Hotel Acqua - a Lottellee Winna Review (Dec 22)

[LOTTELLEE WINNA]

Intro -  On this trip I was flying solo - this was a bit of an unplanned or extra, mini trip to Pattaya. I live In Udon Thani with my missus and nipper, and I usually take 6 x 1 week solo trips annually to Pattaya. Since returning to Thailand in September (I worked in NZ during Covid), I have already made 4 trips, but I had taken the family to watch Maroon 5 in Bangkok, so after putting them back on a flight up north I thought that an extra wee trip to Pattaya isn’t going to hurt anybody 😀 Now the Acqua is a hotel I have stayed at maybe 3 times previously, and always enjoyed it - so with that in mind and a promo price from Agodo - I dived in and booked it. 

Location- Outstanding location of this hotel…best in town IMHO. It’s so easy to get around - located on Soi Honey, it’s about a 1 minute walk to second road and two minutes to Buhakow (with LK Metro around the corner). There is a handy little alley between the hotel and Treetown too. A big plus is that being so close to Buhakow and second road, it’s handy for getting around including returning from WS on the Baht Bus.

Check in - The approach to the hotel is up some steep steps, and you can tell straight away that this is a classy hotel. A concierge helps you with your bags and it’s a warm welcome from reception, followed by a quick, easy and efficient check in. The receptionist let me into the room early at 12.30 am - very kind. I booked room only (no breakfast), payment in advance with Agoda and was not asked to leave any deposit. The staff respectfully request that all ‘additional guests’ (the gals) hand in their ID cards when they are brought back to the room. No joiner fee.

Rooms - The room design is very modern and fresh - it reminds me a bit of the UK Malmaison hotel brand. The only downside is the room size, it’s only at 23 sqm…for a single guy for up to a week it’s ok. The room has a closet with hanging rail and drawers for socks and stuff. There is also a large modern safe, small size refrigerator and decent flat screen smart television. There also was enough power outlets to charge my devices. The rooms are opened by electronic cards and the key needs to be placed into the holder in your room to power the electricity. My room had a small accessible balcony with one chair and a view across the city.  The bed was large and comfy enough to sleep on. The AC worked well, and the toilet, bathroom and power shower are modern and well designed.  The wardrobe has robes and slippers. There are tea and coffee supplied complimentary.

Wing - The hotel has two wings and (for the first time) I was in the one without the reception or swimming pool…TBH neither of these factors bothered me.

Room tip - ask for a high floor front facing room (this gives you decent city views), rear facing rooms give you a view of the back of a building and (I’m guessing it’s much noisier as you are nearer Treetown).

Perv tip - The second wing of the hotel backs onto the rear of a Soapy, and on the ground floor you can see the gals in their bra and knickers 💋

Wifi - The WiFi signal quality is outstanding, and no need to log in every day.

Breakfast - The restaurant is very nice - classy, and a good choice of food. TBH though I looked at what was on offer, but decided that there is just so much choice elsewhere - Sports Lounge on Buhakow serves a nice brekkie, as does Hemingways and The Nest.

Facilities - The hotel has a gorgeous rooftop swimming pool with sun loungers, Jacuzzi, bar and towels. There is also a gym and a residents lounge.  The hotel has a speedy elevator, and I never waited more than a minute or so.

Customer Service - The staff were nothing short of fantastic. Everyone is very friendly and chatty. Always had good banter with the reception staff when I saw them. Most of the time though I never saw reception staff, but I know they are respectful to any guests you might invite back to your ‘loom’…no guest charges (for one visitor), ID cards in the main wing must be handed in (a good thing in my view) and you get a call from reception to make sure everything is OK before the lady gets her card back. Security even in the second wing is good and I felt safe and comfortable the entire time. The place is clean as a whistle...as always guys consider leaving a daily tip for the hard working cleaner.

Noise - Noise from Treetown at the rear, but book a front room and you are all good. 

Price - I got this at a price of 1150 THB (via an Agoda offer). I thought this good value, particularly for peak season.

Overall -  If you are in the market for a decent 4 star hotel at a competitive price, and which has a fabulous location in central Pattaya then this property is one for you. Note is not one of those hotels that do tour groups, so no large groups of Indian lads, nor coach loads of Chinese. US, Aussie and European guests seemed to dominate.  IMHO this is a good hotel for those who enjoy good 4 star quality and who want to be near (although not on top of ‘the action’). As always, the booking of this hotel is price dependent. If you can get it under 1,300 low season and 1,500 high season, then my advice is to put it on your shortlist. 

Lottellee Review Score: 8/10

Edited December 14, 2022 by LOTTELLEE WINNA

[raviinc]

Thanks for all the information regarding the hotel. Details very nicely explained.  After reading your report I’m seriously thinking of this hotel. Like you mentioned the room look a little small. Will check the correct location on google. Thanks 

[vimto66]

Yes the rooms although nice looking enough are a litte on the small side, that chair in the 2nd pic could could be a great photo prop if the girl was willing though.

Ultimately this place size wise is poles apart from the Adelphi which you reviewed not long a ago and which i once stayed in, much bigger room and more wardrobe/drawer/ storage space than i knew what to do with there.

[zerosix06]

I had been once last month , I can say only that swimming pool and breakfast are great but rooms are really too little. Then there is a big problem all the air co leaking water on your bed , I changed 3 rooms same story. 

Edited December 14, 2022 by zerosix06

[LOTTELLEE WINNA]

Agree that the room size is smaller than I would wish for - but at 1100 THB I was happy enough for a week. Didn’t have any a/c issues.

[Barak]

Where did you book this hotel? I can't find any available dates...

[Arnie85]

Unusual bedspread configuration, they’ve just put two on and hoped no one would notice.  In the iconic white and cream stripe that is in 95% of Pattaya accomodation.  Once you notice it you can never unsee it. 

[LOTTELLEE WINNA]

8 hours ago, Barak said:

Where did you book this hotel? I can't find any available dates...

Booked on Agoda…there is plenty of availability on there.

[fko]

I stayed in Aqua last summer (so a few months before the review here). I like the of the hotel and had stayed here in 2019 as well. Obviously a quality hotel, with one big down side: the size of the (standard) rooms. It really feels cramped and it is somewhat surprising how much you feel the difference of you compare to slightly larger rooms such as Amber or 247. I kept bumping myself and things into furniture. Pool is nice, but as always in practice I never really use it.

Location is very good, to get to other places in the city. Walking to LK, Tree Town, Central festival and the baht bus on second road is a breeze. Soi Honey is really great for that. The downside is the noise from around the hotel. I asked for, and got, a room on the soi Honey side (so away from tree town)...but even there the massage girls can be kind of loud when they call out to potential customers. These places also seem to be open at all times. Other hotels manage to provide a quiter environment.

Another interesting thing to note, is that the whole street and parking lot in front of the hotel, become a river/lake when it rains hard. 

Decent hotel, but because of the size not really high on my list anymore.