Novotel Phuket Kamala Beach — Hotel in Kamala

The front desk staff lacked sufficient communication skills when providing information to guests, which made the experience less smooth.

I would suggest that the hotel consider sending a welcome email to inform guests of their benefits based on membership status and to check for any special requests prior to arrival. This can help make the stay more personalized and comfortable. In my case, the room was prepared in advance without asking which member would be staying, especially when traveling as a group, or about preferences such as late check-out. Compared with other hotels, this was the first property where I did not receive any welcome email, despite having stayed more than 80 nights this year.

When rooms are fully booked or a guest chooses not to accept an upgrade included in their benefits, the hotel must apologize and immediately inform guests of any alternative benefits upon arrival or at check-in. But your staff didn’t say anything. Guests should never have to ask for this themselves. In my experience, staff initially refused outright without checking compensation or attempting to help, forcing me to repeat my question twice before they finally confirmed that the benefit existed. Clear and proactive communication is essential, and this lack of it significantly affected my experience.

THB 1,000 resort credit was not a big issue for me, but the problem is your hotel was not transparent in communicating it. I had to find out on my own how and when it could be used, which should have been explained proactively. For a hotel of this standard, such oversight is unacceptable and diminishes the overall guest experience.

Additionally, when the room allocation did not match my preferences, I requested to swap rooms to accommodate a late check-out, but my request was refused. I was then told that the room had already been blocked. This situation highlights why pre-arrival communication about guest preferences, as done by other hotels, is so important—it prevents misunderstandings and ensures a smoother, more personalized stay.

5.Housekeeping service was also significantly delayed. On August 10, the room was vacated at 09:45, but when I returned at 15:45, it had still not been cleaned. Due to this long delay, I had to schedule another cleaning appointment at 16:30, forcing me to wait at the pool and losing valuable rest time. On August 11, I had to coordinate in advance about my departure and return times just to schedule housekeeping, which is not typical. Other hotels prioritize cleaning for members and proactively ask for convenient times when needed, ensuring efficiency and guest comfort. Implementing such practices here would greatly improve the guest experience.

ุ6. Providing face towels and cleaning cloths in the fitness area should be a basic amenity for a 4-star hotel. However, at this property, they were completely unavailable, and no replenishment or attention was provided—guests had to go to the reception to request them. Properly maintaining these essentials directly in the gym is expected and would greatly improve guest convenience and satisfaction.

ึ7. At check-out, I noticed that charges had been applied, but the resort credit was not deducted. I had to raise the issue twice before staff finally checked and confirmed the credit. Such oversights cause unnecessary inconvenience and reflect poorly on the attention to detail expected at a hotel of this standard.

I have never seen the format of the member benefits notification provided by this hotel, and it does not follow the standard format I have encountered at other hotels. When I inquired, I was told that this format is correct. This lack of clarity makes it difficult for guests to understand their entitled benefits and is not in line with the professional standards expected from a hotel of this caliber.

The key card envelopes were not blue as expected for All members. Initially, I did not think this would be an issue, but when multiple guests from our party used the hotel, it caused confusion and led to the swapping of key card envelopes between rooms. This simple detail, if corrected, would prevent unnecessary inconvenience for guests.

When I asked the staff about this, I was told that the blue envelopes were no longer available. However, during my stay at Pullman King Power on the day I wrote this review, I observed that the blue envelopes were still in use there, as well as at other hotels, except for Novotel Kamala. This inconsistency caused unnecessary confusion and inconvenience for guests.

However, there were positive aspects during my stay. The F&B staff, bellboys, and Cherbee from the reservations team performed their duties very well and demonstrated a high level of professionalism. Their service was attentive and friendly, which is commendable.

Based on this experience, I believe I am unlikely to stay at this...

