Camille's Samui Hotel recommendations

The Tongsai Bay Hotel, Tongsai Bay

2009-11-09T20:47:00.005+07:00

The Tongsai Bay Hotel, Tongsai Bay

The Tongsai Bay hotel is one of the few hotels on the island that can boost it's own private beach front, the Tongsai Bay. It's also one of the very first exclusive and top of the range hotels on the island.
All of it's 83 suites and villas spread out over 25 acres of land are designed under the 'Great Outdoor Living' concept and consist of 4 main types of accommodation; 24 Beachfront suites, 41 Cottage suites, 9 Tongsai Grand Villas and 4 Tongsai Pool Villas.

Apart from the standard room amenities, each unit has a spacious terrace with a bathtub and other open-air facilities to ensure a perfect leisure stay. A range of facilities the resort provides to maximize guests’ relaxation include sailing boats, canoes, windsurfing equipment, snorkeling equipment, swimming pools, children’s wading pool, tennis court, Jacuzzi pool and a Spa with sauna room and massage treatment programs.

There are three restaurants: Chef Chom's Thai Restaurant near the lobby, Floyd's Beach Bistro where you can dine on the beach, and The Butler's Restaurant serving daily European dishes. There are also two bars for guests to enjoy.

This eco-friendly resort truly offers hospitality, privacy and a beautiful location on a secluded area of the North Eastern part of Samui island but it does come with a nice price tag, it's worth the luxury and exclusivity however that can be enjoyed here.

Booking by Hotels Combined

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Pool Villa bedroom

Grand Villa bedroom

Pool Villa

View from Cottage Suite

Beachfront in front of the hotel

Anantara Resort & Spa, Bophud

2009-10-29T18:48:00.002+07:00

Anantara Resort & Spa, Bophud

This resort is located at a beautiful stretch of beach on the Northern part of the island, along Bophud beach. There are a few other fave resorts of mine along this same stretch.

Koh Samui’s version from this popular chain more than lives up to the reputations of its sister properties. With a top location on the island on Bophud beach, the Anantara Si Kao Resort & Spa offers you plenty of opportunities to take advantage of the beach and water with windsurfing and kayaking topping the list of pursuits and the nearby Fisherman’s Village offers a chance to get out and about and mingle with the locals.

The lay out of the resort is also very convenient, and it's a nice walk through the resort to the beach unless you booked one of the beach villas or rooms.
With it's 82 guest rooms, 18 Anantara suites and 6 Royal Anantara suites, two with their own pool and terrace near the beach, you will find the ultimate in luxury and a perfect getaway.

In the meantime, back at the Resort, you will never tire of the staff’s extreme dedication to service, the high-class spa and the variety of delicious cuisines offered at several fine restaurants. After a stay at the Anantara, your only regret will come when you have to pack your bags and go home.

Worthwhile booking this resort for it's nice location and luxury on offer.

Booking with Hotels Combined

Booking with Agoda

Booking with R24

Resort entrance

Deluxe room

Deluxe Ocean room

Romantic dining on the beach

The pool

Santiburi Resort & Spa, Maenam

2009-10-07T21:25:00.007+07:00

Santiburi Resort & Spa, Maenam

The Santiburi Resort in Maenam is one of the hotels that I used to work at as a dive instructor and I have fond memories of this hotel. It's one of the earliest real luxury resorts on the island, being build in 1993 and they were already offering spa services before it became trendy and they're still going strong and serving an outstanding service and experience.

Their 71 rooms are amongst Koh Samui's most luxurious hideaways, the Santiburi Resort & Spa in Maenam blends 23 acres of tropical gardens with a river gently meandering down to a private 300 meter white sand beach. All units at the Santiburi Resort are superbly designed Thai-style Villas, built to be in harmony with their surroundings, and feature beautiful wooden floors, opulent Siamese furnishings, and a large private terrace. For a long time they had the largest swimming pool on the island and they have various sport facilities including tennis and squash courts.

If you like to be pampered and you can afford it, this is a good place to stop at.

Bookings at Hotels Combined

Booking at Agoda

Bookings at R24

Garden Villa Room

Bathroom Garden Villa

Beachfront Villa with outside plunge pool

Ocean View villa with pool

Sunset

Samui Palm Beach Resort, Bophud

2009-09-21T19:19:00.004+07:00

Samui Palm Beach Resort, Bophud

Is located between Bophud and Maenam and is practically neighbours with World Resort.
The hotel has a spacious environment and the various wings have luscious green in between.
Samui Palm Beach Resort is situated directly on the serene beach of Bophud, a much quieter alternative to Chaweng, perfect for those in search of a quiet and peaceful holiday, away from the busy beach crowds

The resort has recently built a new Royal Wing, offering brand new stunning guest rooms with the same stunning views of the beach. The free Internet connection in the resort’s reception area comes in very handy for keeping families and friends back home up to date with your beach holiday.

