Khao Lak Emerald Beach Resort & Spa

We booked this hotel based on how it looked and it’s close enough location (short drive) from various things but could have not made a bigger mistake. First of all, we had arrived early due to our transfer (2 hours early) and asked if our room would be ready (we did not expect anything from at least trying). They said yes and would be up to 15 minutes. We allowed 30 minutes before asking again and at that point the same person said no, room not ready until 2pm as that is check in time. A couple we knew arrived at the same time and did not get fed these lies. Later on the day, we wanted a cab to get some food. We went to the taxi rank and was quoted 650. We decided to use Grab/Bolt where the prices were 200 THB. A bolt arrived within 15-20 minutes. When we got in and turned the corner, the men from the taxi rank (at least 5 of them, maybe 10 after what happens) surrounded the car and did not allow our cab to move. After about 5-10 minutes of speaking at the cab driver and not letting him move (including taking pictures of his plates, where we felt tremendously unsafe) the men opened the car door and demanded we got out. We went back to the hotel and reported this after feeling shaken up. all the hotel did was walkie talkie to the same men and asked what happened. And then quote us a 800 BHT return trip. Turns out all of Khao lak cab services are run by this taxi group and the hotel turns a blind eye to it. They tried telling us bolt/grab does not operate in the area (even though I sit in one on my way to the airport now). Even getting a 5-10 minute cab to get food is 4x the price and hotel doesn’t care as it does not directly operate the service. ALSO, when we had no other choice to get around, we were being charged extra specifically for staying at this hotel. We put this to the test when we asked about dropping off to 2 locations, one the hotel and one the shop around the corner. The driver would always ask which hotel before asking the price. The staff were generally quite difficult to ask questions. When all this happened, the initial staff member could not understand us and then the shift manager (I assume) was very useless and kept repeating that this is just how it operates (not considerate of the fact we’ were forced out of the car and felt scared - visibly I’d say). They tried to spin it as other services are banned and you can’t even order one. Even the next day when trying to see if our airport transfer was safe, the lady I spoke to did not understand what I was asking, and when I put it into translate you can tell she wanted to say it wasn’t safe and we should spend the extra 700 THB and go with the local taxi people. That conversation happened for 10 minutes with neither side knowing what was going on or getting anywhere. Overall this taxi price fixing and intimidation ruined the whole trip for us. We shouldn’t have felt uneasy trying to get around or being overcharged for visiting as tourists/staying in a particular hotel. Room was nice enough, breakfast was okay, toilet didn’t flush, good access to a beach BUT staff really unhelpful, even the management when trying to report what is clearly a massive alissue that they are part of. The main reason we stayed in Khao lak was for the similan islands and returning from khao sok. Even we knew this we would have booked a day trip from Phuket!

A beautiful resort on the beach … stayed for 12 nights B and B. All amenities on your doorstep bars and restaurants a 5 minute walk away . Complementary transfers to Khao Lak Centre and Bang Niang markets . Staff very friendly and very happy to help in any way .. Benjamin in reception was great.. treated myself to a few Thai massages on the beach .. Perfect … thoroughly recommend .. very sorry to be leaving!

Absolute joy to stay at this hotel. Very near shops and other amenities. Lovely food. Lovley pool and right on the beach. Hubby was well looked after by the staff as he has a gluten allergy. Kitchen made food for him and it was delicious. Nothing is too much trouble for the staff. Very clean hotel, rooms spacious. I took ill and had to go to the clinic. Mook, customer service took full control and ordered a car to take me and the car to bring me back after treatment. All complimentary. Mook checked up on me on my return and again the next day to Ensure I had everything that I needed. Excellent member of staff. Superb place. Will definitely be back when next in Thailand.

I had a very nice and relaxing stay at the resort. The atmosphere was peaceful, and the property itself is beautiful. Sitting by the beach bar and watching sunset is the most highlight of the stay. A special mention to Mook, who was extremely resourceful and helpful throughout my stay — she made everything easy and enjoyable. Overall, it was a great experience, and I would definitely love to come back again!

We booked our trip to Thailand late, and at the time of booking, this hotel was the only one in Khao Lak with a family room available. I mention this as after reading through the reviews on here before we left we did not have high hopes for this hotel, at least we were not disappointed! For us the main issues were: Dated rooms in need of refurbishment. In fact almost everywhere needed some work. Patchy room cleaning - several days our room was not made up until after 5pm, typically when we wanted to shower and get ready for the evening. Consequently we had dirty towels, as if you placed them in the bath for cleaning, they might very well still be there, damp and musty for when you wanted to use the shower next, so we hung them up, but then they didn’t get changed at all. We were there for 14 nights and only had our beach towels changed once. There seemed to be no logic or system as to when they might get changed. We were on the third floor (top floor) and there were no lifts. We managed, but in the heat, the option of a lift with tired children would have been welcome, if you have physical limitations you will need to request a ground floor. On one occasion we tried lunch from the cafe; savoury croissants with chips on the side, which looked like they had been refried several times and were totally inedible. We complained and they offered to bring us more, but by the time they arrived we had all finished our food and no longer wanted them. They were so obviously inedible that it felt lazy that we would even have been served them. And at regular UK coffee shop prices, it did seem particularly poor. We found the breakfast adequate, and if you searched you could find tea and hot chocolate served in jugs, but as other reviews have mentioned, it did take a long time for items to be replenished, and we ate relatively early, before 8am, it did become much busier later. The pool area was pretty but tired, with the surrounding grates needing replacement and the odd tile missing. The sun beds were tired and very uncomfortable, impossible to lay on when completely flat due to a bar across the middle. Hopefully this will be remedied with the upcoming pool refurb. Lack of poolside service, it was a long trek to get refreshments from the bigger pool, and it really felt they were missing a trick to not provide this. Dangerous kids pool, with slides from the pirate ship that fed in to deceptively deep water, and plenty of places to scrap your skin, or stub your toes on the themed areas. Unfortunately not a place you can relax and watch the kids from your sunbed. On the bright side, the beach is beautiful, and there are some lovely restaurants further along it. The location is also good, down a relatively quiet road, away from the hustle and bustle, with tourist shops and restaurants where it is very easy to grab lunch or dinner. And a 10 minute taxi ride will take you to the centre of Khao Lak with lots more restaurants and on to Bang Niang market which we loved for the bustle, shopping and street food. Would we stay here again? Not unless it was our only option! Hopefully post refurb it will improve. As an aside, for trips speak to Oil, an independent tour guide from khaolak Nature and Adventure tours, she arranged private tours tailored for us at a great price.