Overall, in many ways this is a...
Overall, in many ways this is a lovely hotel with very nice facilities. The breakfast is excellent with a huge number of selections. The restaurants were of a high quality at the hotel and in Koh Samui in general. The room was clean and spacious and the pools were lovely. The downsides now: We found Chaweng beach to be a disappointment in many ways. The beach itself is fair at best - no surf and when it is low tide, the water is fairly far out. There was often a sewage smell on the property that was unpleasant. The main strip was also disappointing. Stores are primarily "honky-tonk" selling items of low diversity and quality. The street was crowded, unclean and uninteresting. Staff at Amari were acceptable but did not compare to the gracious staff we found at so many other hotels throughout Thailand. Nobody seemed to really go out of their way and we were disturbed by getting multiple rates from front desk staff for transportation to the airport; some prices which were exorbitant and unreasonable. I am used to being nickel and dimed by tuk-tuk drivers, not front staff at reputable hotels.