The resort supports 32 Deluxe rooms, 36 Villa Rooms, Beach Front 8 rooms, 20 Garden Cottages and each 1 Presidential and Royal suite.

According to culinary excellence, the Samui Palm Beach Resort is proud on the outstanding quality of the cuisine. While the Trade Wind offers the finest international cuisine, the Tom Yam provides the true delicacy of Thai cooking and finally Guilin is a celebration of authentic Chinese dished. Additional to the restaurants are the Beach Pub, and the China gate bar to meet friends, have a chat and a drink.

If you are looking for a nice and quiet beach, away from it all, starting at medium ranged rates, this is a good option for you.

Booking by Hotels Combined

Booking by Agoda

Booking by R24

Deluxe hotel wing

Villas

Presidential suite

Garden Cottage

Pool

Al's Resort, Chaweng

2009-08-31T21:32:00.015+07:00

Al's Resort, Chaweng

Has a perfect location, smack down in the middle of Chaweng, with a very nice stretch of beach in front of it, near the coral. It's also located next to or almost is part of Al's Hut. A review of this resort is to follow at a later stage.

The 43 rooms at Al’s Resort in Chaweng have a style that is both simple and charming and each is equipped with the standard amenities to make guests feel comfortable and right at home. The restaurant affords a beautiful view of the sea and both local and international cuisine is available. The spa facilities at Al’s Resort offer Balinese-style massage, various aromatherapy sessions and a selection of body scrubs and facial treatments.

Al's Resort offers 5 studio rooms (25 sq m), 21 Deluxe Garden view rooms (20 sq m), 12 Units Villa Deluxe (28 sq m) and 5 Units Villa Suite (56 sq m).

Well priced rooms for the location!

Booking by Hotels Combined

Booking by Agoda

Booking by R24

Deluxe Garden room

Suite courtyard

Deluxe pool yard exterior

Swimming pool overlooking the beach

Resort exterior

First Bungalow Beach Resort, Chaweng

2009-08-10T20:49:00.007+07:00

First Bungalow Beach Resort, Chaweng

Is located as the only place in Chaweng at the connecting point of Chaweng Beach and Chaweng Noi Beach at the Southern end of Chaweng beach. Although this is not entirely true, since Samui First House shares the same premises making it another unique experience, two hotels sharing the same premises run by the same family.

This is another place I used to work at during as part of my ongoing dive adventures on Koh Samui and I conducted some PADI IDC's here for a short while.

Right now an old friend from the Netherlands is visiting me on Samui and he's staying at the First Bungalow resort. They enjoy it although they also have a commonly heard problem with the hotel, which is that the mattresses are very hard! Other than that, they enjoy their stay very much and the premises are really nice.

The resort was the one of the very first resorts in Chaweng, hence the name and has been around since the 1970's.

It provides 147 tastefully-designed rooms, fully equipped with air conditioner, hot and cold water bathroom, cable TV, minibar and IDD telephone. 42 beach bungalows, 14 Sea View bungalows, 11 deluxe Bungalows and 80 Deluxe rooms. The resort also boosts a very nice and big pool and the beach is wide and big with plenty of space.
This all comes in a very reasonable price range and is recommendable.

Booking by Hotels Combined

Booking by Agoda

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The big and spacious pool, surrounded by green and buildings

Deluxe Bungalows

Chaweng Noi beach

Pool side bungalow room

First room

Ark Bar Garden Beach Resort, Chaweng

2009-07-26T14:11:00.007+07:00

Ark Bar Garden Beach Resort, Chaweng

The place to be if you want to be close to the action and have a good party atmosphere. Mainly frequented by a younger crowd the Ark Bar is centrally located in the middle of Chaweng beach road.
The resort has a small pool and a restaurant that is the middle point of a lot of Chaweng action each night, it's a great place to start an evening out and the place is always hustling and bustling with activity.

There are 50 rooms pretty much facing each other over two floors on the way down to the beach. Don't stay here if you want to enjoy a quiet night. Prices are under 2.000,-THB at the moment per night.

Booking by Hotels Combined

Booking by Agoda

Booking by R24

The entrance almost 4 years ago.

