Lanta Long Beach Hostel

I eventually found the place after walking around for 20 minutes, only to be told they had double-booked or failed to put my name down. I had several confirmations from booking.com, and apparently this has happened before. The boss was dismissive on the phone and wouldn’t work with me. I was pressured to cancel online, which meant paying a fee, and told I’d also have to pay for a taxi all the way back to where I’d come from. Luckily, I managed to book somewhere else for the night. Nobody apologised or helped find a solution. I’m an easygoing traveller, but this was a complete piss take. Don’t stay here.

The rooms were clean and nice, and the hostel had a good atmosphere with lots of young travellers. I especially liked relaxing by the pool in the sun, away from the sand. The beach is very close, with plenty of nice bars and lovely places to swim.

It’s hard to believe this place is only listed as 2 stars. I had a brilliant stay. The whole site was clean, with dorm style bungalows dotted around, and my hostel room was cleaned every day. Air conditioning ran most of the day, and there were lockers and bedside safes for everyone’s things. There’s a pool with loungers around it, and breakfast came each morning in little lunchboxes, a nice extra. The staff were welcoming and kind, even the cleaners, who were always smiling. That made me feel happy too. The beautiful beach is only a five minute walk away. Amazing.

The bungalows are really close to the beach, but you don’t meet many people here. It feels more like somewhere to sleep and then head out. They could make the hostel area more functional. I also found Koh Lanta itself a bit of a strange island, and didn’t really like it.