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Reviews of The Kala Samui

4.5 out of 5
The Kala Samui
210/8 Moo 4, T. Maret, Koh Samui, Surat Thani

Reviews

8.4

Very Good

Rating 10 - Excellent. 190 out of 439 reviews" "
Rating 8 - Good. 160 out of 439 reviews" "
Rating 6 - Okay. 56 out of 439 reviews" "
Rating 4 - Poor. 16 out of 439 reviews" "
Rating 2 - Terrible. 17 out of 439 reviews" "

8.6/10

Cleanliness

8.4/10

Staff & service

7.8/10

Amenities

8.2/10

Property conditions & facilities

Reviews

6/10 Okay

Andre

Disliked: Staff & service
Stayed 4 nights in Feb 2020

8/10 Good

Caroline

Traveled with group
Liked: Staff & service
Stayed 8 nights in Feb 2020

6/10 Okay

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness
Stayed 2 nights in Feb 2020

2/10 Terrible

Unknown, NY

Traveled with group
Disliked: Cleanliness, amenities, property conditions & facilities
So I booked this place a couple weeks ago for a 2 night stay. It looked beautiful on there website as well as Expedia, and without hesitation even though it was on the pricey end, I paid $507 for a two night stay for the duplex pool villa, without breakfast. I was expecting it to be like how they had it in the pictures, however, the place is super run down and looked nothing like what is does in pictures. At certain time of the night they would turn off electricity, the lights work but I couldn’t charge my phone all night. It’s really dead in the resort, I feel like no one was there except for three other couples. The “resort” was right off the side of what seems to look like the main road, resort doesn’t offer transportation besides from/to airport or pier. Everything is far from hotel and must use some type of transportation, walking was dangerous because it’s the main road and they’re driving pretty fast, we tried and it was scary. You can take a transportation that is similar to a tuk tuk and they usually charge per person 50baht I believe. The closest beach is 10mins driving, there is also another close one that you have to kayak through the rough waves and rocks which is a no no for me, I’m not that adventurous.Food was another hard thing to find, even though they do offer food there in the resort. View was beautiful, but the resort was definitely not worth the money, especially in Thailand. USD can get you so much more luxurious places and this was not one of them.
Stayed 2 nights in Jan 2020

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Stayed 4 nights in Dec 2019

10/10 Excellent

Suhailaa

Traveled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
We are extremely impressed by the customer service that was rendered to us during our stay in the villa.. The staffs went an extra miles in ensuring that our concerns are all addressed accordingly and it definitely made our stay there a memorable one. They are all approachable, friendly and very nice. The great view we got from our villa is soo mesmerising. We would definitely come back in future, thank you team for the great hospitality! ❤️
Stayed 3 nights in Nov 2019

2/10 Terrible

Verified traveler

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Bad hotel
Old hotel, smells like a basement everywhere. Money trap. Massage at 2000baths. Breakfast pitiful
Stayed 2 nights in Nov 2019

2/10 Terrible

Eytan

Business traveler
Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 1 night in Oct 2019

10/10 Excellent

Jessica, Australia

Traveled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
What a truly magical stay! We booked the private deluxe villa for our honeymoon for 7 nights and we had the authentic Thai experience that we had hoped for! The resort and amenities were exceptional, the staff were amazing, so friendly and accommodating. Our room exceeded expectations, it was big enough, had an incredible private pool and views of the ocean, the bed was comfy and huge and the bathroom, so beautiful with a huge deep soaking bathtub. We purchased a rate with breakfast, lunch and dinner included and I would highly recommend as the food was fantastic and there were enough variety of options (mostly Thai, except breakfast) on the menu (separate menu). Note: in room dining and drinks are not included in the deal. Also, during our stay, we booked a traditional Thai massage at the Spa onsite (wow!), a private dinner on the rocks with private butler service (must do!), a private Thai cooking class (such a fun experience) and a day trip booked through the hotel to Angthong Islands (highly recommend). There is no direct beach access from the hotel but you can go swimming or snorkelling from the hotel off the rocks onsite, however, a sandy beach is very easily accessible via a 5 min walk from the hotel cutting through the resort next door (Coral Cliff Beach Resort). The purpose of our stay was to spend most of our time relaxing at the resort and the resort was just enough away from the hustle and bustle but not too secluded (approx. 15-20 min drive into town). Thank you!
Stayed 7 nights in Aug 2019

