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Region: Southern Thailand> Province: Surat Thani> Location: Ko Pha Ngan » Ko Pha Ngan East Coast
Sanctuary
Great food, mixed accommodation
Haad Thian, Ko Pha Ngan
Surat Thani Province
Tel: (081) 271 3614
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Description
Operating since 1992, The Sanctuary is responsible for the fasting and detox purification craze that dominates this beach and has seeped to other parts of the island. This is a very cosy place to stay with a wonderful international restaurant set right on the beach. While the restaurant is outstanding, the service can be very hit and miss and their billing system totally ridiculous. Check your bill carefully. The accommodations range from stilted Thai style thatch roof bungalows around a garden to hillside bamboo huts and dorm rooms and a concrete megaplex with lovely plant-strung lattice work and private patios with fans. The private rooms, even the most basic, are comfortable and well-kept. Besides the rooms, the real draw here is the one- to seven-day cleansing and detox regimes, including fasting, yoga and meditation, which are all administered via the Wellness Centre nextdoor -- a great place for detoxing run by the inimitable, hard-working Moon.
Dorm Fan
100 THB (low season)
100 THB (high season)
Deluxe bungalow
1,200 THB (low season)
1,200 THB (high season)
up to 4,000 for houses
Bungalow fan private b'room
450 THB (low season)
450 THB (high season)
Added to Travelfish on: 30th March, 2004
Last visited or updated on: 11th July, 2007
Guest feedback
Paradise... at a cost - 
By RuthStephenson ( total comments: 5 
) Stayed here 8/2007
The bungalows are in a very beautiful jungle setting (clean enough too) and the food was very nice. The yoga hall was exceptional for some total relaxation. We stayed a the Sanctuary expecting to pay 450 per night, as advertised on their website... they have only 1 bungalow at 450 then most are double that price. It is only a short walk to Haad Yuan to stay and eat there (recommend the Bamboo Hut for food!!!) if you get addicted to the beach & yoga classes at the Sanctuary. The spa is pricey - there is a massage place at the other end of the beach and other spa treatments were cheaper on haad rin. Great place to hang out and meet people, very relaxing. Often difficult to get boats - easier to walk to Haad Yuan to get a boat sometimes. Staff were a little indifferent at times and the friday night parties at another place totally destroy the atmosphere - don't expect to get any sleep that night!!
lost the plot - 
By renatavaganza ( total comments: 6 ) Stayed here 11/2003
far too expensive,claim to be the best,but are defenitly not.
too stylish for the alternative scene.like the view from the restaurant,best spot on the beach.
Lovely place - shame about the staff! -
By laura82 ( total comments: 7 ) Stayed here 11/2004
We got stranded here overnight after our longtail boat didn't return to pick us up and the staff were exceedingly unhelpful. After explaining we were stuck (with a room already paid for on another beach) they told us no more boats would arrive that night and casually suggested that we stay there. After five minutes of sitting in our room feeling pretty fed up that we'd had to pay for two rooms in one night, we heard a boat coming into shore. My partner ran back to the beach only to see the boat heading towards the horizon! The staff's explanation for not coming to let us know that there was a boat was "Oh, did you not hear it, we though you were asleep". It was 7pm! Our room in the end was pretty decent, but we couldn't wait to leave the next morning.
Hmmmm - 
By sarah ( total comments: 3 ) Stayed here 7/2004
Fame must have gone to its head - just as The Sanctuary starts appearing in the press it loses the plot. The accommodation is very run down and grubby and the service is spectacularly casual. All a bit hard to take considering the price. The Wellness Centre is fantastic, but next time I'll stay at one of the other bungalow operations on the bay.
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