At Sea Patong

Gelap dan mengerikan, hindari dengan segala cara. Stafnya tidak berguna. Saya pindah kamar 3 kali. Ini diiklankan di web tetapi gambarnya tidak benar dan manajer Filipina mengatakan bahwa mereka menggunakan foto lain. Segera check out secepatnya. Harap hindari dengan segala cara. Sangat kecewa karena mereka tidak pernah mencoba membantu dan hotel tersebut diiklankan secara keliru.

Another Thailand scam, pretty perfectly orchestrated. Beautiful pictures, great price, positive reviews. But the pictures show the state from some years ago. It’s dirty and bad maintained, full of mold and digusting stains. As we had a chance to „live“ in two of their rooms, I can assure that at least for these two rooms. First, they gave us the room next to their maintenance room, where the water-pump for the whole complex is making loud and mean noises all day and night. Renting this room out to guests at all is an insult in itself, but in the zero-sum-game world of Phuket, nothing is off-limits. Imagine a washing machine in your bedroom, tumbling for sometimes seconds and sometimes minutes, yet without predictable pattern. After we complained - which did not seem like a new situation for the hotel - we were asked to wait for another night. We did. Then we were moved to another room in a kind of „mission impossible“ fashion. All of a sudden, the managing lady stood in our room poining finger out and saying „move now! 30 minutes!“. It was clear that they attempted to move the next guest into this hole (with a beautiful view, yes). The other room was not better. An AC wall mount that was probably last time maintained in the late 90‘s is buzzing all day and night on the outside wall. As that was not the AC which belonged to our room, we could not even turn it off, accepting quiteness over coolness. Neighbors on ***** smoking pot all day and night don’t allow the use of the terrace if one does not get high from second-smoke. That may be cool for people that like to get high, we just don’t want to. After all complaints fell on deaf ears, we decided to move out. With ten days left we offered them to refund us five days, to reduce the stress on both ends, but they refused. I could go on with details, but if it has to be just a one-sentence advise from someone who has traveled a lot and is fine with most conditions: Don’t book there - beware. Rather go somewhere where the view is less beautiful but they don’t lie.

At Sea Patong is right on Tri Trang Beach. I took literally 60 steps down the stairs to come to the most beautiful beach. It's unusual because it is very quiet, for Phuket. That's because at low tide the reef and rock pools make it difficult to swim, while at high tide it's cut off from public access. This makes it the most perfect, quiet, untouched paradise of a beach you could ever wish to find. And if you're a good swimmer, you can swim out to the edge of the bay where the reef snorkelling is spectacular. The At Sea hotel has its challenges: the stairs are steep and not recommended if you are unfit, elderly or disabled. The place is secluded and has no dining facilities, so you should plan to bring your own food in, or eat out at nearby restaurants. A 7-11 supermarket is a short walk away; however your own transport, either scooter or car is recommended. Taxis can be called (and I would highly recommend their choice, Mr Manit Sriket, who was incredibly kind and helpful). All of this is balanced by the view, the peace and quiet, the stunning surroundings and the perfect accommodation - large rooms, spacious balcony, big bathroom and shower space. Everything was immaculately clean and serviced daily. So, in summary, highly recommended for adventurous and resourceful travellers who are open to challenges and looking for Paradise!