Jw Marriott Khao Lak Resort And Spa

“Solid Resort offers great amenities for kids and adults alike, located on a beautiful beach!”

My wife and I just don’t know when to quit, after having our third (and final 😊) child late last year, we were in desperate need of some vacation time. After taking stock of what this endeavor would require, we both looked at each other and uttered “Thailand” while nodding in unison. After a few ... more

My wife and I just don’t know when to quit, after having our third (and final 😊) child late last year, we were in desperate need of some vacation time. After taking stock of what this endeavor would require, we both looked at each other and uttered “Thailand” while nodding in unison. After a few friends recommendations, we were all set to visit the JW Khao Lak resort which is about 1 hr. north of Phuket. Having been to a few international JW resorts now, we had high expectations as all of our previous trips have lived up to the expectations, and the JW Khao Lak was no different, we had an excellent time! Now, realize this review is from the mind of a father of 3 young kids, ages 5 / 3.5 / & 6 month old, so our experience and opinions are based through that lens. If you are on your honeymoon or just a couple looking to get away to rest and relaxation, this review is not geared for you, all of our activities/experiences everyday revolved around kid activities, so do keep that in mind. We booked the “family lagoon pool access” room and it was absolutely perfect for our small family. Our kids had their own beds, Mom & Dad had their king, and baby had plenty of space for a pack + play. The best part of this room besides the space, hands down was the lagoon access just outside the patio. The lazy river that you can jump into connects nearly the entire resort together, sort of like a mini-Venice, basically everyday we would load up the pool float and find our way down the river to the main big pool with the swim up bar, where kids would get ice cream and adults would get amazing Piña coladas! I would highly recommend this room for adults with young kids. The resort itself is very scenic and extremely clean. One side of the resort has the Adult pool and adult beach area, while the other has the kids pool and kids zone on the beach, with the main pool in the middle of the two, and the lazy rivers connecting everything. The service staff are all extremely friendly and helpful, always greeting us and getting our kids to smile, we always remember why Thailand is called the “land of smiles” every time we visit! The food was also excellent, all the restaurants on the resort (Sakura/Olive/Ta-Krai) were delicious, if your stay includes the weekend, I would highly recommend the “famous BBQ” dinner hosted outside of Olive restaurant. So many choices from grilled meats, seafood, fresh made pasta, cheeses, deserts, etc. it was incredible and shouldn’t be missed! The chef cutting the cheese was so friendly and absolutely had some incredible recommendations for what to try! The Thai restaurant was also highly recommended, everything we ordered was amazing. As I mentioned above, this resort has kids in the forefront with several daily activities, 3 pools, & an entire beach area basically dedicated to kids. For us this was perfect however do keep in mind if you are 2 adults or travelling with older children looking for a place to just relax, although possible here, there will be many families with young kids staying here. The breakfast buffet was large and had nearly anything you can think of, however we notice the quality of the baked goods wasn’t the best, especially compared to other resorts we have stayed at. There wasn’t really any variety either in the bakery section either, every day it was the same offerings, though the very nice staff will make you fresh crepes/French toast/ pancakes/ etc. Finally, the bamboo shark nursery was a bit of a letdown, although there was a lot of good information and spreading awareness is very important and noble, the actual “nursery” was very small and had maybe 3 small bamboo sharks the size of small minnows. Again, I completely understand the importance and think it’s a great idea, just the way it’s presented as a fun kid activity is not really the case, both my kids were asking where the bigger sharks were while trying to get not get trampled in the very cramped nursery. In short, excellent resort located in a picturesque beautiful beach with amazing food and plenty of kid activities/amenities. Families do not hesitate to stay here, and I would absolutely recommend!

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