15 Best Hotels in The Gulf Coast Beaches, Thailand

The spacious lobby at this hotel between Hua Hin and Cha-am serves as a lounge for afternoon tea and evening cocktails, sipped to the soft melodies of traditional Thai music. Just past an ornamental lily pond is the swimming pool, complete with bubbling fountains, and the beach is just beyond that. All rooms have private balconies with ocean views and are decorated with local furnishings and modern touches. Since it's essentially in Cha-am, there's a shuttle service to Hua Hin and car service to Bangkok.

A total escape that provides serious pampering, this resort nestles on the hillside above Sairee Beach. Far enough from town to feel tranquil, it's nevertheless convenient to restaurants, bars, shops, and the island's longest beach. The accommodations are nine luxury villas, each with its own infinity pool and veranda facing the sea.

This luxurious resort faces a beach where the water's too shallow for swimming—which can be an advantage, as it keeps the crowds away. The bungalows all have gleaming wood floors, teak furnishings, and huge beds on raised platforms that make you feel like royalty. Some rooms are on the opposite side of the road from the beach and a considerable distance from it. The dining room is one floor up to take advantage of the views.

Surrounded by a 10-foot-tall terra-cotta wall, this luxurious beach resort looks like an ancient Thai village. Flowers and artworks decorate the lobby and much of the resort, and the furniture throughout is well made. Rooms are within two-story brown-and-burnt-orange structures surrounded by five distinct gardens and a lagoon; the color scheme is so complementary and the grounds so beautiful you could spend a whole day taking pictures. When you need actual rest, you can always head back to your room and collapse on the huge, comfortable balcony sofa. At night tiki torches light up the walkways that connect the rooms with the restaurants. Activities include tennis and cooking classes.

Bandara gets high marks for its location on the nicest stretch of Bophut Beach. Deluxe rooms all have decks with daybeds and smell great; aromas are piped in, and fresh flowers sometimes await you. Private villas have gardens complete with outside tubs and showers, and shady daybeds are perfect for massages. Well-qualified practitioners provide facials, massages, aqua therapy, and other treatments at the spa. The seaside restaurant serves seafood and Thai dishes.

At the northern end of Pattaya Beach, this sprawling hotel has superb bay views and several pools, including one with a swim-up bar. The rooms themselves also have comfortable seating areas and private balconies, and the lobby that leads to them is a light-soaked atrium complete with waterfalls. Not to be outdone, the resort's restaurants have expansive views, and the Devarana Spa is a luxurious, cutting-edge facility.

Despite a somewhat odd African theme, The Gem's Mining is one of Pattaya's classiest new luxury properties. Fabulous landscaping means that each of its 98 rooms and villas feel wonderfully secluded, even though the hotel is next to the main Bangkok-Pattaya motorway. The pick of the accommodations are the Ruby three-bedroom pool villas, which have a private pool and access to a larger lagoon pool.

Families with kids will love this Holiday Inn, which is located just north of Takiab Beach on the way to Hua Hin, especially since it's attached to the Vana Nava water park, which—with its array of fun slides—counts among the best in Thailand. The hotel is also a winner with features such as an elevated infinity pool and rooftop sky bar complementing its comfortable rooms and suites.  Two-day access to Vana Nava water park is included in the room rate.

With all the amenities of a big-city hotel, these spacious bungalows have private porches for enjoying the breeze. The accommodations are simply furnished, with a few wood accents that offset the white walls and fabrics. The pool is beachside, and some trees along the beach have swings attached to them—at high tide you can swing out over the surf. 

On the far northern end of Sairee Beach, this is one of Koh Tao's few boutique resorts. Choose between the circular, thatched-roof villas or Mediterranean-style with tile and wood floors, four-poster beds, and panoramic windows. The wooden cottages, which are farther up the hill and away from the beach, have bamboo-frame beds, native art, and decks that face south toward Sairee Beach. Rooms on the hill have stairs leading down to a snorkeling spot. The stylish restaurant, just above the water, is open for dinner.

The big attractions at this cheerful resort on Koh Phangan's northern coast are its two restaurants: one is a circular dining area that's open to the ocean breezes; the other is a seaside terrace. Superior rooms have hardwood floors, spacious decks with ocean views, and convenient access to the gorgeous, multitiered swimming pool. More like small wooden houses, the bungalows sit on the hill above the small private beach. Family cottages are enormous, with tall windows on both floors. 

This amiable place offers a little respite from the downtown hustle and bustle. Rooms in the main building are more modern and expensive than the stand-alone thatched bungalows but are not necessarily better. The junior suites have large outdoor daybeds and hot tubs. Spa rooms have outdoor hot tubs and huge wooden-canopy beds. The stylish restaurant serves Thai and Italian dishes, as well as fresh seafood.

High on a bluff about 1½ km (1 mile) south of town, this four-hotel ensemble, a Thai institution, is known far and wide for its gulf views, setting, and staggering size. Even the standard rooms are well furnished, and most have ocean-view terraces (request one ahead of time). Some suites have two bedrooms, making them good for families. The beach is nice, too, but it's a hike down some stairs. The 11 on-site restaurants prepare a range of cuisines. Rossi serves high-quality Italian food at affordable prices.

The resort, formerly the Hotel De La Paix, has preserved the design flair that characterized its previous guise while adding other flamboyant touches that enhance the property’s strong air of fabulousity, a trait underscored by regular DJ parties on the beach. Top facilities include a jacuzzi pool and an adults-only solarium pool.

Located at the far end of the beach, this resort is quieter than most at Kai Bae. Choose between luxe pool villas and rooms in a building looming over the strand. The grounds include a big beachside pool, a cliffside pool, and an attractive terrace restaurant. At the spa, you can indulge yourself with body massages and facials or sweat in the steam room sauna.