Rayong City Hotels with Balcony

How do I even begin! I went to Koh Samet with no expectations, but Le Vimarn Cottages & Spa is supposedly the second-best resort on the island. My overall impression wasn't great, mainly due to how the resort handled the broken air conditioning in our bungalow on the first day. We took a private car from downtown Bangkok to Ao Prao Pier (the hotel's private pier, which has its own lounge). Following the resort's email instructions, we boarded the 1:30 PM boat to the resort, which took about 15 minutes. The welcome drink upon arrival was quite good. The resort isn't very large, and there weren't many guests. When we discovered the AC was broken, we immediately contacted housekeeping. From housekeeping to engineering to the front desk, and then to Ctrip, we spent an hour in the sweltering room and outside before finally being moved to another room. It seemed like Ctrip had to intervene to resolve the issue before the front desk staff led us to our new room... The whole process was incredibly frustrating due to the heat! Later, the front desk found me on the beach and offered us an upgraded room. I went to see it but declined, as it was quite dark inside, and I prefer bright, airy rooms when I'm on vacation. She told me the room would be held for us if we changed our minds. Because I didn't move, the front desk came to find me again on the beach and offered a complimentary pizza as compensation. This proactive attitude was a definite plus. We stayed at Le Vimarn for three nights. The rooms are simple, Thai-style wooden bungalows. The 1.8-meter bed was just right for a family of three. The mini-bar is chargeable. If you're visiting Koh Samet, remember to bring a filtered shower head. Breakfast was pretty much the same every day, but it tasted good. We had dinner at Buzz once, and the food was good, but with a 10% service charge and 7% tax, it ended up being a bit expensive! The resort is a 15-minute drive from the main street (where the 7-Eleven is, 200 baht one-way). The front desk can arrange a taxi. Later, we rented a scooter, which we could park on a slope about a 2-minute walk from the front desk. I scraped my foot on a coral reef while swimming, and the front desk provided basic first aid. For the last two days, we stayed at Paradee Resort, which is a sister hotel to Le Vimarn, so they offered a free transfer. However, if you're traveling with kids, I'd highly recommend Paradee Resort – the environment, facilities, and staff are all much better.

The resort is beautiful and the location is excellent. The rooms are clean, and room service is convenient. The natural environment is lovely; we often saw squirrels running around. However, the room facilities are quite basic. The bathroom didn't have hot water, and the bedside lamp and door lock were broken. The staff were generally friendly, but not particularly enthusiastic. We rarely experienced proactive or smiling service. On the way to our room, no golf cart offered to help with our luggage. When we asked to use a sun lounger at the private beach, the attendant surprisingly said, 'I don't know,' and we never saw any guests using the sun loungers there. We ate twice at Winkks, and the staff at the entrance never greeted us or proactively showed us to a table. When they found out we didn't have a reservation, they immediately said there was no availability, even though there were clearly two unoccupied tables indoors that hadn't been reserved. They only seated us after we explicitly said we could eat inside. The front desk staff on check-out day were quite good, but the overall service compared to other places in Thailand was pretty average. Overall, it's an unremarkable resort. If I return to Koh Samet, I would consider other hotels in the same price range.

Facilities: The hotel has a restaurant and offers massages. Although the sea-view bungalow I booked wasn't very big, the view was great, and the ecological environment was lovely. Hygiene: The hygiene conditions were quite good, and staff were cleaning the path to the room both morning and evening. Environment: The environment is actually very good. It's excellent for watching the sunrise, and there's a beach right in front. At low tide, there are plenty of crabs and fish. The only downside is the bar at the neighboring hotel, which played loud music past midnight, disturbing my rest. Service: Overall, the service was good. They helped with luggage, and both check-in and check-out were very fast.

Excellent location! The beach is fantastic! The breakfast was good with a sea view! We stayed in a standard bungalow, which was a bit dirty and old. The soundproofing was poor – we could hear coconuts falling on the roof all night and birds chirping. The grounds were a bit dismal. In the evening, we encountered two small snakes, and our child almost stepped on one, so definitely bring a flashlight and watch your step! I heard that the suites and family villas are nicer and look newer. Overall, it's budget-friendly and livable! There's also a fire show in the evening.

