This was a business trip in the area and our hosts chose this hotel for us and assigned rooms. My husband and I seemed to have been given an upgraded/remodeled room . I was much nicer than the standard rooms our friends from Australia had. Luck of the draw.
Ask for a room on the 7th floor. It's the only non-smoking floor (although we didn't notice problems on other floors probably because it had been recently remodeled).

It was nicely done in tile, quiet colors, quite large, nice bedding, sufficient towels and everything worked. My favorite was the lovely, large balconie with wonderful wooden chairs and a table. A view of the ocean,trees and a condo hotel was nice.

Because our group tended to return from a function at the same time and needed to get ready for the next function (usually evening), there was a bit of trouble with the water pressure. The hot water would disappear then all the water entirely for about 5 minutes. We were on the 7th floor so this didn't help - our Australian friends on the 4th floor didn't report the same problem.

The breakfast buffet and eating room was quite pleasant. I am vegetarian and had plenty of options. Bar downstairs was slow and a bit overpriced but the atmosphere was nice.

Cha-Am is frequented mostly by vacationing Thais, European/Scandinavian tour groups and local ex-pats. For the large, fancier hotels, try Hua Hin just down the road and along the ocean. But for value, Cha-Am is pretty nice with right hotel and room.

We are at this location for business every 2 years and one of our favorite things is to have clothing made. For a stay of 3-4 days in the area, we have suits, dresses and other apparel made. The tailor shops are everywhere, but we have had great luck with "New Boss" which is right on the main road fronting the ocean next to the Methavalai Hotel - which is a decent hotel as well.

The bigger resorts of Hua Hin are more "american style" and I wouldn't travel this far just for a "beach resort" - you can find them alot closer! But if you're passing through or looking for a different experience - try Cha-Am. It's definitely more Thailand