Shanti Lodge Phuket

Shanti Lodge has a wonderfully relaxed atmosphere surrounded by greenery, with a lovely, large swimming pool. It was our first hotel when we arrived in Thailand and frankly one of the best we stayed in afterward. The staff is incredibly friendly. The restaurant is very good and offers good value for money. The room we had was simple but adequate. Plan to have your own transportation or take taxis as there's nothing within walking distance in the immediate vicinity.

I loved my 10 day stay at Shanti/Oasis guest house. (As far as I can tell, "guest house" is between hostel and hotel.) The grounds are beautiful, lush and green, and with a handmade running pond and a lovely pool. They do spray for mosquitoes and I wasn't bit the whole stay. Vibe is bohemian, with older travellers like me to young children. Good music, from soft jazz with morning coffee to Bob Marley in the afternoon. I had a "traditional room", which has fewer amenities and a shared washroom, so was delighted to find air conditioning and appreciative that drinking water was supplied. Something I looked for in reviews when choosing a hotel was whether people commented that the mattress was too hard. The mattress here was firm but not hard. I've seen other reviews complain about noise from adjoining rooms. I stayed in 107, which was on the end next to the shared bathroom and didn't hear noise from any other room. A couple of nights there were kids running around the halls, but it really wasn't a big deal. I was amused by the weed emphasis, something that miffed a couple of reviewers, but hey, it's legal here. They've even changed the name from "Shanti Lodge" to "Oasis by 420." I didn't partake, so can't comment on its quality. Suggest bringing hangers as my room didn't have a closet or armoire, and was glad I brought a knife, fork, spoon to cut bananas I bought around the corner. Staff are all lovely and friendly and will bring food to the room. The restaurant food was good and very convenient, with a selection of Thai and western dishes. Tips are gratefully accepted but not required. I think they pool tips as there's a box on the counter. My room was cleaned twice at my request, even including fresh curtains. I didn't need more than that. Groundskeepers take care of the pool area and surrounds every morning. I got 3 wonderful Thai massages while I was here, one for the 25-hour journey and two after diving days. Price is higher than what you'd pay at the beach, but again, worth the convenience. Location was good for me, as I came to dive with Sea Bees at Ao Chalong pier, but for anywhere else, one would need transport. I went up to the main street a few times. The fast 4-lane road with no sidewalks made venturing out scary. Seemed like cars go 20 kms over whatever the speed limit, so on this road it's close to 50 + 20 kms/hr. My only suggestion for management would be to clean the shared bathroom twice a day, as there are enough misses to warrant the cleaning and for the first 2 days one of the toilets was out of paper. Oh, and I agree with the reviewer who suggested a full length mirror.

I’ve stayed in 12 hotels around Thailand ranging from budget to luxury and this place is the best value for what you get. If you’re looking for a place in old town Phuket area, look no further. The pool is amazing, the food menu is vast and delicious, the place is family friendly, there’s a 420 cafe, the staff went above and beyond. I want to come back already.

The location is bad. I rented a bike so it wasn't too inconvenient. The toilet and shower are outside the room, which is unique.

Wonderful place and wonderful people

A really great atmosphere.

Very nice hotel overall. The room is spacious. However, our traditional room was very noicy - you could hear a lot the street and the people around. The pool and environment is very welcoming and the staff is super friendly. Located a bit off the main attractions, but good reacheable by car.

If I could have given zero stars, I would have. Dishonest host. We asked them to cancel just a few days before our arrival simply because the wife became seriously ill and we couldn't go to Thailand… all the other hotels, including large resorts, agreed to cancel for free after we explained the situation. I mean all of them, except for this room, which ignored us completely… I absolutely do not recommend this hotel and I will certainly tell my fellow French citizens who regularly travel to Thailand… intolerable and dishonest behavior.