Guest room

At night this turns into a cosey all floor seating open air happening

The pool

The bar and restaurant at night

The Library Hotel, Chaweng

2009-07-08T23:33:00.006+07:00

The Library Hotel, Chaweng

This is probably the most stylish and hippest hotel currently in Chaweng. It's modern and minimalist concept is fascinating and wonderful at the same time and the impact on the ecology is minimal. There's some real thought put into the design of the Library and the project was inspired by the basic way of life of the hotel's belief that 'the real happiness is not complicated at all'.
One of the things the Library is known for is it's 'red swimming pool'.

The 26 suite/studio cabins that comprise the Library are spread across an area of lush vegetation. Each cabin comprises of a ground floor suit and a sea view cabin upstairs. The minimalist style of each cabin is made complete with a personal computer, plasma screen TV, a walk in rain shower and a Jacuzzi. It's luxury for sure and it also comes with a nice price tag. It's definitely upscale.

Highlight of the project is 'The Library Building' located by the beach and is named after the projects title. The white building with high huge ceiling equipped with glass window pane all around will enrich purity, serenity and peace.

The Library Building consists of three box-style units adjoining together where the middle box is an open-air serving as mini-cafe.

The other two boxes are the huge Library for not only books but also other entertainment media such as music CD and DVD.

There's also an excellent restaurant at the premises, The Page, a lovely beach front restaurant with an aircon room and open air space located at the beach.

If you enjoy a great modern, minimalist concept and you have the means to afford it, this an absolute must straight in the middle of Chaweng and all it has to offer.

Booking by Hotels Combined

Booking by Agoda

Booking by R24

The hotel entrance

The Studio

The Suite

Restaurant The Page

The Red swimming pool

Buddy Boutique Hotel, Lamai

2009-06-24T19:27:00.008+07:00

Buddy Boutique Hotel, Lamai

The Buddy hotel and surrounding complex are brand new, probably not much older than a year right now and it looks good. A few things to keep in mind though, there are no rooms on the beach and the Buddy complex is a few minutes away from Lamai 'downtown', not necessarily walking distance.

Buddy complex, including the hotel are located at the other side of the road from the beach, if you want to visit Lamai beach, you have to cross the ring road.

Having said that, due to the blending colonial-style architecture with modern comfort, Buddy Lamai Beach Hotel is an attractive new addition to the Koh Samui hotel scene. This boutique hotel promises intimate service and utmost privacy. All rooms have their own balconies and are tastefully decorated with contemporary Thai accents, while amenities include cable TVs, internet access and luxurious bathroom toiletries and breakfast is served daily.

Booking by Hotels Combined

Booking by Agoda

Booking by R24

Superior room

Junior Suite

Swimming pool at night

Beach front

Exterior

Lamai Wanta Resort, Lamai

2009-06-06T15:35:00.003+07:00

Lamai Wanta Resort, Lamai

One of the nice things about the Lamai Wanta resort is that it's smack down in the middle of Lamai downtown directly located at the ocean. All the action, bars, restaurants, banks, shops etc are within an easy walking distance.

Each of the 74 rooms, divided over 10 bungalows and 7 small hotel buildings at this 3-star hotel have all the comforts and conveniences of home. Every room in the hotel offers guests Non Smoking Rooms, Air Conditioning, Desk, Hair Dryer, Internet Access (wireless). Guests will enjoy the hotel's excellent facilities and services including Laundry Service/Dry Cleaning, Restaurant, Room Service, Safety Deposit Boxes, Hotel/Airport Transfer, Tours. The hotel provides superior recreational and leisure facilities including Massage, Pool Outdoor, Garden. Comfort and convenience are the hallmarks of Lamai Wanta Resort.

The pool is rather small and there are a limited of sun deck chairs but all in all the hotel delivers the goods just fine or maybe even above that for a 3 star standard, budget hotel.

The breakfast is not buffet style but a set American breakfast, all add ons are extra.

All in all good value for money with an excellent location.

Booking by Hotels Combined

Booking by Agoda

Booking by R24

Deluxe room

Deluxe room exterior

Bungalow

Swimming pool

Restaurant with view over the swimming pool and beach

Kandaburi Resort & Spa, Chaweng

2009-05-28T09:49:00.005+07:00

Kandaburi Resort & Spa, Chaweng

The four-star Kandaburi resort & Spa is located at the Northern end of Chaweng, just outside the hustle and bustle of the busy Chaweng beach and street scenes and life but still comfortably near enough. It's about a 15 to 20 minute walk to Chaweng and the beach in front of the hotel is great.
The hotel has actually two parts and is separated by the main beach road. Both parts have their own swimming pool, the side at the beach has a separate children's pool and there's a big 23 meter long pool on the hill side, overlooking the breakfast area.

