About the hotel - consists of two buildings and each has its own pool with a children's area in the form of a wide step, if, so to speak. As for nutrition - breakfast is an egg - fried eggs and an omelet with mushrooms, cheese or ham to choose from. Not thick, but no more, and the name says - apartments! This is not Turkey ultra all inclusive.
The room was provided clean, the kitchen is also clean, towels, soap, etc. are available.
As for the replacement of towels - at least change every day - with scissors at the reception top-top and no problem! Change of linen once a week, but we were changed every three days approximately (both you to them, and they to you)
As for the location - across the road from the Centara Grand Mirage, it’s really a 5-minute walk to the beach, 10 minutes to the tuk-tuk on foot, 15-20 minutes to the dolphins (best market).
I read negative reviews here, mostly from the ladies - the drivers are not 5 minutes from the beach - bullshit!
Breakfast sucks - yes, it is almost everywhere in Thailand, you probably saved money - you didn’t dare to go to 5 stars, but you compare it with Turkish buffets, I suppose! I'm not picky - breakfast suited me just fine! The whole point of Thailand is food outside the hotel!
Drivers need to drag the mattresses to the sunbeds - the fact is that wooden sunbeds and mattresses are kept separately due to high humidity, but..... it will not be difficult to move the mattress, although friendly Thais offered to bring me a mattress, it was great for me on a wooden sunbed!
I also read about entertainment and a fitness room - are you out of your mind ?? ? What kind of entertainment in the hotel, in which you actually come to relax ?? ? There is a swimming pool - that's enough! If you want entertainment, animators, etc. , then you are in Turkey or any other country with all inclusive!
Bottom line - a 3 star hotel! Quiet place. The rooms are decent, the staff is friendly, the cleaning of the rooms is quite satisfactory! There is no Wi-Fi - I compensated with Thai mobile Internet - the prices do not bite at all! There is a market right next to the hotel. Taxi is also nearby, but someone was bombing, thirsty to rip off in exorbitant prices, but there are also honest guys, I met one honest one - I rode with him. So it all depends on you - Taylan is definitely not a hotel holiday, do not compare. While you smile at the Thais, they smile at you! Tips, chocolate. . . all this will only improve your comfortable stay in any hotel - remember! All the best!
The hotel has its own beautiful territory, a lot of greenery, there are some living creatures, the children loved to go and look at the peacock. Geckos come running (small lizards, absolutely safe). If you don’t put something in the refrigerator, then ants will come. There were not many residents at all, only Russian speakers, there were no Chinese, and this is a plus, I saw how they gathered in a noisy crowd at a nearby hotel, I would not want to be close to them. The kitchen has everything you need for self-cooking, tiles, pots and pans. The rooms are spacious and cleaned regularly. Furniture and furnishings can be called "like in the country", that is, tired and without frills. The staff is very friendly and if you need anything they try to help. Despite our English at the level of elementary grades, there were no difficulties in communication, the hotel staff are very good at explaining sign language, drawings)) the main thing is that you have a desire to understand each other.
The hotel is well located for families with children - it’s quiet in the area (not the center), and close (to the center), and the beach is nearby (once at the beginning of the 2000s, my friend and I lived in Long Beach, it’s almost nearby, and then, of course, in the morning it was not sugar to get from Volkin Street, then this area was a village at all). Walking to the sea is very close. Nearby is the Centara hotel, where you can go for a walk for a change, a large territory, but they didn’t let us into it from the sea, they asked for guest cards, if you want to go through, it’s better from the main entrance. True, there were difficulties with the sea, in the daytime there was a large ebb, so during the day you can say the buoys are knee-deep, and it’s the same on Koh Lan, only the water and sand are much cleaner.
The infrastructure around the hotel is sufficient (compared to what it was), there are several 7/12 shops, a bunch of hawkers, carts with all kinds of fruits and Thai cooking. We bought food either at Best Supermarket or Big C or Tesco, the distance is about the same. Best is the closest, there are many products familiar to us (pickled cucumbers, sour cream, cottage cheese, dumplings, so those who miss “our” or with children can buy goods there).
