Simple Life Talay & Divers Resort

After more than an hour, I finally managed to speak with someone at Agoda. The front desk, which was run by another company, said they were willing to reimburse Agoda, but I first needed Agoda’s approval. I eventually got confirmation of a full refund. The front desk had one room available for one night, and we left the island the following day. The place was a huge disappointment. The photos show what a dump it was, and I couldn’t bring myself to spend even one night in that room. It might suit a 19-year-old who’s just glad to have a roof, but if you have standards, don’t go. If you’re after beach time rather than scuba diving, I especially recommend staying away.

We left Koh Tao early because we couldn’t face another night there. The room was dirty and very basic, with threadbare towels, holes in the bedspread, and a toilet that blocked almost straight away. My partner wouldn’t shower because he said it would leave him feeling dirtier. When we asked them to unblock the toilet, the staff were hostile and said they’d fix it “this time.” Getting there was confusing too. It wasn’t where we expected, and it was part of Cliffview? Simple Life. Expedia listed check-in at 8am, one reason we booked after an early ferry, but we were told it was 2pm. When I questioned that, they immediately got hostile and said, more or less, “if you don’t like the check-in time, book somewhere else.” They did find us a room, but it was behind the main hotel, by what looked like a dumping and building site, and it smelled bad. The window faced what seemed to be a house, and in the morning someone’s heavy coughing woke us. The night before, drilling in the next room had interrupted our sleep for hours, on and off. The noise and location were bad enough, but the room itself made the stay awful from check-in onward.

The room was better than I expected inside, even though the building looks run-down and could use some work. The bed was really soft, the AC worked well, and the TV actually worked, which is rare, lol. It’s a mid-range place, so don’t expect anything fancy. Not polished, but comfortable enough to crash and relax. Pretty good value if you’re not picky.

The strangest part was going to the reception marked “CliffView Simple Life Resort” in the “proper” hotel. They told me it was only for administration and they weren’t responsible for the area behind the restaurant. When I asked what I was supposed to do, they said they couldn’t help, but I could come to reception for water or cancel the booking and find somewhere else. How can they sell a room and then say they aren’t responsible for it? I booked Simple Life Talay and Divers Resort in Koh Tao for our honeymoon, and it was terrible from the start. Our poorly prepared room was in another building behind a restaurant, across from the main hotel I’d booked. There was no pool or sea view as advertised, no room service or amenities, and only a small fridge, without drinking water, a kettle, cups, glasses, or coffee. To use the swimming pool, I had to walk from the restaurant and cross the road to the “main building.” None of this was mentioned in the listing. Be aware if you’re thinking of booking. Bad experience, bad staff, bad customer service. Worst place I’ve ever stayed.