Renaissance Phuket Resort & Spa
555, Moo 3, Mai Khao, Talang Phuket Island, 83110 Thailand

Renaissance Phuket resort is a Category 6 Marriott property (Free one night redemption: 30,000 points per night) located close to Phuket International Airport. It takes only about 15-20 minutes cab ride from the airport to the resort. The standard cab rate for the ride is about 500 THB.

The resort is located right on Mai Khao Beach. There are 2 other Marriott properties in the vicinity, the JW Marriott Phuket Resort & Spa and Marriott’s Phuket Beach Club. This is the northern part of Phuket which is opposite direction of the more popular touristy parts of Phuket, namely Patong Beach and Phuket Town. For visitors who are interested in bars or nightlife activities should be cautioned beforehand that there is no nightlife in this part of Phuket. These resorts are geared primarily towards couples or families.

I had 2 Marriott Category 5 certificates burning a hole in my pocket 🙂 that were earned from Marriott Megabonus promotions during our Portland trip and Fort Lauderdale trip.  I booked this resort for 2 nights before Marriott award chart changes took effect during 2013 and this resort was upgraded to a category 6 property.

Renaissance Phuket Entrance

The first thing I noticed was there was a lot of greenery around the resort and water was a common theme throughout the resort.

Waiting for check-in with welcome drink

As soon as I arrived, the front desk agent assigned an attendant to take care of my luggage and handed me a welcome drink (soda with lime and mint leaves) and took care of the check-in.

Areas around the lobby
Beautiful Property

I had booked a Deluxe Guest room (King). From outside, the building did not look that impressive but I was really happy once I got to my room.

Standard rooms

The room was fairly large (for a non-suite) and I absolutely loved the glass enclosed bathroom beside the bed. The mattress for the bed was amazing and I would say that this was one of the best hotel beds I have ever slept in.

Deluxe King Room
Bathroom
Bathtub – You could draw down curtains for privacy

The room had a fairly decent sized patio outside and I would end up spending half an hour each day sitting there and enjoying the gentle breeze during the morning.

Patio

The resort has quite a few in-house dining options. There is the Loca Vore restaurant that offers fine dining, as well as the Doppio cafe next door.

Loca Vore Restaurant
Doppio Cafe

There is a two story structure near the pool area and the beach. Downstairs is Sandbox Restaurant & Bar and upstairs is Takieng Restaurant (only open for dinner).

The prices overall are in sync with what you would expect at such a resort anywhere in the world. In other words, you don’t pay “Thai prices” but rather “US prices”.

For guests who want to increase their dining options, you can take the complimentary shuttle to the JW Marriott property nearby and avail their restaurants. There is also the Turtle Village, a small shopping and dining area near the resort (about 10 minute walk but also can take the complimentary shuttle)

Sand Box Restaurant and Bar downstairs, Takieng restaurant upstairs

There are two pools on the resort, one for kids and one for adults.

Kids Pool Area

The adult pool appeared too small for such a resort in my opinion.

Adults Pool

Right beside the adult pool is the access to Mai Khao Beach. There were plenty of lounge chairs available and there was always an attendant available to hand out towels as well as complimentary water to hydrate you throughout the day.

Lots of lounge chairs in the beach area

The beach was very clean and was mostly secluded except for certain times at noon where you would see about 10-12 people swimming there.

Mai Khao Beach

Thumbs up:

  • Very calm, serene atmosphere far away from the crazy tourist scene of Patong and rest of Phuket.
  • Very nice beach. Secluded, clean and natural with lots of greenery.
  • Lots of dining options in the resort for every taste.
  • Close to Phuket airport

Thumbs down:

  • Far away from bars and nightlife of Patong Beach. Again this could be a + or – depending upon expectations.
  • Not cheap. You will be paying US prices at this resort.
  • Nothing much to do besides staying in the resort. Again, for people who want to stay at the resort without the need to get outside would be happy with it.