Mae Hong Son or Anantara Resort Chiang Saen?
 

I'm trying to decide between going to Mae Hong Son(never been) and staying at the Imperial Tara or going to the Anantara Resort. We'll be travelling with 2 young children. I've been to Chiang Rai and the Golden Triangle area before but not at Anantara. Or should we just stay at a nice resort on Koh Samui and skip the Anantara Chiang Saen?

there were children at the anantara when i was last there...they were very noisy in the pool and it annoyed lots of people...its not that large and area and there really is no other place for kids to play and run around, except down further on the property...they would love the elephants however....

look at peace resort on samui...it is perfect for kids...

It really depends on how young your kids are.
We went to Anantara with an 11 and 12 year old and they went to the hotel's mahout school (learning how to ride elephants bareback)and had an absolute blast, while my husband and I went to the spa. (It's run by the Mandara people....very nice!)
Actually the pool is not all that small. There is an upper deck and a lower deck next to the water and another sunning area down below the pool. So there are plenty of places for people to sit to get away from kids, if noise bothers them.
I don't know much about the Imperial Tara, but I'm sure it's going to be more "rustic" than Anantara which is pretty much a 4 star. (The food at the Italian restaurant is excellent.)
So part of your decision has to be based on the type of accommodation you want.

to Rhkkmk-I have looked into the Peace Resort on Samui. It looks great but I thought I read something about a new hotel going up next door. Is it the new Anantara?

i do not think it is the anantara from the anantara description, i think it is further down the beach...we heard no noise from the construction and it was being done while we were there....the beach is nice but we thought the water a bit murky....the pool at peace is fantastic and the restaurant, while not gourmet, is reasonable and good...we had most of our meals there....not all however...

anantara GT....the pool area is big but noise carries there and is very off-putting if children are not well behaved as was the case during our stay...

I stayed at the Imperial Tara and found it to be a pretty boring place. If you're looking for a wonderful resort, this is not it. It's fine as a place to just sleep in but not much else. The area around Mae Hong Son is lovely.

along that same line...the view from the anantara is lovely, but we found the surrounding area to also be quite boring...we loved visiting the princess mother's estate but found little of interest otherwise....the hotel grounds are nice...the area immediately around the hotel is quite compact....the pool area is the major lounging area...the hotel is on a hill and the elephant camp, etc is at the bottom of the hill...all we saw of it was some lean-toos where the elephants stay....we did not go on an elephant trek...

the opium museum directly across the street from the hotel entrance is fabulous and worth a 1/2 day or slightly less....

the cooking class was lots of fun as was the visit to the market with the chef....

Hi,
Chiang Saen is not that interesting, not enough to do around - compared to Mae Hong Son. Suggestion: There is FERN RESORT nestled in a small valley a bit out of town, it´s one of the most beautiful places I have ever been to. Kids can play around in the gardens and with the water running between the bungalows. Staff extremly kind and sweet. Just checked the website - www.fernresort.info

I thing mae Hong Son is a more interesting area but. Or Chiang Rai area. But Anantara is a much better resort than Tara. I second the person who suggested Fern Resort.