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Nat_Hatter
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

Beautiful Retreat

Review of Banilah
5.0 of 5 bubblesReviewed Sep 29, 2012
This hotel is a small beautiful retreat nestled in a quiet area of Chiang Mai. I must warn those who are allerigic to cats that this place may not be suitable for you considering that the common room is warm with homey details, which include the house hold cats. Friendly helpful staff were there to help us book various tours, including a wonderful thai cooking class. The rooms were clean with working A/C and fan. The showers were outside which didn't pose a problem for us and they even provided hand made soaps which smelt wonderful.

I felt the hotel made a great effort trying to be eco-responsible as well.
Date of stay: September 2012
Trip type: Travelled with friends
5.0 of 5 bubblesValue
5.0 of 5 bubblesRooms
5.0 of 5 bubblesLocation
5.0 of 5 bubblesCleanliness
5.0 of 5 bubblesService
5.0 of 5 bubblesSleep Quality
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Reviews (264)
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Traveller rating
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144 - 149 of 264 reviews
Reviewed September 24, 2012

We really enjoyed our stay at Banilah. We found the guest house through tripadvisor. When we arrived at Banilah the staff gave us a map and showed us where we should go during our stay there. With different colors she wrote down a couple of lovely restaurants and tourist attractions. We especially liked the Chicken rice on the corner of Banilah. The rooms are a bit small and you have to step on your balcony to enter the bathroom. We didn' t have any problems with it especially because we liked the staff and the coffee/tea corner with free computers to use.

Date of stay: August 2012
  • Trip type: Travelled as a couple
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Thank BasNadine
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed September 20, 2012

This small off the beaten path guesthouse/hotel offered amazing service. It is true that the hotel has become home to many cats however if you are not allergic I highly recommend this place. It is in a quiet area of Chiang Mai, the rooms were clean and comfortable. There was no problems with the a/c nor the showers. The added touches of home-made soaps and free drinking water were greatly appreciated. The staff were friendly and helpful, assisting in booking tours, cooking classes and transportation when needed. I would highly recommend this guesthouse.

Date of stay: September 2012
  • Trip type: Travelled with friends
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Thank jdziad
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed May 17, 2012

We booked this place through hostelbookers, they must have put there info up years ago. The people that run/ own the hostel seem to have made the place there home. What I can only guess was ment to be the comunal area was over run with cats, a theme which they now seem to ebmrace having cat pictures and art everywhere. My partner is allergic to cats which meant we couldn't go near it.
We were 30-40 min walk into the old city everyday and we are fast walkers even in this heat. There was nothing at all to do within a 15 walk of the hostel so this made the walk necessary. It would have been 100 baht one way. We passed plenty of hostels on the old city that look decent.

People came home shouting between 2-3 and because the building layout, like a courtyard the sound carried and echoed. I'm pretty sure it was mostly one of the girls that worked there doing all the shouting every night.

It was a clean bed that we went to everynight. Did the job. However we were always so tired from walking back and forth we would have slept anywhere.

Date of stay: May 2012
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1  Thank Nicola R
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed February 12, 2012

I love being in Banilah :)
i don't really like cat .. and they have 7-9 cats if i'm not mistaken haha :p but no worry since they all behave :)
the owner is sweet :) and kind and friendly and pretty :)
she gave me a map with all the mark to ensure that i would not get lost :) she made clear signs with her colorful marker and even put it in seal-able plastic bag since "you came in rain season!". she;s thoughtful ya?
they have tour packages but they never push me to buy any.
the room is great and they have "taste" :p they provide hand made soap bar every day :)
the wash room was separated from the bedroom so you need to "step out" but its kind of good idea so it has good air circulation. if its raining, you'll be ok, you wont get wet (going to the washroom) but meaning that you need to leave your comfortable bedroom for a while.
the location is around 10-15 mins away from the moat. you may rent a bike or just enjoy walking like i did.
oh, about where to eat .. the lady owner would be more than happy to recommend you great places to eat. i tried 60% of her recommended places .. and all are good :) wished i had more time to finish the other 40% :p
if you like coffee, they have a cafe called as CoffeeCat :)

Date of stay: August 2011
  • Trip type: Travelled solo
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1  Thank ppiglet2001
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed February 1, 2012

I and my wife loved Banilah. We stayed for 4 nights in Sep. 2011. The staffs were very nice, always there to help us when we need assistance.
The room was a little bit small, but considering the price, it' more than adequate. The interior deco was very cozy. Much better than more expensive hotels. The best value for the money. I definately stay again if I go back to Chiangmai.

Date of stay: September 2011
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2  Thank myopy
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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