The Kandaburi resort & Spa offers 183 rooms designed in an exotic yet modern style. You can enjoy Thai, Mediterranean and International cuisine at the four dining options available on the premises. It's possible to spend the day lounging by the poolside, or if you feel adventurous partake in the various water sports available.

The location is good and it's a fairly new resort with medium priced rooms.

For an enjoyable and quiet stay in Chaweng, I can highly recommend the Kandaburi Resort.

Booking by Hotels Combined

Booking by Agoda

Booking by R24

The hotel interior on the hill side

Superior hill side room

Premium room

Beach side pool and view

Beach front

Six Senses Hideaway Samui, Plai Laem

2009-05-13T12:44:00.005+07:00

Six Senses Hideaway Samui, Plai Laem

This amazing resort ranks easily amongst one of the more luxury resorts on the island.
It's located on the most northern point of the peninsula at Plai Laem and every day when we return from a days diving, this resort one of the first things we see when reaching Samui.

Part of the world renowned Six Senses group, the Sila Evason hotel offers no compromise in creating refined tranquility on a tropical island setting. Set amongst 20 acres of tropical and untouched plantation with incredible views of the surrounding beach and islands. The world renowned spa offers an array of sensory pleasures to please even the most discerning of spa goers. Putting an emphasis on space, villas feature open plan bathrooms and infinity pools adding to the feeling of being in a secluded paradise. Guests are just 6km from the airport with easy access to the islands exuberant nightlife and popular sightseeing attractions such as of Koh Tao and Koh Nang Yuan. After a day soaking up the sun, feel free to retreat to your villa’s private pool and be met by your personal butler serving up a chilled drink.

Although dining is very good at the Six Senses Hideaway, it seems that all reviews of the resort consider it well overpriced and recommend renting a car and eat in the near by restaurants of Bophud (aka Fishermans Village) or other villages on Koh Samui.

Dining on the Hill:
The main restaurant is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner and is located on the top of a small hill, offering seascape views to the north of Samui Island. The restaurant theme varies from very casual and laid back through to stylish. The concept offers several dining areas varying in atmosphere, from which guests can choose according to their desires - from seated on the floor (Thai Style!) with big comfortable cushions, or the more traditional table top dining.

Dining on the Rocks;
Open for dinner and located on the tip of the headland, this restaurant offers 270 degree views of the surrounding sea and outlying islands. When the sun goes down the restaurant undergoes a metamorphosis with both a change of colour and style and recreates itself into a stylish fine dining environment.

Drinks on the Hill & On the Rocks There are two elegantly designed bars attached to the two restaurants.

Wines on the Hill;
A specially designed wine cellar with a large range of wines from many of the world’s most respected regions. Regular wine tastings and wine dinners are held in the cellar.

Six Senses Hideaway is a fantastic experience, not to be missed but it comes with a price tag and is on the high end scale for rates.

Booking by Hotels Combined

Booking by Agoda

Booking by R24

Six Senses Hideaway Pool Villa

Six Senses Hideaway Pool Villa suite

Six Senses Hideaway Pool Villa sea view

Six Senses Hideaway dining and pool

Six Senses Hideaway Villa

Napasai Beach Resort & Villas, Maenam

2009-04-29T14:15:00.002+07:00

Napasai Beach Resort & Villas, Maenam

Napasai Beach Resort & Villas in Maenam is a secluded luxury beach resort in Maenam Beach, on the fashionable north coast of Koh Samui. It's a relatively newly opened high end resort.

Napasai is set on a graceful hillside in a secluded position, overlooking Ban Tai beach on the Gulf of Thailand, in seventeen acres of lush tropical vegetation.

It has a small, private sandy beach with a pontoon to which guests can swim, fifty-five cottages, fourteen private villas, two excellent restaurants and the indulgent Napasai Spa. Each room comes with tropical teak furnishings and cotton drapes. All rooms have air conditioning, minibar, satellite TV and fresh flowers. Luxury at it's finest!

The Lai Thai Restaurant serves Thai and international cuisine in a relaxing environment with high ceilings and stone-tiled flooring.

Beachfront Restaurant where light and casual poolside fare are served at the Beachfront Restaurant, specialising in Thai and international dishes for lunch and dinner daily. Guests can enjoy both poolside and ocean views in a casual open air environment.

Highly recommendable but it comes in the higher end budget range.

