Pethers Rainforest Retreat

The seclusion, space, friendly and helpful staff.

Nothing.

Each treehouse is spacious with floor to ceiling windows. So enjoyable to sit outside at the balcony in the middle of a rainforest. Saw pademelon and bush turkey outside in the wood. Very quiet, secluded and private. Heat pump for the cold winter months.

We had a power cut in the evening. Everything went dark including the outdoor lights at the walkway between treehouses. No water either, couldn't flush toilet too. There was no one on site to talk to. Only had phone number to contact for emergency. Since we didn't have a local phone as we were tourists, we emailed the property. Total darkness and no heating in the middle of winter and no updates from management. There was no torch inside the treehouse, only some small tea light candles. We saw a nearby treehouse had some lights so we ventured in the dark to talk to other guests. Somehow their emergency lights worked and they had a phone to call the management. Someone WhatsApp called us and explained that the emergency power generator had run out of diesel and they were fixing that. Luckily the power came back over an hour later. Perhaps the retreat can improve on emergency contact and supply torch inside the tree house. The whole retreat was in total darkness and the walkway had steps so could be a problem for more elderly guests if similar situation arises in the future.

Private treehouses which were very spacious and spotless

Nothing

Ample sized room, great location, nice grounds.

Unfortunately, our stay got off to a frustrating start when we couldn't access the treehouse. The instructions on the key card differed from those given by reception, and neither worked. After returning to reception, staff eventually got us in, but we continued having issues throughout our stay until we worked out the correct sequence ourselves. Later that evening, the carbon monoxide alarm behind the TV began beeping. With no phone in the room, we had to call reception on our mobile. The only staff member available was a waiter who wasn't able to resolve the issue, so we ended up taking the alarm to reception ourselves. It was never replaced, and no one followed up. Breakfast was another disappointment. On the first morning it was left at our door as expected. On the second morning, despite hearing the delivery knock, our breakfast wasn't left behind and we had to call reception to have it followed up. On the final morning of our stay, we ran out of toilet paper. There was no spare roll provided in the room, so we had to resort to putting a tissue box next to the toilet. Individually, none of these issues were major. However, combined with the wonky tables and ripped leather furniture in the treehouse, they detracted from what should have been a premium and relaxing stay. Given the price point, we expected a much higher standard of maintenance, attention to detail, and guest service.