The service by the staff overall is great. They are friendly, professional and attentive. The rooms are good and cleaned daily - but I do get a feeling like the chain has been neglecting this spot somewhat, just a hunch , dunno. We had the furthest room/ apartment set up with the pool on top. The Air Con ( I never talk about air cons really ) was so efficient and cold , never seen nothing like that. Only issue: not being able to figure out light switches and the comical TV set up. However, You are literally next to the beach. With tide coming in you can almost get sprayed by the waves if you are sitting on the bottom balcony. And you can hear the waves !!. If that somehow is a positive or negative aspect for you - keep that in mind. And since you are the last house , the privacy is perfect as no one can walk past your windows on the hotel property. Because it's the most northern end of the beach, mainly fishermen, exercise ppl and few tik tok suckers will be at the beach spot due to several exposed large boulders. Now because it is, the most Northern bit of Kamala beach, it's also isolated. There are no Supermarket shops that you can skip to in 5 min. Pretty much no establishments at all, of any kind. (not talking about places inside other hotels around that area). If using google maps for walking, ignore the suggestion to walk along the main road- it's HELL. ( hot - no breeze - all concrete - and there is also a swampy bit ) Walk along the beach (only very little bit on the sand, rest is paved ) and it's about 15 min to closest 7/11 and other places like restaurants and whatever else you after. Loved the large windows, that one can open wide, and since there was no mozzies, you can kinda extend the room to the outside... Ordered dine in few times, via app, that was very quick and efficient but letdown. . Due to type of clientele , the dishes are 70% European and if you want some heat or spice in your local dish, you WILL NEED to specify. ( always find it amusing how they surprised when you tell them - hot n spicy - they love it - you can see it on their faces- followed by " you sure"? ) The breakfast was bad. (ours wasn't included, but we tried it 2x) I don't know who designs the set up and what you can offer but having a large option doesn't mean it's the best option. The ONLY station that was great was manned egg/omelette station simply because it was done fresh when you order. I am a huge bread fan when it comes to breakfast - their selection made me cry ( very unique sourdough and another type of stale brick , some old waffles, stale toast and mini Costco croissants ) - which reminds me, don't bother with pizza if you value pizza dough, it will only make you angry when you see what they use for pizza base. The roof top bar was underwhelming and so not utilized. Why don't you hold the breakfast there ?? ( only few stations, but all made fresh on order, sick view, breeze, plenty of room for tables) Given the position, you don't get that nice sun set view, yet it's open only after 6pm.so that makes 0 sense. The thing is I would be back because the isolation and the sense of peace that you get here compared to Pa Tong for example is pretty awesome. I'd just be better prepared :) This spot suits best : family of 4 (kids 13+ and know how to swim and share room ) or two couples setup or 4 single ppl who can walk for 10- 15 min without an issue or use ride share. And who just want to chill during the day. And when sun goes down, go out for dinner/drinks/stock up missions on munchies and fresh fruit juices ( you have your own big pool set up upstairs - and a little pool downstairs, so you don't need to share with anyone). Remember alcohol sale hours before you start walking ! Would not recommend to elderly, ppl with walking aid, strollers. due to stairs/...

NOVOTEL This review is primarily for the attention of hotel management or anyone with the power to improve the hotel. It is a snapshot of my stay (one week in the hotel) and may not reflect reality throughout the year.

Location: Kamala beach, with direct access to the beach... It's a very beautiful beach, but very touristy and public, with all the drawbacks that go with it (food, prices, surf rentals, etc.). The hotel is one km from the first restaurants. If you want to go out, a scooter is highly recommended. o Safe neighbourhood and pleasant beach for evening strolls.

Reception : o In two parts, the front desk (male) receives you blasé and without any enthusiasm and on the other hand, I was warmly welcomed by another person passing by... Go figure. o Last but not least, it's important to check your bill! Mine had simply doubled, 8000 baht instead of 4000. I'm convinced it was a mistake, but it shows the state of mind. o The bill is difficult to read (but readable if you go over it several times), so take photos of your consumption. It's quicker The room:

Cleanliness: Apart from the room, cleanliness is complicated: placemats are sometimes not cleaned at breakfast, men's toilets in the lobby (shoes essential) are not always in acceptable condition, glass with fingerprints, etc. o This hotel clearly lacks attention to detail.

Facilities and amenities: o Free Wi-Fi operation with totally random membership during several pool days. Skip it if you need to work during your vacation (there's no decent place to put a computer and work for more than half an hour without having a sore back) o Special positive mention for gym, spa and pool o On-site catering options (restaurant, bar, breakfast included). If you're a member of All Accord, don't take the 2-hour all-you-can-drink option! It's limited to 900 baht (ok, I can understand, that's +/- 3 glasses of wine) Worst of all: it's a special card, so don't expect to order a glass of wine like on the card; it's a much lower-quality wine, to say the least) absolutely not clearly indicated at the time of booking. Two hours is two hours is not two hours one (even though I was granted a dispensation) the service time is extremely long. I ordered a chicken curry and received an excellent curry with chicken vapours. The staff offered me coffee to try and make up for the sauce. Breakfast. Presented an inventory of cooked vegetables and pasta ... one dish with meat (not every day) I was explained that an 'ethnic' group was present and that ... No meat for everyone. (except for industrial sausages and chewy bacon to accompany the eggs). The pastries were dry, and the ham was limited in quantity (8.30 plus ham) Quality tea is sometimes lacking (fortunately, there was a tea substitute) 3 coffee machines are not always operational This gives a very strong impression of trying to economize on the products on offer. (Friday evening's buffet was another example of this). On a positive note: the staff did their utmost to ease the situation... Both with smiles, sometimes frankly sorry, and by trying to offer solutions, often in the form of small freebies. It makes you feel uncomfortable.

Value for money: o The quality/price ratio is not in the hotel's favour.

Overall experience: o Very mixed.

Positive and negative points: o Positive: The staff, most of whom (but not all) do their best. o Negative: the management, in general, we felt that the directive was to push consumption (which I understand), but a feeling of a total lack of support and training, quality in product selection

Conclusion: o I went to the wrong hotel, which is a shame; this is, in my opinion, a cheap...