Seaview Hill Cottage

Pool Villa living room

Beachfront Cottage Suite

Napasai features a beautiful horizon-edge freshwater pool that appears to flow onto the turquoise sea

Beach view

Booking by Agoda

Booking by R24

Maya Buri Boutique Resort, Bang Rak

2009-04-10T09:39:00.003+07:00

Maya Buri Boutique Resort, Bang Rak

A newly opened boutique resort in pristine Baan Bang Rak, the Northern part of the island. Maya Buri offers a refreshing choice in relaxing in luxury and tranquility. Designed in Thai tropical style under a backdrop of majestic island mountains, you can enjoy their natural setting but with full technologically modern conveniences at your fingertips like our Infinity Edge pool.

The location is good, on what we call the 'Ghost Raod', directly off Bang Rak. The resort is not located on a beach, but it's within a 10-15 minute walk, that's also where the restaurants and shops of Bang Rak are located. Within a 5 - 10 minute drive various other beaches are available.

Presidential Suite

This luxury comfort suite was luxuriously designed and decorated. The adjoining living room and the bedroom has a spectacular view of the pool. This suite is designed for honeymooners and is suitable for a small family as well.

Studio

The smallest but very comfortable rooms of the resort. Has a view of the pool. Double bed, cable T.V., writing desk, air-conditioning, mini-fridge, hot & cold shower, a small balcony and a parking space of its own.

Deluxe

Identical to the Standard room, with the exception of the location which is set in the corner lot. Bigger than standard but with same facilities, the room is equipped with twin bed or queen size bed, cable TV, air-conditioning, hot & cold shower, balcony.

The pool at Maya Buri

Booking by Agoda

Booking by R24

Nora Chaweng Hotel, Chaweng

2009-03-22T09:38:00.003+07:00

Nora Chaweng Hotel, Chaweng

This is a very nice hotel, located almost straight where the one way system starts in Chaweng. It's located at the road side of Chaweng beach road, you only have to cross the road and walk down to the beach, just a minute or two away.

Nora Chaweng Hotel is named after a mystical dance. It's brand new, it opened it's doors less than a year ago and has a very pleasant, spacious feel to it with tastefully designed rooms.

All shopping and night life areas are within walking distance and the airport is within a 10 to 15 minutes from the hotel.

The 3 suites and 60 Deluxe rooms are tastefully designed, nice and have all the amenities that you expect and the hotels supports a swimming pool, a spa and a restaurant.

If looking for a nicely priced, medium range hotel, this may be a well suited choice.

Booking by Agoda

Booking by R24

A Deluxe room with King size bed

Tastefully designed bath rooms

A comfortable looking and affordable suite

The stylish and spacious lobby

The swimming pool

Chaweng Cove Resotel, Chaweng

2009-03-02T21:36:00.004+07:00

Chaweng Cove Resotel, Chaweng

Come August this year and my sister is to visit Samui once more. Since this is going to be a family affair with 3 children in the 10 to 13 year range, they needed a bit more of a budget place than they used to book during previous visits. Recently I went to have a look at the resort, with my sister, who was here on a very short break visit and it got the thumbs up from both us.

At the reception they were very accommodating by showing us the various rooms and allowed us to have a look around. Above is the main entrance, just south of Centara in Chaweng. Just outside the busy hustle and bustle of Chaweng but still near enough to be able to walk to Chaweng 'downtown'.

The pool looks spacious and has three different basins and is located near the beach as well. It looks very convenient.

My sister booked two rooms with balcony and this is how they look like, including all you need, a TV, fridge, bathroom/toilet etc.

Chaweng Cove Resotel offers something for everyone and it even has newly built air-conditioned rooms, villas, and bungalows for all these people to enjoy. Amenities at this resort include a swimming pool, available massage services, beach side dining and wireless Internet access.

There are a total 101 rooms varying in size and price.

The layout of the resort was very nice and a feature that catches the eye is this shaded hall way between the reception and the resort. A very nice touch.

Although build in a compact way, it's still comfy to walk around and looks spacious enough to enjoy.

Our impression was overall positive and my sister is looking forward to stay here.

Her final verdict after having stayed for almost two weeks here is that it's value for money and they would stay here again.

Booking by Agode

Booking by R24

Samui First House Hotel, Chaweng

2009-02-06T21:49:00.006+07:00

Samui First House Hotel, Chaweng

Is located in Chaweng Noi, or the most Southern part of Chaweng. It's called First House, since 'back in the days' it was the only and hence 'first' hotel in this part of Chaweng. On the same premises is also First Bungalow Beach Resort located, run by members of the same family.

