I appreciate that @dearjb posted a comprehensive review of this a few months ago - however by the time I saw his review, I'd already started writing my own!! 🤷‍♂️ Now I've finally got around to finishing it, so I thought I would post it, because recently there's been at least one post asking about this property...🙂

Short version:  

Positives: Excellent central location facing Second Road, all amenities nearby, baht buses and other transport options readily available, within easy walking distance of Beach Road and Soi Buakhow; cost paid (high season 2024/25) approximately 5000 baht per night for a 1-bed, two-room suite with jacuzzi; big comfortable bed; two large smart TVs (Netflix and other streaming services available); hotel was well-maintained with no ongoing renovations or disturbances; excellent service (didn't try the restaurant though!).
Negatives: Swimming pool was far too cold (cold enough that there was almost never anybody in it) and doesn't get any sunlight (not during high season anyway); room balcony is not really designed for sitting out. 

Long version:  

This review relates to a two-week stay during high season of 2024/25. This wasn't my first time staying here - I'd been here previously on three or four occasions - however it was my first visit since Covid, and also first since the hotel was taken over by the Heeton chain (the first couple of times I believe it was still called the 'Dusit D2' rather than Baraquda).    
The hotel is situated in central Pattaya facing Second Road.  In my opinion the location is excellent - lots of restaurants, bars, coffee shops, 'regular' shops, street stalls, juice stands (etc) nearby; Seven Eleven, 'TT' money changer and ATM machine just across the road; laundries and barbershops opposite in Soi 13/2.  There are tons of music bars on Second road, plus quite a lot of smaller bars in which you can find girls in Soi 13/1 and 13/2.  In terms of transport you can flag down the Baht bus directly outside - Second Road is one-way, so the bus takes you towards Soi 6 and Terminal 21 rather than towards Walking Street (although most buses eventually turn around at Dolphin Circle, then head back down Beach Road to WS).  There are always motorcycle taxis around, and usually yellow motor taxis if you prefer - however I seldom used motorbikes or taxis (or even baht buses) because the location is so central that it's possible to walk to most places - for example Beach Road is less than ten minutes on foot via Soi 13/2; or if you go up Pattaya Avenue (a pedestrian shopping avenue adjacent to the hotel), it connects to Soi 15, which takes you to Soi Buakhow, again in less than ten minutes. The hotel also has a back entrance to a passageway which is an even quicker shortcut to Soi 15 and Buakhow - you can if you wish use this back entrance to avoid the 'walk of shame' when bringing in a girl (or perhaps two), because it leads directly to the elevators without passing reception (although personally I have no shame 😊 And in my experience the receptionists were totally cool anyway - with the caveat being that I only ever brought in one girl at a time).  

Some reviews of this hotel on various websites over the last few years haven't been particularly positive, for example regarding service - I'm guessing this may have been due to issues in maintaining standards during the change of ownership (although I could be completely wrong🙂).  During my stay the quality of service provided by all of the hotel staff was very good, and generally they all had big smiles too (door guys, concierge, housekeeping staff and receptionists).  Check-in/check-out were both quick and efficient (at check-in they took 1000 Baht returnable security deposit, payable either by cash or card).  The first time I saw one of the housekeeping ladies I requested extra towels - thereafter I had four towels the whole time (I gave the housekeeping lady a small tip a couple of times - not sure whether influenced her to maintain my 'extra towel allocation' for the duration of my stay  ).

I had also read some reports of noisy building work (e.g. I read that the area around the pool area was improved in autumn 2024).  During my visit however I saw no signs of any ongoing renovations - in fact my room (and also the reception areas, pool etc) all looked absolutely fine. A couple of reviews had also mentioned a smell of damp but I didn't notice that either.  

In addition I seem to recall that some reviewers were not very complimentary about some of the other guests, however when I stayed I didn't see any big groups, and I wasn't disturbed by any rowdy parties - mostly it was Asian or white (or occasionally black) couples, plus quite a few single guys of various nationalities, often with their current Thai GF in tow.  I didn't see many families with kids either. 

