Is a villa holiday for you?
Now that you have decided on Phuket as a destination, the next important decision to make is whether you want a “Villa” holiday or a “Hotel” holiday. Choosing one or the other can significantly change the experience you have here in Phuket.
Up until the first time we had a villa holiday as a family, I was a die-hard hotel holiday maker. I loved staying at hotels. The feeling of being pampered 24 hours a day and being able to have food sent to my room at the dial of a short four digit phone number was sheer bliss. Being able to pad around a hotel without worrying about getting dressed, putting make up on or getting into a car to get to a spa and bar was a sure plus.
What really is the point of paying for and having a luxury holiday, especially in a lush destination like Phuket without all those creature comforts?
Well, the turning point came on our first holiday in Phuket. Don’t get me wrong, we stayed at a very elegant and luxurious hotel in a superb location near Bangtao beach. But on about day 3, I felt I had exhausted the hotel. OK, the spa was still nice, but let’s be honest, how much “spa” can one have before that in itself gets a bit stressful. Sure it could have simply been the Hong Kong hectic me feeling out of my own skin for being quite so ….what’s the word … relaxed.
We had eaten at all the restaurants and the menu started to run a bit dry. We ended up getting take-out in our hotel room because I didn’t really want to eat out twice a day. I was just getting a bit fed up of seeing staff in uniforms.
However, it wasn’t just the spa that got monotonous. We had eaten at all the restaurants and the menu started to run a bit dry. We ended up getting take-out in our hotel room because I didn’t really want to eat out twice a day. I was just getting a bit fed up of seeing staff in uniforms. I wanted to see real people, people who lived in Phuket, not holiday makers, not hotel workers, but real people. Not to mention, I was fed up with worrying about what to do with the children at the crack of dawn and about whether other guests might be annoyed with the noise and boisterousness of my children, who, contrary to what you might be thinking, are not actually small beasts.
So off we went to explore outside the hotel in our rental car. Whilst it wouldn’t be untrue to say that Phuket is one giant island of hotels, with little semblance of real Thai life, I felt free and the holiday got more real being away from the hotel.
We tried loads of restaurants, met people who lived in Phuket, quickly found our favorite beach shack for sunset drinks, and just drove around and got lost. Luckily, the children were much younger then and much ground was covered at nap times. Randomly, we met a lovely island estate agent, a lady from the North of England whom we have stayed friends with since. She introduced us to the idea of renting a villa instead of staying at a hotel, and the rest is history as they say.
If you aren’t sure whether a villa hotel is for you, here is a list of 10 pros and cons that I’ve come up with from experience help you decide:
Pros V Cons
You will have lots more space to yourself – and sometimes if you are with kids or travelling with in laws, this is priceless.
Most villas have 3 plus bedrooms. A single family travelling may feel that they have paid for rooms they aren’t using.
With the right villa, you might even find yourself with a private garden for the kids to run wild in and a pool that they can properly play in without annoying glares from the elderly couples who still believe in caning.
Parents have to be a bit more hands on and prepared in terms of entertaining their children. Ask your villa host about toys and entertainment before you rent.
You won’t be charged retail plus tax for every single morsel of peanut or milk that is consumed during your stay. Staying at a villa is a lot more economical.
Travellers will need to think about what groceries to buy. Ask your villa host about what is in their welcome basket and whether the villa comes with things like coffee and tea.
You can play your own music by the pool. Really, this is a serious pro. If you’ve ever found yourself staying in a hotel that played music that made you feel like you were trapped in a perpetual elevator, you will know what I mean.
It might take a little time to get to know the entertainment system in a villa. Villa hosts should walk you through all of this. Also, say if like Villa Area, a villa is wired with a Sonos music system, spend a little time ahead of the trip to download and play around with the app.
Your food can be as diverse, or not, as you want it to be. At some point in everyone’s life, you must just want to throw that “International Menu” that is full of not that authentic local cuisine and really not quite right western cuisine into the warm pissy hotel pool. Being a long time Hong Konger through and through, I like my balls and sometimes I just want some curry fish balls, and not a lot of hotels will serve this up.
You might have to cook for yourself from time to time. Ask your villa host about whether their villa includes a chef and the foods they cook. Beware, some chefs are better than others! At Villa Aria, only professional chefs are contracted to work for our guests.
The kids can go wild and have the run of the villa at 5 o’clocl, or if you are lucky, 6 o’clock in the morning. Likewise, after the kids have gone to sleep at 7 pm, parents don’t have to huddle in a quiet corner of the hotel room or be exceptionally quiet in the adjoining room. Bring a monitor and you are free for the rest of the night!
Get a good sense of where everything in a villa is before it gets dark. You don’t want to be messing around at 5 o’clock in the morning, trying to work out where the drinking water is, or how to turn on the living room lights.
You can do your own laundry, for free. Yeah.
Alcohol is a lot cheaper in a villa.
You might have to do your own laundry.
You might end of drinking a whole lot more alcohol in a villa.
Best of all, all these pros are not had at the expense of creature comforts. As long as you do your homework and get some word of mouth referrals, the right villa, will be staffed with chefs and maid service that will not leave you wanting.
Not all villas are created equal, but how involved and forthcoming your villa host is will tell you a lot.
