On the first day of the TAT media trip they took us by boat from Koh Samui to Koh Tao in Surat Thani Province.
This is the first time I have been to this area and so didn’t really know what to expect. All I knew is that Koh Pha-Ngan has full moon parties and Koh Tao is popular with diving. What I didn’t realize was how easy and quick it was to get to these islands. It only took us 80 minutes to get to Koh Tao.
I had always thought that Koh Tao was the haven for young backpackers and had plenty of cheap beach bungalows. But these days it seems that they are also attracting up-market tourists. We stayed at Ban’s Diving Resort and our room was 2,500 Baht. Further up the beach Koh Tao Cabana have rooms, with private swimming pools, for 7,500-14,00 Baht. Maybe a bit expensive but good exclusive views.
The infrastructure on Koh Tao is more developed than I thought it would be. There are even 7-Eleven shops. A good thing about this is that prices seemed to be fixed and fair. 10 Baht for a bottle of water and 20 Baht for a Coke. There are ATM machines, Internet cafes, clinics and shops with just about anything you need. One thing that I really didn’t expect to see were cars on paved roads. Koh Tao is only 21 sq km and I guess no island is too small for vehicles.
We are only here for one night so cannot really comment on the beaches. But, I think where we are staying on Sai Ri Beach is beautiful enough. This seems to be the main strip on the island. Many people come here for the diving as it is supposed to be some of the best in Thailand. However there is also good snorkeling which is good for families. We are going to do some ourselves at Koh Nang Yuan tomorrow.
- Posted from my iPhone
Hi, where was the first photo, on this page, taken?