Gokarna Forest Resort - Tranquil Haven in Kathmandu

The location was perfect The food really good The nature, the best The staff, best of the bests

The room size and bathrooms are great! The tub, shower , and amenities were special and relaxing. The grounds are beautiful and well-kept. The breakfast is good. The location is good for a retreat from the big city, while still being technically part of the city.

The dinner buffet is very expensive for food no one among the 6 of us liked. (However, the breakfast buffet is great!) For dinner, it's better to go to the Thai/Chinese restaurant on site...very delicious! Also, the aircon worked, but the controller was broken and only sometimes worked. The bed felt a bit worn, but it was clean.

Kind and attentive staff, lovely restaurant options and good variety at breakfast. We were there for a wedding and it was a beautiful venue. We booked on to their longest full heritage 4 hour walk option on one of the days. It turned out to be 5.5 hours but I think because it was tailored to just us and we stopped for masala tea - our guide Deepak was great, informative and friendly and took lots of lovely photos of us which we appreciated. The room (cottage room) was large and clean. The spa was lovely - we had a couples massage (extra cost) which was really good and well priced, the steam room, sauna and pool was great (again extra charge), or you can use just the pool without an additional charge. It was great to see deer and monkeys in and around the resort!

The bathroom was really in need of some renovation and I would say more of a 2 star bathroom in terms of the look of it (old toilet, cracks in tiling, worse for wear bath tub with shower curtain). The shower itself (over the bathtub) was lovely and powerful though, so not a problem.

F&B is the best part of this hotel. The restaurant is fantastic - service, food, drinks, environment, everything. Great breakfast, nice selection of local and international options on the menu for lunch & dinner, servers who are friendly and helpful yet not intrusive. Even the welcome drink was noteworthy. The room we had was spacious and comfortable with a large bathroom and we often saw spotted deer through the window.

From the moment we arrived, we missed the level of hospitality found elsewhere in Nepal. It was raining when our taxi pulled up and the security guard refused to let us under the awning, insisting that the vehicle behind ours be given that spot. No one assisted us with luggage as we unloaded into the rain and walked into the lobby drenched. Reception staff was initially surly although warmed up quickly. By then, the first impression had been set and I did not feel welcome. The swimming pool & spa are in a stand-alone building and while we saw staff walking the grounds with resort-branded umbrellas, none were available for guests. Our rate included use of the swimming pool & gym but not the steam room, sauna, or jacuzzi so we had to pay extra for these. Our rate included a guided nature walk but no one mentioned this and in the rain, it wasn't appealing. The cost for this walk is the same as for use of the steam/sauna/jacuzzi so they could have switched the inclusion. The women's steam/sauna/jacuzzi area is odd. The door to the lobby is propped open and staff routinely walk through. The men's door stays closed. I saw a staff member spit into the shower repeatedly before throwing the contents of her cup on the floor (a shower I had previously been frog-marched into by staff while asking a question, a shower I had to fix before I could use it). Another was cleaning dishes in the bathroom sink for half an hour. There was more but let's just say the situation was bizarre. We laughed through it all but if you want a pleasant spa or spa-like experience, Gokarna is not the place. There is no elevator (or if there is, we could not find it). Not a problem for us but something to be aware of. WiFi is poor and there are not enough electrical outlets in the room. We had a good time and made the most of the experience (the restaurant staff are truly wonderful) but I would not stay here again.