The First house has two great pools and an almost exclusive beach, a short stroll from the busier and more crowded main beach area. The latter because there's a 'bend' in the beach at this end of Chaweng, and the First House is just at the other side of this bend and has a secluded beach accordingly completely free of hawkers and has ample space for sunbathing, swimming, and water sports.
This makes the hotel a desirable accommodation for those seeking a peaceful holiday and families with young children. The colorful restaurant and nightlife scene is only a 15-minute walk from the hotel or a few minutes taxi ride away.

There's also the possibility of romantic poolside dining at Samui First House restaurant. All you can eat traditional Thai, Chinese, European and Seafood. After dinner, the bar staff promises that they can whip you up your own unique cocktail to enjoy with soft music most night. There's also a Thai dancing show every Monday night from 7.00 to 9.00 pm.

The hotel boosts 98 rooms comprising of 4 Family rooms, 5 Grand Deluxe rooms, 36 deluxe rooms, 27 Superios Rooms and 26 Standard rooms.

Rooms are fairly low priced and this is a great place for a budget holiday.

Standard room; The rooms are especially designed for the comfort and convenience with modern facilities. Full conveniences with air condition, colour TV, telephone , bath room , hot & cold shower , minibar and internet excess. Room size : 24 sq.m

Family room; The rooms are especially designed for the comfort and convenience with modern facilities. All spacious rooms have highly recommend for mini family, 2 bed rooms with closing door, 1 bath room, room with pool view, private balcony, air condition, colour TV, telephone, hot&cold shower, minibar and internet excess. Room Size : 50 sq.m

Lobby

Swimming Pool

The almost exclusive beach at Samui First House, a really nice stretch of beach

Booking by Agoda

Booking by R24

Q Signature Samui Hotel, Choengmon

2009-01-10T23:08:00.004+07:00

Q Signature Samui Hotel, Choengmon

Located only seven kilometers from Samui Airport, the Q Signature Samui Hotel is a modern luxurious spa and hotel. The Q Signature Samui Hotel comprises of 20 elegant Thai design villas with private pools, 55 apartments and 3 communal pools.

The Samudra Retreat Samui Hotel is also part of this complex and was also known as The Peninsula. In total they host 132 rooms and villas.

The location is really nice and fairly secluded, it's build on a hill and golf carts take you around the place. There's also a nice beach in front of the resort and around the corner of this beach, in walking distance over the beach is Choengmon Bay, in my opinion the nicest bay of Samui island. This bay hosts plenty of restaurants and bars which can give a nice break to the furthermore excellent restaurants at Q signature;

The Royal Siam restaurant, the Aow Thai Terrace, The Royal Pool Bar and the Royal Mountain Pool Bar.

It's a vast complex with all necessary and required amenities and beautifully located.

It's prices range from medium to high end. Well worthwhile checking out and a great location to enjoying your stay on Samui.

Booking by Agoda

Booking by R24

Imperial Samui Hotel, Chaweng

2009-01-01T10:55:00.005+07:00

Imperial Samui Hotel in Chaweng

Is part of the same Imperial chain as the Imperial Boathouse in Choengmon and the Imperial Queen's Park Hotel in Bangkok. It's also once more a place where my wife used to work for a few months when the Imperial Boathouse underwent extensive renovations.

The Imperial Samui Hotel is located on Chaweng Noi Beach, about 1.5 kilometers from Chaweng's shopping and entertainment areas and 10 kilometers from the airport. The scenic Imperial Samui Hotel is built in Mediterranean-style and is set in the hillside with landscaped shadowy gardens tumbling down to a serene beach. The Imperial Samui Hotel has a total of 141 rooms including 108 newly renovated Premier Sea-Facing rooms, 13 Junior suites, 1 Duplex, 6 One Bed Room Suites, 11 Garden Terrace rooms and two Grand Duplex with two bedrooms.

The prices are in the upper range but well worth it. The setting is gorgeous and the facilities are excellent.

The hotel supports a spa and also a flood lit tennis court, two restaurants, Le Jarmjuree for breakfast and dinner and Tara Restaurant as well as the Le Sandy, the beach bar.

Imperial Chaweng supports 2 pools, one near the ocean with unique seawater, pictured above and a fresh water pool.

All rooms come with a private balcony and stunning views and offer the very latest in resort luxury. All rooms are in low-rise Mediterranean style buildings. Most of them have a sea view taking full advantage of the cool breezes that waft in from the Gulf of Thailand. All rooms have en suite bathrooms, hairdryer, 220V electrical points, complimentary bathroom toiletries, personal safe, fully stocked refrigerate, mini bar, color TV and satellite reception, air-conditioning and IDD telephone.

Once more a hotel that comes highly recommended by me.

