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ANDHAVEALOOKAT
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disclaimer §§ |
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We have provided
a little map.
...which is only good for general information and a brief orientation.
.....but then again - what else is it that matters?
Once you come here, you just check it out yourself!
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The map above holds links to all major beach areas
and the 'ringroad', which runs round the island and finally leads
to all those places of interest, as well as main town, airport, the
ferry piers and what so ever. Enjoy the map.
Nathon, the "capital" of Samui
is the main town of the island, located on the west coast and entry
point for most visitors traveling surface. Nathon is the center of
all administrative and governmental institutions, postal services,
telecommunication and banking. Bigger supermarkets, the main meat
and vegetable market, plenty of small shops and a load of restaurants
make it a busy place, good enough for basic shopping and leisure in
daytime - the town is rather quiet at night
The Ringroad
runs around the island and is some 60 km long, going full circle.
Partially it goes right next to the beach, but many of the smaller
bays and especially all the inland tourist attractions are in reach
via connecting roads.
The list of available activities and attractions is quite large and
growing. Cruising the island by taxi, motorbike or car is fun and
an island round-trip might be a pleasant way to look at the offers
of your interest, whether it's the butterfly garden, the crocodile
farm, the aquarium, the pearl farm, the Samui
Shells Museum or the two waterfalls, the mummified monk, monkey
theater, etc.,etc.
Tour operators offer organized trips to all the sightseeing spots,
as well as fishing trips, elephant trekking, island safari and more.
Samui hosts approximately 50 dive schools, there are plenty of speed
boats and water scooters available, catamarans, sailing boats, kayaks,
water-ski, ... you name it!
Whatever you look at, whatever transport you use, we want to advise
you to drive carefully and defensive on Samui's roads. Traffic is
less regulated than in most western countries and produces unexpected
driving behavior and surprising moves
The Beaches
are numerous and -taken all the little bays in consideration- it's
impossible to name all.
Most of the beaches have fine white sands, pretty clear and clean
waters and are good for sunbathing (beware the sun), swimming and
all sorts of fun. Most places you'll find watersports facilities and
a dive center is usually just around the corner. We provide a brief
description of the main beaches and have listed them most busy up
Chaweng
always has been the most busy beach and probably the one where
it all began. There was maybe a time end of the eighties when Lamai
was close, but probably the opening of the airport gave Chaweng the
final push. Today Chaweng is a very busy place with three large discotheques,
a few good clubs, plenty of bars and restaurants and an incredible
load of shops and little stalls, lined up at the road. In Hi-season
the beach is packed - but in comparison to Mediterranean beaches it's
almost empty. The beach road (behind the resorts which are built right
at the beach) gets busy with late afternoon - daytime is beachtime.
Closing time for most of the niteries is 4 am - but there is always
a loop hole (i.e. some place open longer) and it is very possible
you watch the sun rising - provided that you love the night
Lamai
is second in visitor numbers and has it's own unique character.
Being less fast than Chaweng, it probably offers a similar amount
of entertaining spots, fewer shops though and is way more relaxed.
The beach is usually less crowded and has big rocks at the ends where
the water appears crystal clear. The nights are long, just like Chaweng,
and you'll find places with live music (which
seems to become quite popular at the moment) girly bars, beer bars,
cool hangouts ... whatever your heart desires.
There is a big food market right in the heart of Lamai where you get
good, traditional Thai food at reasonable prices. If you like it busy,
it's either Lamai or Chaweng. It's hard to tell the real difference
... guess it's just the difference in vibes, the groove, what makes
you go 'Chamai or Laweng'
Maenam
has become the third popular beach on Samui. Plenty of resorts, from
150 Baht per night up to several ten thousands. The Santiburi, one
of Samui's most exclusive resort is at Maenam beach. The sand is a
bit more grainy on some parts and the land behind is developing fast.
Maenam village has grown and has become a preferred area for foreign
residents. Plenty of dive shops and the pier for boats to and from
Koh Phangan and Koh Tao have increased activities in this rather small
community
Big Buddha Beach
is a sheltered bay in the north of the island with a sandy beach stretching
for about two kilometers. The beach is perfect for swimming, sunbathing
and all kinds of water sports and fun. It offers a good variety of
restaurants, bars and accomodation, at reasonable rates, compared
to the busy Chaweng and Lamai areas. Most famous is the 13 meter tall
sitting 'Big Buddha' at the northern tip, being an eye catching landmark,
an ideal spot for watching sunsets or just to rest your mind.