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Traveled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
A well designed and appointed resort hotel very well self contained but it needs to be because there are few amenities nearby. Excellent staff willing to go the extra mile to please their customers.
Stayed 4 nights in Aug 2019

10/10 Excellent

DION

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 4 nights in Jul 2019

10/10 Excellent

Glenn, Auckland. NZ

Traveled with family
Liked: Staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Great views. Friendly and helpful staff. Good size rooms
Stayed 1 night in Jul 2019

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Traveled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Great views. Friendly staff. Very clean. Property a bit tired.
Stayed 3 nights in Jul 2019

2/10 Terrible

Verified traveler

Traveled with group
Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Cleanliness, amenities, property conditions & facilities
The Service Staff GSA Katrina Binaya is very professional and tactful. She was able to take pressure and stress from demanding guest like me. Eventually she given us a better room due to Reservation officer Calos did not commit for my nice view room assignment. I was assigned by Reservation officer Calos on high floor and facing sea view which i requested through expedia communication. She committed to me a nice room. Upon checked in on 6th, room assigned was terrible without sea view and blocked by tree branches. Amenities like towels not in room. Katrina said aircon faulty and given me another room next few doors but i was not pacified. Katrina then assigned me to another upper floor (so many stairs walking up and down). Knowing that i was already frustrated and tired for room change, she again assigned me to a better resonable room facing sea to make a good recovery. She also sweated alot walking me up and down but she still carried a smiling face and positive attitude. She is a good worker and we are impressed by her professional service. Please convet my compliments to the Hotel Manager. Yours Sincerely Kenny Goh Regards Kenny Goh
Stayed 2 nights in Jul 2019
Response from Michelle Carlos on Jul 9, 2019
Hi Kenny Goh, First of all thank you for the compliments for our staff and sorry that we have change the room last minute it was accidentally broken and we don't have any choose to give you a room that is available for your request for Twin Bed. We at The Kala work as a team and we make sure that our guest will be satisfied for their stay. Again Thank you,

8/10 Good

MANDY

Liked: Cleanliness, room comfort
Secluded luxurious private villa with pool
Great view, amazing pool villa, old-style Thai luxury. Friendly staff but the overall service for rooms is lacking a bit, and the minibar was very understocked. Overall a fabulously private place if you want to escape and completely unwind with the BEST view in Koh Samui (day or night). Easy access to water for snorkeling and using their Kayak.
Stayed 3 nights in Apr 2019

6/10 Okay

Verified traveler

Traveled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
海景房間有露台，起床直接可以看見大海，非常好的景觀 遺憾地酒店提供的 娛樂 設施 ，很多都沒有了 例如釣魚設施，獨木舟用具都沒有了 原本打算就在酒店中 悠閒地度過 可以在酒店中玩樂道過數天，但很失望都沒有娛樂設施了
Stayed 2 nights in Mar 2019

10/10 Excellent

Jessica

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
happy place
View was amazing, could of had cheaper hire of transport and more available shuttle service times to the main part of town, as otherwise it is 200thb in to the town. which adds up. Otherwise was amazing stay pool is amazing and pool side service.
Stayed 6 nights in Mar 2019

8/10 Good

Rob, Vancouver, CA

Traveled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Beautiful Boutique Hotel. Staff are amazing, so friendly. Location is minutes away from town, a nice escape from the chaos. The amenities are what you would expect from a small resort. The cliff side location means no beach but there are a couple within a short walk. Snorkeling is available at the resort and at the nearby beach. My only complaint is a common one. The beds are Firm!! I almost went out and bought a mattress!
Stayed 14 nights in Feb 2019

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Traveled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Huge room,amazing ocean view,nice and very clean beachfront hotel. Isolated, a bit far from the city and beaches,quite noisy from street traffic.We knew this and was not a major issue.A nice deck but with just 6 sunbeds,it was almost impossible to get one.The pool was good but not enough sunbeds too.Overall it was a nice stay .Many thanks to Mrs PUN the waiter for his amazing service.
Stayed 10 nights in Feb 2019

