THAILANDIAWEB; your Tour Operator in Thailand :

Specialist in holidays and travels in Thailand

KOH SAMUI TRAVEL GUIDE

Koh Samui is Thailand's third-largest island for its outstanding, palm-fringed beaches. As far as popular islands in Thailand go, Ko Samui is surpassed only by Phuket . With an international airport, a mass of ferry connections and close to 500 hotels and guesthouses

Massages on the beach and visit to SPAS can be complemented by a more active excursion to the Ang Thong National Marine Park or a wide choice of water sports.

If you're hunting for white sand beaches, turquoise waters and all-day sun, Samui can be a fine choice and our Ko Samui travel guide should help you to find the best beach, guesthouse or hotel for your needs.

With over a million visitors a year, Ko Samui 's inadequate infrastructure is at breaking point, yet development continues unabated. Huge swathes of land are cordoned off for developers to slap up massive "luxurious" residential compounds -- well away from the chaotic mess some of the beachside developments have become.

Chaweng beach. Chaweng is found on the island's East coast and it is the most popular beach on Ko Samui. Soft sand and shallow water makes Chaweng beach perfect for sunbathing and swimming. The 8 kilometer long beach road is pretty much covered with cozy restaurants, resorts, hotels and bars.

Chaweng has generally expensive accommodation, but this is the place to stay if you want an active time.

Lamai beach is situated a few kilometers South of Chaweng and is the second most popular destination on Ko Samui. The 6 km long beach has a little grainy sand and the deep water is perfect for swimming, especially in the Southern and middle parts of this beach. Even if the Lamai area is growing, the relaxed atmosphere is still dominating.

As the lush inland areas are deforested and concreted, topsoil run-off blights the roads in wet-season -- even a short downpour leaves many roads awash in red water -- areas such as Bophut and Chaweng flood in an instant. At times you can really be left scratching your head wondering if anyone really cares about what a mess parts of the island have become.

Nevertheless, put the environmental degradation and unabated development aside and you'll find that Ko Samui still retains some lovely beaches -- you just need to look a little harder to find them.

Before the crowds drag themselves out of bed popular Chaweng and Lamai remain pretty, while on the north side, quieter Mae Nam has a growing reputation. Of course there are many other beaches worth investigating -- don't make the mistake of spending your entire Ko Samui vacation on just the one stretch of sand.

Amongst all this development, there have been some stunning resorts appear on the island -- boutique spas and hidden jungle hideaways -- if budget is of no concern, then Samui has some terrific options for serious pampering -- and best of all you'll not need to leave the resort.

For backpackers and the budget traveller, Samui is not yet a lost cause. Mae Nam beach in particular has some outstanding old-style backpacker guesthouses that are excellent value. Big Buddha is also decent, though the noise from the aircraft darting in and out at the nearby airport is a distraction. For mid-range and up, Chaweng and Lamai are home to the majority of hotels , though Lamai should be considered Chaweng's ugly sister -- the beach is fine enough, but the guesthouse, hotel and restaurant selection is not nearly as good.

Ao Thong Takian . A small almost idyllic beach North of Lamai with five small resorts. A lot of corals is found on the sea bed (mind cuts) and some days the water is very clear and turquoise and then suitable for snorkeling.

Maenam Beach . Maenam beach is found on the Northern part of the island and one of Samui's calmer beaches. Many families chose to rent a bungalow along the 5 km long beautiful beach. At low season the beach can be almost "empty of people".

Bo Phut Beach . A rather quiet and calm beach which earlier functioned as a fishing village for the local fishermen. The traditional house of teak tree can still be found in the small village. Even if there is no extensive nightlife found in Bo Phut, you will still find a number of cozy seafood and fish restaurants that work as natural meeting point.

Choeng Mon Beach. This beautiful but rather short beach is found in the North-East parts of the island. Here you will find mostly three, four and five star resorts. A perfect place for families and couples who are looking for a pleasant and convenient holiday. Choeng Mon beach is also located rather close to the airport and Chaweng.

Bang Por, Lipa Noi and Taling Ngam. Three quiet and long beaches on the North-West and West coast of Samui. For people who prefer a calm, very relaxed vacation. At low season, these beaches are often almost empty of people, but a some restaurants and resorts are to be found here.

Ang Thong National Marine Park. West of Samui you will find the group of islands that together create the well kept National Park of Angthong. Quiet beaches and a wild jungle make the park one of Surat Thani's greatest attractions. On the parks main island, Ko Wua Talap, you will find the highest top in the area. The 430 meter high view point can be reach after a one hour tough walk. Kayaking, snorkeling and a visit to the hidden lagoon is some the parks most popular activities. The famous movie; The Beach, takes place on a figurative island in the North part of the park. The park can be reach by boat from Samui and the traveling time is approximately 90 minutes.

