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REVIEW: Novotel Phuket Surin Beach Resort | Perfect For Your Family

Families Magazine – Editor, Janine and her family stayed as guests at the Novotel Phuket Surin Beach Resort in February 2019.

If you are looking for a perfect overseas getaway for you and your kids, the Novotel Phuket Surin should be added to your list of favourites. With family rooms, a kids club, multiple restaurants, swimming pools and activities, this resort is the perfect choice for tired parents who want a relaxing holiday – with their kids!

We loved it and we think you will too – check out our article that will list the reasons why we think this is a great family resort in Phuket, Thailand.

Where is the Novotel Phuket Surin Beach Resort?

Located at Surin Beach, the hotel is literally just footsteps from the pristine white sands and turquoise waters of the Andaman Sea.

Address: 106/27 Moo 3, Cherngtalay, Talang, Surin Beach, 83110 Phuket, Thailand
Tel: +66 76 303 300

How to get to the Novotel Phuket Surin?

In ‘normal’ traffic, it takes about 36 minutes from the airport to get to the hotel. If you are landing in the evening, it takes around 25 minutes. The taxi (or a Grab) will cost around 700 Thai Bart (~ $30 Australian dollars).

Why is this the best family hotel in Phuket?

This hotel has really nailed it when it comes to family friendly facilities and activities. To be 100% honest with you, the Novotel Surin isn’t just a great hotel that has ‘added a kid’s club’. It is SO MUCH MORE than that.

They have really considered what families want and need on holiday… yes they have a kids club, but they also have a movie cinema, a ‘Wow Cow’ ice cream shop, an arcade, a toy and lolly shop, kids activities all day, every day, as well as foam parties in the pool and hotel rooms to suit all family sizes that can interconnect for everyone’s comfort.

Let me explain:

Family Rooms – perfect for all types of families

We were really blown away by our family suite… the size and the inclusions … you can see more in the video below.

These rooms have been designed specifically for families. The 56 sqm family suite features a master bedroom with king-size bed and bunk beds for 2 children (bunk bed in the living room), and a large balcony.

The resort offers the perfect setup for families with kids’ amenities and decorations. There is complimentary wifi internet and satellite LCD TV. The family suite features tea and coffee making facilities and a mini-bar stocked on request. It accommodates up to 2 adults and 2 children and our room had an interconnecting door to the next room.

It’s also worth noting that all suites at Novotel Phuket Surin Beach Resort were renovated in 2018.

Families Tip: Ask for a ground floor family room with direct access to the pool for ease of access and the night time view below!

Siam Adventure Club

We found all the staff at Novotel Phuket Surin Beach incredibly welcoming and helpful. The staff that work in the Siam Adventure Club at the hotel clearly enjoy their jobs and they like kids. They are full of smiles and eager to get in and play alongside the kids. My son takes a bit to ‘warm up’ to other people, but the transition here was smooth because the staff were so in tune with how he rolled.

The Siam Adventure Club consists of a number of different areas and activities throughout the hotel.

Kids Club & Activities

A testimony to any kids club is when your child opens his eyes in the morning and the first thing out of his mouth is ‘Can I go to the kids club?’ A hotel choice win right there! My reply, ‘of course you can, right after you eat breakfast!’

So there you go! Not sure what else I can say… the hotel runs activities (face painting, craft, cupcake decorating, scavenger hunts, popsicle hotline etc!) but they also have the following kids activities designed for your kids:

Cinema room

The hotel knows what to do with the kids on a rainy day… or even if you need to let them wind down after a full on day of local sight-seeing… a movie of course! They have an in-house cinema room, so you can enjoy either favourite movies or the latest releases.

Featuring brand new comfortable and modern furniture, state of the art audiovisual equipment, we felt like we were in a real cinema. The list of available movies is updated every month.

Families Tip: You can leave kids over 12 years old in here to watch the movie by themselves.

Wow Cow Ice-cream shop

The Wow Cow Ice cream shop has an amazing 30 flavours to choose from. You also get to choose your cone waffle cone (plain or chocolates dipped with almond, sprinkles …) and toppings…  chocolate sauce, Nutella or strawberry syrup.

