Every villa on the map, I've walked through myself. So you're not gambling on a Facebook post, and you're not paying a booking site to stand between you and the owner. I've lived in Bang Saen ten years and I know everyone who rents here. Pick a villa, message the host, done.
I talk directly with the owners of all villas in this site
If you've looked, you know the two options. You dig through Thai Facebook groups, talk to an endless amount of agents, and hope the person replying is really the one with the keys. Or you book through Agoda, Booking.com or worse, Airbnb, pay an extortionate amount of fees and in the end your experience is actually worse than if you had just booked a hotel. I wanted a third way: one map with every villa in town, each one I've walked through before it goes on, and the host's own number sitting right on the listing.
One map, every verified villa in Bang Saen, each one a pin you can open.
Open the map →I stand inside each villa before it's listed. I meet the host and take the photos that day.
Direct usually beats the platforms by 15 to 25%. That's after the host's commission, with no service fee piled on top.
No checkout, no account. You message the host and you're talking to a real person.
This is i-Vada, the villa I host myself. On a booking platform, one night runs ฿10,966. Message me direct and it's ฿8,900. The platforms charge a fee to the host and another to you. So you pay more and the owner actually gets less.
1 of 28 photosBang Saen, Chonburi · 530m to seafront
as displayed on the major booking platforms
3 beds · 3 baths · sleeps 8 · Bang Saen Beach
Direct from the host. No service fee. Booking fee already included. You pay through bank transfer, same as Thai families have rented villas in Bang Saen for years.
Message the hostThe same is true for every other villa on the map. Open the map, pick one you like, message the host. They'll tell you their direct price.
SHOT ON SITEThere's no upload form. I drive to every villa, meet whoever's renting it and photograph the place myself. If the gate's rusted shut or conditions are bad, it never goes up.
I go to the villa in person and meet the host face to face.
The photos on the listing are the ones I took that day. No stock, no stretched wide-angle from three years ago.
A real name behind the listing, and a number that answers when you call. If the price won't hold, the villa waits.
Only then does it get a pin and the small mark that says I've verified it.
Kanok at i-Vada, Bang Saen.
I've lived in Bang Saen for over ten years. I used to run the laundry shop that washed sheets for the big hotels in town and for the military base nearby. After a while I started hosting my own villa, i-Vada. Now I help other hosts and agencies list their villas on this site too.
Every villa on the map, I've walked through. I know the host. I've seen the pool. If a villa is on this site, it is one I would book my own family into.
If you can't decide between two villas, message me on LINE. I'll tell you which one fits you best. No charge. I just love this town and want people to see it properly.
Ninety minutes southeast of the city, Bang Saen is where Bangkok families go for the weekend. A long seafront you can cycle, the seafood streets behind it, the monkeys up on Khao Sam Muk, and Burapha University keeping it young. Quieter than Pattaya, cheaper too, and a softer kind of weekend.
The owner is very kind, and the room is super clean! Highly recommend! It's close to attractions, very convenient. We'll come back to cause some fun again soon!
So clean! Beautiful house and the owner took great care of us. Definitely going back!
I loved it. The owner took good care of us and was very friendly. I'll definitely bring my family back again when I have free time.
The new house is clean, with a warm atmosphere and a cute Japanese Muji-style design. The owner is kind, the staff are lovely, and there's delicious breakfast nearby. A great place to stay if you're visiting Bang Saen.
The place is super clean, the owner is super lovely, and it's super close to the beach. I'll definitely stay there again whenever I go to Bang Saen.
The accommodation is beautiful and clean, and the owner is kind. 10/10!
The house is beautiful, and the owner is very kind.
We stayed with our family, 15 adults and 2 children. The house was clean, and there were plenty of activities inside so we weren't bored. It was fun, and the owner was kind.
Real Google reviews from guests Kanok has hosted herself. Translated from Thai.
You message the host directly, there is no online checkout. Most of us use LINE, which is free to download (kanokpool reaches me), and some hosts are on WhatsApp or by phone too (+66 80 853 3348). Tell them your dates, how many of you there are, and anything extra like a BBQ or late check-out, pay the deposit, and the villa is held for you.
I can't promise a refund on every villa the way the big platforms do (my bank account isn't quite that big). What I can promise is that I've personally checked every villa on this site, every room and every corner. The owners, the cleaners, and the pool people are long-time friends of mine. So if anything goes wrong with a villa you found here, message me and I'll handle it for you myself.
Yes, a refundable damage deposit, usually around 5,000 THB. The host holds it against your booking and gives it back after check-out as long as the villa is left in good shape. I'll confirm the exact amount with you for the villa you pick.
By default it is check-in at 14:00 and check-out at 11:00. Both can usually bend if the villa is free the night before or after, so just ask me when you book.
Most of the villas I list do not allow pets. A few are pet-friendly, and you will see them tagged Pet friendly on the listing. If a villa is not tagged that way, please assume pets are not allowed, but you are always welcome to ask me and I will check with the host.
Yes, most villas on the map are group-friendly and host birthdays and family parties all the time. Just let me or the host know your headcount in advance, since some charge a small per-guest fee over the villa's base capacity, usually around 500 THB a head.
Most hosts take a Thai bank transfer (Kasikorn, Bangkok Bank or SCB) or PromptPay. If you are coming from abroad, a Wise/Revolut transfer works well too. Some hosts will also take cash on arrival if you arrange it first. Revolut is a great option as they operate through Kasikorn Bank and payment happens essentially as if it's a local account paying another.
It depends on the host, so it is best to ask whoever you are booking with when you enquire. Some offer free cancellation, some charge a fee if it is close to your dates, the same as Booking.com or Agoda would. The difference is you are dealing with a person, not a company, and hosts here tend to be more understanding. That is a rule of thumb, not a promise.
Not at all. Hosts are used to foreign guests and are happy to use Google Translate or a similar app to chat. On LINE the translation more or less happens inside the app, so English or your own language is no problem. I handle my own enquiries in Thai and English.
Bang Saen is about 90 minutes southeast of Bangkok. From Suvarnabhumi (BKK) it is a 75 to 90 minute taxi or private transfer, around 1,500 to 2,000 THB one-way. From Don Mueang (DMK) give it 90 to 110 minutes. If you would rather take the bus, Ekkamai Terminal in Bangkok runs direct to Chonburi Bus Station, and from there it is a short taxi or songthaew to the villa. Ask me and I will point you the easiest way.
Bang Saen is a small beach town in Saen Suk, Mueang Chonburi, Chonburi Province, on Thailand's eastern Gulf coast. It is the nearest real beach to Bangkok, about 90 minutes by car, and it is where Bangkok families and Burapha University students come on weekends. It is calmer and cheaper than Pattaya, with a long seafront promenade you can cycle, the Marine Science Institute, the monkeys up on Khao Sam Muk, and seafood streets I will happily point you to. I have lived here over ten years.
Still not sure? Ask me and I'll talk you through it.
LAsk on LINEEvery villa's on there with its own price and its own number. If you'd rather I do the looking, I'm on LINE until nine.
Ask Kanokon LINE · 9am–9pmthe directory
Every pin is a villa I've checked in person. Open it, find the part of Bang Saen you want, and tap through to the host. No endless scrolling, no translating each post, no wondering who's really on the other end. Twenty-four villas today, more in the coming weeks.