Booking by Agoda

Booking by R24

Punnpreeda Hip Resort, Bang Rak

2008-09-09T21:45:00.004+07:00

Punnpreeda Hip Resort, Bang Rak

This is a fairly new resort conveniently located about 5 minutes away from the airport and near Big Buddha.
It's located at Bang Rak beach, away from the hustle and bustle of Chaweng and near all the restaurants and shops in Bang Rak.
The beach is not as great as Choengmon or Chaweng but still good.

It offers a minimalist hotel designed with love and attention to detail, maintaining a rich appreciation for Thai architecture, while focusing on industrial, modern design. Poured concrete is juxtaposed against natural Thai woods with 100-year-old slant roof ceilings.

There are only 25 guest rooms in 5 categories and they're medium range priced starting at around 3.000,-THB; 12 Deluxe rooms, 4 Garden Villa's, 6 Ocean Villa's, 2 Jacuzzi Suites and a Waterfall Seaview Suite.

There's an in house restaurant and all rooms have Wi-fi plus all amenities, like a flat screen TV.

Booking by Agoda

Booking by R24

The Swimming pool

The Daaraadat restaurant

Inside a Deluxe room

View over Bang Rak bay

Bandara Resort & Spa, Bophud

2008-08-05T21:27:00.004+07:00

Bandara Resort & Spa, Bophud

This very nice resort is fairly new and has a lot to offer.
With 22 standard rooms, 98 Deluxe rooms, 2 Grand Deluxe Villa's and 28 cottage villas, they also offer a wide variety of room choices.
All rooms boast stunning contemporary tropical design, extra-large private balcony or veranda with day-bed, alfresco dining facilities and ceiling fan, all modern amenities and spectacular views of the lush resort landscaping.
Set amidst a coconut grove on the golden beach of Bophud, overlooking the Gulf of Thailand and only a few minutes’ drive from Chaweng Beach, the resorts luxurious and spacious cottages and villas are tastefully decorated.

Bandara has been build very spacious and it accommodates 2 pools and a children's pool.

The resort also provides a seaside restaurant, the Chom Dao, that looks out onto the ocean and offers Thai and Western cuisine. An all-day dining restaurant, the Leelavadee, located on the ground level of the main building offers full American breakfast, lunch, dinner and special theme nights.
Dinner services are also provided as private dining at individual cabanas by the swimming pool. Very romantic indeed.
There are also a lobby and pool bar.

Bandara, a window to the stars. Now, it's a name shared with a unique resort experience.

Room rates are starting at medium rates to high end rates.

Booking by Agoda

Booking by R24

Deluxe room

Overview of the main pool

The main pool

The Lounge area

The Chom Dao Beach restaurant

Chaweng Buri Resort, Chaweng

2008-07-25T16:44:00.001+07:00

Chaweng Buri Resort, Chaweng

Is conveniently located at the beach in the middle of Chaweng.

When one first steps onto the compound of this resort, you may think that you have wandered into an old southern Thai village. That’s because the Chaweng Buri Resort is set in a tropical paradise and made up of 117 chalets, which includes one beach side suite. But this resort is anything but old-fashioned - it offers a host of modern amenities including a free form swimming pool with Jacuzzi, a sauna, spa and massage services. Despite all this, the beach is still the main draw here and this one is not obstructed by a road and tends to be peaceful and quiet at all times.

Chaweng Buri hosts two restaurants and a beach/pool side bar;

-A poolside restaurant " The Place" which serves fresh seafood, continental and authentic Thai cuisine

-A beach-front dinner terrace "Rom-Mai" which serves light meals and the Barbecue terrace "Sai-Lom" which serves Seafood, Steaks & Salad.

-There's a Thai night show every Friday at "Harry 's Bar" (Beach/Pool Bar) - Tropical fruit shakes, cocktails, thirst quenching drinks, spirits and snacks.

There are over 220 sun deck beds with parasols and the hotel also offers baby sitting amongst other services.

Chaweng Buri has been in Chaweng for more than 15 years now and the location is perfect. The Resort also receives very good reviews from previous visitors and I can recommend a stay in this medium priced resort.

Booking by Agoda

Booking by R24

Peace Resort, Bophud

2008-07-11T20:09:00.001+07:00

Peace Resort, Bophud

Has been established back in 1977 by the Pupaiboon Family and has been growing strong ever since. Starting out as a typical simple hut on the beach place, just like for instance World Resort or Zazen Boutique Resort not too far away from peace Resort, they have been upgrading gradually and nowadays Peace Resort counts as a nice upgrade resort with actually upscale beach villa's.

Friends of me stayed here and had a great time.

