I have travelled extensively in this area & stayed at some fine accommodation. I would rank this as amongst the best todate. The quality & design of this resort is ceratinly at the + edge of being very special. Food selection & service was superb. The staff appeared hand selected, as they were well in front of my every need. Friendly, efficient but not in your face as is sometimes the case in these resort.

We are planning a return to Phuket later this year. We will again be staying at Sala Phuket, we were that impressed.

We stayed at the Sala Phuket in the last couple of weeks for 10 days on a full board basis in one of the pool villas. Firstly I have to say the hotel is beautiful - a fantastic location with the most beautiful, uninhabited beach - this is not a place to go if you want hustle and bustle but for seclusion you can't fault it! Staff on reception were fantastic and could not have been more helpful, the villa was stunning and having our own pool and sun loungers was amazing. The gym was well equiped. The hotel pools were stunning and the service in the beach side bar was brilliant - there's a lot to be said for watching the sun go down with a watermelon martini in your hand.! It wasn't all good though - the service in the restaurant was nothing like as slick as the girls on reception and in the bar - one of our party was vegetarian and there was only 1 meal on the entire restaurant menu that was suitable - we were told that the menu was fixed!! I spoke with the duty manager who was very helpful and arranged a menu for the following day (he was also very apologetic giving us a complementary bottle of wine - nice touch) which solved the problem for a couple of days but we were soon forgotten - we got so frustrated that we stopped using the restaurant, opting for in-room dining (incidentally a superb service) - one thing to note is that when the food eventually arrived, the quality was excellent. The maid service, although largely good, was a bit hit and miss - we had, on a number of occasions, no towels, toilet rolls and / or robes!! Also, a thing to note is the wildlife around the restaurant - the flies were really intrusive - great setting, beautiful views to eat dinner by but the experience was slightly compromised by the local wildlife!! Also, the beach, whilst stunning, was inhabited by hundreds of crabs which made sunbathing listening to the sound of waves crashing at your feet impossible (unless you want to risk your under-carriage being nipped by them little fellas!)! The rooftop dining was not possible throughout our stay as a result of the flies and mosquitos - those that tried it were eaten alive!! Whilst the villa privacy was laregly uninterupted, we found that hanging "do not disturb" on the door meant we were phoned throughout the day (I guess this could have been avoided if we had told reception not to call but you assume right.....?). In short, Sala Phuket charge a 5 star price for what, given our experience in any case, isn't quite a 5 star service - they're close and maybe given a few months (remember this is a very new hotel) they'll get it right. I expected to completely unwind in paradise but found that the resort, whilst marketing themselves as 5 star opulence, didn't quite deliver which had the effect of taking the sparkle off of what should have been complete escapism given the £4.5k price tag put on our stay.

My husband and I stayed at the Sala Phuket for a week in Dec/Jan. We have stayed in various hotels in Thailand (Evason - Hua Hin, Tubkaak - Krabi, Le Meridien - Khao Lak) and I was very excited by the prospect of staying at the Sala Phuket.

Positives: the location is beautiful, the swimming pools are amazing (our pool villa had all day sun), the staff are very friendly, the food is great and relatively good value in relation to other hotels I have stayed in.

Negatives: this is very British but I didn't like the outside toilet - as I was pregnant I had to go to the toilet at least 3 times a night and it was a pain having to go outside. The service was a little bit of a let down - the staff are really friendly but the service is not 5 star slick yet - we found the cleaning service a little awkward - I even called housekeeping to let them know we were going out for a few hours mid morning - when we returned the room hadn't been cleaned. Checking out was the biggest disappointment - although a pre check out bill had been delivered the previous evening which was accurate - when we came to check out the the bill was incorrect and didn't reflect our deposit, we were accused of breaking an ash tray in the room and we were charged for mini bar items we didn't consume. The whole experience was very cheap and I felt annoyed that whilst handing over £2000 for a week's stay - a 90 baht Singha beer from the mini bar was being quibbled over.

Stayed 30 Dec-6 Jan, 1 BR pool villa #65.

Last year we stayed at Sila Evason Hideway, Koh Samui (see review) and this year we stayed at the sister resorts Sala Phuket and Sala Samui (see review). All 3 resorts have very high standards although Sila Evason has the most distinguishing characteristics and service. Also Sala villas have no views while at the Sila Evason villa we enjoyed the most breathtaking ocean view and sunsets.

If you are honeymooners or just looking for a quiet and relaxing place to spend your holidays, Sala Phuket could be your dream destination! However be aware, it is an isolated location and it will take you 30 minutes by car to reach closest area for selection of restaurants or bars (JW Marriot is nearby, but would not say it is an option). But hey! The food at Sala Phuket is excellent (Chef Jan does a brilliant job!) and the cocktails are as good as anywhere. Eventually spa will be up running and they have a modern well equipped gym. So it is perfectly safe to stay. We arrived a couple of weeks after the “soft” opening, and unfortunately we had some bad experience with the service. Staff was friendly but unorganized. They are lacking good English speaking concierge and front desk staff. Too often problems with the language barriers, which we know is a common issue in Thailand. No doubt it will be rectified but my personal guess is that it will take another 4-6 months. On the other hand, it is an absolutely gorgeous hotel. Stunning architecture; smooth, soft and modern design. Water is one key design factor which is beautifully visualized already when entering the hotel. The villas are private, elegant, large and with all necessary amenities and high tech features. Plenty of wardrobe space. Lovely outdoor bathroom with a large bathtub and swimming pool. Big nicely appointed tropical garden with private sala and sunbathing deck. Regretfully our villa was always in the shade and we were not able to fully enjoy the sun loungers. The main pool areas are heaven with very comfortable sun beds. It is about 30 meters to the magnificent Mai Khao beach which is a protected area and therefore no construction, no vendors and, honestly, no people. Just clean and wonderful, for many kilometres. You must experience the roof top dining where you sit surrounded by water. The beach bar with its daybeds is another must. Enjoy an afternoon cocktail in one of the several swings suspended from the trees infront of the ocean. If we are in need to unwind we would definitely come back here! When service improve, this resort will get maximum rating!