Katathani Bhuri Beach Resort Phuket

I stayed at (well to be more accuate saw and then left) this hotel in July this year. Please don't be fooled by the earlier reviews posted on this page. I would stress that this hotel is not a 'bad' hotel as such, but that it is not particularly 'good' in my opinion either.

I think that I had been spoiled by staying at the Evason Hotel Phuket before and knew what kind of thing I could expect for almost the same price.

If you want a very peaceful and relaxing area, then where this hotel is situated will not help. It felt to I and my fellow travellers a bit like a tacky British beach resort, with the shops outside selling blow up toys for the beach, with places in sight down the road with flashing bright lights advertising drinks etc. All this is probably due to the fact that this hotel is not so far from the town of Patong, about which you may have heard; it has a reputation for cheap shopping etc, but some people may find it quite 'tacky'.

In July the sea was quite rough, given that it was the rainy season, and I don't think many people would have been able to swim in it. Having spoken to other people staying on that side of Phuket whilst we were on a day trip to another island, we found that they agreed with this view of the sea being quite treacherous at the time of year, and told us that they had not been swimming in it at their hotel either, despite the fact that they were strong Australian young men.

Before booking this hotel, just make sure that you and your fellow travellers are agreed on what it is that you want. If you want total peace, and some quality relaxation, this might not be the place for you.

However, according to the reviews some people clearly love this hotel. I thought that therefore I should just let you know the other side of the coin so that you can make an informed choice.

This hotel is excellent cant say anything more than the other reviewers have already said. Also no damage from the tsunami!

Dont be folled by the small entrance on arrival! You will be pleased once you enter!

P.S Booked the hotel through Passionasia, got a discount of almost £200 pound over 8 nights.

(Photos only)

My family stayed here for the 2nd time (previously Dec 02) and it was just perfect. The rooms were really big, bathroom with seperate dressing area and louvre doors opening up the bathroom so you could watch TV in the bath! Room service excellent and flowers or sweets left each night.

There are four swimming pools to choose from and loads and loads of sunbeds! If you cant see an empty one,the staff will go and fetch you one. The beach is lovely, clean, and not at all crowded. Beautiful surroundings with two headlands.

The restuarants are plentiful. Didnt get to eat in all of them but the food is first class. If you ever get the chance, go at Christmas as the Gala dinner is superb and magical for kids and adults.

Plenty to do. Free shuttle bus into Patong to do all your haggling and Phuket town is very good for shops with a nearby new shopping complex. The Kata Thani has a few good shops of its own and in the nearby streets.

Couldnt fault this hotel and we are aiming to go again in March 06 to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary.

Have been a regular visitor to Phuket over the past 6 years. We usually stay at the Le Meridian Beach Resort but it was closed so we stayed at the Kata Thani.

It is a great resort, great pools, massage ladies and restuarants are very reasonably priced in comparison to most resort prices. Fitness facilaties are great also. Do not be deceived by the entrance as it is great once you get in the resort and the rooms are gerat. The junior suites (standard rooms) are great with plenty of space. It will ocst about 250 baht to get to Patong if thats where you would like to go.

At the moment Phuket is very quite and l encourage all people to get back to the island as it needs our help.

My son and I stayed at the Katathani for five days. I have traveled extensively in my career and I would rate my visit here as nice as any I've had. All aspects of the operation show an excellent attention to detail, but I would like to specifically mention the incredible service attitude of the hotel's staff and the quality of the food. Their Italian restaurant was as good as any restaurant I have ever visited. Please go to Phuket. The island is back at least 90% pre- Tsunami, the people are incredibly welcoming, and the tourists are all that is lacking.

Stayed in Katathani from 22/3/05 to 04/04/05 in a Grande Suite. General info:- Age 41, married with 8 year old son, have been around a bit and I am used to staying in 4 star accommodation.

Summary:- Good Hotel, Good Beach and I would recommend it to likeminded people.

Detail.

When arriving at the hotel the external appearance does not have the presence of some of the other hotels and does not have the architecture or grand entrance of a hotel of this standing. Do not worry, as once inside it all changes. The air-conditioned reception is comfortable and the reception staff are pleasant, courteous and efficient.

Our room was on the first floor and was spotlessly clean and spacious (75 m2). It had a large bathroom / shower room, balcony, TV, safe and a reasonably priced mini bar. Another very useful thing to know is that the hotel supplies beach towels and you can have them changed every day if your environmental conscience will allow you.



The hotel is situated on the Kata noi beach and as it is the only hotel on the beach it feels like the hotel owns the beach. The beach is clean and covered in what could be described as "four star" sand and there is plenty of space. Parasols and sunloungers can be rented for the day, and for people like me who are used to swimming in the English channel the sea is very warm! The gardens and swimming pools are well laid out and kept to a high standard. There are plenty of free (£) sunloungers, parasols etc and the staff from the coconut bar will happily arrange them to your liking. Whilst sitting around the pool you will be approached by the roaming troupe of masseurs and beauty technicians. They offer value for money and can be very persuasive. If you think that it is silly to pay for sunloungers on the beach when superior equipment is available for nothing at the pool then you are probably missing the point of a beach holiday.

The resort as a whole is quiet enough for the adults with adequate facilities for the kids. It is also big enough to allow those who have done the kid thing to find a peaceful spot.

The hotel restaurants offer excellent food however you do pay hotel prices. If you venture out of the hotel you will find it hard to spend more than £20 for an evening meal. (£20 per family!!!)

