Jaiyen Eco Resort, by Artisia

I had the most amazing time at Jaiyen! It’s perfect if you are looking for a place to relax and connect with nature, a quiet place on the lovely Koh Ya Noi island to recharge.
Absolutely beautiful ocean view and fantastic staff.

Beautiful hotel, with an amazing view.
Everything is very clean and quiet and the staff was helpful!

The bungalows are beautifully furnished, the service is great and all the staff are incredibly friendly and helpful. If you are looking for a quiet place to discover the beautiful, natural island, you have come to the right place. Easily accessible by scooter from the pier.

Such a peaceful and calming place surrounded by nature. You can tell it has been created with a lot of love. Staff was lovely as well and helped out with everything we needed. All the breakfast and dinner options we tried were really yummy and healthy. As mentioned by other reviewers, you might be visited by some adorable cars and dogs looking for cuddles) We thorougly enjoyed our time at Jaiyen Eco Resort and would love to come back some time! Note that Jaiyen is on the quieter side of the island, so your best way of getting around will be to rent a scooter (about 20 mins to get to the swimmable beaches).

My fiancé and I stayed there right before the main season. We intentionally wanted to stay at a less developed, less touristy island and the Jaiyen Eco Resort was a dream come true.

The architecture, the way it has been structured, the main house to have breakfast at or enjoy a drink in the evening, served by Shela and Kevin, the couple that built all this and at the same time is your most welcoming and likable host is an unbelievable experience. We actually were the first guests of the season.

‘Jai yen‘— is Thai and means ‘calm heart’ and is the Basis fir the concept of Shela and Kevin: provide a calming environment for creatives to recharge.

They offered a scooter to rent (no charge) so that we could explore the island. It is so small that it does not take long to get everywhere and it was a true sense of freedom to take a step back and simply enjoy this beautiful, one-of-kind resort.

We were so happy that we stayed there in 2019.

The most beautiful spot on Koh Yao Noi ️ Thank you so much, Som O, for being the most varm, kind and smiling host ever. We truly loved our 5 days in this paradise. The place, the interior, the cocoon and the infinity pool is all gordious. The staff is all very kind and breakfast tasted so god, and even better was the beautiful way it was served. We also loved the cocoons, the guitar, the yoga madress, the drawing table and we had the most beautiful view from our terasse. The children especially loved all the calm and sweet animals who hang around the resort and we just hope to come back some day. Thank you for an amazing experience

I echo a previous recent reviewer in loving the resort's location, food and some of the facilities. We had a short break here, and it was memorable for good and bad reasons:

The Good
* The pods are stunning and have some really nice touches from a furniture and amenities perspective. In particular, I loved the yoga mats and blocks, and the separate room to store luggage in.
* The staff we met were all kind, friendly and service oriented
* All the cute cats and dogs who live here. Such gentle, cuddly and social creatures, they clearly get a lot of love (and have plenty to share around too)
* Breakfast choices offered variety and all were delicious

The Not So Good
* In tiny print at the bottom of our booking confirmation it stated that rates were reduced to reflect 'minor renovation and roof repairs'. It didn't mention that the wellness area in its entirety is not working - the jacuzzi, steam room and sauna are all currently out, and no work seemed to be taking place to remedy that. I was disappointed this is still highlighted on the resort website as a selling point, and the staff just didn't say anything about it when we arrived. More transparency is recommended here to avoid disappointing guests who may have been looking forward to using these facilities.
* The Gym is still missing a roof, and some of the equipment is not fully functional. Working out in the blinding sun is no fun, and it seems this has been the case for at least the last 2 months. Why isn't that fixed yet?
* I don't mind sharing the pod with the odd lizard or trail of ants, but I draw the line at cockroaches. We unfortunately found a large one in our shower, and another was found exploring my things in the luggage room. There's easy ways for these critters to get in and out of the pod due to gaps in construction, but this should be prevented as much as possible to reduce the harmful affects cockroaches can have on property and human health.
* Smaller things like no shaving light above the bathroom mirror, a lack of sunbeds around the pool when at max capacity, and one of the sun bed umbrellas not working feel like easy things that could be fixed if the owners prioritised it.
* An "Iced Mango Shake" arrived warm and not iced at all. There's three ingredients in this drink, missing one of them felt a bit exploitative of customers as no apology or explanation was offered.
* Food is already pricey compared to local restaurants, even the one next door, but then they add another 10% service charge and 7% VAT on top. I haven't seen this very often in other hotels in Thailand and it felt unnecessarily shady. Why not just price items to include better pay for staff, and include the VAT?

Overall we had an OK stay as the views and peace of Koh Yao Noi were the main draws for us to the island and this place, but I hope management see this and offer more transparency up front about facilities that are not currently available, in more prominent places on your website and third party sites.

Pros:
- very friendly and accommodating staff (special shoutout to Khun Som O, Khun Yao and Khun Yak)
- very good vegetarian food
- cute pets (dogs and cats)
- peaceful and amazing view of the ocean (pool also overlooks the ocean)
- very fast and stable wifi (>200 Mbps upload/download)
- large and spacious room and great work desk + chairs
- a lot of board games to choose from
- island tours available to book at resort

Cons:
- some maintenance required (rusted gym equipment, gym roof needs fixing, walkway lights + jacuzzi not working)
- not ideal for families traveling with small children

Summary:
This place is ideal for people looking for a quiet and laid back place. There's not much in the area but if you're looking for an escape, this is the spot. It's also a great place for digital nomads. Most guests we noticed traveled as a couple. We stayed there for 9 nights and wished we could've stayed longer.

