Khao Lak or Phuket (Tri Trang near Patong)?

We are a family with two children (age 6 and 8) who are planning our first trip to Thailand and Asia this Christmas. I have already booked two hotels; but after all research I have done on TP I can’t make up my mind and decide what will be the best option.

We are from Norway and since or children have limited English knowledge, we want to be at a resort with a Scandinavian children club, Khao Lak Seaview resort and Merlin Beach resort in Tri Trang (4 km from Patong) are such hotels. The Merlin Beach resort has great reviews except regarding the hotels beach and the location a bit to off. The Seaview seems to have a great location at the beach, with lots of small restaurants nearby. The hotel has not that many great reviews like the Merlin.

We are staying for 15 days and would be in a quality resort. With children we are not up for partying, but long days at the pool and beach and a feeling of being in paradise, and going out for dinner at the evenings. We would also like to do some activities like Elephant trekking and boat trips to ';paradise like'; islands.

I’ll be happy for some input and recommendations :-)

Khao Lak or Phuket (Tri Trang near Patong)?

Khao Lak is about an hours drive north of the airport and the I think Merlin Beach would getting towards an hours drive south.

Khao Lak is a quieter less touristy version of Phuket - with less the of the street hassling and not as busy.

You can still do elephant trips etc from KL - it would be about 1/2 hour or so to Khao Sok national park and some amazing scenery. From KL you can visit the Similians and I think Phang Nga Bay trips are still feasible from Khao Lak.

I think the Merlin is v popular with us Aussies- so that may account for so many reviews.

A lot of people who prefer a more chilled experience find Phuket is too busy and are opting for KL. Have you posted your question in the Khao Lak forum?

Khao Lak or Phuket (Tri Trang near Patong)?

A bit late now perhaps, but have you considered to buy a two weeks package instead of DIY? Many tour operators like Star Tour etc have exactly what you are looking for. And price wise I guess it will be about the same, or even cheaper, as Christmas is a pretty expensive period for flights and hotel. Anyway, you will at least find a lot of useful hotel and destination info if you search for kid friendly packages.

you cant go past the merlin stayed there 5 years ago,it had just opened then you can get pool access rooms which we had which were heaven the spa areas i will never forget,the beach was abit average highly recommend

Here is my driver%26#39;s website. He is a fantastic driver and guide for visitors to Phuket. Great English (and other languages) and you couldn%26#39;t hope to meet a nicer guy!

johnstaxiphuket.homestead.com

The Sea View in Khao Lak is very definitely popular with the Scandinavian market. It specialises in package tours from there, Germany and Austria. A large Australian party who had pre-booked there had a bad experience in April and ended up rebooking just down the beach at the Nang Thong Bay Resort. Our Austrian friends stayed in the Sea View in March and rated it very highly. There are two parts to the resort, some rooms on the or overlooking the beach, others across the beach road in the main building. Both are within walking distance of the centre of Bang La On, the largest township in Khao Lak where you will find many restaurants, supermarket and mini-marts and shops. I would say the Sea View is 3-4*

There are plenty of tour operators who offer tours to Phang Nga Bay to the South, Khao Sok National Park to the north, the Similan or Surin Islands. There are several options for elephant trekking, the nearest being just back over the mountain at the Asia Safari %26amp; Elephant Village which is opposite the Khao Lak Merlin. Have a look at this link for a list of tour operators http://mykhaolak.de/touren.html

Incidentally, I would disagree with deux-fils that ';Khao Lak is a quieter less touristy version of Phuket';. Khao Lak%26#39;s attraction to me and I know most Khao Lak lovers is that it has its own character and identity. I would agree though that there is '; less (the) of the street hassling and not as busy. ';

Thank you for your answers.

Deaux_fils: Thank you for your advise I%26#39;ll post this in the Khao Lak forum.

Imagion: I have booked both the Seaview in Khao Lak and Merlin in Tri Trang thru Norwegian tour operator Star Tour - but need to decide for resort and pay the deposit very soon.

Tomandgem: Great to hear :-)

Arandora: Thank you so much for your very informative reply :-)! Would you say that the rooms at Seaview near the beach is better than across the beach road in the main building? There are to booking options right now ; near the beach but no veiw, and standard rooms.

I%26#39;ve not seen the rooms myself. Our friends stayed on the beach side ovelooking the pool, I think, and were very pleased with their room. They stayed the previous time in the Khao Lak Merlin but preferred the Sea View.

Don%26#39;t worry about the lack of English. I%26#39;m English and feel very much in a minority as most visitors are German, Austrian or Scandinavian. Thank goodness the Thais use English as the common language.