Assava Dive Resort

Assava made it easy to take it slow when I came to Koh Tao to dive and ended up getting the flu instead. I mostly needed to rest and recover. The location had everything I needed, with lots of restaurants and a 7-11 about a five-minute walk away. There's a nice beach and great view, plus plenty of hotels and hostels along it where you can pop in for a cocktail. For the price, this place had all I really needed.

Mara was a really good instructor during our Open Water Dive Certification, and made sure we felt comfortable throughout. We had a great time at assava resort. The staff were very helpful, and our room was nice and clean.

The rooms were clean, the food was yummy, and everyone on the diving and hospitality teams was phenomenal. I was so comfortable with Assava that I went on to do my Advanced Open Water training there after finishing Open Water with Steve and Rob. They were lovely, patient, encouraging, and kind, and made me feel safe at every step. I never felt silly asking questions, and they set the pace for each day and dive to suit me while reminding me of my strengths. We were smiling from the moment we arrived. I'll be back 🫶🏽

I wouldn't recommend this place if you're not there to dive, and we definitely won't return. We booked because of the good reviews, but it was the worst hotel of our month in Thailand. The beach was filthy and murky, with plastic wrappers in the water, so I didn't swim during our four nights. The pool was taken up by dive practice every morning until 1pm, which meant I never got to use it, though there were places to sit and relax by the beach. At night, rats ran around in the ceiling of our chalet and kept waking me. On our second night we saw two running across the roof. Reception said they were squirrels, but housekeeping knew they were rats. We were able to move to another room, which was okay. The toilet was the worst wet bathroom I've seen, with nowhere for toiletries, towels, or clothes. Service was slow and indifferent. The rooms' insulation and orientation meant even small noises outside came through.