Cabana Lipe Beach Resort

After traveling and working in the hospitality industry for over 30 years, I’ve never experienced such rude and aggressive behavior, and this is from the front office manager! All this aggression, because I have a bad back and politely asked if it was possible to have an additional mattress topper. Honestly, if every hotel on the island wasn’t fully booked, I would have checked out immediately. Transportation: - During check-in, I was advised they provide complimentary transportation, from and to the port, but nobody contacted me when I made the initial booking through Agoda. - Rating: 1/5 Check-In: - Upon my arrival, I was presented with a welcome drink, which was greatly appreciated. - The initial check-in was friendly and fast, although no information was provided about good bars and restaurants to visit or what excursions to try. - Rating: 4/5 The Room - Superior Double Room - The room was basic, tired and definitely needed some love. - Although, I booked a double bed, it was two single beds pushed together. - The mattress was the hardest I’ve ever experienced. Honestly, it was like sleeping on a slab of concrete. - As previously mentioned, I asked for an additional mattress topper, but was told they had none available. - The bed linen is good quality, but the pillows were lumpy and not comfortable. - One pillow case also had a stain on it, which they kindly replaced for me. - There’s a Smart TV, which is good. - The furniture was old and tatty. - Shower: The water was warm, not hot and the water pressure wasn’t very good. - The towels were good quality. - The lighting in the room was good, but could be improved in the bathroom. - There’s a mini fridge, hairdryer, kettle, but no safe or full length mirror. - There’s one wardrobe to hang and store your items. - The room has air conditioning, which worked well. - Complimentary Water: Yes - Complimentary Coffee: Yes - Complimentary Tea: Yes - There’s also complimentary tea, coffee and hot chocolate available in the reception. - Daily Cleaning: Yes (You need to request) - There was a nice terrace area, but the room i booked was located opposite the reception, so it was quite noisy, especially in the morning as everyone was going for breakfast. If I’d known this when I made the booking, I would have booked a different room. - Bathrobes to use during your stay. - The WIFI was good. - The room was clean. - The 1st night, there was a damp smell. - The 2nd, 3rd & 4th night, there was a smell of damp and sewage. Not pleasant! - The main issue is the lack of sound proofing, the hard mattress. The damp/sewage smell, and of course the rude and aggressive behavior of the front office manager. - Rating: 1/5 The Cabana Lipe Team: - Some of the team are happy and friendly, but unfortunately, most of them look very unhappy and miserable. Additional Notes: - After I checked in, the front office manager offered for me to change rooms, but it was the room next door, which also had a hard mattress, so there was no point moving. - The flip flops aren’t free, they’re 250 THB. - The beach bag isn’t free, it’s 350 THB. - The bathrobe isn’t free, it’s 1,500 THB. Location: - Located right on sunrise beach. - Unfortunately, I wouldn’t recommend you swim outside or near the hotel as this is where the taxi boats moor. - There are numerous bars and restaurants within a 2 to 3 min walk. - It’s 6 min walk to 7Eleven. - Rating: 4/5 Breakfast: - Timings: 07:30 to 10:00 - Tea, Coffee, Juice, Water, Milk - Pepper, Tomatoes, Cucumber, Lettuce - Sausage, Bacon, Ham - Pineapple, Bananas - Cereal - Pancakes - Soup, Curry, Rice and other hot dishes. - Egg station: Fried, Scrambled, Omelette, but no boiled or poached eggs. - Rating: 4/5 Check-Out: - Quick, but no thank you, how was your stay, etc. - Rating: 3/5 Overall Rating: - Rating: 1/5 Additional Information: - I’ve been traveling Thailand for over 3 weeks now, and not one mosquito bite. Only here, I’ve been eaten alive by them. Not in any other bar or restaurant on Ko Lipe, only in the hotel room and on the terrace. To improve the guest experience, maybe the owner should consider some pest control. - My above ratings take into consideration what I paid per night, which was $87 and, of course, the rude and aggressive behavior of the front office manager.

A really nice, small resort in a good location on sunrise beach and within a short walk to Walking Street. The room and bathroom are cleaned daily and clean towels and beach towels are also available as and when needed. Breakfast is absolutely fine with fried eggs and omelettes cooked whilst you wait, together with bacon, bread and a selection of fruits and yogurts. Coffee, tea and juice also available. The staff here are wonderful and extremely helpful. There was a courtesy bus which took us to and from the harbours when we arrived and left the island. We also arranged for our laundry to be done at a minimal cost via the hotel. All in all, a lovely 5 day stay at this resort.

Very Disappointing Service Despite a Great Location Pros: Excellent location, right on the beach Rooms offer a beautiful sea view Cons: While the property itself has potential, the overall experience was extremely disappointing due to poor service and unprofessional behaviour, especially from the Front Office Manager. Nadia was helpful and polite, but unfortunately the Front Office Manager was extremely rude, unwelcoming, and clearly in the wrong profession for hospitality. He neither smiled nor greeted guests and handled situations in an arrogant and dismissive manner. Communication was done via Agoda messages. Responses were sometimes timely, sometimes not. We had informed the hotel about our arrival in advance and were clearly told that staff would pick us up at the pier. However, no one turned up, and we had to manage on our own. The bathrooms are old, worn down, and poorly maintained, with very low water pressure. Every request we made was treated as an inconvenience and rejected rigidly under the excuse of “rules and policies,” with no attempt to accommodate guests. We booked an extra bed for an additional person and were told that a vegetarian breakfast would be available. However, there was nothing vegetarian in the breakfast spread. When I requested an adjustment for the breakfast we did not consume, I was bluntly told that the amount was already “punched” and could not be reversed — an unacceptable and outdated excuse. During checkout, our room was inspected excessively, as if we were suspected of stealing hotel property. This felt discriminatory, as we did not observe similar treatment of guests from other nationalities. At one point, staff ran to the reception claiming that bathrobes were missing, when in fact they were neatly placed on the bed. To make matters worse, my son fell ill and vomited the night before checkout. The Front Office Manager immediately tried to charge us. First, he claimed the charges were explained at check-in (they were not). Then he said we had to pay regardless of whether it was explained. Initially, the charge was mentioned as a cleaning fee, but later it was changed to a “missing item” charge. When questioned, his response was shockingly rude — he told us we could “take the blanket and cover with you.” Completely unprofessional and unacceptable. The extra bed provided was also terrible — a poorly extended sofa bed that kept moving throughout the night and offered no comfort. Conclusion: This was one of the worst front-office experiences I have ever had. A good location and sea view cannot compensate for rude management, poor service, outdated facilities, and disrespectful treatment of guests. I would not recommend this resort unless management and service standards drastically improve.