We stayed at the Pavilion with a...
We stayed at the Pavilion with a parent and grandparent. From day 1 our accommodation booking was a shambles. We had requested 3 Spa Junior Suites next to each other 6 months prior to our stay, and our three rooms ended up at opposite ends of the resort. In addition, one room wasn't a Spa Junior Suite at all, but a very old standard room with dirty, used sandals as 'slippers', and the hairdryer was ancient with the TV at an unfortunately angle from where the bed is (you have to lie on your side to see it). The outdoor spa/balcony were nice though.
The front desk could not speak English well (compared to the standard in other hotels we have stayed at in Thailand) and this caused much frustration when trying to arrange the correct rooms/rates, transfers, tours etc. The Spa Junior Suite rooms are quite dark with no natural light coming into the rooms, and no view of the ocean, and although the plunge pool was great, the outdoor area is very sparse/concrete (not in a very 'zen' kind of way either) and could use some landscaping/greenery in light of the fact that there is no ocean/garden view.
The pool was small, and you have to walk over sandy pebbles to get to the edge of the pool - good in theory, but quite dangerous for the elderly or very young, and the pool is more dirty/sandy as a result. The pavement surrounding the pool was dirty/unswept and the finish on the concrete walls is untidy with chunks of concrete left in certain places. Not nearly enough greenery to create a 'tropical island feeling'.
Having said this, the housekeeping staff were brilliant and extremely efficient, as were the Porters, considering their difficult task of pulling suitcases in trolleys across the unfinished section of black gravelled, unsealed pathways - which might I add were very annoying when you are all dressed to go out and not in the mood for getting dirty feet.
the breakfast was great (banana pancakes and omelettes were yum) and the bar at cocktail hour was good (although the music selection was anything but 'ambient' - with the volume going up and down - seemingly due to the bar staff's personal music preference.
Overall, in my experience, I think there are many resorts that you can stay at for the same cost, if not less than at the Pavilion, which offer much better services and facilities.