In my opinion the pool area is OK and it was never too busy.  However the pool was far too cold 🥶 in fact it was so cold that there was almost never anybody in it.  The pool catches virtually no sunlight during the day (not during high season anyway) - but surely that's no excuse. I kept intending to ask at reception for an explanation as to why the pool was freezing - however in the end I didn't get around to it, because I was usually 'otherwise occupied'.  Also I wondered if the pool temperature might be better at the nearby Heeton Concept hotel (it's a few minutes walk away on Soi 15) - and if so, whether Baraquda guests might be allowed to use it free of charge, seeing as both hotels are run by the same company - but I never got round to asking about that either (Note: I saw it mentioned in a fairly recent post by @Gonetothedogs that non-guests can buy a 350 baht 'day pass' to use the pool at the Heeton - so I could have gone anyway, but I didn't realise at the time).  By the way - I seem to recall that in the 'old days' the pool at the Baraquda DID actually get sunlight - if so, perhaps it has been blocked out by some relatively recent construction nearby (?).  The pool certainly wasn't cold in the 'old days'.  I don't recall reading any reviews that said that the pool was cold either.  

The hotel has a very small gym which is divided between two floors (with a flight of steps inside the gym).  I only went once and there was nobody else in it.  There isn't really a lot of equipment in the gym, so I wouldn't really recommend it - but at least it's got aircon, which (in my experience) is not always the case in hotel gyms in Asia.   

I didn't eat in the hotel - not even breakfast - because there are so many other choices nearby.  The restaurant area looked fine though - it's located by the pool.  I see that dearjb mentioned that there used to be a rooftop bar/restaurant (currently closed) - I had no idea that this existed.   

Wifi was good usually, although I recall it dropped a couple of times for a short while - this wasn't an issue for me, because when it happened I temporarily tethered my ipad or laptop to the excellent 5G service provided with my local SIM.  Both rooms in my suite had big smart TVs which had a lot of channels plus various streaming services, e.g. Netflix etc.   
Elevators were fine and there was never any extended wait (the hotel only has six floors anyway).

I don't smoke myself but I noticed quite a few guests perched on stools in the designated smoking area in front of the hotel facing Second Road (I will include a photo of the smoking area below).

I booked an Aqua suite overlooking the pool, which was expensive - around 5000 Baht per night.  The price was even higher than normal because it was peak season (and also perhaps because I booked fairly late).  On my last day my flight was due to leave BKK at about midnight, so I asked at reception if I could keep the room until 8:00 PM - they said OK and charged me 2800.  

The Aqua suite is made up of two rooms divided by a sliding door - I prefer this kind of layout because if you wake up and the girl is still sleeping (and in my experience most Thai girls will sleep all day if you let them) you can sit in the lounge area and shut the door.  The aircon worked fine but wasn't the quietest, so when I was sleeping I didn't turn on the AC in the bedroom - only in the lounge area - with the dividing door left open.  There's a bit of external noise in the hotel - probably not enough to stop you from sleeping though (and I tend to wear earplugs sometimes anyway).  The bed was really soft and absolutely fantastic, and the ladies loved it too - in fact one overnight girl had forewarned me that that she intended to sleep on the couch in the lounge (she said she couldn't sleep if she wasn't alone), but once she tried the bed, she immediately changed her mind 😆 There was a very small balcony overlooking the pool, but as @dearjb mentioned in his review, the balconies aren't really designed for sitting out - there aren't any chairs!! 🤦‍♂️

No trouble bringing in girls - personally I only brought in one at a time, but my understanding from other forums (etc) is that you can bring in two (or possibly more?) at the same time without any fuss or additional charge.  When bringing guests in and out the reception staff acted cool and friendly - there was no suggestion that the ladies needed to leave their ID at reception, so they didn't. 

The Aqua suite includes a jacuzzi, although personally I'm not really bothered about a jacuzzi - I only booked the Aqua because it has two rooms.  So really I was paying for a facility I didn't need.  None of the girls appeared to be interested in the jacuzzi either - I was wondering if this is might be because (as a general rule) Thai girls are obsessed with being clean - maybe they think a jacuzzi isn't as hygenic as a shower 🤔  The shower was quite large and was fine, except that it was a bit tricky getting the right temperature setting sometimes.  Almost forgot - there are TWO toilets - one opposite the shower and the other off the living room.  

Finally on the subject of rooms: there's another room type at Baraquda that is spread over two floors (Loft suite) - I've stayed in one of these before, and in my opinion it was even better than the Aqua (the Loft Suite still has jacuzzi though, so again I would be paying for something I probably won't use).

Edited April 18, 20251 yr by altered ego
Just a couple of very minor format changes...

41 minutes ago, altered ego said:

Some reviews of this hotel on various websites over the last few years haven't been particularly positive, for example regarding service - I'm guessing this may have been due to issues in maintaining standards during the change of ownership (although I could be completely wrong🙂).

Same ownership actually, it’s just that it left the Accor group franchise.

