Thread: koh samet

I'm on my way down there too... I can tell you that the prices are higher now because tourist season has begun. The biggest beach is had sai gaew. Do a search on google. I had the wife do so. She found many places, but most were pricey.

If you are going early in the week, you won't have any problems getting a fan bungalow.

If you don't mid going a bit further you could try some of the quieter beaches on Koh Chang or the nearby islands of Koh Mak and Koh Kood which would suit a lower budget. Koh Samet is a bit too commercialised for me, there are still nice beaches but I wouldn't go back there.

What's happened to those once deserted beaches and little villages going east from Ban Phe? Ban Phe was a little town opposite Koh Samet, the hopping off point to the island. Gone like the rest I suppose. I motorcycled from Pattaya along highway 3 (I think) which goes east all the way to Chanthaburi and on to Trat. Lovely untouristy stretch for miles and eventually skirts Khao Wong National Park, but that was 15 ago. If it's still nice and I had only one week I would have a few days in Pattaya eating very well, sampling or at least ogling the other delights, then hire a couple of nice bikes and head east along highway 3.