JW Marriott Phuket: Isolated Beauty
This is one of the best hotels in all of Asia. The JW Marriott Phuket is constantly ranked right up there, and it was easy to see why. Located near the airport but far from the rest of the island, the JW Marriott is a perfect retreat, but is it too isolated?
Location: C
So this is where I have to give the JW some flack. While being 15 minutes from the airport is a plus, the hotel is literally an hour from everything on the island. Phuket is huge. Like seriously massive. After all, it is the largest island in the country. But even still, I completely underestimated its size and figured the fact the JW was on the north side of the island would not be a big deal. Well, it kind of was. The south side is where everything is. Bangla Road, Patong Beach, the Giant Buddha, Old Phuket Town, marina's to head out into the bay-all on the south side. It makes it tough to give the hotel any positive feedback on its location. Plus, the beach that the hotel is on is not that great either, as the waves are intense and make it too hard to swim in (although being a Cali boy, I did have to jump in to do some bodysurfing which was fun).
On the positive side, the hotel IS very safe. Its more of a place to come and disconnect. The JW here is fully designed as a destination resort, with enough dining and recreation options to keep its visitors occupied for weeks-something I overheard many families and couples doing. Coming to the hotel and staying for weeks at a time is very common, and the hotel offers more than enough to keep you from going crazy for too long.
Essentially, the deal here is that if you are planning on going to a hotel to disconnect from it all and enjoy full relaxation, the JW Marriott is the place to go. But if you're only in Phuket for several days and still want to see all the island has to offer, the JW's location being an hour away from everything makes it extremely difficult and expensive so bear that in mind.
Rooms: B
The rooms are gorgeous, with high ceilings, beautiful Southeast Asian décor and all the amenities you'd expect from a five star resort. The showerhead-a common basis for which I judge hotels-was incredible, as was the rest of the expansive bathroom. The room also had a small corner with little mats for yoga or meditation which I found to be a very unique and interesting feature of the room, giving it a more genuine vibe.
So why a B rating? It isn't a knock against the rooms-my only knock there would be something that relates to every single hotel in the entire world and that would be there is not enough storage. Rather, the complaint I have is the fact that the room was very, very far from the lobby and everything else in the room. It's more of a testament to the nature and design of the hotel as more of a village complex in order to make guests feel less like they're at a resort and more like they are simply in their neighborhood on vacation, but it was nevertheless such a hassle getting to and from the room.
Dining: A-
I only ended up eating at the hotel twice, and both times were at the buffet-but trust me, there are ZERO complaints there. This is one of the best buffet's I have every been to, and it seriously have everything you could imagine. There's a clear attention to the craft of each dish that is presented, with chef's personally assisting you in the process of choosing foods. They were very knowledgeable and clearly cared for what they created, something that is increasingly rare in buffet's around the world.
Other than the buffet, the JW has a host of other dining options of almost every cuisine you could imagine-Italian, Sushi, American, Thai, and so on. So you definitely won't have a shortage of options during your time here!
Amenities: A
Literally everything you could imagine. Massive pool, tennis courts, world-class spa, ping-pong, fantastic kids club, fire shows, soccer fields, beach volleyball…shall I go on? I think you get the point. I keep saying and I'll say it again, the JW Marriott Phuket is a destination resort. It almost feels like a cruise ship on land to a degree due to its sheer size and quantity of activities. The pool is weirdly deep though-about 8 feet, which didn't make it particularly relaxing (although good for swimming laps uninterrupted).
Service: B-
Service was somewhat hit or miss here. The dining service was fantastic, and we actually had an intern serving us one night at the buffet who was doing everything he could to make a good impression which I found somewhat endearing. The lady who checked us in was totally on her game and very friendly as well. Employees around the grounds would always smile and greet you-sometimes in English and sometimes in Thai.
But it was not all fantastic. Getting a taxi one night took over thirty minutes and the man coordinating the taxi was not necessarily the friendliest. He seemed totally cool with the fact that I was missing a dinner reservation because of the delay after delay after delay. And I think the only English he knew was "5 more minutes". But hey, island time I guess? And the woman checking us out had a rough time putting together and understanding our payment for the room. It was understandably complicated, but we were running late and she was just not making any progress for what felt like hours before finally another woman came and was able to figure it all out within minutes.
All in all, the service here is great. The staff go above and beyond for the most part, but like any international mega-resort (not named Ritz/Four Seasons/Aman/etc.), there will be moments where the service falters. The JW offers the option for a private driver as well during your stay there, and it actually is not outlandish to use the service because taxis to the south side of the island are already super expensive themselves. But, with that said, the drivers have to follow their bosses orders more than yours which made for a few arguments and angry phone calls.
The JW Marriott Phuket is undoubtedly a five-star resort meant to be enjoyed for a long period of time. You come here to relax and get away from all the worries of the world. The hotel does a superb job at creating an environment suitable for longer stays. But with that said, if you only have a few days on Thailand's largest island, look to stay somewhere further south (Patong Bay, Phuket Town, etc.) to get the most effective use of your time as there truly is a lot to see on this island. But make sure you don't just do a day trip to Koh Phi Phi because that would not do it justice. I'll explain why in my next post.