We loved that they had local flavours too – the Asian-inspired flavours includes exclusive tastes such as Thai Tea, Purple Sweet Potato, Taro, Matcha mocha and more.

Families Tip: They have an adult ice-cream called the tequila sunrise sorbet. #justsayin’

Toys & lolly shop

Located in the lobby entrance, the toy and lolly shop might be a good option to gain your child’s ‘compliance’. Now I am not saying it should be used as ‘bribery’ material, but let’s just say I got my son off the water slides once with the suggestion that he could choose something from the shop before we went home if he came in for dinner… right now! 😉

Arcade games

Designed to entertain kids above 4 years old, the Arcade Games Room is an entertainment venue featuring state-of-the-art arcade games and video games. In here you will expect to find all the ‘thrill of the fair’ including claw machines with soft toys, PacMac, Donkey Kong, car racing, Mario Bros, sonic sports basketball and more. Most games cost around THB 20 per session, and last around 15-min per sessions.

Families Tip: Kids below 12 years old should be accompanied by a parent.

Pool activities & water slides

This is where my son literally spent 80% of his time. The water slides are awesome… like really awesome! Fast enough to satisfy the daredevil in him, but safe enough that I wasn’t worried he was going to hurt himself. When he wasn’t in the kids club, he was here in the pools and on the slides (there are 2 slides!).

As well as the two main pools they have a separate kids pool (image above) for really little kids. I LOVE this idea so the little ones are not splashed or intimidated by the big pool or the big kids.

In the main pool they host foam parties and bring out a zorb ball (not at the same time, LOL)… this was seriously good fun.

Families Tip: Find out what time the zorb ball activity is on and sign up early.

Restaurants at the hotel

As you would expect, there is no shortage of good quality food on offer at the resort. We were lucky enough to try out all of the restaurants, both a-la-carte and the buffet. They say a picture tells a thousand words, so I will let the photos and the video below show you what it was like…

Ocean’s Italian Seafood Restaurant

I do need to make a special mention of the Ocean’s Italian Seafood Restaurant, as it was simply exceptional! I had a tuna tartare for my entree, which might sound reasonably ordinary, BUT it was (and I am not exaggerating here) probably the second best thing I have ever tasted in my life (after a salmon steak I had in Coffs Harbour once!) It was avocado, mango and fresh tuna (like the kind you get in sushi)… and it melted in my mouth. I asked our waiter to tell the chef how much I enjoyed it.

My son had the salmon pizza which he scoffed all of and we also had smoothies, and dessert …. you could not fault the food, service or the presentation at this restaurant. Whilst it is an additional cost to eat here, it is worth every penny!

Families Tip: If you have little kids, put them in kids club and book a table here beside the pool (and order the tuna tartare!)

In Balance Spa

phuket novotel surin beach

As if all that wasn’t enough to entice families, they have a spa on site too! We each (including my son) had a 60 minute massage… which was nothing short of heaven!

They offer family spa packages as well as kid spa packages… as well as ‘Mummy & Me’ packages. It’s such a sweet thing to do with your kids. I recommend it!

Watch our video review

In conclusion

This is easily one of the best family friendly hotels in Phuket. I like that it is NOT near Patong, which in my opinion is NOT a family friendly area – it is overcrowded and full of bars and touts!

Surin Beach was stunning when we were there and is calm with lots of shade. When doing your research on the best hotel for families in Phuket, I guarantee you this hotel will come up over and over again! If you stay, let us know your thoughts too!

Photo of author

Janine Mergler

Janine Mergler is a veteran Queensland teacher, graduating from QUT with a BEd majoring in Social Sciences. After many years in the classroom, Janine moved on to academia. She has proudly trained new generations of teachers in her role as a lecturer at Queensland University of Technology Faculty of Education. She has also worked in the Queensland Government as an education specialist, developing education resources and delivering community awareness programs to help families conserve water. Currently she is the owner and editor of Families Magazine, a publication specifically targeted at parents who value a quality education for children.  Janine leads a team of professionals who write about family lifestyle, early childhood, schools and education information and family-friendly events.

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