the lux score
82the lux score explained
Kata Rocks is a brand new luxury resort located on the West Coast of Phuket near Kata Beach.
A series of white pavilions containing 3 or 4 luxury apartments each are located on a sloping site overlooking the sea.
Kata Rocks has an English owner yet a distinctly Mediterranean feel. I caught myself day dreaming many times during our stay thinking that I am somewhere in the Greek Islands.
Arrival
Kata Rocks has a fleet of brand new luxury vans – equipped with wifi and fitted out with cream leather recliner seats, TV and mini bar filled with cool drinks and small snacks. Rare luxury I have only seen in Asia.
Trip from Phuket airport takes about 1 -1.30 hours.
The check-in was done swiftly in the Villa (Kata Rocks likes to call their apartments ‘Villas’ and they are certainly big enough to be classified as such). A friendly reception lady has showed us around, settled us in and offered a welcome drink that was thoughtfully placed in our full size kitchen fridge.
Location and Facilities
Kata Rocks is very close to Kata Beach, 5 minutes walk down a very steep hill. You could catch a hotel buggy down the road or use the walk as a little exercise.
There is no private section of the beach for Kata Rocks guests so the options are to either throw your towel down amongst many other beach goers or go a private beach club Re Ka Ta where for a small fee ($30 per person) you could have a comfortable deck chair by the beach. I’d recommend the later option.
Kata Beach is a long white sand public beach with a lot of people, jet skis, boats, cafes – generally a lot of activity. It is a typical Asian public beach. The water is clean and flat during the winter months (December – March), perfect for children and for swimming.
Accommodation
Kata Rocks offers 34 ultra luxurious Sky Villas which vary in size from 1 to 4 bedrooms.
Villas are set up as oversized apartments decorated in contemporary style with plush furnishings, light wood and predominantly white décor. No expense has been spared on these beautiful apartments and it is not surprising that most of them have sold in a heartbeat. The apartments are individually owned yet managed by Kata Rocks resort.
We stayed in a 2 bedroom Sky Villa – perfect accommodation for a family of four. Bedrooms (king and double) don’t have views but are a good size each, have a lot of built in wardrobes, TVs and an ensuite each.
Beautiful living room opens onto an outdoor terrace with a with a private pool. The terrace with a large outdoor sofa and trendy deck chairs is a perfect place for enjoying a glass of wine and watching the sunset. Sunsets are just so spectacular in Phuket!
The view from the terrace and the living room is truly what you’d call ‘a million dollar view’ – all you see is the ocean occasionally dotted by a multi million dollar yacht looking for a perfect bay to call home for a night.
Living room features a luxurious white leather sofa (sadly already stained by one of the previous guests) with a plush soft rug and an oversized TV with a multitude of free movies for some quiet night in-house entertainment.
Full kitchen has a large fridge, dishwasher, microwave and (a nice surprise) a much needed washing machine. Anyone travelling with children would understand how convenient it is to have one in the room.
Two bedroom Villa was perfect for us (a family of four) but for larger families choose one of the chic four bedroom villas. They are designed to impress! They offer views from nearly every room, span over 300 square meters and represent the ultimate in Phuket luxury accommodation.
Dining
We found that most families staying at the resort prefer to dine in their villas.
There is hardly anyone at breakfast which is a pity seeing that poolside restaurant setting is spectacular. Breakfast is served a la cart and is an area of the resort that requires a little fine tuning. We found the food generally not as good as in the other luxury hotels in Phuket. Simple dishes often came either undercooked or overcooked and took a long time to arrive. Simple things like juice, fruit and yogurt might be best to order.
Dinner is served at the same restaurant and offers a selection of Asian or western dishes. Dinner was wonderful but interestingly enough the restaurant doesn’t serve any French champagne by the glass to accompany beautiful seafood dishes on the menu.
Infinite Luxury Spa & Gym
Kata Rocks has a little yet functional gym with a view and a sensational spa.
The Spa in Kata Rocks is one of my favourites in Phuket. It offers a wide range of holistic therapies not often found even in the best spas around the world.
Some of my favourites include ‘Chakra Wellbeing in Chromotheraphy Chamber’ The Chromotheraphy Chamber is coloured to match your energy needs during this amazing treatment that consists of foot massage, body scrub, chanra healing massage and a facial.
Another exotic yet so useful treatment is ‘jet leg’ recovery in an oxygen chamber. They say that 30 minute’ sleep in this ergonomically designed bed combined with pure oxygen is as rejuvenating as a good night’s sleep.
And another unique treatment I fell in love with is back massage performed on a warm colour therapy waterbed. It is relaxing beyond words and I found the changing colours very therapeutic. So much that I didn’t want to leave get up from this amazing bed for 10 minutes after the treatment has finished. A must try!
The Lux Traveller Loves
Million dollar views
Mediterranean feel of the resort
Modern white interiors of the villas with no expense spared
Unique spa treatments performed by wonderful skilled therapists – Must Try
Splitting Hairs
It’s a shame that there is no arrangement for the beach chairs at kata beach. We would recommend for Kata Rocks to have a number of chairs reserved for their guests at ReKaTa beach Club.
Dining needs improvement – we found the food to be not up to the same standard as the rest of the services at the hotel
All In All
No doubt, Kata Rocks sets a new standard in luxury accommodation in Phuket. With a few minor improvements it could soon become one of the best hotels in Phuket. Oversized apartment accommodation makes it a perfect home away from home for families.