Aristo Resort Surin Beach J16

Clean and comfortable

The space was cozy, the location was great and the host was very helpful whenever I had any questions. Thank you Stephen for accommodating all my requests!

The quietness and closeness to the beach

Pool on 3rd floor not clean

Good Location

The hosts are attentive. After arrival in the morning I explained to the host that the shower head was loose and the host quickly arrived with two plumbers to improve the shower. The property comes with a laundry machine and cooking facilities so I asked for trash bags, detergent and wooden cooking utensils (I believe wooden cooking utensils do not scratch pans) and was provided with these. One of the hosts was happy to drive us to the local supermarket first day so we could stock up on drinking water for our stay and a few essentials. We treated them to lunch and enjoyed their company. Good people. The property having three swimming pools was a nice surprise: top, middle and bottom levels of the building. PS. The sofa folds out if you feel like watching TV.

Interior wise the apartment requires you to pull the dining table out away from the wall so two people can sit. The hosts may consider shortening the TV's media cabinet furniture - the shelves near the balcony's sliding door may not get a lot of use, but that's just my opinion. This is not so much to do with the actual apartment but when you arrive in Phuket you will notice the absence of sidewalks and by the second day the exclusion of public transport. Aristo Resort 1 is situated 6-8 minutes walk from the main roads, and then another 8 minutes to Surin Beach, which is an idyllic beach with very few people. We stayed two weeks here and only rented a moped for one day to visit an elephant sanctuary. There is Phuket Smart Bus which charges way too much for a bus ride. The bus for example in the most expensive country in Asia, Hong Kong, is considerably cheaper. But given the economics of running a bus company in a region where every person rides a personal one-seat vehicle it's understandable why public transportation is lacking. Luckily there are taxi ranks next to the Smart Bus stations and you can negotiate the taxi price to that of the bus price considering that the weather is beautiful to be walking outside and you don't mind waiting for the bus. The taxi drivers will succumb to your patience having chosen a (too) competitive location for their taxi rank so you may get around for the cost of public transport at your will. Suffice to say we did a lot of walking between all the beaches we were surrounded by, and I highly recommend the Phi Phi Island tours advertised on the main street by Aristo 1.