We spent a wonderful 8 days at Inspiration Villa in October 2014. A family (plus aunt) with 3 boys, 18, 15 and 13.
The house is lovely. Stylish, well maintained, polished concrete, wooden decks, infinity pool, great bathrooms - perfect.
Housekeeper, gardener, etc. always present but never conspicuous. The quality of maintenance is first class.
The gardens run down to the sea from the infinity pool to the volleyball court then the lawn (including a pagoda in the corner, a great venue for massages). The beach is pebbly/rocky (not sharp) so takes some care - but it's not a bad launching pad for the 2 sea kayaks on the rack. We had great fun.
The kitchen in the garden was more than adequate - particularly as there was a great restaurant across the road that delivered within minutes (more later).
The location is great; at the South end of White Sands beach and well positioned for all of the activities on the island.
Transport is simple, there's a steady stream of taxis operating in both directions, we never waited more than 2 minutes.
We spent all of our time on the West coast of Koh Chang. There are a few seedy bars, but not excessive. The town is laid back and good fun. Beach restaurants are great. Plenty of families with kids, through to backpackers. The open top VW camper cocktail bar is a must.
We went Scuba diving, Elephant trekking and Fishing. We also had massages in the garden a few times. All were great and efficiently arranged with the help of Jay, the villa manager. He was simply terrific; very nice, very genuine. He was able to give us an insight to everything we wanted to do, and came up with great suggestions. We worked out a plan for the week, Jay made a few calls and, without a single hitch, everything fell into place.
Jay's restaurant is across the road at the end of the drive, a short walk from the villa. It's basic, and by the side of the road, but the food is fantastic. Jay's wife Jow runs the joint and does it very well. The breakfasts were out of this world - a selection ranging from muesli, fresh fruit and yoghurt through to a full English breakfast with Jay's homemade sausages and plenty of Thai options. And if we didn't fancy the walk Jay would pop dinner round on his scooter stacked up in lovely stainless steel pots.
Quite simply, we had a great week. The Vila was perfect, the island enchanting and nothing was too much trouble for Jay and his team. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend a stay.