The Paradise Villa

The location was the only thing I liked. The food was okay at breakfast, but the rest of the place seemed poorly maintained. There were lots of insects in the rooms, and nobody was available to help with luggage at check-in or checkout, so we had to carry it ourselves. There was no phone in the room either, which meant going to reception whenever we needed anything.

The beach is about 1 km away, which was the one upside for me. The breakfast barely changed, apart from one fried item, and by around 9 am much of it was gone. They only refilled the eggs and rice. If you arrived after 10, they pointed to the sign saying breakfast ended then and wouldn't let you eat. The staff seemed unfriendly, too. There weren't charging points by the bed, and the shower was small with weak flow. They also asked for a 1000 Bhat security deposit, even though I didn't see anything valuable in the room. The owner, a slim woman who also manages the spa, was described by the reviewer as being available for a “special” in a black T-shirt. The reviewer also made personal claims about her going out on a bike with her boyfriend.

The room problems showed up straight away. We were first given one that smelled of sewage, and staff said the drain was blocked and we should use the exhaust. With an infant, we refused to stay in those conditions. The second room was much smaller, but we accepted it because it was already late. Its shower had such low pressure that a bucket might take an hour to fill, and the hot water kept switching suddenly back to cold. I was afraid to bathe my baby with those temperature changes. Then the drain smell returned, so it seemed this wasn't limited to one room. At checkout, we had to manage all our luggage ourselves. Checkout was at noon, but we arrived 30 minutes late, and they initially refused to return our security deposit because of that. I spent an hour discussing it with the receptionist and then the manager, who wasn't there and spoke only by phone, before getting it back. The check-in staff had been very nice and shown us the room, but the stay felt like torture and left me feeling cheated. I'd never recommend this hotel. Put your money toward somewhere better.

The location is right in the middle of the market, which is a plus, but the rest was a letdown. The room felt like a joke, with an awkward bed made from a huge marble slab. Water pressure was too weak for a proper shower, and the pool area looked worse than its photos. Staff weren't accommodating, and the Wi-Fi was the worst I've had at a hotel. They say the beach is 10 minutes away, but that seems true only if you're practically jogging. Breakfast was also a low-effort, bland spread.