On arival at the hotel we asked for an upgrade and were told we could pay $20 a night for an ocean room,we agreed but asked to see the room it was old and dirty! After insisting we saw a manager who said all rooms were being upgraded and nothing else was available.I then said if we couldnt have a decent room we would move hotels.She then showed us a 1 bed villa on the lagoon which was much beter and we took that at no extra charge.I got the impresion that they try the bad rooms on you first! The beech area was 5 star,the food including the breakfast was a poor 4 star.I stayed on this holiday in 6 x5star hotels and this was the worst.We had a good time for the 7 nights in the hotel but think very carefully if you are thinking you are getting a first class hotel!!

This hotel is in Ao Bang Thao Beach in Phuket.
It is in a giante gated compound next to the Royal Meridan. This is a mega resort.

Rooms: Very clean with service twice daily. Large, comfortable with gorgeous bathrooms. Free bottled water, fruit, slippers and robes. A/C and balcony. Rooms overlook the pool
Suites are 2 stories and have a view of the lagoon.

Hotel: 5 restaurants and at least 3 bars. Prices are high, a cocktail will set you back $8, a burger $10. You can ferry over to any of the other restaurants in the resort. compound Twice a day they parade around baby elephants, a 7 month and 2 year old that are too cute for words, but you feel bad for them too.

Beach: poor! Poor representation of Phuket's beaches. Man-of-war warning, and "No swimming" sign. We did go in and in the matter of 5 minutes, our skin was stinging!! Very dissapointed. Somehow the take the elephants in the water, but people are not to go.
Pool: longest in Asia, it winds around the hotel.
Food: Pool grill serves typical american, italian and tha fare, fairly bland.
I don't have kids, but this would be a great place for them and they have a kids camp.
Bars: Swim up bar awesome! Lobby bar with live music at night and is beautiful with dark teak wood, a blue tiled fountain and orange pillows, relaxing!

If you are looking for a gated, super touristy place, this is it! It 's lavish and gorgeous, but far from anything Thai.

Stay in Kata Beach at the Katathani instead....read the review!

I stayed at the Sheraton with my friend for some "girl bonding" after a business trip from Bangkok. The property was amazing!
When we were there, the property had a big conference so all the regular rooms were booked up. Since we booked a "regular" room, they did not have it available. The Manager was nice enough to upgrade me and my friend to a 2 bedroom villa. Sweet!
The pros for staying at this place are the following:
a) gorgeous property - the beautiful lagoons where you can kayak, the well appointed rooms, the long winding pool (yes, my friend and I swimmed it all the way hehe!) , the hammocks where you can laze around all day, and the restaurants
b) great location - This depends on your reason for coming to Phuket. I came to relax and recharge with my long time friend. If you're in Phuket for relaxation, then this is the place to be. The ambiance is very relaxing and soothing. They have plenty of activities for kids and the young at heart too, so this is perfect for families. However, if you're going to Phuket for the "nightlife", excitement, or the "working girls", then this is not for you. This property is away from the craziness of patong. It's a 30 minute taxi ride and from what i remember, 600 baht each way.
c) baby elephants - they have their own elephants at the hotel, it's soo cute! Lily and yum yum i believe. They come by every breakfast for photos and to play with guests.

Cons:
a) beach - it was my first time in Phuket and I was expecting a
white sand beach. When i got there, it wasn't. It was
grayish beige, like california sand. It was kind of a
bummer but oh well. We went island hopping the next
day and swam in white sand beaches, clear blue water,
and fed and swam with the fishes.

So there it is. More pros than cons, so I guess it was worth it. I read some of the reviews before staying here and some of the negative stuff was actually not that bad. Regarding taxis, yes, they can't come into the property, but a porter can call one for you. You don't have to walk out of the property to get one. Regarding the "corporate feel", yes, it's true. I'm a big fan of boutique hotels, myself, but even if the property is big, there are a lot of corners and intimate spots that can make you feel like you have your own hideaway. If you do end up staying here, make sure you have the package that includes buffet breakfast and airport pick up and transfers. It's worth it!

Having read reviews we were interested to see what the hotel was actually like. We booked to stay here to meet up with family travelling Asia with Kuoni, so assumed it would be a nice place to stay. Unfortunately we were dissappointed.

Whilst there is the potential for this hotel to be very special, it does not live up to it's claim to be a luxury hotel in asia.

The staff themselves where very good and helpful, but that is where the "good" ends. The hotel is rather jaded around the edges and could really do with smartening up. We were in a recently renovated room, but even that needed some work as many visible shortcuts had been made to the renovations.

The buffet breakfast was rather like a school dinner, with what seemed like hundreds of people trying to get breakfast. It was more like a scene from Butlins than a luxury hotel. Yes the hotel may have been busy, but they should be able to cater for all their guests in a more appropriate manner. I have been to larger luxury hotels in asia that can cope with this situation.

Whilst the beach itself is lovely, the area outside the hotel was more like a beach in spain, with sunbeds everywhere and very close together, luckily the pool was some-what quieter, although this needs work as it had numerous missing tiles.

The food was OK, but not great in all the restarants we tried and service was variable.

Finally, whilst the hotel was in Thailand, we felt we could have been anywhere in the world. There is very little Thai influence besides the odd wall hanging, even on the Thai night in the buffet there was western music playing, which was a shame.

All in all this hotel was a real disappointment as it really could be lovely. But if all you want to do is sit in the sun, perhaps with your kids for a week or two and you don't mind paying well over the odds it may suit you. But to be honest, you might as well go to Spain or Egypt and not bother travelling as far, plus it would be better value for money.

If you want a taste of Asia, I would not stay here, but find an alternative option.