We stayed at Sand Dunes Chaolao Beach Resort for a long, 3-night weekend away. The grounds are well taken care of. The main pool is a nice size and is situated right above the entryway to the private beachfront. The beachfront is very well-groomed. We walked a bit to the north to have a meal at one of the nearby beachfront seafood restaurants and no other resort came anywhere near to the cleanliness as the Sand Dunes. Because they are the last resort heading south toward the fishing pier, there is almost no added transient traffic, either. Very restful. We were in a superior room with a sea view. There was a small but pleasant balcony. 2 chairs would be nicer but you can always take the desk chair outside, too. The room itself is a reasonable size and the bath area is set aside almost as if in a separate room area. The lighting at the sink area was great and they actually have electric outlets there, too (both things pretty rare in Thailand). Small lights on motion sensors make it safe and easy to find the bathroom overnight without disturbing others. They provide a kettle and tea/coffee packets daily along with the usual 2 bottles of drinking water and 2 more daily for coffee/tea or to drink. This is also unusually accommodating. The wifi was generally decent but it does go out from time to time if there are electric issues. They had some storms that weekend, so were on the backup generator on and off one day but it's generally fine otherwise. The onsite restaurant is just ok. It's fine for a meal or two but it's advised to get out and explore for fresh seafood restaurants along the beach. There are several within walking distance and many more if you choose to drive. The breakfast buffet was above average with all of the usual eggs, meats, cereals, fruits, salads, juices. Their offerings of breads was above average. They have an espresso machine, so you can enjoy a decent cup of that or Americano with your meal. They offer half a dozen or so Thai dishes and about that many western/euro dishes as well, and we didn't see much in the way of repetition at all with those Thai & Western offerings across our 3 mornings there. Very thoughtfully done. (The western offerings tend to be more lunch or supper fare, but why not?) Staff were all very pleasant. We did not have any negative experiences to speak of and will be happy to stay at the Sand Dunes again.
