Honeymoon recommendation please on a good beach

Please help. I am planning my long awaited trip to Thailand and SE Asia and am going mad looking at accommodation everywhere. I usualy use Tripadvisor as my bible. But I%26#39;m not often wanting 5 star luxury hotels. I%26#39;m totally confused as even the top hotels dont get great reviews really, Can anyone give me any tips please for Phuket or nearby? We will only be there for 5 nights maybe 6, we will be travelling all around Thailand so I wasnt planning on going somewhere arkward to get to like off to. Looking for luxury, maybe bit secluded, rooms or villa with own jacuzzi or outside bath, dont know if budget would swing to a pool suite, views of sea or mountains would be a bonus but what i really want is a nice beach. We wont always be on the coast so I%26#39;m really looking for a nice beach. Any recommendations for a romantic place thats fits this bill? I was looking at Banyan Tree and Dusit Laguna and Indigo Pearl but not sure as none of the beaches seem to be praised. Please help!

Honeymoon recommendation please on a good beach

Hi, I know you posted in the Phuket forum but since you did ask for other destinations nearby to Phuket, then may I suggest the Krabi area. But one consideration is when you%26#39;re visiting because I%26#39;m hesitant to make a recommendation since certain islands/beaches/areas of Thailand are better weatherwise at different times of the year.

Anyways, for Krabi Province there are a number of destinations--from the more touristy strip of Ao Nang to the better beaches of West Raileh to the packed island and party scene of Ko Phi Phi, but there are more places too. And you can fly in/out of smaller Krabi Airport to/from Bangkok and a few other destinations.

For a honeymoon hotel, the Amari Vogue on Tubkakk Beach seems to get many great reviews and fits the bill to the criterias you%26#39;ve listed.

So, you might want to click into the Krabi forum and take a lot at past posts, especially those referring to honeymoon stays.

Hope this helps.

Honeymoon recommendation please on a good beach

Pretty much all you need to know:

http://www.phuket.com/island/beaches.htm

All beaches on the east coast will be fine, just some of them are more suitable than others for swimming at certain times of the year. There is no problem with the beaches in Bang Tao/Laguna area apart from what it costs to stay there, and how long and how much it costs to get into Patong (which is not long, and really, not that much compared to taxi%26#39;s at home). From the airport all the way to Kata Beach is less than an hour, so stay wherever you like, unless you want to go into Patong a lot.

When are you planning to go ? Makes a huge difference in price. It practically halves in price in May, right up until the end of October. To give proper advice people will need to know what time of year, and your budget.

And as for reviews... you get a feel for them after reading them for a while. I pretty much ignore the ones where people say the staff didn%26#39;t smile enough, or their room wasn%26#39;t ready, or they are moaning and groaning that there was flaking paint in the stairwell, or ants in the room, or a little mould in a remote corner of the bath room that you have to stoop down to see, or the mattress was too hard, it was too expensive for what you got(these will be in peak season, and it%26#39;s true for then !) etc etc etc. Sure, 5 star in Phuket is not to the same standard as 5 star elsewhere, they can be a tad too relaxed about maintenance and upkeep, but if you don%26#39;t sweat the small stuff, you%26#39;ll have a lovely stay.

Mid-range, consider a pool villa at Centara Karon Villas (views, but over rocky beach area, but you can walk down to sand) or a cabana room at Centara Karon (no view, large outdoor jacuzzi, spacious room, outdoor (and indoor) shower). I personally liked the Family Suite at Duangjitt as it%26#39;s on Patong%26#39;s doorstep, and was good bang for your buck (no sea views, large indoor bath/jacuzzi). The honeymoon and regular suites there were nice too, in a more romantic section.

But if you want a nice beach, Kata Beach is a good first-time, mid-range option. Kata Beach Resort in a deluxe room will give you nice views (no jacuzzi, but don%26#39;t bother with the plunge pool rooms). Mom Tri%26#39;s if you have $$$ to spare (not stayed but highly recommended on TA by honeymooners who have). Karon Marina Phuket resort is a place I%26#39;m considering for next time, has recent good reviews (can have views ?).

The Racha, on ko racha......Secluded island just south of phuket.Very nice exclusive hotel.We stayed in cheaper bungalows nearby but tour the grounds..Check it out

Kathathani Hotel, excellent private beach. Quiet but close enough to Kata to try restaurants, night life etc

Thanks a million for the advice to date. I am also checking out whether we should stay in Krabi vrs Phuket. Some people say Krabi is nicer allright.

To help - I should have said we are going in May! it will be late May also be time we get to Phuket. I think this is going into the rainy season so this may have effect on good beaches and also the Krabi vrs Phuket debate. As for budget well we%26#39;re not totally loaded but willing to push the boat out abit for the honeymoon as we never usually stay in 5 stars or anything like it. In euros maybe about 250 per night per room would be absolute max - havent got my head around Thai Bhat yet!

The Evason Six Senses Spa %26amp; Resort, down south of Phuket on Rawai beach is just perfect for a honeymoon and has its own private and secluded beach and no matter how far you are in Phuket, its very easy to get to town. Evason is just gorgeous and I%26#39;ll never forget how we used to wake up and see the Andaman Sea from our bed....simply fab!

Katathani resort on kata beach is also lovely but we%26#39;re going there now in a couple of weeks since now we have a child - its really more family friendly than honeymoon type, although we went and stayed in the grand suite there earlier, with the jaccuzi etc and it was rather nice. There are some lovely eating places around it as well eg. Mama Trios and another one that escapes my memory right now....lovely atmosphere at these places, unlike the typical I%26#39;d say.

Have a lovely trip!