Considering changing from Best Western Ocean Resort to the Kalim Residence Service Apartments. We are a family of four and feel we need more room.................so considering this option. Would love to know what other think of the 'area' around hotel as well as Kalim itself. Do we need a rental car in Phuket? Get it in advance or there? WOW, thank you!

What exactly are you looking for in the place you stay? What's important to you...directly on the beach, fancy pools, price, room size, kids club, activities on offer, in-house restaurants, spa...?

Best western Ocean resort is at Karon, it it on the beach road about 5 minutes walk to the actual beach but a nice location on the hillside.

Kalim residence is just north of patong, it is rocks on the beach there so you have quite a hike over a ridge to get to the far north part of Patong, you need transport but I wouldn't bother with a rental as you wouldn't get parking in Patong at night.

If you want a lot of room at Karon then the might suit you, high rise but plenty of room and quite good value,

http://www.r24.org/beachsiam.com/phu...front/details/

Varies in price on season, closes at end of April next year.

In busy part of Patong short walk to beach is Andaman beach Suites,

http://www.r24.org/beachsiam.com/phu...uites/details/

To add on the plus side Kalim residences are nice, if you search back there was a review from a regular who stayed there last Christmas and I know the places since they were built, very nice but only down side is the long walk to the beach, the Andaman Suites are very busy area but when choosing Phuket or I guess and such area choosing 'which beach' is the first thing to do. Patong beach is lively and busy and right on the beach road, Karon is much quieter all round.

Another nice option if you are into comfort without too much luxury is kata garden resort, this is close to restaurants and things and a short walk down the hill to 'Karon' beach or a short ride other direction to Kata beach, now these are not luxury but a real bargain. Double air con bungalow USD 35-53 so you can easily take 2 of them.

A 2 bedroom family suite at Old Phuket Hotel ( Karon, not old, it's new ) ranges depending on season from USD 63-160+

So much also depends on what time of year?? When you you planning for, what costs say $50 low season can cost $150 easily in peak, so choosing where to stay comes down to which beach but also what time of year too.
http://www.r24.org/beachsiam.com/phu...arden/details/

Hi trav46,
I think we are the family that JamesA. is referring to as we stayed at the Residence at Kalim Bay last December, over Christmas. We are a family of four and really appreciated the spaciousness of these 2 bedroom apartments. The pictures and resort details are on www.kalimbay.com. We didn't use the beach across from the resort but it is only a 10 to 15 minute walk to north Patong beach which is beautiful and less busy than central Patong. Our daughters are teenagers so this was an easy walk for us to the beach. However, if your children are smaller, there are always tuktuks or taxis right outside the resort than you can get to take you anywhere. I would certainly use these over rental cars, especially if you are going in high season. As JamesA says, you'd never get parked in Patong. The apartments at Kalim Bay are individually owned and furnished so may vary somewhat. Our apartment was very similar to the one shown on the website. We asked for an upper floor apartment and were very glad we did as the ones on the bottom floor were badly damaged when the tsunmai hit. The apartments are lovely and spacious, 2 good sized bedrooms, marble floors, huge livingroom and dining area, full kitchen and a big balcony where we ate our breakfasts. We liked being able to prepare some of our own meals by that point in our holiday. The pool at Kalim Bay is also a good size and a popular spot. The area around the apartments is a mix of residential, hotels and there is a school close to the resort as well. The resort is located fairly close to the road so there is some traffic noise but the bedrooms are located on the back side and were very quiet. Depending on what your are looking for, another place to consider with a family is the Katathani Resort located on beautiful Kata Noi Beach. We stayed there when we first arrived in Phuket and got a good package deal for our family of 4. The family rooms in the Kata Bhuri wing (across the quiet road from the beach) easily hold 4 people. There are at least 3 pools at this resort, good restaurants and a great location right on the beach. It's a bit further away from the action of Patong but it might suit your needs better. Have fun with your research!