Travelling & Living: Ayara Kamala Resort & Spa

View from the lobby
Image from Locky's English Playground

The entrance of Ayara Kamala Resort & Spa was by the right side of the uphill Road.

Entrance of the resort to lobby
Image from Locky's English Playground

Judging by the exterior it was hard to imagine what a magnificent scenery this resort embraces. 

Panorama of the view from the lobby
Image from Locky's English Playground

Front facing the vast blue Andaman Sea and engulfed by dense vegetation on the hill side, the resort lies in the heart of mother nature, blessed with tranquillity and utmost beauty of the west coast of Phuket. Simply irresistible to anyone with a camera. 

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View of the hillside villas from the lobby
Image from Locky's English Playground

Having spent 4 days in Bangkok, this is a heaven, an ideal place for a relaxing honeymoon stay.

Panoramic view of the hillside villas from the lobby
Image from Locky's English Playground

It was nothing short of a shock to see the resort in person. Makes me wonder how different it was when I saw those promotional photos on the resort's website.

The welcome flower and drink
Image from Locky's English Playground

Checking-in didn't take long and soon my wife and I were driven to the doorsteps of our room -- Grand Pool Villa Ocean View.

The room
Image from Locky's English Playground

The room itself was amazing, but my attention was already snatched by the combined elegance of the evening sky, the sea and the infinity pool.

Image from Locky's English Playground

In the morning, the view was just as miraculous! And I certainly, could not do without a morning swim.

Image from Locky's English Playground

There is only one restaurant in the resort, offering from Thai to Western food such as pizzas, pastas, burgers and steak, all at reasonable prices. The fact that everything is cheaper than a usual restaurant in Hong Kong is encouraging enough. Of course, breakfast is also served here.

Breakfast at the restaurant, next to the public pool
Image from Locky's English Playground

The public pool is right beside the restaurant, which means that if you do want to swim in the public pool, you will be putting on a show, but hey, if you want to stay in this resort, why not just get a private pool for yourself?

Swimmers enjoying the water of a suspected Deluxe Access Pool Ocean View room
Image from Locky's English Playground

If you happen to be travelling as a huge family, or with several families and you wouldn't mind sharing a large pool, you can book several Deluxe Access Pool Ocean View rooms, then you can all swim at the same time in the same pool with a bit more privacy compared to the public pool, although you can still be seen from the restaurant level above.

Suspected Family with Pool 2 Bed Room Suite
Image from Locky's English Playground

The resort offers several types of great rooms, most of which come with a private pool, and they are also what I highly recommend, because with every private pool comes the brilliant ocean view.

Suspected Family with Pool 2 Bed Room Suite
Image from Locky's English Playground

Because all the rooms and villas are on the hillside, you can almost guarantee that no one will be blocking your great ocean view.

My room as seen from the restaurant
Image from Locky's English Playground

I was lucky to have stayed in Room 301, and this was a villa in a great location, right in the middle of the bay.

Suspected Deluxe Ocean View
Image from Locky's English Playground

Suspected Grand Deluxe Ocean View with Pool
Image from Locky's English Playground

I suspected that the higher you go, the better the view, but I could be wrong, that's because if you go lower, you might get a closer look at the private beach.

Manual elevator to private beach and back
Image from Locky's English Playground

Some villas have a staircase that goes down half way to the private beach, as the remaining half, you can use the manual control elevator. With two buttons (Up and Down) to operate, you can't get much wrong with the machine.

Image from Locky's English Playground

What's more, the private beach is not just nice for sunbathing, but also snorkelling! I tried once and the snorkelling gear, including life jacket, swim fins, snorkel and mask, is free. I got to see some huge silvery spotted rabbitfish, and it was amazing, but without other snorkellers nearby, I didn't dare to go too far, and the current is actually rather strong, so if you are not wearing swim fins, you probably can't even get pass the rocks. The rocks aren't sharp with shellfish, but I did get a couple of cuts on my arms. Thus, wetsuit is advised.

As for transportation, there are free shuttles from resort to Kamala beach at 10:30am and 3pm, and from Kamala beach to the resort at 12pm and 6pm. If the time doesn't fit you, simply call the lobby and pay THB150 for Kamala beach pick-up at any other time.

Shuttle bus timetable
Image from Locky's English Playground

As for getting to the resort to and from the airport, I consider the THB 1100 limousine was worth a ride. Although it is much more expensive compared to taxi ride from Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport to Centralworld, which costs around THB 400, the ride on a limousine was much more comfortable and I needed not worry about the hassle of bargaining transport fare and risk being cheated.

And also, a ride on shabby "taxi" to Patong beach, roughly 1/3 the distance from airport to the resort, costs at least THB 400!!! So why wouldn't anyone book a limo?


Overall, it is a luxurious resort with an extremely romantic view at a reasonable price. Facilities were awesome and the people were nice.

Minor problems include a half-stuck overhead shower head, weak hot water pressure; lack of information on the torch which was hidden in one of the cabinets near the bed, free private beach elevator, free snorkelling facilities and omelette at breakfast were also areas which can be improved.



Vocabulary:
embrace -- (vb) [T] formal to include something, often as one of a number of things 
engulf -- (vb) [T] to surround and cover something or someone completely
vegetation -- (n)[U] plants in general or plants which are found in a particular area
tranquillity -- (n) [U[ (US usually tranquility) a peaceful calm state, without noise, violence, worry, etc.; the quality of beingtranquil
irresistible -- (adj) impossible to refuse, oppose or avoid because too pleasant, attractive or strong 
nothing short of sth -- strongly showing this quality
snatch -- (vb) [T] to do or get something quickly because you only have a short amount of time
hassle -- (n) [C or U] informal (a situation causing) difficulty or trouble
limo -- (n) [C] (informal limo) limousine a large expensive car, often driven by a chauffeur (= a person employed to drive a car for someone else)

Resources:
Ayara Kamala Resort
http://www.ayarakamalaresort.com/

Virtual Tour of Grand Deluxe Villa Ocean View @ Ayara Kamala Resort
http://www.ayarakamalaresort.com/360degree/ayaraptp5/build.html


http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/embrace_3
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/engulf?q=engulf
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/vegetation?q=vegetation
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/tranquillity?q=tranquillity+
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/irresistible?q=irresistible+
http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/nothing+short+of
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/snatch_1?q=snatch
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/hassle_1?q=hassle+
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/limousine?q=limo#limousine__3