Phangan Cottage

If you expect 5 star this isn't what you will get... If you are looking for a place to use as a base then this is great. 200 Baht a day for scooter is the way to go. 5 mins to thong Sala and 10 to head Rin. Pool is awesome along with the bar staff. Try a Mai tai cocktail, not the cheapest on the island but definately the best!! Fried chicken stall across the road is awesome. 7/11 directly across the road is very handy!

When I first arrived, on the first night I had 4 large waterbugs in my bathroom... The next day I asked for a new room and they were happy to give me a (bug-free) room. The cottage itself is pretty barebones, my biggest gripe being they only had a tiny face mirror in the bathroom so I never knew what I looked like when I wanted to dress up. The infinity pool, bar, and view are gorgeous though and make up for it in a lot of ways. The staff is exceptionally friendly, especially the guys. The food is okay. For a blanket they give you basically a large towel -- this isn't the Hilton, folks. To get to Haad Rin beach (full moon party), if you go by motorbike it's basically a 10-15 minute ride over some *very* steep hills -- not for beginners, but doable if you go slowly enough. I was terrified at first but got the hang of it after a few trips. The location doesn't have too much around it, so you'd need to rent a motorbike or taxi everywhere, but it's nice that it's in between the pier (great open air food market from lunchtime to evening) and Haad Rin.

Staff were lovely. Reception closer early but they were able to help you at the beach bar/restaurant. Food and drinks there were good. It is close by to the blackmoon party but far enough away that it is quiet when you turn in at night. Across the street is a 711 and gas station and down the road more beach front restaurants.

Do not stay here if you do not party 24/7, if you like clean rooms and grounds, if you don't like the smell of cigarettes blowing to your balcony ( if you book the ViP Seaside Cottage) and if you don't like to hear music all day. We booked the VIP Seaside Cottage. It was ViP for 20 year olds who can just walk down to the bar that is RIGHT next to the "cottage" ( a room built upon a storage room overlooking the tiny pool) but not VIP for 30 something's who enjoy drinking and socializing but not 24/7. First impression... A hostel. We paid $105 a night, not a hostel price. We then were shown to the ViP room. Stairs lead up to the room from the pool and right next to the bar. Safety anyone? We got into the room and noticed tiny poop on the bed sheets. It's Thailand, there are geckos, we understood so we asked them to change the sheets. We looked around the room and the room itself was fine but the bathroom, disgusting. The pictures in their website and on Expedia from them are not what is really going on. As they were changing the sheets, the bed broke and took 30 min plus to put back together. We sat on the balcony and waited... We enjoyed cigarette and marijuana smoke at 12pm blowing into the balcony from the pool party bar below, enjoyed loud music, enjoyed 20 somethings loud talking and already inebriated behavior and thought... We cannot stay here. How will we sleep? What if the drunk people just stumble up the stairs?

Really modest cottages. Super friendly staff that makes you smile and feel welcome. We also stayed at 5 star hotels during our trip. However this was the most memorable and powerful experience!! Highly recommend! There is also a fantastic Thai restaurant run by a family 50m from the cottages. Everything is 50b and it offers truly authentic Thai cuisine. It is a green shack with a fruit shake stand at the front. All in all a truly authentic Thai experience where we met some of the nicest people.