Koh Samui, Thailand- low key & beautiful

Koh Samui, Thailand

Wow, what a relaxing yet fun-filled 72 hours in Koh Samui, Thailand! The above are the views from our hotel- the Buri Rasa Village Hotel in Chaweng Beach. Stunning isn’t it?!

Here’s a little background of Koh Samui, courtesy of Wikipedia :

“Samui”, as its called by the locals, is located in the Gulf of Thailand off the east coast of the southern peninsula and is the second largest island of Thailand after Phuket (you can read about our adventure in Phuket this past July 2012 by clicking here). It boasts a population of 55,000 and attracts upwards of 1.5 million tourists annually! Let me also add that the residents of Samui are incredily warm & friendly and are fabulous hosts!

Anyway, David’s parents flew to visit us here in Kuala Lumpur for their first ever international holiday. We wanted to show them the beautiful beaches of SE Asia so where better to take them than to Koh Samui, Thailand!

Adorable message on our bed upon arrival

Traditional Thai style bath in our room!

We arrived on a Wednesday afternoon and found our way to the busy Chaweng Beach area of Samui soon after. Our hotel- the Buri Rasa Village Hotel, was located just south of the Chaweng “city” center & was quaint, traditionally thai, and sat directly on the beach- what more could we ask for?!?! We found this hotel, like all our others, through TripAdvisor and Agoda, who both sang praises about the Buri Rasa but unfortunately, they did not note the very loud construction going on next door to the resort, which was a nuisance every day. The staff was as accommodating & understanding to the situation as they could be, although our room sat on the side of the property that was the loudest & we could not move rooms due to the hotel being sold out. They did however present us with a bottle of chilled white wine and an apology note to smooth things over, very thoughtful. 

Our room was upgraded to a suite with a lovely garden area out front (that we could not use due to the noise). But no matter, we spent every day out and about for the most part. Anyway, we quickly checked in, dropped our bags, changed into casual beach-town attire, and headed out the the beach for some “Welcome to Samui” Chang Beers. For those of you who haven’t tried it, Chang beer is simply delicious & my favorite beer out here in Asia!! So refreshing, albeit a bit stronger than the typical asian style beers so watch yourselves :-)!

Entrance to the Buri Rasa Village Hotel

View from the hotel breakfast area- infinity pool & beach!

 I had a general idea of what I thought everyone would enjoy on this trip so we cleaned up and headed out on the streets of Chaweng. Of all the beach towns on the island, Chaweng is far and away the most lively and exciting. Just walking out of the hotel is sensory overload!! Power lines “dangling” along the streets, stray cats & dogs begging for food, shop owners haggling over their goods, “ladyboys” strutting their stuff, intermingling smells from the wide range of cuisines (namely thai of course), music blaring from the trucks as they speed down the street promoting the next Muay Thaiboxing match,  and tourists tripping over each other as they tried to stay alive & alert through it all! What fun people watching.

Through TripAdvisor, we found an awesome little hole-in-the-wall Thai cuisine joint called the Green Bird. It was located along a side street off Chaweng Road and we never would have found it if it weren’t for some dumb luck. Wow, this place did not disappoint! Thai food is by far my favorite asian cuisine and is in my top 5 cuisines from around the world. I simply cannot get enough of the spice :)! Anyway, the Green Bird was tiny, open air, and served ice cold beers & white wine in champagne flutes- LOL. The food was served “family style” so David and I took charge ordering all our favorite dishes. The service was excellent, quick, and the food lived up to the hype. At the end of the meal, we were presented with a piece of paper and a pen to sign our names for the wall of fame- love the authenticity!

After gorging ourselves, we “happened” upon a nice outdoor bar that served VERY cold white wine (have I mentioned yet how HOT it was!?). We sat and enjoyed our wine while watching an improptu traditional thai dance routine by some fellow servers. So cool.

Our next stop of the night was the ever popular Chaweng beach Starz Cabaret Show!! Neither David nor I have ever been to one of these but we knew that we had to take his parents…..they needed to jump in to the “deep end” of Thai culture- haha. This show was fantastic!! Honestly such a hit with the in-laws and we enjoyed ourselves tremendously too. Between the lady boys and drag queens, the show was a feast for our senses. We had front row seats and sang along as the “boys” and “queens” sang top hits from Beyonce and old classics from ABBA…..and trust me, its nearly impossible to tell if these “queens” and “lady boys” are male or female…..seriously- they are gorgeous (don’t judge me for saying that until you’ve seen for yourself)! Loved this show- a must do in Chaweng for sure.

Our final stop of the night was back at the hotel. The in-laws crashed and we hadn’t had enough of our first night so we ventured out to the beach for a midnight stroll. As luck would have it- the beach was scattered with vendors selling thai “Sky Lanterns”. Via Wikipedia, I learned that sky lanterns are a huge part of Thai culture and are used at various celebrations & holidays throughout the year. People can write their prayer/wish/desire on the top, light the bottom, and watch it float up into the night until it disappears into the heavens. We were all over this experience and were able to capture pictures of it all to boot :-)!