 

Good review, looks like the rooms have had somewhat of a refresh since Covid. That’s weird about the pool not getting sunlight, it absolutely used to for much of the day 

Great report 

On 18/04/2025 at 19:06, altered ego said:

I appreciate that @dearjb posted a comprehensive review of this a few months ago - however by the time I saw his review, I'd already started writing my own!! 🤷‍♂️ Now I've finally got around to finishing it, so I thought I would post it, because recently there's been at least one post asking about this property...🙂

Short version:  

Positives: Excellent central location facing Second Road, all amenities nearby, baht buses and other transport options readily available, within easy walking distance of Beach Road and Soi Buakhow; cost paid (high season 2024/25) approximately 5000 baht per night for a 1-bed, two-room suite with jacuzzi; big comfortable bed; two large smart TVs (Netflix and other streaming services available); hotel was well-maintained with no ongoing renovations or disturbances; excellent service (didn't try the restaurant though!).
Negatives: Swimming pool was far too cold (cold enough that there was almost never anybody in it) and doesn't get any sunlight (not during high season anyway); room balcony is not really designed for sitting out. 

Long version:  

This review relates to a two-week stay during high season of 2024/25. This wasn't my first time staying here - I'd been here previously on three or four occasions - however it was my first visit since Covid, and also first since the hotel was taken over by the Heeton chain (the first couple of times I believe it was still called the 'Dusit D2' rather than Baraquda).    
The hotel is situated in central Pattaya facing Second Road.  In my opinion the location is excellent - lots of restaurants, bars, coffee shops, 'regular' shops, street stalls, juice stands (etc) nearby; Seven Eleven, 'TT' money changer and ATM machine just across the road; laundries and barbershops opposite in Soi 13/2.  There are tons of music bars on Second road, plus quite a lot of smaller bars in which you can find girls in Soi 13/1 and 13/2.  In terms of transport you can flag down the Baht bus directly outside - Second Road is one-way, so the bus takes you towards Soi 6 and Terminal 21 rather than towards Walking Street (although most buses eventually turn around at Dolphin Circle, then head back down Beach Road to WS).  There are always motorcycle taxis around, and usually yellow motor taxis if you prefer - however I seldom used motorbikes or taxis (or even baht buses) because the location is so central that it's possible to walk to most places - for example Beach Road is less than ten minutes on foot via Soi 13/2; or if you go up Pattaya Avenue (a pedestrian shopping avenue adjacent to the hotel), it connects to Soi 15, which takes you to Soi Buakhow, again in less than ten minutes. The hotel also has a back entrance to a passageway which is an even quicker shortcut to Soi 15 and Buakhow - you can if you wish use this back entrance to avoid the 'walk of shame' when bringing in a girl (or perhaps two), because it leads directly to the elevators without passing reception (although personally I have no shame 😊 And in my experience the receptionists were totally cool anyway - with the caveat being that I only ever brought in one girl at a time).  

Some reviews of this hotel on various websites over the last few years haven't been particularly positive, for example regarding service - I'm guessing this may have been due to issues in maintaining standards during the change of ownership (although I could be completely wrong🙂).  During my stay the quality of service provided by all of the hotel staff was very good, and generally they all had big smiles too (door guys, concierge, housekeeping staff and receptionists).  Check-in/check-out were both quick and efficient (at check-in they took 1000 Baht returnable security deposit, payable either by cash or card).  The first time I saw one of the housekeeping ladies I requested extra towels - thereafter I had four towels the whole time (I gave the housekeeping lady a small tip a couple of times - not sure whether influenced her to maintain my 'extra towel allocation' for the duration of my stay  ).

I had also read some reports of noisy building work (e.g. I read that the area around the pool area was improved in autumn 2024).  During my visit however I saw no signs of any ongoing renovations - in fact my room (and also the reception areas, pool etc) all looked absolutely fine. A couple of reviews had also mentioned a smell of damp but I didn't notice that either.  

In addition I seem to recall that some reviewers were not very complimentary about some of the other guests, however when I stayed I didn't see any big groups, and I wasn't disturbed by any rowdy parties - mostly it was Asian or white (or occasionally black) couples, plus quite a few single guys of various nationalities, often with their current Thai GF in tow.  I didn't see many families with kids either. 