Were at the seafood market, the choice is chic, all living things are floundering in the stalls. The water in the stalls is ankle-deep, the smell of fish for 100 meters! I especially appreciated the king prawns (250 baht per kg).
We moved mainly on a public tuk-tuk, you need to get to the road, and then get into a dark blue car, with a body in the back, in which 2 benches are installed, under the ceiling of the bell button - stop on demand, where you need to exit, clicked, silently left, went to the driver's window and gave the money, at the rate of 10 baht per person (to travel towards the center, you need to cross the road, since the traffic is on the left). The tuk tuk goes to the fountain, which everyone calls “Dolphins” and turns left onto Severnaya Street, drives past the Best Supermarket store, reaches the U-turn, and goes back “to the dolphins”, since you won’t get to the center right away along the ring, makes a loop. True, at this moment (a U-turn on Severnaya Street), a Russian-speaking person panics that they went the wrong way, so they basically write that they need to go to the center with a transfer. After the “pirouette” on the North, the tuk-tuk rides along the beach street along the sea “in the heart of Pattaya”. If you need "Tesco", then at the turn you need to get out and go further, 400 meters, if "Big C" - then go out on the Dolphins and go straight along Second Street, against the traffic.
But Thailand is not only a hotel and shops - it is also a varied excursion program and I wanted to see this wonderful country again. There are much more excursions now than 10 years ago. And they are conducted by Russian guides, our previous vacation was accompanied by a Thai who did not speak Russian very well. This time we were accompanied by Russian guides. When we went to the River Kwai, our guide was Alena, I can’t understand at all how you can talk for 2 whole days. There was also a tour to Cambodia, Discovery and Nong Nooch Tropical Garden. Cambodia really impressed us! True, the children were a little tired of the road. Discovery is a very rich tour, I especially liked the Khao Kheo Zoo. We ordered all excursions from a Russian guide who lives here, on the advice of our friends who have already used his services. We decided not to contact the operator, because even before the trip we had read unflattering reviews about their work. In general, our guides in the hotel are bred to the fullest, vtyuhivaya all in triporogo. Special thanks to Alexander, he always helped us with deed and advice. When our child got sick, he came to our hotel, called the insurance in Russia himself, explained to us where the hospital was and how everything would happen, he was always in touch. Respect for this. For the tour, which we could not go on (planned by Siam Park), due to the illness of the child, he returned the money to us in full. It's nice that there are people in another country that you can rely on.
Thailand conquers, the most important criteria for recreation are perfectly combined here - warm sea, hot sun, tropical nature and hospitable people. The hotel is wonderful, you feel comfortable and cozy in it. We promised ourselves to repeat the rest here in the near future.
The pool is open only until 20.00, then sanitary cleaning begins. Swimming after this hour is in principle forbidden, but tourists from Russia and Ukraine have nothing to do with it. They make comments, but meekly, so none of ours reacts.
We took only breakfast, I will write about them. Delicious but monotonous. If it doesn’t bother you to eat sausages every morning (very tasty), eggs, cold cuts, cheese, then you will be satisfied, like us. For exotic dishes and national color, we went to inexpensive cafes. Fortunately, the hotel is located very well within walking distance of shops and catering for every taste. You can drive to the center - transport is also at hand.
The staff at the hotel knows Russian and unfortunately not from the best side. Therefore, from the very first day, smile back, behave not like a plantation owner, but like a friendly guest, and you will be treated like family! It's terribly embarrassing to watch how some comrades download their rights and yell that they bought a tour to a 4 * hotel, which means they owe everything and everyone. Disgusting and embarrassing. But if you show that you are from a different test, then the rest will turn out perfectly.
About the beach. Located 5 minutes walk. Fenced with buoys. The sand is clean, but the sea is muddy. As experienced tourists told me, this beach is not the worst at all, the water on the central beaches is much worse. I advise you to definitely go to the islands - there the water is like crystal!
I recommend the hotel.