Wow... My wife and I travelled around Thailand from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Phuket and Krabi and found the Nakamanda Resort as the most beautiful resort we visited. Individual villas are set on the hillside and stagger their way down to the restaurant and pool right beside the beach! My wife particularly enjoyed the dressing room and bathroom! The pool and restaurant is amazing! You can have dinner literally metres from the water! The beach out the front does dry out at low tide but at high tide the water is crystal clear and it becomes your own private bay to swim in! The staff here are just sensational and so friendly with no job too big or too small for them! Although the location is about 20 mins from Ao Nang there is plenty of restaurants on the street out the front of the resort and also plenty of massage places, laundry a 7/11! The street here is quite peaceful and relaxing. If your looking for a party then Ao Nang is the place to be. It has far more restaurants, bars and markets but we were looking for a more quiet environment and found it at Nakamanda. But the journey from Nakamanada to Ao Nang is easy if want to go there. We also took a long tail boat from right out the front of the resort to Railay beach a mere 20 mins away which has a very rasta vibe known for its rock climbing and stunning beaches. Access to Phang Nga bay is easy with a long tail boat trip to the bay and hong island not far away. The resort faces the bay and has magic views of hong island and many other limestone cliffs. Although it is out of the main town, it is so very easy to do everything and anything!!! It is definitely worth staying at a place like this instead of something of less quality in Ao Nang!! We only went into the town once for dinner and found everything else we needed right at our doorstep!!! Free Wifi and 4 bottles of drinking water a day always make life a little easier too! The "Coconut Dream" cocktail is just devine if you are into that sort of thing! We love this part of Thailand and this type of resort and are already planning a trip back!

Fellow Tripadvisors,

For too long I have leeched the reviews of conscientious reviewers, taking what I need, booking and not contributing. This selfishness is now at an end.

Nakamanda - 5 nights, February 2012.

It's is as good as every one says. So instead of wasting your time gilding the lily, I will let you know what you need to have an even better time here:

1. Long tail boar trips - Don't bother organising trips through reception. Want to see the Hong Islands? (you should!) speak to staff at the pool, they'll put you in touch with a boat owner, then negotiate. Be polite, laugh, and drive a hard bargain. The set prices on the sign outside are for western tourists with too much cash.

2. Eating - the hotel restaurant is good value. I know the urge to travel outside and perhaps get a bargain. Don't bother. Mother's (the restaurant to the left of the entrance) is not good enough.

3. Beer / snacks - for this do venture out. It's worth the 7 meters you have to walk to any of about 5 minimarts around the entrance of the resort. Grab a few beers, get rid of the overpriced stuff in your minibar and restock with the good stuff.

4. Getting around - this is this the conundrum you will face here. You would never trade the tranquility for sleezy Ao Nang, and heaven forbid the madness of Krabi town, but you are about 30km from anywhere. So hire a scooter! They are 220BT a day. Bargain for it. The going rate is 250BT per day, but you can do better. Fuel is 35BT/litre. These little scooters run on fumes. There's no traffic. The downside is that other than Ao Nang and Krabi the rest of the Krabi province is appallingly signposted. Ask for helmets. Just step out of the resort, turn left and walk for 10 minutes. You'll find at least 3 scooter hire places.

The breakfast is good. Don't be shy, ask for the menu and get what ever you want cooked up. It's included. Mix and match. Bacon with your omelet? Mushrooms as well? Knock yourself out.

I stayed at Nakamanda early in the New Year with a group of friends. I found the resort charming with lovely rooms, great amenities and very good (if very "local") service.

The spa was excellent, the food in the restaurant very good and the setting was lovely.

A perfect place for a 4-5 day getaway.

We booked an 18 night holiday at the Nakamanda. For personal reasons we had to leave after 8 days and would like to thank the management again for the way they handled our premature departure.

At the Nakamanda we enjoyed especially the friendly staff, the excellent food (unfortunately some dishes and several wines which were on the menu were not available) and the tranquil and serene location of the resort.

The pool is a plus and compensates for the times when the sea in front of the resort is disappears during low tide. A special thankyou to Khun Dee, the housekeeping lady, who made sure to keep our room spotlessly clean