Ko Samui Travel Guide and Hotels Reservation

Hotel Reservations

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Ko Samui is famous for having some of the best tropical beaches in the world. We try to provide information about Samui beaches and finding the right accommodation on the right beach for you! Please compare hotels below to find the beach accommodation that suits your needs.

Select other beach destinations:
Bophut Beach | Maenam Beach | Lamai Beach | Chaweng Beach

Nightlife

There are innumerable options for a drink, ranging from the loud and brash tourist pubs and girlie bars of Chaweng to the candle-lit romantic bars of Bophut. Figure on 80 baht for a local beer (Singha, Tiger, Chang, Heineken) and up to twice as much for any import.

Wine is especially expensive, usually over 2,000 baht per bottle.

Beer bars
Chaweng Beach is especially famous for its beer bars (also called bar-beers), staffed by pretty hostesses, usually from the north-east of Thailand. Buy them a ‘girlie drink’ and you’ll be in entertaining company.

Beer bars can be found all over Chaweng. Besides having just girls for hire, the bars offer pool, Connect4 and other popular bar games. Since the nightlife on Chaweng can see serious debauchery at times, the local law enforcers are strict in concern to enforcing closing times.

The official closing time in “entertainment zones” is 01:00 (in practice usually somewhere between 01:00 and 02:00, depending on the location).

Go-go bars
There are go-go bars at Lamai and Chaweng, but most of them are located at the latter. Dancers sit with customers for commission on ‘girlie drinks’ (usually cola)

Nightclubs
Chaweng Beach is packed out with nightclubs playing the latest rave sounds and serving exotic cocktails.

Karaoke Joints
At karaoke joints join can either choose a private room or sing in the main lounge for everyone to hear. There are Thai songs and international songs, there may be pretty hostesses available to sit for a pleasant chat. These joints are especially popular with North Asian tourists.

Car Rental

Cars can easily be rented on Ko Samui just as long as you have an international drivers’ license. Cars should cost round 1,200+ per day. Budget Car Rental have offices on Ko Samui. You should not hire any car from a local Thai who does not have his own rental company – he could be a scammer.

Retirement

Reason to retirement at Ko Samui

Weather: Ko Samui is ideal for those wishing for a warmer climate.

Safety: Outside of Chaweng and Lamai, Ko Samui is a relatively safe island where crime against foreigners is quite rare.

Cost: One can enjoy a high standard of living on Ko Samui at a fraction of the cost than in a developed Western country.

Accommodation: Ko Samui has a variety of different accommodation at cost-effective prices.

Transportation: One can travel around easily cheaply without the need of a private car.

Communications: Ko Samui now has a communications system on par with Bangkok.

Health Care: Hospitals offer a high quality of service, again at a fraction of the cost of which is the norm in the West.

Food

Samui is well known for its coconuts, which are available everywhere and quite tasty. Being an island, seafood is generally a good choice, although in high season demand often exceeds local supply. The larger beaches have a number of international restaurants as well (often run by Thai-farang couples), with Bophut having a particularly good reputation.

Dual pricing is regrettably common: some restaurants have two menus, one for tourists and the other for Thai people, at about 1/4 of the foreigner prices. Main courses in a standard, low-key Thai restaurant should be under 100 baht (except some seafood dishes), so if prices seem unreasonably steep, head elsewhere.

Traditional Food
In general, Southern Thai food is renowned for its spiciness. Much of the cuisine has its origins in Malay, Indonesian and Indian food. Favourite dishes from the south include Indian-style Muslim curry (massaman), rice noodles in fish curry sauce (Khanom Jeen) and chicken birayani.

Local food in Koh Samui and its province of Surat Thani are salted eggs and delicious rambutan.

Culture

The south of Thailand is a melting pot of Buddhists, Thai Chinese, Muslims and even sea gypsies. The majority of the population in the rural areas is Muslim. Ko Samui however, does not suffer from any religious tension and the folk live in peace and harmony. Outside of the tourist areas, the rural folk speak with a thick Southern dialect which is difficult for even other Thais to understand.

With this kind of mixture, Ko Samui is always celebrating something be it part of Thai Buddhist, Thai-Chinese or Thai-Islamic tradition.

Learning

Thai Cooking
Samui Institute of Thai Culinary Arts, Tel: 0 7741 3172 provides basic skills sufficient to prepare a Thai meal in your own home, or even training to professional standards. Some hotels that have their own in-house Thai restaurant offer cooking classes to their customers. Contact Central Samui Beach Resort Tel: 0 2230 5000, Imperial Samui Tel: 0 7742 2020-36, Poppies Samui Tel: 0 7742 2389; Santiburi Dusit Resort Tel: 0 7742 5031 for details

Thai Boxing
Samui has a few gyms where wanna-be kick boxers can learn this unique martial art which is embedded in culture and tradition.

Meditation
For those suffering from a bugging, moody, monkey-like or impatient mind, they can be treated with the help of meditation. If practicing at a temple isn’t your cup-of-tea, then never mind there are monthly meditation courses at the Samudra Retreat lead by an expert meditation master monk.