The food is vegetarian and although we aren't vegetarian, the food was really good, fresh and very well presented.

The area is quite far from the town so if you're planning to get into town you can rent a motorbike or book a taxi from the hotel directly (approximately 25 minutes to town).

This is also a pet friendly place.

Definitely planning to go back. Hopefully the next time we visit, some of the maintenance issues would have already been addressed.

Very good and quiet place. Amazing design of hotel. Good breakfast
Only 1 problem - no transfer to hotel. Need take a boat. It’s 800 baht 2 ways per person.

Good place to relaxe, staff extremely nice, just the place was in a middle of no where, good for whom want this experience. Friendly cat for someone who is a cat lover. And the resort Look from above with our tiny toy extremely beautiful.

Som O is the greatest host you may found in Thailandia! In this beautiful island, we ended up being the only guests of the hotel, and the hosts were welcoming and kind, having prepared a full trip to James Bond island and giving us a scooter for 300 bath/day to explore the island. Som O even left us to the boat for the tour, went dropping us to the pier to go to Krabi and taught us to drive the scooter! The hotel has several free dogs and cats, they will come visit you and try ti sneak in your room so if you may don’t like it, advice the hosts. The view is breathtaking and the room (aka house) is gorgeous, well designed, they also prepared an electronic bike and a table to draw (the ones for the architects) if it is raining, yoga mats are in your big wardrobe room. Nothing else than: thank you for your kindness, we felt like at home

Underwhelming with the $ invested. Loved the eco vibes that unfortunately came along with a dusty room with cobwebs, and facilities were run in. The only saving grace was the +on site.

Best place you can find, not only the accomodation is gorgeous, people are also amazing! The vibe of the place is peaceful and it really helps you get into your creative flow. If you need a place to unwind and find new motivation for upgrading whatever you want in life this is a place for you.

This space is beyond amazing! I had one of the greatest solo travel experiences at this eco resort. I was overwhelmed with the sunset view, spacious pod with small details & equipments you could think of (like yoga blocks, mats, water tumbler) and had so much fun with 4 furry and lazy cats & Chip the dog! Will definitely return soon:) Thank you Kevin!

We have just returned from a four-night family stay at this resort, and had a truly wonderful time. The accommodation is spacious and comfortable with both sea and sunset views. The resort environment and atmosphere are both calming and inspiring at the same time. And, although no one in our family is vegetarian, the all vegan menu choices left no one disappointed. Our multi-talented host and owner, Kevin, was on hand throughout our stay, and always exceptionally helpful and supportive - undoubtedly adding to the strong sense of involvement and community we felt whilst staying at Jaiyen. We will certainly return to stay there again, to engage in more of the activities offered by the resort and on the island, and we would heartily recommend others give this place a try - for a truly surprising and unique experience.

Set In the furthest corner of Koh Yao Noi, Jaiyen is a very cool place to relax and recharge. They offer a delicious (mostly) plant-based menu, and comfy seating in the communal area to read or play their many board games. The pool is small but perfectly formed, the mini gym is a cool addition, and there’s a sauna and steam room for those that like to sweat.

The rooms are spacious and thoughtfully designed, and well cleaned daily.

Shela and Kevin had great advice on how to enjoy the island (3 or 4 days is enough), including bike hire to Chaba cafe and the nearby beach which was a cracking day trip. The beach opposite Jaiyen is not ideal for swimming, but the views and serenity are truly tropical.

Oh, and our kids said this was the best Eco hotel they’d ever stayed in. If they’re happy, I’m happy!

อาหารมังสวิรัส รสชาติอร่อย ห้องนอนแสนวิเศษ เห็นพระจันทร์ เห็นดวงดาว เงียบสงบ เหมาะสำหรับนักท่องเที่ยวที่ชอบความสงบ อยู่กับแสงจันทร์ทรา ราตรี

Brilliant eco resort run by Shela and Kevin - their hosting is warm and thoughtful. Stunning sunsets, excellent vegetarian food (but easy to order in seafood or Italian food from nearby restaurants), engaging company. Open air gym, infinity pool. Rooms are spacious and well appointed. Sweeping views. Highly, highly recommended.

Amazing property run by effervescent and charming host couple, Shela & Kevin. Bungalows adoringly thatched with bamboo both inside and out we're spacious, comfortable and private. The sunset-facing infinity pool was wonderful and the vegetarian-only fare on offer at the in-house restaurant was top-notch. There are four cats and one dog who have taken up residence under Shela & Kevin's care, all of them were thoroughly delightful and cuddly.

Perfect place to refresh your mind. It was totally different from all the places I visited before, from architecture to hospitality and food. Kevin and Shela, the hosts, are some great people, super friendly and open minded.

The resort is eco friendly made from a big percentage of bamboo wood, with big open spaces and a lot of light. In all the rooms you can find big drawing tables with materials accordingly: colorful pens, paper and inspirational books. I was really attracted by Stan’s Lee: How to draw comics.

I can say that I left the resort clear minded and relaxed.