Shiva Samui

Shiva Samui offers villas and rooms with sea, ocean or beach views, from a one-bedroom ocean-view room to four-bedroom beachfront villas. Rooms can have air conditioning, a safe box, a mini bar, a coffee or tea maker and a balcony or terrace, and several of the villas have a bathtub. Most rooms come with a shower, a hair dryer and toiletries, and many have a flat-screen TV with satellite and cable channels.

The villas with several bedrooms make room for larger parties, and guests travelling with children can use the kids club, the playground and the children's swimming pool at the resort.

Shiva Samui has an outdoor and an indoor swimming pool, a private beach, a spa with massage and a spa and sauna, a fitness centre and a tennis court. Free parking is available on site, valet parking is also offered, and free Wi-Fi covers all rooms. Currency exchange, car hire and a shuttle service are available as well.

For dining, the resort has a restaurant, a poolside bar, room service, BBQ facilities and a buffet breakfast. Children are catered for with a kids club, a playground, a children's swimming pool and a babysitting service, and the resort also offers tours, snorkelling, diving, fishing and water sports (non-motorised). The two pools and the private beach are all within the resort.

Shiva Samui stands in the Hua Thanon area of Koh Samui, a quiet part of the island, and Natien Beach is 250 m away. The resort has its own private beach, and its villas and rooms look out over the sea and ocean, so guests can start the day on the sand without leaving the property.

Lamai Beach, a long sandy stretch, is 3.2 km away, and the Hin Ta & Hin Yai Rocks, also called Grandma and Grandpa Rocks, are 3.1 km away. The Koh Samui Butterfly Garden and the Samui Aquarium and Tiger Zoo are both within 1 km of the resort, and the Big Buddha temple is 15.9 km from the resort. The rest of the island can be reached by road, and the resort's car hire and shuttle service help guests get around.

A good day could start with a swim in the outdoor pool or a massage at the spa, then go to the Big Buddha or to Lamai Beach in the afternoon. Snorkelling, diving and fishing are also available, and tours can be arranged for trips further afield. Visitors who stay a few days can combine the beach, the temple and the garden in different parts of the island. On Sundays, guests can visit the Lamai Sunday Nightmarket.