Pattaya….. When we talk about Pattaya, no one could deny that it is one of the most popular tourist destinations for both locals and foreigners. It is a small city in Chonburi which is in a short drive from Bangkok. Pattaya offers variety of tourist attractions including good seafood restaurants, shopping centers, night clubs, beautiful beaches, nice hotels and resorts, and so on. There are numbers of hotels and resorts right by the beach with wonderful ambiance for you to choose to stay. They are all perfect for a couple to have a memorable shared experience together. Therefore, I would like to take this opportunity to introduce you another point of view of Pattaya. Many of you might be familiar with those nightclubs, pubs, and bars kind of view. On the other hand, I wonder how many of you actually have a chance to experience Pattaya in the good old days style where you can lie down on the beach and gaze the stars happily. This kind of place actually does exist nowadays and please let me take you there.

If you try to google "The best resort in Pattaya", one of the resorts that would always show up in the list is "Cape Dara". Cape Dara is the combination of the word CAPE, a point or head of land projecting into a body of water and DARA, stars or sparkling light. Hence, Cape Dara means livable beautiful place where you can rest truly and will be taken care as a superstar. Cape Dara offers you a good old days of Pattaya kind of feeling where it is totally peaceful and relaxing. So, Today I am going to take you to get to know more about Cape Dara Resort Pattaya.... If you are ready, let's go!

Today is 29th February. It is quite a good unique day since there is one in every 4 years. So, I would like to make it special and memorable especially for my wife and me. We left from Bangkok early and we have arrived at Cape Dara Resort Pattaya in the late morning. Well, we haven't eaten anything yet.

Khun Aom who would introduce us to all areas of the resort has learned that we haven't had breakfast yet. She takes us to Mellow Bakery Café to find something to eat firstly.

Khun Aom recommends us to have Young Coconut Cake here and we agree to give it a try. We don't disappoint. It tastes good.

We have filled up our stomach already so it is time to explore the resort.

Dara Deluxe

I would say that this type of room is the signature of Cape Dara Resort Pattaya. You may wonder why is that and my answer is this bathtub. This bathtub totally attracts me to come here.

The view and feeling this spot offers, is just too good no matter which period of time of the day.

The bedroom is also spacious. The bed is very comfortable and it comes with many pillows.

The room is in a simple design in bright color tone.

The room comes with a balcony where the table has also been nicely set. So you could get some fresh air and enjoy the view anytime.

The toiletries are under the resort's own brand and they all smell good.

This room is perfect for a couple. It would be very romantic to spend time together especially in the bathtub overlooking the amazing view of Pattaya.

And it would be the very best during the sunset.

Dara Deluxe has a signature bathtub with a view.

Those who just got married, on a honeymoon trip, or celebrate the anniversary, have to get this type of room only because it offers you a truly romantic atmosphere.

Dara Beachfront

The highlight of this room type is that it is close to the beach.

Moreover, there are two bathtubs available. You can choose to dip in a bathtub on the balcony where you can enjoy the sea view at the same time.

Or you can choose to stay inside the bathroom where only the glass wall separates it from the bedroom.

The most romantic time dipping in the bathtub on the balcony would be during the sunset when the sunlight reflects the water surface. You would feel amazed!!

The toiletries are BVLGARI from Italy. I don't know how do they smell like.

Even though I won't have a chance to use them, I don't hesitate to smell them right away and they smell pretty nice.

The disadvantage of this room would be that it is lack of privacy.

If you use the bathtub on the balcony before 7 PM when the swimming pool down below is still opened, you could be exposed by those people using the pool.

People can see what you are doing on the balcony from down there.

Dara Beachfront has a highlight of 2 bathtubs available in the room with beachfront sea view and pool view.

Therefore, there is no doubt to recommend this type of room for you to stay in.

Dara Private Pool

The design and decoration of Dara Private Pool is pretty similar to Dara Beach Front.

The main difference is that there is a small plunge pool big enough for 2 people available in front of the room.

It is nice to dip in this plunge pool watching the sunset. I would say this room type is perfect for a family with children.

Family spends quality time together in this room would make a beautiful memory that last for a long time.

There is a bathtub inside the bathroom as well.

It is a salt-water plunge pool. The floor of the pool is not just tiles as same as other pool in general. The uniqueness is that the floor of the pool is covered with sands.