The tranquility on the premises and the beach location with landscaped tropical gardens make for a unique stay during your vacation at Peace Resort.

The resort supports;
Superior Garden Villa, 55 units (1 bedroom ) 32 sq.m.
Deluxe Garden Villa, 31 units (1 bedroom) 42 sq.m.
Deluxe Wing , 20 units (1 bedroom) 37.5-48 sq.m.
Deluxe Veranda, 11 units (1 bedroom & living area) 49 sq.m
Beachfront Villa, 5 units (1 bedroom & living area) 49 sq.m.

Each bungalow is a mini-suite with your very own porch and furnished with modern conveniences such as air-conditioning, mini bar and bath amenities.

The resort is very child friendly with and supports a children outdoor playground and a children pool.

A medium ranged priced resort with some high end ranged beach villa's which welcome you with traditional Thai hospitality, with the added bonus of it being run by a Samui family.
Enjoy your stay.

Booked by Agoda

Booked by R24

Zazen Boutique Resort & Spa, Bophud

2008-06-30T20:55:00.000+07:00

Zazen Boutique Resort & Spa, Bophud

On the Northern coast of Koh Samui Island, on the west side of Bophut Beach lies a small, charming and intimate Boutique Resort.

A resort where you can feel at home? Where you will take your partner to heaven and your family to paradise. This little hide-away invites you to relax & rediscover yourself and your partner in beautiful, natural & tropical surroundings. You will experience in our idyllic tropical resort the perfect escape. Sounds like too good to be true, out of an 8 year experience on Samui and having had various friends stay here, I can agree to this.

Zazen enjoys a secluded setting at the end of an unspoiled bay. In this tropical setting, the low-rise resort has been especially designed to reach peacefulness in harmony with its natural surroundings. Nestled on Koh Samui's quieter, more traditional northern shore, Zazen stands on the west coast of Bophut beach amid lush gardens facing its own palm-shaded beach.

Zazen also has one of my favorite restaurants on the island. This place gets my thumbs up!

With all the facilities they offer, this is one of the medium - top resorts on Samui;

• 80 Meters of white sandy beach front
• Magnificent tropical swimming pool with terrace with sun beds and umbrellas
• Jacuzzi and Children's swimming pool
• Open-air beachfront restaurant and bar overlooking the Gulf of Thailand and featuring traditional Thai dancers twice a week.
• Beach front “Rouge Lounge” Bar with pool table
• Boutique with antiques & souvenir shop
• Internet Lounge with High Speed wireless connection & business center
• Beautiful outdoor Spa offering a whole range of treatments
• An all year round beautiful beach which is safe for swimming
• Jeep and motorbike rental
• Shuttle bus service & private limousine service
• Airport Pick-up and Drop-off (on request ) and Private Parking
• Baby-sitting service
• Laundry & pressing service• Room services
• Luggage storage

Complimentary services:

• Tropical garden with game of bowls (petanque) and table tennis area
• Beach Club with windsurfing equipment and canoes
• Library and parlor games
• DVD films service
• Confirmation of flight tickets
• Internet Lounge with high speed wireless connection & business center
• Free high speed wireless connection from the guests rooms and around the restaurant, bar, pool & beach

This resort ranks high on my fave list.

Booking by ido24

The Weekender, Lamai

2008-06-27T13:54:00.001+07:00

The Weekender, Lamai

This hotel is almost an institution in Lamai and has grown a bit over the years, without losing it's service and good ambiance.

The Weekender is a place where you can do as much or as little as you like. Enjoy Samui as it was meant to be. Relax & appreciate the fresh breezes off the Gulf of Thailand as you sit by the beach, enjoy a drink at the beach bar or just find one of the many quiet corners with your favourite book.

The rooms are spacious and they are furnished individually with private bathroom (shower & bathtub with hot and cold water), airconditioning with individual control, mini bar, refrigerator, telephone (IDD) and colour TV (with satellite).

The resort offers several options of accommodation, which include bungalows at resort front entrance, superior and deluxe rooms in three separate buildings and Thai styled houses. The 149 rooms are spread over a large area of beautiful landscaped tropical gardens.

The resort has a beach of soft white sand, crystal clear waters and fringing coconut palms. It is located in the middle of Lamai Beach, not too far away from the entertainment area, but secluded enough for guests to enjoy the tranquility of a restful island holiday.

Price, ranging from just above a 1.000,-THB to around 4.000,-THB, location and the tranquility, all good reasons for staying at The Weekender.

Enjoy your stay in Lamai.

Booking by Agode

Booking by R24

Standard Room

Superior New Wing

Deluxe New Wing