Pried out of the uncomfortable songtaew (open truck transportation) at the hotel, Kacha Resort & Spa claimed our scheduled pick up waited for two-hours before leaving. Yeah, right… We happen to like the Hillside section better than the noisy Beachside, across the road. Shown to our lovely room which faced the pool, I quickly discovered it shared a common wall with the next door fitness center with loud treadmill noises. Well, that was unacceptable and the only other accommodation available had two twin beds and overlooked an empty lot. Still, better an empty lot than treadmill noise for five nights.
For some reason, Kacha and Koh Chang Island is very popular with Swedes and Russians escaping long days and nights of darkness during their Polar winter; Americans tend to cluster on Phuket and Koh Samui. It was comical trying to decide which country people were from around the swimming pool which brings me to a few important resort tips:
Kacha Resort & Spa swimming pool, Koh Chang, Thailand
1. Kacha put in their literature that, if a “reserved” beach chair isn’t occupied within two hours, belongings will be removed, and guests are not allowed to reserve chairs until 8:00a. Bullshit. The unwritten, cardinal resort rule is: get out early and drape towels, put books, hat, anything on a lounge chair to reserve your spot and have the cabana boy drag an umbrella over. Come to the pool after 10:00a? You’ll either have to spread a towel on the ground or take whatever undesirable lounge chair is left, if there is one. Steve and I went to breakfast at 7:50a, and more than 3/4 of the chairs already had towels draped or belonging sitting on them;
2. Planning to visit any Thai resort area over the holiday season? It is imperative to book at least six months in advance; book very far ahead.
3. Watch for mandatory and hefty supplements imposed by resorts for Christmas and New Year’s Eve dinner. This is not unique to Koh Chang Island. Moderate to high-class resorts all over the world require guests to take Christmas and New Year’s Eve dinner at their resorts. Food is usually nothing special, and I promise, it will be expensive. Resorts similar to Koh Chang usually have beaches stretching for miles with little bars and restaurants that have reasonable food prices. Just figure in this additional cost when traveling over the Christmas holidays.
Kacha Resort has two restaurants, one beachside and the other (expensive) in the hillside section. A gigantic buffet breakfast is served at the beachside restaurant which is also open for all-day dining while their expensive spa is located in a stand-alone building on the hill side of the street. If interested in a massage, just walk down the beach or street in any direction to find less expensive massages that aren’t as cheap as in Bangkok or Chiang Mai but still less then typical resort prices.
After a good look-over at other hotels during five days in Koh Chang, we were thrilled that our room was hillside. We had no view but it was quiet. Wherever you stay in Koh Chang, you do not want your room to be along the noisy street. Etch this into your memory bank.
The Kacha Resort & Spa is located almost at the southern end of White Sand Beach. We stayed at The Barali Beach Resort, a more upscale resort, on Klong Prao Beach three years ago. If you continue south of White Sand Beach, Klong Prao is the next big resort area (it has really expanded in three years) and continue further south to Kai Bae, Lonely Beach, Bailan Bay, and Bang Bao Bay at the southern tip of Koh Chang.
bath towel elephant in our room, Kacha Resort & Spa, Koh Chang
We spent our days in Koh Chang happily plopped on “staked out” lounge chairs at the beachside infinity pool, a prime spot to watch the sea, beach activities, vendors carrying souvenirs and fresh fruit, tourists heading off on all day excursions, sailing boats, catamarans and more. And what about the brilliant sunsets! Could it get any better than this? I don’t think so…
a sunset in Koh Chang, Thailand
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