Cape Dara Resort Pattaya has made it different and more special by having the floor of the pool covered with sands. This totally offers you a true feeling of the sea.

Dara Private Pool has a highlight of a private plunge pool and it offers you an atmosphere of being close to the beach.

This type of room is perfect for a small family.

Deluxe Corner

Deluxe Corner is perfect for those who love a bathtub with a sea view and don't like Dara Deluxe because it is more expensive and smaller.

Deluxe Conner is more spacious and has a bigger balcony compared to Dara Deluxe.

The room is overlooking sea view and Pattaya city view.

The view from here is not as amazing as Dara Deluxe from my point of view.

To sum up, I would say that I like Dara Deluxe the most from all four room types I have seen today. The main reason is the bathtub with a view. It is way too attractive and as I mentioned earlier that it is the reason why we choose to come here. Whenever I see a photo of this bathtub, I would know right away that it is Cape Dara Resort Pattaya. Well, it doesn't totally mean that I don't like other three rooms but I just love the picture of the bathtub right next to the window overlooking amazing view of Pattaya in Dara Deluxe the most. You can imagine along that how nice it would be to dip in this kind of bathtub especially during the sunset. Anyway, we have explored places to stay in already, I guess it is time to explore places to eat now.

Ming Xing

Ming Xing is a Chinese restaurant located on the 3rd Floor of the resort.

It opens for Lunch and Dinner. Dim Sum Lunch Buffet is available from 11 AM - 2 PM at 766 THB per person.

And they serve an a la carte menu for dinner.

It seems to me that Dim Sum Lunch Buffet is good value for money. Foods are including variety of Dim Sums, Chinese bun, Rice Noodle Rolls, and several Noodle menus.

You can be full already from having one of every Dim Sums from the menu because there is a lot of them.

Variety of Chinese buns

Rice Noodle Rolls don't taste bad either.

Noodle menus are all delicious.

This is my favorite dish.

And these are the desserts.

One thing I really like about this restaurant is the ambiance.

Chinese restaurants are normally designed and decorated in red color tone but it is in magenta color tone here.

It actually offers different kind of feeling. It is sweet and chic here, I would say.

I love this restaurant the most in the resort.

Radius

Radius is an all day dining restaurant opened from 6 AM - 10 PM and I have got a chance to eat here for breakfast and dinner.

Radius offers you an airy and relaxing atmosphere. They have both indoor and outdoor tables. This is indoor area.

And this is outdoor area.

I have noticed that most of the guests here prefer outdoor tables.

I guess one of the main reasons is this amazing view they offer.

It is very romantic having dinner during the sunset here as well.

Totally nice ambiance

But if we talk about the foods, I would say they are average.

I like spicy food. That's why I don't like the foods here. On the other hand, my wife is pretty happy with them.

These are breakfasts menus served here. They offer variety of foods including Vietnamese,

Korean,

Japanese, and

Western.

This is the buffet line of bread and croissants.

The Salad Bar is pretty variety and the salad tastes good.

Cereals and grains are also available but there are not many choices of fresh fruits.

The fruit juices quality is up to the standard of big resorts and hotels.

The services that we have experienced for both breakfast and dinner are good. Staff are attentive and the way they tidy up and set the table is very fast.

They are also knowledgeable. They can give you information about when and where exactly the sun will set. Therefore, you could be sure to have a beautiful sunset experience here.

Some might not think that this is important but for me, I pay quite an attention on this. Ambiance can make up the joy of eating a lot.

"Sometimes those little things that don't look very important, they mean a lot to numbers of people. They are actually factors that fulfill a true happiness and great memory."

Anyway, let's go and have a look at the swimming pools now!
There are 2 swimming pools here. The first one is on the upper level next to the restaurant and the Lobby called "Twinkle". The second one is on the lower level by the beach called "Walala".

Walala

Walala is right by the beach.

It is in front of Dara Beach Front room type. There is a bar by the pool as well as pool chairs where you can lie down on it and get some tan.

Two Jacuzzi are also here. These are where you can get a hydro massage while enjoying the atmosphere by the sea. The pool area is pretty shady by coconut trees and some others.

That's why it is not that hot around this pool.

Walala opens from 7 AM - 7 PM and the bar by the pool opens from 10 AM - 7 PM.

