Kwanruen Resort

Breakfast was decent, with plenty of Asian choices and a few basic Western ones, and we’d stay again. The pool was great, though it was a shame we couldn’t have food or drinks around it. For 900 baht a night, it isn’t a five-star hotel, but the rooms are large, the bed is comfortable, and the spot opposite the lake is excellent.

You get good value here. The rooms are roomy and clean, with a nice view over Bung Ta Lua town lake.

I’d stayed here before and had already booked another stay, but when an event was postponed after the death of Queen Sirikit, I asked to move my booking two months later. They refused. I’m often in Korat and would have stayed many more nights, so their decision lost them a customer, and earned them this bad review. I could simply have postponed. That’s what I call great service. They clearly didn’t think it through. Very intelligent management 🤷‍♂️🤷‍♂️

The hotel is a bit removed from town, and supermarkets aren’t close. It’s across the road from Bung Ta Lua Park, which is why I chose it, though some park gates are locked at times. Then you have to walk a fair way to the main entrance along a tiny path crowded with trees. I had a spacious room with a balcony and a welcome insect screen door. The view of the area and the sunrise was lovely. The bed was very hard, but I still slept okay. The air conditioning was set to a strange mode and took a while to start working, and the TV lost reception entirely one day. Those would’ve been minor annoyances if the phone hadn’t been full of static too, which made the language barrier harder. Staff were very good and helped me get headache tablets and a taxi. The pool and restaurant seem to belong to separate properties, but they’re accessible once you know where to go. There’s a reasonable breakfast as well. All told, a pleasant stay.