Visited for our honeymoon from 26 to 30 April.
Overall we had a memorable and most satisfactory experience.

Accomodation: Clean, spacious superior room. DVD player and free Internet access a definite plus! Location of the room was very convenient. I also liked the balcony with the rooftop fan.

Location: A secluded romantic place with all basic facilities outside the hotel within a reasonable walking distance (a mini market, restaurants, atm etc). You need transport to go to other places in Ko Lanta if you wish, and my advice is to hire a car directly rather through the hotel. A trip from Pimalai to Sala Daan cost us 400BHT with a driver we hired ourselves vs 900BHT that the hotel charged.

Beach: Huge, very nice beach. The sea had a lot of waves due to the tide when we visited, so the water was mixed with sand, but I had a lot of fun body-surfing! Guys at the beach hut were very friendly.

Food: Only tried the Spice 'n' rice restaurant. Very nice Thai food albeit somewhat expensive for Thailand standards. Alternative cheap restaurants closeby, but a visit at Spice is definitely worth it. Breakfast was excellent offering a satisfactory variety of western and eastern cuisine.

Staff: Very helpful and welcoming. Most of the people can handle normal conversations relevant to your stay, however there is a chance that if you want something peculiar you might need to speak to someone else.

Facilities: Absolutely fantastic. Library, gym, spa and pools (especially the new one) are top-class and by themselves worth every penny you spend at the hotel. Can't recommend them high enough.

Activities: Depend on the wheather, so be sure to check conditions if you intend to visit the hotel for scuba diving, snorkelling etc as you might be disapointed. Elephant trekking fun but not something to write home about, Thai cooking class yummy!

I do not know occupancy of the hotel at the period we went there (end of season), but most of the time it felt like we had it for ourselves! During high season pool beds could get a bit crowded as we saw it.

Overall, highly recommended for couples, but not if you are on a budget.

we have just returned from 11 day stay at the pimalai- and having read some of the articles prior going out- i was somewhat apprehensive.however -- i would like to say what an amazing time my husband and i had there, so much so i felt i had to write this reveiw.

yes- i agree with other reveiws that the pimalai is expensive re food and drink by thai standards, but in fairness,the setting of the restaurants/bars- esp th e new seven seas restauarant is truly stunning and worth the extra money you pay. the good thing about the location of the hotel- is that there are other options for food/drink nearby on the beach- no more than 10/15 mins walk away-- offering authentic thai food, in beautiful settings, and at very cheap prices.so u can have the option of eating for roughly 6-7 poundsfor 2 people , you are not only limited to whats on offer at the pimalai. some of the older restaurants at the resort did have a more european feel to them, but i guess all tastes need to be caterd for.

certainly the newer part of the resort - the bars/restaurant ( seven seas restaurant and bar, and banyan tree cafe) and lobby area definitely retained a thai feel to theplace- and this area could not be faulted at all.the views from the seven seas rest/terrace area were fantastic, as was the newer, huge infinity pool in this part of the resort.we certainly had no poblems in using any of these facilities.

re accomadation- we stayed in the newer 1 bedroom pool villas- which i think is def worth the extra money. you certainly get a more exclusive feel to the resort, being set higher in the hills, with the rewards of breathtaking views of the bay from thevilla. our private pool was good size, and the villa itself was very spacious. we loved it., and i would certainly stay there again.the villas were probably no more than 5-10 mins walk from the main lobby- but if this was too much- buggies were available very quickly to transport you there, around the rest of the resort , and to the beach etc
.
the service we received was honestly second to none- staff were extremely friendly, nothing was too much trouble,and everything done with a smile.

so all in all-- im very pleased to say that we had a really lovely stay at the pimalai- and would definitly stay there again.i would certainly recommend this place , but i would advise staying in the newer part of the resort. some areas of the older part of the hotel seemed dated, and a bit worn. also i would advise venture out of the hotel to eat/drink--- the beach bars/and other restaurants on the beach were great- and at least 4-5 times cheaper than at the hotel.some of our faves was the same same but different restaurant, and the kantiang bay restaurant-- very romantic tables on the beach, daily fresh fish-- superb!

the pimalai is a luxury hotel, and the service,as expected from such a place--faultless.we cant wait to go back!

We'd read mixed reviews but went on the recommendation of a friend. My wife and I were looking for a quiet, relaxing (preferably luxurious) and friendly place to unwind from a busy time. We were very happy with the 4 nights we had there.
All of the staff were very friendly and nothing was too much trouble. They took time to talk to us and look after our requests and, sometimes, came up with extras themselves (eg we had dinner in the room one night and the manager suggested a dish not on that menu as he thought we'd enjoy it.)
The place was not full -- and we didn't have the experience of another reviewer of anything being closed for the owners --so I guess I can't say if our experience of such personal service is the norm or not -- I hope it is!
We loved the pool villas --plenty of room, very comfortable, a great view (from some a little better than others) , your own plunge - pool and verandah. There were no problems getting a buggy (and sometimes walking) to and from the beach areas.
The other room types looked good too -- just as described on the web.
If privacy is what you're looking for, you can see from parts of pool villas to other verandahs and sometimes to part of another pool. That's probably fair enough, but some of the villas on the end of each group on a corner(some are still being built) seem quite open to the road (or in one case to the library/internet room). Some people would be fine with that I'm sure but,given the price, I probably would have asked to be moved from one of the corner ones if we'd ended up in one as they are currently set up.
Unlike some reviewers, we liked the food and, again, all the staff were happy to give some background to it. (They weren't too forthcoming about the practicality of purchasing food elsewhere to make our own meals -- an experience of others too, I think -- but we weren't really looking to do that so we didn't press it.)
Overall then if you're looking for a very polished, big 5 star hotel service, or a uniquely Thai spot, this is probably not for you. But if you're looking for a very comfortable and very friendly place to relax in a great setting, that was what we found!

We stayed at the Pimalai for three nights in late January 2006. It's just not worth the money. The food is horrible, except for breakfast, which was very good. I agree with lots of other reviews that it's not Thai enough, that the Thai food there is not good, and that the other food isn't good either. The rooms are lovely, we stayed in a beachfront villa. The pool is nice too. I just didn't like the feel of the place, and I thought that the service was pretentious, not genuine...as if I was at a five star resort anywhere. I love Thai culture and Thai service. I will say the spa was lovely, and the treatments were good. If I were the Pimalai, I'd rethink the food, and the feel of the place. We go to Thailand for Thai culture and food, not a resort in Thailand that feels like you're in Maui...but with bad food.