Wanderworld

Because I’m a beach addict and my birthday falls on the summer season, my birthday getaway would never be complete without a beach trip. So from Singapore, Mabs and I flew to Bangkok, where our long travel to Koh Samui began.

Koh Samui, or Ko Samui, is one of the popular beach destinations in Thailand. It’s basically just like Phuket, but perhaps less popular, which also means fewer people/less crowds, which is a good thing. The island is actually home to numerous beaches, which made it difficult for us to choose a resort because we didn’t know which part of the huge island is the best.

Based on my research though, Chaweng Beach is the most popular among tourists, though it can also get really crowded as it’s dubbed as a party beach. We settled on the southern part of the beach where it’s a lot quieter, according to the info I got from the Internet.

Chaweng Beach: Bhundari Chaweng Beach Resort

Bhundari Chaweng Beach Resort in Chaweng beach served as our home away home from home in Koh Samui, Thailand. While I found the beach beautiful, I felt that there wasn’t really anything spectacular about the place or something that I haven’t seen before in the numerous beaches I’ve been to in the Philippines.

The sand was not that white and it actually turns to grayish when wet. The sand farthest from the water is the finest, and your feet actually sink in it as you walk.

While the light blue color of the water met my expectations, swimming in the beach was a different story altogether. The waves were strong during our entire visit, so we hardly had the chance to swim on the beach.

Good thing our resort has two beautiful pools, one on the beachfront and one by the rooms, which satisfied our yearning to swim upon arrival in Koh Samui.

Island Hopping Day 1: Koh Tao and Koh Nang Yuan

The main reason we went to Koh Samui was to explore the beautiful nearby islands such as Koh Tao and Koh Nang Yuan. Various travel companies in Koh Samui actually offer such island hopping tours, and we booked with the one just across our resort.

A visit to Koh Tao and Koh Nang Yuan is usually combined in a whole day tour, and it typically costs 900 THB to 2500 THB. Tours via a huge open-air passenger boat (sorry, I don’t know what they’re called) are usually cheaper as opposed to those via speed boat, probably because the boats are slower.

For our first day of island hopping, we chose the tour via speed boat, which cost 1,500 THB, if I remember correctly. That includes breakfast and lunch, guides, pickup and drop off at your resort and entrance fees.

Snorkeling in Koh Tao

Our first stop was Mango Bay in Koh Tao, which is said to be a popular snorkeling site. It’s home to a lone resort and also has a viewing deck that offers nice overlooking views of the beach.

The beach area is just small though, and there aren’t a lot of fishes to see underwater compared with other islands. Since we were on a scheduled tour, our time to explore the island was limited, so after a few minutes, we left the island to have lunch and then proceeded to my favorite island in the entire trip, Koh Nang Yuan.

Koh Nang Yuan and its beautiful sandbar

Popularly known for its breathtaking vista of the beach connected by three sandbars and clear and vibrant turquoise waters, Koh Nang Yuan offers a holiday like no other. A popular day trip destination from Koh Samui, this captivating island can get pretty crowded early in the morning, with all the umbrellas by the sandbar occupied and tourists (mostly Westerners) scattered on the shore for a tan.

Though that’s the case, Koh Nang Yuan will undoubtedly mesmerize you once you step foot on the island. Even from afar, the island enthralls you with its beautiful sandbar that divides the beach into two areas.

Once you get closer, you’ll be even more captivated by the bright aquamarine waters bordered by a lush mountain and huge rocks.

We headed straight to the viewing deck, which is an exhausting 45-minute hike under the scorching heat of the sun. A bridge/walkway made of wood is built around the island to get there plus a number of steps, which are somehow steep.

When you’re almost at the viewing deck, you’ll need to climb over several huge rocks to get to the topmost point. The viewing area is very small, so you’d have to wait for your turn as other tourists take their picture.

Once you see the view though, all your hard work trekking to the top is paid off. From above, the white sandbar, which is formed by the ocean’s currents interacting with the three peaks of the island, glistens under the sun as the vivid turquoise waters shimmer. The lush mountain can be seen in all its glory, serving as the island’s beautiful backdrop.

With such beauty in front of me, I actually didn’t mind the heat at all and instead wished I could stay there forever. 😀

After a few poses here and there, Mabs and I went down and made the most of our time left on the island by swimming in the cool waters. The water was so beautiful and refreshing and I vowed to stay in one of the resorts on the island when I go back to Koh Samui. 🙂

*Travel date: March 2015

Next post: Island hopping in Ang Thong Marine National Park