Baanfah Resort Samui

Oh my god this place had gone way beyond our expectations. As for the price, I would give it a 12 out of 10. Highly recommend!

Perched in rm 120 overlooking the Gulf just metres away from my 2nd floor balcony, this is where you want to be for an intimate ocean beach experience. Large shady tree in front provided welcome relief from afternoon sun. Great spot to enjoy morning tea, reading, internet browsing, happy hr. (Good WiFi throughout). The narrow beach is raked/cleaned daily. The sea was clear most days; depth drops off fairly quickly and, at 26/27C, ideal for swimming! The on-grounds smallish pool was kept immaculate, although located uncomfortably close for my liking to the facing ‘beach front’ rooms (so no sense of privacy). The room itself was spacious, bright & modern. No ornamentation. No drawer storage for clothing. A bit Spartan. I complained about the hardness of the bed mattress, so the kind & cheerful housekeeping staff added a 2.5 cm padding cover, which helped. Roomy washroom with push-open window; glassed-in shower stall had excellent hot water pressure. TV was useless since the channel menu is very limited; no BBC, Al Jazeera, CNN, etc. On arrival Nov. 14, I negotiated an inclusive breakfast into my 26-night price w. the gracious manager, Pom, who also met & transferred me from the airport. At the time the hotel was undergoing expansion construction which included a bar/dining area and professional kitchen. Now that that work is complete the breakfast deficiencies I experienced -- cramped seating, virtually no selection variation, undrinkable coffee, bland unhealthy white bread -- presumably have been -- or soon will be -- rectified. (This experience brought my stay rating down a star.) If you opt for a non-incl. breakfast room rate, the Village restaurant across the lane serves up a superior & cheaper one (at least did so back in December); for something more upscale, try nearby About Café. I'd stay at Baan Fah again. Mae Nam Village is quiet but lots of restaurants, pubs/bars & other amenities within easy walking distance, incl: outstanding café & roastery Hachiya, spacious well-organized gym, good hair salon across from About Café, fab massage shop Nan Maenam. If you crave more excitement & adventure, you can rent a motorbike from the mom & pop bike shop nearby the hotel. Final word of praise to the entire Baan Fah staff... with special kudos to the saintly Neung at reception who helped make my stay so agreeable.

We only used it as a stopover so it was ideal and was convenient for airport.