The Surin Phuket

I would start with a "minor" plus: beach and sea are gorgeous. Pansea Beach is, in my point of view, the best beach of Phuket. No crowds, no rush, peaceful, very few jet sky, no people coming just to spend the day, only guests of The Surin and Amanpuri Hotel. It is unbelievable. I've seen other beaches in Phuket: very busty, lot of people, jet sky everywhere, in other words, a mess. The resort is gorgeous, room is spacious, more than clean, unbelievable view. The staff (and the service) is always attentive, nice, and ready to solve any questions or issues (by the way, thanks a lot, NUT - it is her name!!!). Restaurants: Thai restaurant is the best one: classy, elegant, top quality, almost with "les pieds dans l'eau". Beach Side Restaurant is very very good: lot of choices, quality very high, service top. Sunset Restaurant: almost western style and dishes, with somehow fusion with Thai/Eastern flavors; in any event same opinion: TOP. We had the "half board package", and to be fair, I am not sure that the price is worth it. To be considered if you want to have always 3 selections every time, otherwise better to use the normal menu items and prices. Outside the resort (walking distance) there are some restaurants that look ok, but never tried them. The location is quite close (in any event please consider the crazy traffic in Phuket!!!) to all attractions of the island. We had a rental car, and in my point of view this was the right choice (if you are brave enough to drive over there; I am used to drive in Italy - Naples, Rome, Catania - and I was "almost" prepared, but Phuket is even worse). Only very minor issue are the long steps up and down to reach the lobby from the room and viceversa, while our room was close to the beach. No problem for us (still in a quite good shape) but I can understand that people with walking issues may have some troubles, even is there are carts to bring you quite close to the room (but not always). To conclude: in my point of view a wonderful resort, perfect location, super staff, restaurants top level. This will be my choice when I am back to Phuket. Thanks The Surin.

Booked a Beach Suite but both my husband & I & our friends were given suites behind the water sports area and next to the beach service desk. We had beach personnel walking past our ‘private’ balcony all day and they could see directly into our bedroom. We kept our curtains drawn for the whole 4 days we were there. We all requested to be moved but the only options offered were Pool Villas for the same rack rate as advertised on the website. The Beach Suites only cost slightly less than the Pool Villas so this was appalling customer service. The beach is undoubtedly beautiful and we enjoyed taking a beach walk each morning. The rooms themselves are small and although comfortable, there is no real wow factor. We would obviously never return, way too many exceptional hotels in Thailand to choose from. We came from Six Senses Yao Noi (see separate review) which was in a different league.

We absolutely loved our stay at the Surin Hotel for our honeymoon. The staff was incredibly helpful and kind, starting and ending with Mang at the airport with exceptional service. The welcome drinks and honeymoon flowers were spectacular and, although we had an issue with the original room given a ceiling leak, the team was quick to place us in a new room. There are a LOT of stairs, but we found the rooms to be so secluded and private. The food and food service was delightful, the amenities at the beach and pool were enjoyable and always available, and the spa treatments were great. Everything was excellent and we would love to return again. The room service was spectacular and very clean. My only note would have been to spend more time here.

great hotel. beach for 2 hotels. hotel is of course old, but they try to keep the hotel in good condition. staff works well especially at breakfast and at reception. many thanks to girls Nana at breakfast and Tuang at reception. for me the downside is that dinner is from 18:30. We can't have dinner that late, we were forced to go to Laguna.

There are many great things about the hotel. We loved the restaurants and the pool is wonderful. The big draw here is the beach which is absolutely beautiful. Clearly that’s the main selling point of the hotel, but because that’s so lovely it feels like other areas are left lacking. The rooms are basic in their decor for this price point, and the accommodation itself doesn’t compete well with other hotels in this bracket. The rooms also lack private outdoor space, as while there are two seats outside, everyone can see you. We also found people could see into our windows. The pricing structure is also quite bizarre. It seems that all the rooms are actually the same, but the reason you pay more for a Superior, Deluxe etc is based purely on location in the resort. We booked a Hillside Villa - we didn’t mind the distance away from the beach and LOTS of steps - and it was advertised as being “amongst the treetops” and offering “the most tranquility and privacy”. Our room did not reflect this - we were given a room that was right next to a busy road that was very noisy, and then when we asked to move we were offered one that was next to the same road just closer to the car park (even worse!). When we explained that a quiet room was important to us, hence why we’d booked the room that had promised that, we were told that we would only be moved if we paid an upgrade fee. This fee was more than was being advertised on the website for the same room, although we eventually managed to argue that down a bit. It was all very unfortunate, a bit embarrassing, and also confusing because once we paid the upgrade fee the room we were given was identical, just in the quieter location that we already thought we had booked. It was on a hill and didn’t have a sea view or anything, it’s what you could call a Hillside Villa! I strongly believe the Hillside Villa we originally booked is advertised incorrectly. I’ve emailed the manager about this who said they have reviewed it, but as of today the description remains on the website. I appreciate his response, but we’ve still been charged the upgrade fee, and I believe other travellers should be aware that if they book the Hillside Villa they may not end up receiving that and could be next to a noisy car park. As well as being offered a dud room, we also felt disappointed that the sunbeds on the beach all seemed to be reserved for guests that knew the staff, or were there a long time. Yes, we were only spending a few days there, but we felt we should have been given the same access. The reservation system seems unfair - how can someone block out beds for two weeks, but then they sit empty for days at a time while others struggle to find space? It doesn’t work. We also found the overall service approach to be fine, but less friendly and efficient than in the other hotels we stayed in. Perhaps it’s because we were only staying a few days and it seems catered towards guests who return year after year. To end on positives - the Beach restaurant really is lovely. The food is brilliant and the setting is perfect. Overall the atmosphere of the hotel is calm and peaceful. If a beautiful beach is your main concern then this could be the place for you as it really is stunning, it just comes at a cost to other aspects of the day in comparison to other hotels.