Great and Relaxing

my husband and i loved our 5-day stay at thailife! we stayed in a huge villa overlooking the small lake. we biked to the beach down a short path (4 min. bike ride) or they offer free transport when available. on the second day we did an amazing day trip to tachai island with sea star (will also write a review for that) and would highly recommend it. very quiet beach, although rough water, and the sand was on the course side. it was very relaxing reading or napping under the umbrellas. good and reasonably priced thai and oil massages in huts on the beach. about 30 minutes from khao lak beach area if you have transport you can go there for the action (food and shopping). otherwise, it is in a remote area with not much going on if you are looking for a quiet getaway. the hotel offers free bikes for your ride to the beach (but bike supply is limited and there is not enough if the resort is full). the coconut ice cream was the best and highly recommended.

to be fair, i will also list the downsides:

1) food service and food quality
2) room was difficult to cool down (big and poorly insulated)
3) shower was luke warm and never got hot
4) no pool
5) my bike was taken on the second day (couldn't figure out by whom but the resort was full and most likely taken by hotel staff for another guest)

to elaborate on the food service, the servers were really inefficient and food often takes a long time to prepare. once you get the food, the servers never check up on you therefore leaving you to get up and ask for dessert or additional drinks, etc.

overall, the staff are friendly and try to meet all your needs. they will arrange day trips, transportation, and try to help you in any way they can. smiles all around. overall wonderful trip and we would go back for a quiet piece of paradise!!