10/10 Excellent

OttawaBob, Ottawa ON

Traveled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
We loved the view, the pool and the staff. The room was very nice as well with the bed set up to see the water and trees.
Stayed 19 nights in Jan 2019

6/10 Okay

Verified traveler

Disliked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Stayed 10 nights in Jan 2019

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
This place is heaven! Every room has a view of the beach and its very peaceful. The staff is awesome and location is great also! You can rent scooters across the street and the hotel has parking available. From cleanliness to staff and food great experience. Only problem for me was i have a bad back and the bed was too hard for me. This was my favourite spot
Stayed 3 nights in Jan 2019

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 2 nights in Jan 2019

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Stayed 2 nights in Dec 2018

6/10 Okay

Verified traveler

Stayed 2 nights in Dec 2018

10/10 Excellent

Ashraf, Malaysia

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
We took the private pool villa which was beyond awesome First floor was the room + bath (with gorgeous bath tub and outdoor shower) -1 floor was the pool, outdoor shower,sun beds and massage table. -2 floor was the access to the sea (not a beach but swimmable) it was so COOL!! The breakfast option was unlike any other ive seen . It is open 6am to 6pm with ala carte options and they have menus ranging from english breakfast to thai lunches. We had to stay in because it was raining and was surprised by the quality of dinner. The tom kha talay is a must try. The location is 20 mins from Chaweng, which gives us the privacy we needed, but sometimes i wish theres a convenience store nearby. We hired a scooter on our 3rd day to ease access. But the hotel provides free 1 way shuttle to beaches and hot spots nearby so if you can plan your day that would work too. Had a very good stay and the staffs were more than willing to help through every stage of our stay
Stayed 3 nights in Nov 2018

8/10 Good

Dan, UK, Kent

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Michelle is amazing, she works at the main desk and is so helpful - she’s good at her job and made us feel really comfortable at the hotel. The hotel is situated 20mins drive south of the main beach and restaurants of Chaweng; it worked out expensive for me and my partner in taxi fares as we didn’t want to hire mopeds (300bht per day). We managed to haggle taxi rides to and from for around 250bht for 2 ppl. The hotel is clean and tidy, the pool is nice too. The atmosphere was let down a little when we stayed as the bar was always closed, and there was no ambient music to relax to. I think it was off-peak. None the less, the hotel was still good. Room service was awkward to order as the majority of staff speak broken English - but we got there in the end. You can borrow the hotels canoes from main reception, and paddle about on the sea, or travel along to the hidden beach just north of the hotel. There’s a little bar there where you can get most types of drinks. The food at the hotel was adequate- however I am quite picky with my food, so I don’t think you should base your expectations of the food on this review. For 400bht pp, you can get a breakfast which includes; 2 poached or scrambled eggs, 2 bacon, half a tomato and toast accompanied by filter coffee, fresh (real fresh!) juice and a pastry like a croissant. It wasn’t the most amazing breakfast, but it wasn’t terrible. The hotel is nice, the staff are lovely and we really enjoyed our stay.
Stayed 9 nights in Nov 2018

8/10 Good

Marie, Melbourne

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
Wonderful views, great staff. Very quiet rooms.
We enjoyed our stay at The Kala Samui. Great hillside location with lovely views. The staff are fantastic, funny loving people. very accomodating with every request.
Stayed 9 nights in Aug 2018

8/10 Good

Katie, london

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Tranquel and scenic
We stayed at the Kala for 10 days for ohr honeymoon. We were blown away by our room at the get go. We read some negative reviews about the up-keep of the hotel but we did not find any problems. The staff were so helpful in organising trips and even our ferry to Koh Pangyan. The breakfast was vast and tasty. The dinner seemed expensove compared to restaurants outside but not too much for a hotel. We visited many hotels for drinks etc and the kala is still definately the best choice for us. We will be back.
Stayed 10 nights in Aug 2018