Yoga
Kamalaya Yoga Synergy Retreats. Yoga immersion for beginners that includes learning basic postures, breathing practice and meditation, supported by wellness treatments, healthy cuisine, inspiring setting.

Full Moon Party (Koh Phangan)

Once upon a time Had Rin Beach on nearby Ko Phang-ngan was a secret haven for a few ‘hippy’ backpackers who could only get to the beach by boat. Nowadays however, Had Rin is packed with bungalows, bars, pizza joints and even a 7-11. Every month on full-moon a huge party is held, one that has become internationally renowned. All through the night party-gors can drink and dance to the latest rave sounds played by well-known DJs from around the world. Literally ten of thousands appear solely for the point of joining in the action.

(Warning: Hardly a full-moon party goes by without someone dying due to a mix of drinks and drugs. One of the main killers are ‘magic mushrooms’ (often mixed in pizzas or fruit shakes) which when taken can make people believe they can swim to Samui and back – of course, they end up drowning. Whatever you do, stay well clear of any drugs as Had Rin’s law enforcers are now infamous for arresting ganja smoking tourists and extorting thousands of dollars out of them. If they fail to pay, reports of pumped up charges are pressed. You have been warned)

Getting there:
Ko Phangan takes approximately 45 minutes from Samui Island by boat. There are special services on the night of the full-moon.

Events & Festivals

Buffalo Fighting Festival
One of the most famed festivals coming out of Samui is its Buffalo Fighting Festival which is held on special occasions such as New Years Day and Songkran. Unlike Spanish Bullfighting, where the bulls get killed while fighting sword-wielding men, Buffalo Fighting Festival, Ko Samui is fairly harmless. The fighting season varies according to some ancient customs and ceremonies. The buffalos are beautifully decorated with ribbons and gold-painted leaves. Before the contest which lasts just two rounds, monks spray them with holy water. This is a big money event with the winning owner going home with millions of baht in prize money.

Bowling Championship
This is an annual bowling event held in May every year.

Avis Samui Tennis Open
The annual amateur tennis tournament held in July.

The Fisherman’s Village Festival
This five-day long festival is celebrated with great fun and lots of music and food. The music is usually played by well-known artists and the amount of food (and quality of it) dished up is just amazing. A number of food tents sell a wide range of inexpensive and tasty cuisine provided by many local hotels. All these things make this festival the best on the Samui calendar.

Triathlon Event
The International Triathlon Union organizes this event every year. This event in Ko Samui draws a more than five hundred participants from all round the globe. The event attracts not only competitors but visitors at the same time. Local people participate enthusiastically and at same time cheer up the participants. This Triathlon Event is a lot of fun.

Samui Regatta
The Samui Regatta, Ko Samui is a sailing tournament, which is a grand attraction on this island every year. The tournament is internationally acclaimed around the world and has become one of the major sailing events on Samui. The organizers put in a lot of preparation for the successful completion of this event. Locals as well as tourists take part; racers come from as far away as Australia, Singapore, Japan and China. This event began in 2002. The yacht racing association of Thailand organized this popular yachting festival and the event is recognized by the prestigious international sailing federation. Boats of all sizes and shapes are used in this event. The “Radical Bay 8000” is one such boat that is used in this event. During the festival, spectators are treated to an assortment stalls serving up delicious Thai cuisine at reasonable prices. Drinks, both alcohol and non-alcohol can also be had.

Diving

Without a doubt the south of Thailand is home to some of the finest and most beautiful beaches and islands in the world, surrounded by crystal clear water and stunning coral. And that is the main reason why the number of divers coming to Thailand has escalated over the past decade or so.

Even though the best time year of the year to dive in the Ko Samui is between June and August, it is still perfectly possible to dive virtually any day of the year. As diving in Thailand is considered one of the safest destinations for diving and snorkeling in the world, it is perfect for first-timers wanting to try these pastimes out.

The sea visibility in some places around Ko Samui is almost unbelievable, I mean we are talking about distances of up to 30 meters – unheard of in most parts of the world. One can enjoy splendid sights of underwater mountains, coral gardens, undersea rock formations, hard and soft coral, whale sharks, silver tip sharks, manta rays and even sunken battleships.

Ang Thong Marine National Park
This park consists of 42 islands and the scenery is very similar to that of Ko Phang-ngan’s. The two most popular islands for diving are Ko Wao and Ko Yippon.

Diving Sites Around Ko Samui

Samran Pinnacles
This site is one for more advanced divers as the currents can get pretty strong at times. These currents often bring in larger pelagics such as barracuda, jacks and trevally and the coral in the vicinity is luxuriously delicate. The three submerged pinnacles are close to Sail Rock which is between Ko Tao and Ko Pha-ngan.

Ko Kra & Koh Losin
These two small islands located to the south-east of Samui, which because of its remotest, don’t get too many divers. Blacktip sharks, manta rays and hard to find loggerhead turtles can be seen.