I wanna recommend
Aonang Princeville Resort !!
It's a small resort located right in front of Aonang Beach next to Phra Nang Inn (Ao Nang Villa is just further down the beach) along the stretch of shops, but it's snugly nestled in luscious tropical trees so you won't feel the disturbance of the crowd on the streets at night at all.
The resort is more Bali style with a very cosy reception area. The Deluxe room is very cheap but very big and nice with a king bed and daybed. The floors are very nicely done up with mosaic tiles for the bathroom and toilet and coloured designs on the cement floor in the room. To our surprise, there were many TV channels available including CNA, NHK, HBO etc. for such a small resort.
Everything - shops, boat services, taxis, even the highly rated banana pancakes - is at your doorstep. You can even negotiate for a cheaper price with whichever agent you book your tours from because of its proximity to the beach - they don't need to ferry you back to your hotel because it's only a minute's walk away.
Only 2 complaints I have:
1) Breakfast is... erm... nothing to shout about. I loved the cereal and milk best. But overall I still think this is a super good deal for the 1320baht/night (offpeak rate) I paid!
2) They gave me a room on the ground floor which was very convenient when you come back aching from kayaking or soaking wet in your swimming gear, but was pretty noisy at night with the frogs croaking outside. Maybe because it rained every evening I was there. Anyway, you might wanna request for a room on the 2nd or 3rd floors just in case.
* Please note that their superior rooms are not a smaller version of the Deluxe room. The Superior rooms are much cheaper because there is no design whatsoever with just a double bed in the room, something like chalets in Singapore. Some online accomodation sites only show pictures of the Superior room.
**
www.morethailand.com offers really cheap rates. I intended to book Aonang Villa with them at first becos of the cheaper rate but they don't have rooms for Aonang Villa anymore so they recommended this resort to me. Blessing in disguise!! I saved S$50+ even after cancelling my booking with Asiarooms for Aonang Villa for a penalty of S$24.
*** Suitable for people on a budget, don't like crowds, like convenience.
**** It's a small resort so if you like big pools and loads of facilities then maybe this might not be a good choice, but hey! you've got beautiful islands nearby and loads of activities to do! AP Resort is a good place to go back and relax in.