Heading for an island getaway soon and wondering where to stay in Phuket? From the countless beach resorts, hotels, guest houses and even airbnb, where's the best location?
The Location
Pimnara Boutique Hotel is a great choice for those who are looking to stay within the bustling Patong Beach without having to pay too much. Located within Jungceylon Shopping Centre itself, the Pimnara Boutique Hotel is convenient for those who want to be able to find food, grocery-shop, entertainment and night-life. You can find almost everything you need here because you even have a Big-C supermarket at your doorstep!
For night-life, the popular Bangla Street is just situated a road away but because you're staying a road away, you get to enjoy the peace and tranquility when the night falls. The newly opened Central Mall is also just across the road from the Jungceylon Mall.
No doubt living in a bustling area where most tourists frequent would be a tad more expensive than the other less hectic beaches, you are on a holiday and you can afford to splurge a little! Plus, you save quite a bit when booking the hotel as compared to the Millennium Resort Patong Beach that is in the same place but a lot pricier!
How to get from Phuket International Airport to Pimnara Boutique Hotel?
This is the slightly tricky part. Phuket's taxi rides are expensive and the public transport is not as efficient and is often extremely crowded!
From the airport, there's actually the shared minibus transport that gets you straight to the hotel. However, this option is usually quite slow as they will wait till the bus is full before they start moving. Also, the minibus driver will make a pit-stop at a tour agency to get tourists to sign up for day tours before sending you to your hotel. If you have a group that doesn't purchase anything this pit stop wouldn't take long but if you have any member who is enquiring about all the tours, the whole bus needs to wait. Secondly, depending where you stay, you may not be the first one to drop off. All in all, you may take at least an hour before you arrive at the hotel. To get to Pimnara Boutique Hotel at Patong Beach, it costs 180 THB per person. You can get tickets from the counter outside the arrival area.
A faster but more expensive option would be to take the private taxi service. This costs about 800 THB to get to Pimnara Boutique at Patong Beach. Even though it is more expensive, if you are travelling in a group of four, it totally makes sense to take the taxi. You'll get chauffeured to your hotel without having to go in a round, dropping off other travellers. You can get your taxi at the same counter as the minibus or get it online for some savings.
The Facilities
Unlike most beach resorts in Phuket, do remember that Pimnara is not a resort. So don't expect to have your swimming pools, gyms, and what-nots. They do, however, provide you with towels and bathrobes that you can bring to Patong Beach 5-minute away.
Jungceylon Shopping Mall also has a spa in which you can relax and unwind before heading back into your rooms. You won't be able to enjoy breakfast in the hotel as well as they do not have a restaurant in the property. However, you can once again find lots of delicious finds in the nearby areas.
From our experience, you may not necessarily need to have a meal plan when staying in Phuket if you were to head out for the many day trips! From island-hopping to heading to the elephant sanctuaries, the pick-up timings are rather early at 8.30am or 9.00am. So unless you want to wake up even earlier for the sumptuous breakfast, you can save your moolahs and book a stay where no breakfast is provided! Furthermore, having too full a breakfast may cause your tummy to rumble when on the rocky speedboat!
The Rooms
Theming at the hotel is really impressive. They paid attention to every little detail. The corridors aren't just plain hotel corridors but you'll feel like you've walked into a jungle (if you are staying in the 2nd building).
The outdoor walkway connecting the two buildings also provides a good breather and is a place that you can "hide-out" and people-watch!
For smokers, as all the rooms are non-smoking, you can head here to puff your cigarettes!
Each room in the hotel is decorated differently. Here, we got an animal-themed room with vibrant photos of various animals. The entire room was extremely spacious with a huge bed! All rooms are fully-equipped with air-conditioning (definitely a must for the hot weather in Phuket!).
The bathroom is also spacious and basic amenities like soap, shampoo, and toothbrushes are all provided in the room rate. We had amazing showers every night after the long day out island-hopping!
Every day, the hotel would also provide you with two complimentary bottled water for your consumption. Basic tea and coffee is also supplied alongside a hot water boiler. The refrigerator is also full of iced cold drinks that you can consume at a fee!
We booked the room with a window facing the Jungceylon Mall and was worried that it would be too noisy at night since we were on the second floor. Thankfully, our fears are unwarranted as when night falls, people actually don't hang out at the mall.
The Service
Service at Pimnara was impeccable. On arrival, there's almost always someone who would open the doors for you. When checking in, a welcome drink is served and the staff is extremely courteous and patient. They are also quite fluent in English and we had no trouble understanding them.
After you get your room, the staff would personally bring you up and show you where your room is. They will also take a short while to let you know what the basic amenities were.
During our 3 night stay with them, we actually asked for a room change after the first night as we had a room with noisy air-conditioning. They actually took our feedback seriously and wasted no time in changing our rooms.
All in all, I would say that Pimnara Boutique Hotel is an affordable stay in the midst of the bustling Patong Beach. You can get everything you need from the shops around yet having the peace you need for a good night's sleep!
We booked our hotel on Booking.com and paid 1800 THB for a night. Definitely a good deal! :)
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