Samui activities and tours. The Big Buddha. Samui's most popular attraction, The Big Buddha sitting 15 meters tall was built in 1972 by the local society to give visitors a place to pay respect to The Lord Buddha. This monumental landmark is placed on the island's Northern shore.

Coral Buddha. Formerly one of Samui's main attractions, this small, dilapidated statue is now only visited by Buddhist devotees. Although it is in a state of disrepair, the Coral Buddha is still revered and is a place of worship for the monks from nearby Wat Sumret. The only direction sign is a small tatty board parallel to the road which is easy to miss when driving past. It is on the 4169 ring-road approximately 800 meters West of Hua Thanon.

Kunaram Temple - Mummified Monk. The body of Samui's most famous mummified monk, Loung Pordaeng, is on display here in a specially constructed building. When he died more than 20 years ago, he was sitting in a meditation position. He is still in that same position and his body shows few signs of any major decay. Wat Khunaram is on the 4169 ring-road between the Na Muang waterfalls and Hua Thanon .

Wat Plai Laem . Wat Plai Laem is located in the north of Samui on road 4171 from Big Buddha to Choeng Mon Beach. The temple is famous for the hundreds of big fish enjoying their live in the lake of the temple and waiting to be fed (Food for the fish is available at the temple for a small donation of 10 Baht per pack). Wat Plai Laem is one of the most colorful temple on Samui and features an 18 arms strong Buddha statue set in the middle of the lake.

Namuang Waterfall .Na Muang Waterfall is located 10 km south from Nathon at Ban Thurian. There are 2 waterfalls. Na Muang one is 18 meter high and can be reached by vehicle. Na Muang two is about 80 meters high and can only be reached by a 30 minute walk. The waterfalls are the most scenic on the island .

Hin Ta - Hin Yai Strangely shaped rocks at south Lamai. A local story tells of an old couple whose ship was wrecked in the bay. Their body's were washed ashore to create the rocks .

Hin Lad Waterfall. Hin Lad Waterfall is located 2 km south of Nathon Town.He can be reached by a 3-4 kilometer walk down a country foot walk. In evergreen, rain forest setting with palms and creepers, the waterfall have several levels with a cool pool for a fresh water swim.

Magic Buddha Garden. The magic Buddha garden is hidden in the hills of Samui. You can see several statues, temples and waterfalls which are build by one man in the last 20 years.

Ancient House. A house made of teakwood without any nails at Ban Thale is the oldest house on the island. It was built approximately 150 years ago, is constructed of teak planks and shows off many beautiful woodcarvings.

Thai Boxing. The undisputed national sport of Thailand, a Muay Thai professional bout can be seen at the Chaweng Stadium every Monday and Friday, while the Lamai stadium stages fights every Saturday.

Buffalo fights. A traditional fighting show, in which betting with money plays a large part. The buffalo fights are very popular among the native Thai population and the event takes place in a large arena where two buffalo fights in a natural struggle, which often (but not always) goes by without bloodshed. The fight is normally over when an animal surrender by escaping the fight.

Koh Samui nightlife. Nightspots offerings here vary from a lounge in the bar to disco dancing. You can't expect Pattaya or Bangkok here, but you will certainly not miss excitement if that's what you are looking for.

The open-bars beckon for some lazy talks; for pepping up for the big party later, which most all travelers here revel into. The Jazz Junction which is at Chaweng Beach Road provides you an ideal place to simply chat and dawdle on. It's quiet elegance is boosted by divine cocktails, cool, jazz, smooth grooves and sunshine soul. The Thai-house-inspired bar is open from 4 p.m. to 2 p.m.

You can also head off to The Club where a different atmosphere greets you: warm candlelight's and electric music acid jazz, soul, funk, mellow grooves and a rare feeling of one mess with the crowd. How about some light entertainment? Then come to the Christy Cabaret, Samui's own brand of cabaret. After that slow but sure gearing up, you are then ready for Samui's frenetic body ventures.

One of the most popular discos is the Green Mango. Dancing starts 10 p.m. and lasts until the wee hours of the morning. The big dance floor throbs with a crowd sweating it out to the latest disco tunes. But you can also have an open space with tables just a little farther from the main dance floor.
 

The popular Reggae Pub in Chaweng, noted for its logo which shows the face of Bob Marley. Reggae music (what else) is the fixture here and a live band leads you to wild dancing.

And at Lamai beach, you have the main party place - Bauhaus. Screens showing live sport events capture some people but it is because Bauhaus is for everyone's enjoyment. The place sets a different theme on certain days and there is also a night for your dancing shoes to be polished since true-blue underground music will charm you.