Thursday morning was a lazy start (see “welcome to Samui” craziness from Wednesday evening- LOL!) so we enjoyed some breakfast by the sea at the resort and promptly situated ourselves on one of the comfortable sun loungers at the beach. David and I enjoyed the day swimming in the pristine waters, taking long walks along the waters’ edge, and playing smash ball in the white sandy shores. We also took a break to get a seaside massage (for the equivalent of about $12USD) and of course to eat more Thai food! We found another little hole in the wall directly across from our hotel- Ninja Crepes. Such a random name but wow, best Pad Thai I have ever eaten….seriously. An incredibly delicious meal!

Ninja Crepes…yummy thai!

Jim & Janie on an elephant!

Tigers…oh my!

My in-laws had a wonderful day out and about. We sent them out to ride elephants on an Eco Trek via Asiawebdirect.com (we had already experienced this in Phuket) and they LOVED it. As an added bonus, their tour guide also stopped off at the local “zoo” and allowed them to pet and take pictures with TIGERS!! I later found out this was on my mother-in-law’s “bucket list”- score!

For our evening out, we decided to enjoy the resort a bit more. Every afternoon the workers come out the the beach to “comb” the sand and set up tables for an intimate dinner alfresco under the stars. They call this restaurant The Beach Club. We dined on asian style BBQ and enjoyed a live band- a perfect way to end our first full day. After our meal, David and I introduced his parents to the concept of “Sky Lanterns” and we all lit one again and watched them soar into the night. Love.

Friday was tee’d up to be an adventure! I pre-booked us a few weeks back on a day trip to The Ang Thong National Marine Park via ToursKohSamui.com. There was a snorkeling option via speed boat as well as a kayak & beach-time option via tour boat. Since only 2 of us snorkeled, we decided on the tour boat for a more relaxing ride. Although I was not a huge fan of the boat itself (it was big, crowded, impersonal, and had sub-par food at best) it got the job done and we enjoyed ourselves immensely throughout this day surrounded by the 42 islands that make up the marine park. The islands are simply breathtaking and some soar over hundreds of meters high and boast secluded white sandy beaches, clear aqua water, and jutting limestone cliffs off the sides of the islands. They are are seriously stunning.

Our Tour Boat- Samui Island Tours

David and I kayaked through limestone caves and we all hiked up an insane amount of stairs to this breathtaking saltwater lagoon atop one of the islands.

Action shot on the kayaks!

We also stopped at a small and intimate beach with a campground to spend a couple hours soaking up the sun, hiking around, and snorkeling along the beach coral reefs.  Because of the wind, the snorkeling wasn’t all that great but all in all, the day was a success and completely wiped us out! On a side note, having been to both the Phi Phi Islands (you can read about that adventure here) and now the Ang Thong National Marine Park, David and I both agree that in our humble opinion, the Phi Phi Islands are much more magnificent and breathtaking to visit. Don’t get me wrong, I’d go to either again in a heartbeat, but the Phi Phi’s sure are something else…

Lagoon at the top!

Lagoon at Ang Thong

Hiking to the Lagoon

Secluded beach in Ang Thong

After a little R&R, we headed out once again along the streets of Chaweng. By this point I think we all wanted a break from Thai food….especially my in-laws! Via TripAdvisor, we found an Autralian Burger joint called Bondi’s. It had a great casual atmosphere along the streets of Chaweng city center, served up some mouthwatering burgers that rivaled American ones, and had an enormous supply of cold beer for the guys. Afterwards we strolled along the streets of Chaweng, buying some trinkets & beach wear while capping off the meal with some local ice cream. All in all, a perfect way to end an adventurous day!

Dinner at Bondi’s!

Beachside massages…heaven.on.earth.

For our final day, we once again laid low and enjoyed some beach times at the Buri Rasa. I partook in yet another beachside massage and then joined David and his dad on some fun Seadoo action on the water. So exhilarating and a perfect way to end our trip. We dined one last time across the street at Ninja Crepes for lunch before jetting off to the beautiful and tropical airport of Koh Samui for our short 2 hr flight home.

The Samui airport is without a doubt the most beautiful and exotic airport I have ever flown through. Its all open air, surrounded by lush vegetation and tropical flowers, plenty of outdoor shops, cafes, and bars & boasts the nicest and cleanest bathrooms plush with fish tanks within the walls and all!

Tropical airport- beautiful!

I think what I liked and appreciated most about Koh Samui was how laid back and low-key it was, especially compared to its sister tourist island- Phuket. In my opinion, Samui is much smaller and lends itself to a more intimate vibe. I also think the beaches & sand are cleaner and the waters clearer than Phuket. Basically Samui is the place to go for R&R whereas Phuket offers more activities, culture, and neighboring island hopping. I’d go back to either in a heartbeat…..both for different reasons, yet both to enjoy the amazing Thai culture & cuisines!

Our trusty Fireflyz prop place got us there and back safely!

Wow, I’m tired all over again from reciting our Koh Samui, Thailand adventure. We had the best time and cannot wait to return. Thank you Jim & Janie for joining us :)!

Until next time- safe & happy travels,

Kimbra