Big Buddha Beach is less busy than Chaweng and Lamai and invites for
relaxation and peaceful holidays. It is however just a few minutes
by bike or car to reach Chaweng
Bo Phut
is rather known for its many restaurants. One after the other
on the beach road, which is apparently close to the beach. The few
resorts on the main strip are therefore on the other side of the road,
unusual for Samui, quite common on most beaches around the world.
There is a pier in the middle of the village with boats leaving for
Koh Phangan and many of the fishermen do own speedboats these days,
for big game fishing, blackmoon party transportation and all sorts
of fun. Most of the resorts are on the edges of the bay, connecting
to Maenam in the west and stretching out towards Big Buddha in the
east
Bang Po
hosts only a few resorts, the rest are sort of residential areas
for sale and rent. Many buildings have been raised within the last
year. Probably the biggest land developer on Samui has his office
there and has built plenty of stylish, very exclusive houses along
the beach. A good amount of cheaper, easier houses are available,
so Bang Po tourist population is mainly long term visitors, residents
or property owners. The next bay towards the east is called Ban Tai,
with just three resorts a very peaceful area. The sea rather shallow
and a wide, white beach, it's perfect for families with small children
Choengmon
is probably most famous for the boat house resort, where big boats
have been put on the dry and are now used for accomodation. Continuing
to the next bay, you'll find Tongsai Bay Resort, another exclusive
spot, carefully implanted into the mountainous nature, it's a really
great place, perfect also for weddings (as we attended two of them
there with traditional ceremony). The beach is quiet and invites for
nice candle light dinners right at the beach
Ban Taling Ngam, Ban
Krut and Laem Set
are the better known beaches in the south of the island. For some
reasons the south has not had this building boom and fast development
like most other parts of the island. There are plenty of beautiful
beaches there, quite a few resorts, but it looks like not too many
people staying. It's definitely a peaceful and natural living in most
of the cheaper places, and a rather isolated but similar peaceful
living in the very exclusive estates like Laem Set Inn and the overall
expensive 'Le Meridien'. Lots of fishermen are living their daily
life here, rarely irritated by the tourists buzzing around - that's
at least what it seems like.
The Samui Airport
might well be the prettiest of the world, built open air using natural
resources, it fits the tropical environment of the island. The airport
is private property of Bangkok
Airways and serves mainly flights of their own airline. With approximately
12 flights a day arriving and leaving it's not too busy, convenient
though and most of the year you can book just one or two days in advance
(not so in peak season which is Dec.-Feb.). It's a one hour twenty
minutes flight from Bangkok. They also fly in from most neighboring
countries. Until today it's not prepared for international flights
coming in, which preserves the island's exclusivity
The Ferry Pier in Nathon
serves ferries and express boats leaving for Koh Phangan, the sister
island of Samui, not as large and less developed, and Suratthani the
closest city on the mainland. Traveling by bus or train, it's most
likely that you enter the island walking one of the two piers. The
piers are part of Nathon town where further
transportation is available
The Car Ferry to Suratthani
is leaving from a tiny village in the south called Thong Yang and
hits the mainland at Donsak, from where it's a one hour drive to Suratthani.
The pier serves mainly private customers taking their car, lots of
trucks and most of the buses going straight on the island or leaving
from here. It's the fastest ferry to/from the mainland. Service is
up 7 am to 7 pm - if required they run their services till late night
Rent a car
is a available throughout the island. Most offered car is the Suzuki
Caribbean, which fits the islands natural environment best. Cars are
rented out from small private companies and big rental shops at roughly
1000 Baht per day. If you want to have a full cover insurance, you
need to pay on top. Recently larger companies like 'Budget' are getting
established on the island, offering a wider range of models and insurance
packages up to European standards. International drivers license is
required
Rent a motorbike
for cruising the island. This is an inexpensive alternative to move
individually and is a lot of fun as well. Plenty of semiautomatic
little 100 cc bikes are available at 150 Baht per day. If you want
bigger, it's there. Enduros, choppers, all sizes, all models and if
you look or ask around you might even be able to rent a Harley. For
big bikes an international drivers license is required. The small
ones can be rented without
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Huh, hope we haven't
forgotten the most important, doing all this writing and explanations.
And yep, we did ..... most important is to enjoy life - where ever
you stay! |
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