One’s choice of accommodation can make or break a vacation. This time I think we might have hit the jackpot with Sterling Resort, Puri! The moment you step foot in the resort and walk out to the foyer overlooking the pool with your refreshing welcome drink, the vibe just bowls you over. All you can see for miles ahead is the vast expanse of the ocean.
Puri has been one of our all-time favourite holiday destinations but this time we saw a completely different side of its natural beauty, thanks to the unique location of the resort at the estuary of the Dhaudia river and the Bay of Bengal.
Ranjeet ji, our extremely amiable manager at the front desk ensured we were picked up from Bhubaneswar airport on time, and had arranged a lovely room with awesome views of the sea. The room was well-maintained, had all the usual amenities and was just perfect for us. Sitting out on the spacious balcony on a breezy full-moon night, soaking up the peaceful ambience with the thunderous roar of the waves in the distance – it can’t get any better than that!
Unless of course you talk about the meals at Sterling! A lavish buffet-spread comprising a wide selection of tasty dishes greeted us every time we walked into the dining hall. We absolutely relished the quality of cooking by Chef Sujan and team, who kept introducing variety to the buffet menu. Special mention has to be made of the top-notch service where everyone went out of their way to take care of us. I have a long list of names to thank here – Rahim ji, Littu, Lopamudra, Lizalin and so many others whose smiling faces and courteous behaviour just made our day. They even prepared food to take on our flight back.
Our visit to the Lord Jagannath temple also went without a hitch, thanks to the helpful Panda jis recommended by the resort, who guided us efficiently through the crowds so that we could have proper darshan.
When one takes a break after two long and stressful years, then one is a bit wary. Especially because I had my elderly parents with me. I wanted them to have the best time. I can’t thank the nice folks at Sterling Resort enough for making sure we had the perfect vacation we could have asked for, in every way possible. We’ll definitely be going back.