The Serenity Hua Hin

Breakfast was satisfying, though it’s served as individual dishes rather than a buffet: eggs and bacon, rice porridge, or fried rice, along with the usual morning coffee, toast, and/or tea. I really appreciated the room and resort design and all the details. It’s a charming place, with attentive, professional staff there around the clock. The lockdown years seem to have affected maintenance.

We stayed eight nights, and I’d made a mistake booking from the UK. I have a bad hip, and getting into the pool was almost impossible without steps. Reception said they’d buy a rail, but I changed to a pool-access room, which was still difficult though manageable. The room was fine and I liked being by the pool, but there were so many mosquitoes. I know that may not be their fault. The breakfast was awful: jam and marmalade left uncovered, ants everywhere, hundreds even under the milk jug. Sugar sat in a saucer of water to keep ants away. I only tried eggs on toast and couldn’t enjoy them. When I asked the English-speaking man why the jam wasn’t covered, he said nobody used it with the lids on. We often went across the road to Baguette instead, which was lovely, clean, and good value. The hotel is on busy, noisy Hua Hin road. Next door, a bar had terrible bands playing late, so it was definitely not serene. There was also construction opposite the rooms, sometimes really noisy. We never found the sea to walk to, but at least we had a car and could go out in the afternoons. Other than the man who spoke English, most staff were on their phones. The parasols we asked them to put up were bent and broken, and there were no sunbeds, just mats on the decking with wooden backboards. More ants there, too. After a shower, water flooded the bathroom. The place could be much better if they dealt with the ants. I’d go elsewhere next time, as you can get better for your money. One bright spot was the massage place next door: brilliant, and a therapeutic massage for 500 BAHT cured my back pain.

At 1200+ a night, the rate is too expensive for what you get. The hotel felt neglected after the pandemic and wasn’t clean. The rooms and bathroom were old and hadn’t been renewed in a long time. The old air conditioner was loud, with black water around it on the wall. The pool wasn’t usable, with lots of dirt and some technical accessories lying around. If I open a hotel, I need to take care of it.

We chose a premium triple room with pool access and liked the place, but the room was really dirty and left us disappointed on our first night with family. The basin and surrounding bathroom area were filthy, and even the refillable hand wash, lotion, shower gel, and shampoo bottles were old and dirty. The basic amenities weren’t complete either, with no toothbrushes or toothpaste. The photos showed two pillows per person, but we found only one each. We checked the wardrobe for extras and found just one, then called and requested more several times. It took an hour for one to arrive.