At first was skeptical to book because many reviews regarding climbing up hill, turned out it was not an issue for me, it’s a nicely paved easy climb however, it could be challenging if you have back or knee problems. My stay considered lucky and excellent to have met this front desk lady, she was undoubtedly friendly and helpful. Detached chalet so no worries about noise next door, but in general the resort is quiet, everyone minds their own business, with only bird chirping. The surrounding is very green with well maintained plants, an oasis and I like it. The facade of the chalets is modern and clean looking with clean white and black finish. Every chalet has a big balcony but be mindful of mosquitoes in the evening. Room was clean, beautiful ambiance lighting feel luxury, comfy bed, and bathroom was spacious with ambiance lighting that I could do push up and yoga, nice touch of wall and tiles’ colours in the bathroom too. Amenities such as toilet roll, dental kits, hand soap, body wash, shampoo and conditioner are provided. Good water pressure TV comes with Thai channels only, not a problem for me as most of the time I’m on my phone and book. WiFi is strong and fast. The beach and the sea is clearly visible when walking down the stairs already, lovely! 1 beach towel is provided each guest per day. Privacy? Just close the curtain. 2 bottles of water and 3 in 1 coffee provided everyday, the water boiler was old but works well. 7-11/walking street within 7-10 minutes walk, from the pier within 15-20 minutes walk.

After booking, I wrote them over Trip.com, but never got an answer. When we went there personally to ask the day before check-in, the front-desk lady ripped my phone out of my hand without asking, to “check the booking”. We checked in into a room on the first floor, which was in front of a shallow pool. Room was spacious, with the bathroom divided in three sections. In the toilet section, the window can’t be opened, and there is no ventilator. There is a safety box, a beach bag, two umbrellas, a fridge, a kettle, and even a Nespresso machine. However, even though there are two cups and two glasses, there is only one capsule of Americano and one capsule of Espresso, and you have to buy the water, rather expensively, at the bar. There is no laundry rack on the porch or balcony. Bedsheets were spotless, but the bed was wet, hence we woke the next morning feeling like we’d slept on the beach. There are no bedside lights. In the next room, the huge TV was dangerously dangling off its 360° stand, and the balcony was dirty, with only the bathtub being spotless. They have few employees and many managers, with the employees doing what they can for many hours a day. Breakfast options are very limited for people with a plant-based diet. Beach towels are not always available at the pool area. However, the white-sand beach is easily accessible, and there are many butterflies and birds around the property. It is very romantic and nature-bound.

First off, the environment is nice, and the staff are all very good, especially the one who helped us with the small boat for snorkeling. Secondly, the pier is extremely far from the hotel, and there's no shuttle service – no pickup, no drop-off. A songthaew costs 500 Thai baht one way. There are no convenience stores nearby, so you're stuck at the hotel for all your food and drink, but the hotel food is really bad. There wasn't enough conditioner in the room. I called the front desk, and they told me they didn't have any conditioner. How can a hotel costing over 2000 RMB a night not have conditioner??? Good environment, but service needs improvement.

So good that I have to go back again. Quiet, very beautiful room, lovely maid, private garden to sit and relax in the morning, two large and small showers are very good, big TV, very good wifi, 7-Eleven, food, dry cleaning are just a short walk away to Sai Kaew Beach. Next time I will stay at only this place.

Amazing beach hotel with a perfect location right next to the beach! The room was very nice and clean, and the interior looked modern and beautiful. Everything inside the room was well arranged and comfortable, making the stay very relaxing. Waking up with the beach view and being just steps away from the sea was the best part. Great atmosphere, friendly service, and highly recommended for a beach getaway!

Great location on the beach. The beds are comfortable and the air con works perfectly. One thing to keep in mind, very rarely will they replace your empty toilet paper roll. I have stayed here twice and had to go to the lobby to ask for a new roll for a total of three times. I suggest stopping by the lobby when you come back from the beach (after housekeeping has been done), so you don't go to your room and find out there's no toilet paper the hard way. They will also ”usually ” replace your towels, but this time they just took them without giving a fresh ones in return. While this may all be bad for some, I now know what to ask for in advance, so I wouldn't mind staying again.