2/10 Terrible

Verified traveler

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 4 nights in Jul 2018

10/10 Excellent

RegR, Vancouver, Canada

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Treat yourself like a rock star
If you get the chance, treat yourself like a rock star and stay at one of the villas for the view and private pool. They're private and fairly luxurious. If there's four traveling, go for the Presidential Villa. With two bedrooms and two bathrooms, it's big enough for a family or two couples.
Stayed 1 night in May 2018

8/10 Good

Boris, HK

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
Nice hotel but the restaurant is outdoor and there are lots of flies
Stayed 3 nights in Jun 2018

6/10 Okay

Verified traveler

Disliked: Property conditions & facilities
inconvenience from the hotel to 7-11,family mart.
Need to walk at least 15 mins to the nearest Convenience store. very isolated place.
Stayed 3 nights in Jun 2018

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Lovely setting, staff friendly and helpful. The rooms were comfortable and clean, lots of storage and well appointed generally. Food was very average, we had dinner once only as it was quite poor, on several occasions they ran out of things and would just bring something else entirely different rather than check if you would be ok with this option. , cocktails with half the ingredients were served to us! Breakfast was ok but not sure it was as expected. Easy to get around in local taxi bus.
Stayed 7 nights in May 2018

10/10 Excellent

Marie

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Magnificent hotel in good snorkel diving spot
The Kala Sumai oozes charm and style. It has beautiful views, also from the swimming pool. It has no beach but lots of rocks with a big variety of fishes and coral to see when snorkling. The hotel is a bit rundown and the outside walls needs a good scrubbing from moss to make it look fresh again. The restaurant was good with a big menu selection. It is about 2 km from Chaweng street (night life and shopping).

6/10 Okay

Nick, Sydney

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Over-developed
The villas are very close to each other. Privacy is a problem. For 2 days there were no vodka and rum for cocktails
Stayed 6 nights in Mar 2018

8/10 Good

Chantelle, Brisbane, QLD, Australia

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities
Nice hotel with potential to be better
Our flights arrived at 8pm at night and we had organised with the hotel for pick up and someone was waiting with our names on display which was pleasant after a long flight. We were greeted with friendly staff upon checkin which was quick and easy and we were in our room in no time. The room was clean and smelled great. As we were tired from the flight we decided to go straight to sleep. The bed was extremely firm which lead to a poor nights sleep for the duration of the stay, however my husband didn't mind the firmness. In the morning, we took a step on our balcony and the view was amazing. We had an ocean view and you could even see Chaweng across the waters. We went to breakfast (which was included in our stay) and it was order off the menu instead of a buffet (which I'm used to at other hotels) but it was great as the food we ordered every morning was yummy and good serving sizes. I found the staff to be friendly but they weren't always attentive and found sometimes you were waiting a while to attempt to get staffs attention which even included trying to get a drink at an empty bar. There was no beach at the hotel, as it was more cliffside but they did have a jetty and offered free snorkel gear and kayaking for guests. We only did snorkelling but the gear was old and filled up with water which was disappointing. The hotel was beautiful but also a little run down. It has so much potential to be an amazing hotel if money was put into maintenance and training for staff.
Stayed 6 nights in Mar 2018

8/10 Good

George, Sydney

Liked: Staff & service
Nice and Private... BUT
we had the Presidential Suite, was nice and private. The biggest problem was the STEPS.. also a bit far from the main town, hard to get some snacks if you wanted. down town would be a better option.
Stayed 4 nights in Feb 2018

8/10 Good

Stuart

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
Shabby chic
It’s heyday is past and is getting tired around the edges. Chipped,broken and missing tiles around the pool,worn beach towels,etc nice views from this hillside position but no good if you are elderly or have very young ones because of the number of steps to reach your room,go to the sea,go to the restaurant,etc no beach but you can swim to one 100m away. Snorkeling not brilliant and light electric shocks from very small jellyfish
Stayed 1 night in Feb 2018

10/10 Excellent

Strive, Vancouver BC

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Peaceful and beautiful hotel
The hotel was great. We would return if we have a chance.
Stayed 3 nights in Jan 2018