The hotel currency exchange rate is a little low and a better rate can be found at Kata central. However when you walk to reception and you are greeted by four impeccably well dressed ladies saying Sawadeekaaaahhh in unison it is probably worth it.

If you require a taxi try the local taxi drivers across the street from the hotel. Their prices and attitude are better than the hotel taxi drivers. Fixed prices are advertised on the wall however they will always humoursly push their luck for a little more.

The second major earthquake off the coast of Malaysia occurred whilst we were staying there. The guests staying on the ground floor were alerted to the tsunami warning and moved to the top floor of the hotel. (very commendable) We were not told about the warning and the following day I asked at the reception as to why not. (under those sorts of circumstances I would have liked to make my own decision on what to do) They told me that the earthquake was smaller than the last one and the last one only caused a wave which hit the room below mine, thus there was no need to disturb me. (If only it was that simple!)

The Bottlom line 9/10 (and nothing gets 10!)

Other things not related to the hotel.

Patong has been trashed. I visited Patong 21 years ago and seeing it again in 2005 was a great disappointment. It is massively overdeveloped and any semblance to the small fun and lively Patong I once visited has long gone.

Do not bother to hire a car, a tuc tuc is just as cheap and much more fun. The taxi drivers thought that I was mad wanting to travel in a tuc tuc instead of an 100,000 mile + air-conditioned Toyota. I explaned that, I have a better air-conditioned vehicle at home, as a tourist I am entitled to be daft and my 8 year old enjoyed the "danger" of a tuc tuc. They understood and the daft tourist then negotiated a good rate for the day.

Whilst it is still a great place to go diving and snorkelling, most of the reefs have been over dived and are showing signs of tourist damage.

Thais are still probably the most friendly race of people that I have ever met. I do wish that some of the visitors to their country would take the time to read up on their destination and show a little respect to the locals and their customs.

Little that I can add to the other 2 reviews. We had a standard room. It was lovely. All rooms have a view of the beach. We, too, had shutters in the bathroom that opened up so you could soak and enjoy the view.

Service was spectacular. We had massages poolside daily (incredibly reasonable), not to mention pedicures. The concierge service was very informative and helpful in making tour reservations to go snorkeling.

Food was delicious. Fisherman's Wharf was lovely for lunch and dinner. Breakfast (included) was lavish in its selection.

The beach is marvelous.

The hotel is just far enough away from Kata to feel secluded, and close enough to get into town for a wide variety of dining options for just a few baht.

Would highly recommend it.

(Visited Feb 2005)

My husband and I were lucky enough to discover the Katathani (Thani) Beach Resort on Kata Noi Beach last August 2004. The moment we entered their relaxing & welcoming reception/lobby area - we knew it was going top be our 'home away from home'!

The room ( a junior suite) was out of this world! By far the best room we have ever stayed in!! Huge corner bath -big enough for two, and a double walk-in- shower made of pebbles too! And the view, breathtaking! We had a beach/ocean view room which allowed us to experience the most exhilirating sunsets ever. Huge, comfortable bed, TV & Dvd player too!

The location - amazing! By far one of the best beaches in Phuket! Really soft, white almost dessert island-like.

The Food - Amazing again! Excellent variety of resturants, excellent room service menu - but they would prepare pretty much whatever you wanted!

All extremely well priced! and all mouth watering!

The best Cocktail - Their Kata sunset!

The facilitiies - execllent! The pools are amazing - lots of sandstone & mosaic tiles - lots of greenery, palms etc. They also have a spa (which unfortuately we didn't get a chance to try out)

The Service/Hospitality - Extremely Friendly & welcoming!

Overall impression - An amazing Relaxing, Luxury Resort - which doesn't feel like a Resort at all! You really do feel as if you are the only people there - enjoying the whole ambience of your surroundings! Excellent facilities, Out of this world rooms, Fantastic Service & delicious food too!

We will never forget this holiday - nor the Katathani - which we will be re-visiting this summer hopefully!

Anyway, check out their website - I can honestly say It is exacty as it is shown! (Very rare in this business I know!)

Check out their website ..... you will not be disappointed. We stayed at Katathani for four nights in September 2004.

Beautiful rooms ...... lovely robes, fluffy towels, slippers provided. Beach towels and your own canvas bag to carry them to the poolside. They have upgraded their room titles so expect the minimum of a Junior Suite with a sea view, they all face towards the sea. A lounge/sitting area, a bathroom that has retractable shutters to allow you to either sit in the bath or have a separate shower with a full uninterrupted view of the ocean, sunset........ wonderful! They seemed to do everything right for us. Yes it is a 5 star Thai rated hotel and you do expect good service but this one supplied excellent service consistently and without any prompting.

What else is good about the hotel? The spa ...... hire the jacuzzi for the 30 minute session and watch the sunset. Have a beauty treatment .... absolutely luxurious.

Swimming pools clean .. in fact each morning the staff were cleaning the pool area and the grounds.

Excellent choice for breakfast .... almost anything you can think of to suit all nationalities. Lunch at Fisherman's Wharf is a must...... traditional Thai dishes, very reasonably priced.

The beach is out of this world .... soft sand and the water crysal clear. Walk to the far right hand side of the beach and there are steps which take you up to the main road. Also that area of the sea is excellent for surfers.

Outside of the hotel you can catch a taxi to Kata, Karon, Patong ........ they are helpful, friendly and reasonable prices.

We would certainly return. It was everything we hoped for and more!