In my opinion the pool area is OK and it was never too busy.  However the pool was far too cold 🥶 in fact it was so cold that there was almost never anybody in it.  The pool catches virtually no sunlight during the day (not during high season anyway) - but surely that's no excuse. I kept intending to ask at reception for an explanation as to why the pool was freezing - however in the end I didn't get around to it, because I was usually 'otherwise occupied'.  Also I wondered if the pool temperature might be better at the nearby Heeton Concept hotel (it's a few minutes walk away on Soi 15) - and if so, whether Baraquda guests might be allowed to use it free of charge, seeing as both hotels are run by the same company - but I never got round to asking about that either (Note: I saw it mentioned in a fairly recent post by @Gonetothedogs that non-guests can buy a 350 baht 'day pass' to use the pool at the Heeton - so I could have gone anyway, but I didn't realise at the time).  By the way - I seem to recall that in the 'old days' the pool at the Baraquda DID actually get sunlight - if so, perhaps it has been blocked out by some relatively recent construction nearby (?).  The pool certainly wasn't cold in the 'old days'.  I don't recall reading any reviews that said that the pool was cold either.  

The hotel has a very small gym which is divided between two floors (with a flight of steps inside the gym).  I only went once and there was nobody else in it.  There isn't really a lot of equipment in the gym, so I wouldn't really recommend it - but at least it's got aircon, which (in my experience) is not always the case in hotel Gyms in Asia.   

I didn't eat in the hotel - not even breakfast - because there are so many other choices nearby.  The restaurant area looked fine though - it's located by the pool.  I see that dearjb mentioned that there used to be a rooftop bar/restaurant (currently closed) - I had no idea that this existed.   

Wifi was good usually, although I recall it dropped a couple of times for a short while - this wasn't an issue for me, because when it happened I temporarily tethered my ipad or laptop to the excellent 5G service provided with my local SIM.  Both rooms in my suite had big smart TVs which had a lot of channels plus various streaming services, e.g. Netflix etc.   
Elevators were fine and there was never any extended wait (the hotel only has six floors anyway).

I don't smoke myself but I noticed quite a few guests perched on stools in the designated smoking area in front of the hotel facing Second Road (I will include a photo of the smoking area below).

I booked an Aqua suite overlooking the pool, which was expensive - around 5000 Baht per night.  The price was even higher than normal because it was peak season (and also perhaps because I booked fairly late).  On my last day my flight was due to leave BKK at about midnight, so I asked at reception if I could keep the room until 8:00 PM - they said OK and charged me 2800.  

The Aqua suite is made up of two rooms divided by a sliding door - I prefer this kind of layout because if you wake up and the girl is still sleeping (and in my experience most Thai girls will sleep all day if you let them) you can sit in the lounge area and shut the door.  The aircon worked fine but wasn't the quietest, so when I was sleeping I didn't turn on the AC in the bedroom - only in the lounge area - with the dividing door left open.  There's a bit of external noise in the hotel - probably not enough to stop you from sleeping though (and I tend to wear earplugs sometimes anyway).  The bed was really soft and absolutely fantastic, and the ladies loved it too - in fact one overnight girl had forewarned me that that she intended to sleep on the couch in the lounge (she said she couldn't sleep if she wasn't alone), but once she tried the bed, she immediately changed her mind 😆 There was a very small balcony overlooking the pool, but as @dearjb mentioned in his review, the balconies aren't really designed for sitting out - there aren't any chairs!! 🤦‍♂️

No trouble bringing in girls - personally I only brought in one at a time, but my understanding from other forums (etc) is that you can bring in two (or possibly more?) at the same time without any fuss or additional charge.  When bringing guests in and out the reception staff acted cool and friendly - there was no suggestion that the ladies needed to leave their ID at reception, so they didn't. 

The Aqua suite includes a jacuzzi, although personally I'm not really bothered about a jacuzzi - I only booked the Aqua because it has two rooms.  So really I was paying for a facility I didn't need.  None of the girls appeared to be interested in the jacuzzi either - I was wondering if this is might be because (as a general rule) Thai girls are obsessed with being clean - maybe they think a jacuzzi isn't as hygenic as a shower 🤔  The shower was quite large and was fine, except that it was a bit tricky getting the right temperature setting sometimes.  Almost forgot - there are TWO toilets - one opposite the shower and the other off the living room.  

Finally on the subject of rooms: there's another room type at Baraquda that is spread over two floors (Loft suite) - I've stayed in one of these before, and in my opinion it was even better than the Aqua (the Loft Suite still has jacuzzi though, so again I would be paying for something I probably won't use).

How was the water pressure in the shower?

I've stayed there once for a couple of weeks. It was a nice hotel and I loved the proximity to walking street, but my room had a moldy odor. I told them about it few times, they sent a cleaning lady there, but it didn't help. So I decided no to return there, despite of the great location.