10/10 Excellent

Estrella

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Recomendable
This place was amazing. The staff was wonderful. They even upgraded us for free. Only thing was for breakfast we did wait 1hr 30min to get served. The waitress was solo, felt a little bad for her because she was busy. But she was still polite & we were patient.
Stayed 1 night in Jan 2018

10/10 Excellent

Siew Lyn

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Gorgeous cliffside stay
The hotel's architecture is stunning, with multiple views afforded over cascading levels. The room was large and comfortable and service impeccable. Breakfast was terrific with a large choice, even for 6 days, and a la carte delicious too. There is no beach but we loved sitting on the deck and watch the waves crash over the rocks. We would return.
Stayed 6 nights in Dec 2017

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
nice little authentic hotel
friendly staff, beautiful views, hidden, perfect to relax at the pool or on the lower deck! breakfast ist from 6:30 am to 6 pm! alacart wow! nice, authentic and clean but simple rooms.
Stayed 2 nights in Dec 2017

2/10 Terrible

Jake , Chicago

Disliked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Not Your Room at the INN
We were on a Romantic Vacation and decided to splurge on the Presidential Suite for our three remote days at the Kala. The Pics are Beautiful ( OLD) when we checked in we were told our room was already occupied. How can that be there is a calendar and only one presidential suite. oh we ae sorry we have you in this room ( the absolute smallest villa on property was left.so what happened is they wanted to sell the expensive rooms twice. but not give the refund. we were told they would Comp. many things for us and then at the end of the stay would not let us leave till we paid for everything. I was also told they would contact orbitz for refund, but again never happened.So I had to call orbitz and we are still waiting on the answer. will actually have to get credit card company involved. as for the property run down but beautiful. very far from everything though and cars are very expensive to take. especially compared to most other places. maybe return to koh samui but will NEVER return to the Kala. 2 other couples were ending their stay early. and one family was also stuck because of prepay. DO not stay here.
Stayed 3 nights in Dec 2017

8/10 Good

Rozita, canada

Liked: Staff & service
Honey moon
I stayed to this hotel for one week unfortunately does not have a beach , and when u want to go to ur room u have to go to lots of stairs because its on the rock , the view was ok , the food and breakfast was great and when we stayed all of the food and drink was 30% off which is pretty good , its is alitter bit far from the center around 30 min by taxi ,
Stayed 6 nights in Nov 2017

6/10 Okay

Verified traveler

Disliked: Staff & service
It's not Chaweng, or Lamai beach.
Pretty scenery, but a small beach is quite a walk away, and there's nothing else around the hotel. You have to take a 300 baht ($9) or 400 baht ($12) taxi every time you leave the hotel, and every time you come back. They do have a free shuttle that runs twice a day, but one way only. The price was good though, and if you fine with being hold up in one place it could work for you.
Stayed 7 nights in Nov 2017

10/10 Excellent

Jordanne, Vancouver

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Beautiful hotel, great views, great island!
We only stayed 2 nights at this beautiful hotel and it sure wasn't enough! The room was spectacular, the staff were friendly and helpful, the views were amazing. Unfortunately it rained the days we stayed but that didn't change anything, would highly recommend and we know we're coming back!
Stayed 2 nights in Nov 2017

8/10 Good

JOHNMARUS, NYC

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Nice hotel on small cliff facing the sea.
Good hotel. Service was decent. Staff attempted to be helpful but probably needed more training. Had nice Sea side view hotel room. It was of good size, with nice small balcony and high ceilings. Overall better than expected. Breakfast had both Asian and European choices of good quality. I would warn as the hotel is on a small cliff , it does not have a beach adjoining its premises ( it was not an issue for us as I was aware before hand) . But there is a beach about 300 - 500 meters away.
Stayed 4 nights in Nov 2017

6/10 Okay

lily, australia

Disliked: Cleanliness, room comfort
Beautiful views
Was pleasant stay but room was dirty with mold and smell stale but beautiful view and staff were friendly Smell is very important to a welcome stay so maybe air freshner or insense or fragerense candle thank you
Stayed 2 nights in Nov 2017

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Beautiful
Great place. Only bad points hard bed and noisy room. Staff very nice
Stayed 8 nights in Sep 2017