The Coolwater Resort & Villas

The villas are lovely and worked perfectly for our family getaway. They're starting to show a little age, but the staff are extremely friendly and professional. You're slightly off the beaten path, though still within easy reach of the city, beaches, and nightlife. The villas sit atop a fairly steep hill, which gave us amazing views; it wasn't an issue for us, but could be difficult for anyone with mobility problems. Highly recommend.

This is a quiet, quaint place in Kamala Beach, with a great pool overlooking Kamala city and Fantasea. The villas have a main shared room and separate bedrooms, and the wifi was great. The in-house chef cooks really well. The team helped quickly when we needed a dehumidifier and an air conditioner fixed, and they leave free bottles of water each day, so there's no need to walk down the hill for them. Kamala Muay Thai is an eight-minute walk downhill, near a mosque. I highly recommend the small studio. The coaches are friendly and serious about training, and they support other fighters in competition. Getting a Grab pickup seems to work at the bottom of the hill, and on the way back they drop you right at the door. Grab takeout also makes it all the way up, so I wouldn't worry about those concerns. The walk back up is pretty steep, though, so make sure you're physically comfortable with that. It's not wheelchair friendly.

Pat and Lin were so responsive and easy to deal with, and the onsite staff were genuinely helpful and friendly. They made me feel at home in a beautiful villa with a lovely ocean view, spacious rooms, and comfortable beds. The neighborhood feels like you're living in Thailand rather than staying in an area just for tourists. One of my best stays anywhere in Thailand. I can't wait to return to the Coolwater.

There's a big basement game room with table football and a large TV for relaxing. The outdoor pool also has a hidden entrance to a not-quite-secret room inside the building, which was amusing to discover and hide in. It's a very nice house on a hill, but the bedroom setup is strange. Three of the six bedrooms can be connected by leaving the bathroom doors open, and the shared bathroom linking the rooms has the weirdest design I've seen. You can cook yourselves or arrange a private chef through the manager with 48 hours' notice. The chef made pretty nice Thai food and served it hot, but be very clear about how many people are eating and what you want for each meal. We were six adults and four babies, yet they prepared food for ten adults, and we only finished about half. You can ask them to get drinks in advance too, since walking up and down the steep hill just for a few beers isn't pleasant for everyone.