First of all, I will be very objective and say that if not for the awful incident that befell my friend, this hotel is indeed a good value for money.
However, the theft completely ruined our stay and it was hard for my friend to be happy at all throughout the stay (it was her birthday too, and the trip was for us to celebrate it).
What happened was, we were about to head out for the morning when the housekeeping staff knocked and thus we let her in to do her job. I was still getting ready while my friend was just waiting around for me. Bored, she left the room to wait for me in the reception area. Unknowingly, she had left behind her wallet containing $500 and 2000 Thai Baht in the room, on the table.
Not wanting to keep my friend waiting, I rushed and finally left the room while the housekeeping staff was still cleaning. My friend and I then left to walk to the main road(5mins away), but it was then that she realised she had left the wallet behind. We returned to our room and the housekeeping staff was gone. Sadly, so was the wallet.
We went to the reception and made enquiries, whereby we were told that the housekeeping staff in question had mysteriously gone off 'for a while'. We waited around for about an hour, while the management did almost nothing to help us look for the wallet. When she returned, we(with the management) asked her if she had seen the wallet. She denied ever seeing it, which was almost hilarious and not in a ha-ha way.
As we were getting nowhere, my friend got more agitated and the management finally suggested viewing the security cameras. Of course, the quality had to be poor and besides, they were placed in the corridors which shed no light whatsoever on what actually happened in the room while she was cleaning it alone. Annoyed, we went to the police station to lodge a report. However, this being Thailand, it took so long before the police even went to the hotel and not wanting to waste more of our day waiting around for nothing, my friend and I decided to resume the day's activities. So we asked for a change in rooms-- and guess what the management told us?
Because the key (which due to poor manufacturing had been detached from the magnetic tag you slot into the pockets to activate electricity) was inside the wallet and thus lost, they told us we were going to be charged for losing the key. Can you imagine??? There my friend was, extremely upset yet trying to keep her cool and be civil, and they were yanking our chains and still trying to bleed us dry. Unable to contain her emotions, my friend burst out crying in sheer exasperation. I explained to them that we did not separate the key and the tag intentionally, but it took a while before they finally relented and 'waived' the absurd key charge.
When we returned that evening, there was still no news. And there has not been any since.
Other things that were bad:
1. Like other reviewers mentioned, the air-con was way too loud as it was a cheap kind.
2. The area around the hotel was under massive construction so it was very noisy in the daytime, plus not picturesque at all the moment you step out of the hotel. No beach view, nothing pleasant at all for about 10 miles. Be well aware.
3. After the incident, we never felt safe. Once, there was nobody at the reception at night which meant that due to the open concept of the lobby, any vagrant or murderer could just walk in, and go via the pool into the pool rooms on the first floor.
4. Pool water was rather cold.
5. The second room we shifted to (102) was extremely crappy and flawed. The showerhead was faulty and thus sprayed the entire floor out of the blue and became extremely hot in the middle of a shower, without warning. The bed platform was chipped, and the walls were comparatively filthy. There were ants all over the place, ruining some food we bought.
6. Management did not even offer any form of compensation like a free stay for the next time (although of course, we would never go back there) or a discount off the bill. WTH?
7. The breakfast was blasé and the person in charge lacks imagination. The first day, it was exciting to eat but by the 4th day it was as old as the hills.
8. Too many obnoxious/loud Singaporeans and uncouth Malaysians.
9. Location. The hotel is close enough (10mins walk) to SOME shops, but the main Ao Nang shopping strip is slightly further away. The Ao Nang beach is AWFUL, with disgusting black sand. It's a public beach, and people only stay there as a base to the other nicer beaches in the area.
As for the good bits of the hotel:
1. Staff were mostly friendly, one even wished my friend a happy birthday on the morning of her birthday. Kitchen staff were very efficient and smiled a lot.
2. Decor was tasteful, modern. Our first room (104) was a pretty good room.
3. Cheap for something clean and nice, amidst the other junky places there.
4. There's a 'tourist information' counter just round the corner from the hotel, the girl working there is honest, helpful and friendly beyond her job requirements.
Conclusion? Go there if you HAVE to stay in Ao Nang, but just be on your guard.