Went to Ko Yao Yai to have a couple of days to just relax during our backpacking tour and we couldn’t have chosen a better resort to do that. Thiwson Beach Resort is a lovely and beautiful place. The staff is extremely nice and they got us a free bungalow update. The included breakfast is also wonderful

Besides the free breakfast the restaurant itself is quite expensive and we didn’t like the food that much but maybe the cook just had a bad day😅

Pool was good for children, nice views, nice room.

The beach is not suitable for swimming

Wonderful staff, beautiful pool with a killer view, tons of great options at the included breakfast. Not far from the pier. The cutest cottages arranged in like 3 rows. Outdoor private shower was really cool. Comfy tropical feeling bungalow with great AC, fridge, closet, desk-ish space with chair. Good bed, porch for coffee. I had a great time here, and scooting around Ko Yao Yai checking out the beaches and jungle and such.

Really nothing. I guess the beach could be sandy into the water, but the infinity pool is right there.

Tranquil location! Lovely staff. Great happy hour.

Nothing.

At the time of writing #kohyaoyai only has a handful of resorts and guesthouses to choose from, I researched them carefully, my essentials being air conditioning & swimming pool in the mid range price bracket, my wish list being a characterful locally owned property on a beach. With the Thiwson beach I struck gold. This unpolished gem offered everything on my wish list plus more. Owned by a local family, three generations of whom regularly join the guests for dinner in the open air restaurant which serves very tasty reasonable priced Thai food and great chicken nuggets to the delight of my toddler (albeit they were out of fries for the duration of our stay!). Beside this are the beachfront huts are in prime position with their own outdoor jacuzzi, it’s no wonder they book up so far in advance. There are facilities on site to hire scooters or book tours to explore the island and two lovely pool areas. I was initially disappointed with the hilltop location of our own bungalow which are actually across the road from the others, but the quiet semi private pool area in front of our large veranda and the sunrise view through the frangipani trees buckled my reservations.

The resort isn’t perfect, there are holes in the concrete (my little girl took a nasty fall in one) & bugs in the rooms (to the delight of my 9 year old boy), there is no room service and while there is sand the sea is separated from the resort with a concrete flood barrier & is extremely tidal so not ideal for swimming.

The swimming pool made our stay happy. They had a coffee machine and muffins taste good.

Breakfast didn't have many options for being a buffet. The plate where the pineapple was had ants around, three salty options that weren't much tasty. The last day after the cleaning service we found out that our little terrace had a flies nest, we tried to close it, one of the staff came with a spray, didn't work, she said was going to call someone else, didn't appear anymore, I had to go and ask for help, one staff came, put more spray, didn't work, , offered us to change room but it had the same problem with the nest, we kept our room and they gave us a repellent that help a bit. Found two more nest in our terrace. I think a better communication and solving situation would help us to have a better stay.

The surrounding is good, breakfast was good too, wifi speed is fast and the bed is comfortable. The bathroom has an outdoor feature which I like.

The beach the hotel is at is not "accessible" meaning it is not recommended for swimming. There is not much near the hotel and transport to go somewhere will cost quite a bit too.

with the question being "What Went Well" - the very simple answer was - Everything - What a wonderful and peaceful place. Check-in was very easy and quick - the cabin was absolutely wonderful - clean, the ac worked very well, comfortable bed Breakfast had a great choice of Thai food Staff were very friendly and helpful the swimming pool is OK size as the resort is only small, plenty of loungers and umbrellas the on-land beach is quite small - the sea is tidal so only get beach area at low tide I cannot ride motor bike - the staff were really helpful in getting me a mountain bike so was able to get out and tour the island beautiful place to stay

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