Staff helpful, location awful, room run down and not what I'd booked. Also lots of bugs.

This is a lovely hotel and could be just what you are looking for, but read all the reviews here to check it matches the kind of stay you want.
This hotel is small (17 rooms) with a very pretty terrace with great views and elegant boutique style swimming pool with jacuzzi and fountains. It is family run with loving care and the food is very good indeed. Its small size, unassuming appearance from the road and modest reception make it feel more like a guesthouse than a resort hotel but we liked that.
Most of the other guests were international couples. We are a family with 2 kids aged 7 and 4. We live in Bangkok and came for 9 days as a break because of flood risk. This meant it wasn't exactly a holiday and we had work / homework to do. We had a family apartment which consists of a living room with kitchen area then a big bedroom with 2 Kingsize beds. This actually worked out great for us. The room opens onto the pool and faces the sea, as do most rooms.
This hotel is located on a beach and gives fantastic panoramic views but as other reviewers have said it isn't really the sort of beach you hang out on. I wouldn't say the beach was dirty, just a bit functional with the wrong kind of sand. The hotel is not in the middle of other tourist stuff but it is accessible. You can walk for about 10 minutes to the pier and catch a longtail boat to Railay Bay which we did several times and enjoyed. There didn't seem to be a ticket system for boats there so we would hook up with another couple of expats and pay about 400baht for a boat to East Railay (10 mins). There are buses outside the hotel to Ao Nang (10 mins) or the hotel has a shuttle at 1pm and 5pm. However we hired a car for the time we were there and really enjoyed exploring beaches up the coast and driving round the province a little bit.
The food at this hotel is the best thing about it. For breakfast you have quite a lot of choice and they cook it fresh for you - beautiful omelettes or fried rice etc. You get a lot of different things for breakfast including gorgeous homemade brownies, and great coffee. The menu for lunch and dinner was varied with both Thai and Western. They do Italian food well with homemade pesto, carbonara etc. Naturally the Thai food was excellent and my husband reckons they do the best Phad Thai he has ever had. Even if you just order a tuna sandwich it will be a superior one. The prices are reasonable too. My kids were very happy alternating between burgers, sandwiches, pasta, tomato soup etc. The wine was quite drinkable and the beer was always cold. We did eat out a few times but nothing compared to this.
We found the staff here really lovely and friendly. Most speak good English. It is true that there are some staff members without good English but they are probably the cook or the maintenance man etc. It is a little place with all hands on deck so during the day if you approach someone they may need to go and get one of the strong English speakers who is probably busy cleaning a room. We did have an issue getting our room cleaned at one point (partly our fault as we were in it more than your typical guest) but when I spoke to the management it was all sorted out from that point onwards.
The pool in particular is beautifully maintained. A couple of times I saw someone doing routine testing of the water with a kit which I haven't seen in Thailand before! I don't think this is a typical place for kids but ours were extremely happy there and there is a zip slide and a little playground. A previous reviewer mentioned lots of insects and it is true you need your repellent in the evenings. But you feel you are in a beautiful spot of nature with butterflies, birds etc to see.
If you are looking for a base while you explore the area this hotel is prefect. Likewise if you want a few days to relax, sit on the terrace or by the pool and enjoy great food this is the place. I would love to be there in a big group of friends - it would feel like your own villa. If you are looking for somewhere happening to base yourself for a week on the beach in walking distance of bars and other cafes and to make friends this is probably not the place - Ao Nang Villa or Railay Resort and Spa are both on great beaches and are nice places but you will pay 50% for one room. And the food won't be as good!

I was there last month, promised the staff to write the review but only to find myself barried in my work again after the vacation.
It's a bit distance from Aonang beach, but just the location i wanted to get away from busy life. It's cosy n quite (perhaps its because off season), and very friendly staff and a fantastic cook, i love the rice noodle soup.
Although its not a swimimg beach,but its very convenient to get a boat to Railey beach because the Aonamo pier is just few minutes away.
You will see fishermen busy preparing to go to the sea early in the morning, and some local ladies collecting shellfish during low tide.
Will definitely go back there again and will stay longer next time.
Thank you all for a nice experience!

We had planned to stay here for 10 nights but we could only stomach 2. When the driver brought us to this place we thought there was some BIG MISTAKE. Do not let the pictures or their website deceive you!!! Also the so called 'Good Reviews' on here are probably made by the owner and are FAKE'

NONE of the staff speak the bare minimum English, despite their claims.
The lounge and lobby would not be out of place in a budget hostel.
Full of bugs, EVERYWHERE, no attempt to control the problem (Unlike other hotels in Ao Nang)
They turn OFF the ELECTRICITY and WATER for several hours after 10am.
The bathrooms were AWFUL, why do you think there are no pictures of the bathrooms on the website?! The shower was out of date (like most of the items in the room) and the temperature went from cold to tepid).
Location was in the MIDDLE OF NOWHERE with nothing to do.
The shuttle bus runs ONCE a day. Takes you there at 1pm to Ao Nang and picks you up at 5pm at Ao Nang. So unless you fancy lunch after then you are stuck with the hotel restaurant (which isn't bad mind you, but has even more of a mosquito problem - yes we were coated with deet)
The beach has been heavily photoshopped in the pictures. We went on a horse ride that took us past their beach with horses leaving their 'business' everywhere. The 'beach' was filthy and if you look to your right, it's full of rubbish.

If you are on a budget, look for a place with less grand claims, they might just be real.