[xilef]

Poppa Palace

Take a pass. The basics of a decent hotel are here, but the bait and switch tactics made my stay disappointing.

Bills itself as luxury; at best it's a Budget Inn. I've stayed in 5 hotels in Thailand, this is the only one with a 19 inch cathode ray tube TV. Only one that charges for internet. Only one that the A/C won't cool the room. If you are a non-smoker, this hotel is for you; there are zero smoking allowed rooms, none. The bathrooms come with soap/shampoo--in industrial dispensers, not individual containers.

I studied long and hard on the hotels that I chose for this trip. I know I picked a smoking room, I've smoked for 35 years, it's not like I forgot. I also chose a hotel with free internet. Since I don't have internet, I can't check on what the advertisement said about the TV, but CRT is not luxury, it's 20th century tech. Poor A/C is not luxury. My room is actually warmer now, after sunset, than it was a hour ago. Bed is hard; better than a tile floor, but I've walked on softer carpets. Little bugs appeared on the second day.

I booked online and did a simulated purchase to see the final paperwork. I noticed that although I had chosen 2 adults in the room, that had revertedto 1 because I didn't include a second adult's name. When I wrote "other Traveler" in, a second adult was included.

When I addressed these issues with the front desk, before I'd even finished I got the tired line that I booked though an agency so blame them. The clerk acted like they've had these complaints often. Which indicates to me that they are deliberately delivering incorrect information to their agencies.

The room is decent sized and fairly clean. And I did manage to get a second key to keep the A/C running while I'm out with only a 200 baht deposit (no receipt). Location is good, reasonably close to the beach and nightlife. Plenty of towells, no wash cloths. Seems to cater to Russians. Breakfast buffet is adequate to sparse, looks like lunch, but across the room you'll find eggs, toast, a few fresh fruits, juice and cereal.

If you have low self esteem and disappointment is a vital part of your daily life, choose this hotel. This hotel is OCD about extra charges. My room even included a list of 45 items that would be charged for if damaged or missing.

This post has been edited by xilef: 18 May 2010 - 11:02 AM

[jckjones29]

I have decided my girlfriend and me to spend 4 nights in Phuket beginning of June and more precisely Kata beach which seems better than Phatong or Kammata.could someone provide us some tips for a good reasonable places to stay , not budget but obviously not over 2000 bahts a nights.also want a nice hotel room. Advice?