Club Mahindra Backwater Retreat Ashtamundi

What People are saying

An awesome resort

deepak343on 28/08/2017 18:14

Club Mahindra Ashtamudi is an awesome property and the family fell in love with the resort. We visited during the Independence Day .. during monsoon season. We could not a floating cottage as none was available so we booked the hotel units which were good enough. We liked the hammocks, the lighting of the resort and the staff was very helpful. We visited Trivandrum on one of the days, on the other day we visited Kollam beach and lighting and the last day we took the cruise which is for 2 hours. There are no hotels or restaurants available outside. Only we can get auto rickshaws outside the gate.

Awesome Stay on the Lake

Yogesh Don 26/08/2017 08:35

An Experience of a Life Time at Club Mahindra Ashtamudi to stay on the Lake which should not be missed. Being a White Studio member we were not able to book one due to which we did the Booking of a HU and got the stay on the Land but when we checked in at the Resort and saw the Floating cottages we requested the Resort Staff and they said that if there is any cancellation they will surely help us. By Evening they confirmed us and we got the stay on the Floating cottage for 2 Nights. Very much thankful to their support and Hospitality. The Balcony in the cottage opened towards the Lake where the View was fantastic and the experience was over whelming. We saw Chinese Fishing setup on the Lake and the way hey were using it was another new experience. The Resort had a Cool Swimming Pool and activities for the family. The next great stuff we admired was the Floating Restaurant and the Kerala Cultural Lunch which acted as the Icing on the Cake. The resort was completely decorated with Monsoon Magic these with Umbrellas which was a view and they offered great Combo packages at a good price which we enjoyed. All in all the stay at the Resort was once in a Lifetime experience for us.

Indian hospitality is world-class, but Club Mahindra is your worst ambassador

dragonbay2015on 24/08/2017 07:59

This is my first 1-star review ever, but it was truly an awful experience. Staying at Club Mahindra Ashtamudi was the most disappointing part of my 5-day Kreala trip.

The good thing first: The hardware of this property is superb. The rooms are of high-quality building materials, well-maintained, very clean, and well-stocked.

Now the long list of negatives:
- Staff are just awfully incompetent (I'll elaborate further below)
- Internet is only available in the public area. Totally unacceptable for a high-end resort in this price range
- Food selection at buffet was mediocre at best, no seafood apart from one fish dish

Below are my observations (in no particular order) in regards to the competency level of the staff:
- At check-in I had been reminded by the reception staff Sonia that I still had to pay a guest fee of 1'500 INR plus tax. We called my agent, who clarified the fee had been paid. It took Sonia 10mins to verify this with her manager.

- Around 13:30 I had expressed eagerness to join their boat ride scheduled for 14:30 to watch the backwaters. Around 14:00 I was told the ride would be cancelled due to insufficient number of people wishing to do the ride. I was offered to either wait and see if enough guests would express interest in a later boat ride, or to book their entire boat for myself (or alternatively their speed boat) at an astronomic price. What they withheld from me was the fact that there was public ferry stopping and departing RIGHT NEXT DOOR (1min footwalk from Club Mahindra) at 15:30. It would have been a cheap and convenient option that would fully serve my needs. Since they hadn’t told me, I could only watch the public ferry leave at 15:35. When I questioned the staff, they just said this is a public ferry and beyond our control. Yes, obviously Club Mahindra only mentions money-making methods within their control.

- In the afternoon when I inquired about modes of transport to bring me from the city area back to Club Mahindra, reception told me to go to the Active Zone to speak to a guy whose name I (very unfortunately) can’t remember. When I arrived there, the staff told me the guy was at the canoe boarding site and asked me to go there. I then said “call him to come to the reception”. In a 5-star resort I expect the staff to come to the guest, not the other way around. To my surprise, when this guy arrived, he was actually extremely proactive and helpful. He gave me the number of a travel agency that could provide pick-up and drop-off services and he even called them to give a heads-up. I wish I remembered his name, so I could single him out and express praise and gratitude to him as the only staff I came across who has truly shown customer orientation.

- When I wanted to settle my bill in the evening, I requested that my full and exact company address be printed as the recipient on the receipt. The receptionist said this was not possible. Again totally unacceptable for a 5-star resort. Only when I said after around 15mins I wasn’t going to pay the bill if he couldn’t print my company address on it, he miraculously discovered a receipt template in Excel format.

- I knew I was going to check out the next morning around 6:00am. At lunch I had asked and confirmed with a restaurant staff that a small breakfast box would be ready for me to take away after check-out. During dinner I re-confirmed this arrangement, and the staff told me she had already confirmed this with front desk. Needless to say, when I checked out the next morning at 6:00am, no breakfast box was around. The front office staff apparently knew nothing, and the restaurant and kitchen staff he managed to reach by phone also knew of nothing. If I hadn’t been under time pressure, I would have insisted on getting access to their kitchen and pick any ingredients on a complimentary basis to create my own take-away breakfast box.

I had chosen Club Mahindra upon recommendation from a number of Indian colleagues at work. Initially I was supposed to stay at Mahindra in Munnar, Kollam, and Ashtamudi. I went for alternatives in Munnar and Kollam due to negative online reviews, and I don’t regret my choice. I decided to stay at Mahindra Ashtamudi mainly because many reviewers had highlighted the superb condition of this property. But I had to realize that apart from the property/hardware, most other things esp. the staff were downright horrible at Mahindra Ashtamudi.

At two occasions when I went to the front desk, I heard other guests complain. One even refused to fill out the paper feedback form at check-out (for fear of her feedback forms being simply torn apart) and instead insisted on writing online or even better by email to higher authorities in Club Mahindra.

I end this review with a laughable anecdote: When their sales guy pitched their membership packages to me after dinner, I told him in detail my feedback above. Quite ironically, tone-deaf and with no degree of consideration shown, he continued his pitch!

Hotel on the Lake

farhan9833on 20/08/2017 04:52

This specifically thr resort of Club Mahindra is situated on the Lake of Kerala Backwater. The houses are awesome. It is located 10KM inside the city making it difficult to reach but the hotel view and the lake view is worth traveling

Awesome Property

KSK53on 19/08/2017 10:33

We stayed in the Floating Cottage - wonderful experience. Sitting in the balcony and looking at the lake is so calm and soothing. My elderly mother enjoyed it the most.

The food was also very nice. Special thanks to Executive Chef Pankaj Thakur for making it special for us. Also Mr. Jose at the front desk was very helpful with his suggestions.

Regarding activities -
take a trip to Kollam and visit the Lighthouse - its an experience and a fantastic view from the top.
go on the speedboat to watch dolphins. We were lucky as we spotted a couple.
go on the backwater boat cruise too.