Ko Samui

 

Samui has the internationally renowned Bangkok Samui Hospitals. For those who are just a little sick there are countless clinics and pharmacies, especially at Chaweng Beach.

Tap water is generally not potable. Liquids from sealed bottles nearly always are, and should be used wherever possible. Take care in restaurants as some may use unsafe tap water to make ice for drinks otherwise made with bottled/safe ingredients. Tap water in most hotels should not be used for drinking or brushing teeth unless explicitly labeled as safe.

Motorbikes are somewhat risky, but jeeps, trucks and other cars for rent are readily available at very reasonable rates, and are considerably safer. If you must use a motorbike always wear a helmet and never drive drunk the roads are hazardous with many large potholes. After a good time drinking in the party areas of Chaweng, Bophut and Lamai taxis are readily available to take you home. Be careful generally taxi drivers tend to rip you off. It's not rare for a tuk-tuk driver to charge you 50 baht for just a kilometre journey for example, along the main Chaweng market during evenings.

A recent development has been the appearance of Quad Bikes to rent for use on the roads. These do not appear to be registered for road use so care should be taken as they may not be insured.

Be careful about beaches in night time as crimes often occur there.

If travelling to Ko Samui, Ko Phangan or Ko Tao by Bus do not store any valuables in your luggage. They have been reports of thefts from buses operated by "Songserm" Travel. Do not let your valuables out of your sight when transiting from the train to the islands.

contact

Typical monthly internet charges including the telephone line are around 20USD+. Thailand also has more than its fair share of Internet cafes, the hourly charge is about 1USD. For those residing in rural areas, logging onto the Internet can be done via broadband satellite.

TrueCafe is offering high speed WiFi access for 150 baht/hour or 600 baht/month. Only available in Bangkok, Phuket and the airports.

GSM networks of all major Thai mobile operators cover the island quite well. While roaming is an option, purchasing local SIM card will save you a lot on international calls. Even more, GPRS/EDGE service is a cheap and convenient way to access Internet from virtually anywhere. See the main article for details.

beaches

Ko Samui is a fairly big island. The most popular and commercialised beaches are Chaweng and Lamai, while the northern beaches and their adjacent villages of Mae Nam, Bophut, Bang Rak Big Buddha and Choeng Mon are more peaceful choices, and the west coast beaches are still comparatively quiet.

Clockwise from Nathon on the west coast, the main beaches are:

Nathon — Samui's port and administrative centre, but with little to attract the tourist

Laem Yai — set on the North West tip of the island, a secluded beach overlooking the islands of Angthong

Mae Nam — a quiet and beautiful beach on the northern coast

Bophut — known for its Fisherman's Village, laid-back but growing fast

Bang Rak — at the northeastern tip, home of the Big Buddha

Choeng Mon — quiet North shore beach

Chaweng — the largest and most-developed beach, with a curious mix of luxury hotels and backpacker guesthouses and a hopping nightlife

Lamai — Samui's "second" beach south of Chaweng, more backpackery than Chaweng

Samui South Coast — the small beaches of Ban Hua Thanon, Na Khai, Laem Set, Bang Kao and Thong Krut