:34

And one of my favorite places that we’ve actually ever stayed was here at the Elephants Plane Lodge.

12:40

Relax and Rejuvenate at Papallacta Hot Springs, Ecuador

One of my favorite places we have ever stayed together as a squad and number six and final on our list is the Papayachta Hot Springs in Papayachta, Ecuador.

We stayed here in September 2021 as part of a gate one trip that we did to Ecuador, the first gate One trip after things reopened after the pandemic and it was absolutely amazing.

13:03

It was a bit of a trek to get here by bus high up in the Andes Mountains with the cloud cover and just the whole vibe of it.

We love Hot Springs here at the Travel Squad Podcast and this resort was perfect for us.

13:19

There are Hot Springs all around the resort.

Literally 2 steps outside of your front door of your hotel room are Hot Springs that you can soak in.

13:27

Speaker 1

I actually wish we had more time here.

I think we only stayed here one night.

I wish we had two nights here.

But one of the add-ons that we were able to add was a spa treatment.

So they actually have on site spa treatments that you can join which have like volcanic mud treatments, hydrotherapies, there’s private soaking pools.

13:45

Speaker 2

Do you remember the adorable outfits they had us wear when we got our treatment?

13:52

Speaker 1

We had these adorable robes and like shower caps on.

13:55

Speaker 2

They were like rubber shower caps that made us look bald.

They were so funny.

14:01

Speaker 1

But we soaked in a pool here with the volcanic mountain backdrop.

We got into like a mist room.

We ended up getting a massage.

And if you do come here, I would recommend booking the treatment in advance if you’re not staying for a few days because there were people in our group that didn’t book in advance and when they got there they tried to and they were all booked up.

14:23

Speaker 3

Yeah, definitely book in advance.

So, you know, and I know what I said about Elephant Plane Lodge being one of my favorite stays I’ve ever done.

Ironically enough, it LED right into this one.

And you said the same thing about this, Kim.

But this is definitely a top fiver for me too.

I mean, this was an incredible experience just really being 10,000 feet up in the Andes in that environment.

14:46

It’s cold, it’s cloudy, yet you walk outside your front door and then you have those thermal Hot Springs, then the spa that goes with it.

And I remember eating a delicious dinner here too.

I mean, overall great resort experience.

I’ve specifically want to go back and redo the Ecuador tour.

15:02

If we did it just to stay at this hotel again or if I go to a Galapagos or I shouldn’t say if when we go to Galapagos, I would go back to mainland, bypass everything else and come back specifically.

15:16

Speaker 2

This is a place you can stay for a couple of days and just really relax, be in nature, get spa treatments, just enjoy the luxury resort.

15:25

Your Favorite International Luxury Resorts and Podcast Outro

So Squatty’s, these were six international resorts that we visited and we hope you enjoy.

But if you have any that are top of your list that you visited or you want to send us over your stays and ideas so that we can check them out in the.

15:38

Speaker 2

Future, I’m going to double down on that.

Please please, please send us.

If you have a resort at this level that you think we would love, please let us know.

I’m always looking for great luxury places to stay that just are more than just a luxury place.

Like there’s a Ritz Carlton anywhere, there’s a Four Seasons anywhere.

15:55

These are extremely unique, only found in international destinations really make for the trip to be that much more special as the squaddies.

I know you know, share your secrets with us, Instagram us at Travel Squad Podcast and thank you so much for tuning in to just the tip.