Twinkle

Twinkle is the main pool of the resort.

There is another pool bar here as well. Pool chairs are nicely set and there are even pavilions here.

The pavilions with white curtains are outstanding so you could spot them from far away. They are located right in front of the Lobby.

There are so many pillows inside the pavilions so you could chill and relax here while resting or chitchatting.

The floor tiles of the pool is a picture of the universe.

It is also sparkling if you look from high above.

The highlight of this pool is that it is opened until midnight everyday.

Fitness Center

Fitness Center is on the 4th Floor of the resort. Some big hotels and resorts might not have enough exercise machines available for the guests but Cape Dara Resort Pattaya does.

Cape Dara Resort Pattaya offers quite a wide range of exercise machines.

I don't like to work out personally so I don't have much comment about the Fitness Center.

Luminous Spa

I don't have a chance to get a massage nor spa treatment here but I have got some photos for you, so you could see the ambiance inside.

They have both single treatment rooms, and

Double treatment rooms available.

I would say that the ambiance of the spa is very nice. You can relax with your massage while enjoying the sea view. I don't want to imagine further. It must be so nice.

The highlight is actually these chairs and pavilions outside the spa.

You can request to have your massage done out here especially during the sunset. It would offer you amazing view as beautiful as other spots in the resort.

I would highly recommend it especially to those who want to escape from the crowd and you will love it here.

Spa products are all under resort own brand.

They even have a salon in the spa.

Sphere Bar

Sphere Bar is a newly opened bar which is a perfect place for those who look for a place for a drink at night but don't want to go out.

As you can guess, the main beverages available here are alcoholic.

Sphere Bar is located close to Mellow Bakery Café opened from 5 PM - 1 AM.

I am trying interstellar today.

It is distilled red wine mixed with fresh fruit juice. The heat will run the distillation process.

Then liquid nitrogen will be filled in to make it cold.

You can also choose to drink it while it is warm. It offers different kind of taste but still good. For me, I prefer it cold. Look at that smoke!

I order ice cream cocktails as well. Ice creams are freshly made at the bar and there is a variety of flavors available for you to choose from.

And yes, it has some alcohol in it. I choose strawberry flavor today and it looks so good.

I feel drunk already after eating half of it only. Anyway, the interstellar and ice cream cocktails will make me sleep so tight tonight.

Summary of the stay at Cape Dara Resort Pattaya

+ What I love +
+ I would rate the ambiance of the resort 10 out of 10. I don't think there are many resorts or hotels in Pattaya that have their private beach and offer amazing panoramic view of Pattaya like this.

+ The resort is in a good location close to tourist attractions and restaurants.

+ The Chinese restaurant here is nicely designed and decorated. It is also in a nice color tone and different from others.

+ There are 11 different types of rooms for you to choose from. You can choose according to your personal preference and good value for money.

+ Twinkle pool is opened until midnight. Guests can have fun to the maximum especially those who like to swim.

- What I don't like -

- The room rate is very expensive so I could get a good price only when there is a promotion or from Thailand Travel Expo.

- The parking space is limited so it could be an issue on the weekend or public holiday.

- Thai food in the resort is not that authentic so it might not be spicy enough for locals.

All in all, Cape Dara Resort Pattaya is perfect place to stay especially for couples who want to spend quality time together and don't want to travel far from Bangkok. The resort offers a good ambiance with amazing sea view and romantic sunset time. It is also a good choice for small family who want to share memorable experience together.

Unseen in Cape Dara

1. Have you ever wonder why the water in front of the beach of Cape Dara sometimes are clear and sometimes are not?

I guess many of you don't know why. The clear level of water is actually depending on the period of time. The water will be unclear during the time between high tide and low tide.

Once the current is calm, it will be very clear. You might not believe that Pattaya has this kind of thing for real.

The water in Pattaya could be clear, you just need to be patient enough to wait for the right time controlled by the nature.

2. Green moss on the beach

You might be wondered what it is. It is actually the beauty of nature that can be seen only in winter.

Green moss will cover the rocks wholly.

This can be seen from December - February normally.

However, we have late winter this year so I have got a chance to see this natural beauty this time.

Moss can be found only in places where there are abundant resources.

This has shown that Dara Beach in front of Cape Dara Resort Pattaya... is well-preserved.

It has made the resort very unique as well.