This is a lovely resort looking on to the beach, just outside the very busy tourist town of Khao Lak. We stayed here for six nights recently, but even though it was the peak holiday season, it never felt too crowded, as there was plenty of space to spread out.
The hotel can arrange for a pickup service from Phuket airport; the journey took about 80 minutes. The reception staff, were, like all the other staff, nothing less than than charming, and instantly made us feel at home.
Our spotlessly clean room was on the ground floor, with its own deck, which could be reached from the gardens. There was plenty of storage, and the spaciousness could be further enhanced by folding back one wall of the bathroom to merge it into the bedroom, if desired, The well designed bathroom included a tasteful jacuzzi bath.
Breakfasts were very good, with a wide selection of Eastern & Western dishes. We also ate at Sassi's a couple of times: the food was very good , and prices competitive. I can't say the same of the Mellow Bean, which served up a weird sandwich and Caesar salad.
In fact, you are spoilt for choice when it comes to food. Taking a few steps along the beach or down the road outside the hotel will bring you to dozens of reasonably priced restaurants serving delicious Thai or Western food. There are also numerous bespoke tailors, money changers, massage parlours, and travel agencies attempting to sell day trips to the Similan Islands (don't bother - on my dive boat I was chatting to a man whose wife had ended up on a smallish island beach with 700 other sun-seekers). If you get bored with the local eateries, Khao Lak is just a 5-minute taxi ride away.
My only criticism of the Ramada is its tsunami evacuation procedure. Although there are clear signs at the bottom of stairs indicating the tsunami evacuation points, I have severe doubts about whether they'd be used. At about 12:15am one night, the alarms went off, and all the guests ran into the corridor. A trio of security guards, dressed like soldiers in a banana republic, ran around like headless chickens. No-one told us anything, so we just stood around. Our neighbours rang reception, who said they didn't know anything either. Finally, the alarms stopped, and we returned to our rooms (I had to ask one of the giggling guards: 'OK?'). Not a thing was said the next day, and we were leaving anyway, so didn't pursue it. We later found out that there had been a 7.3 magnitude earthquake in Sumatra.
I really enjoyed my stay at the Ramada, and would have given it a perfect score, if not for the confusion described above.
- Ramada Hotel Khao Lak
- Ramada Khao Lak
- Khao Lak Ramada
