An island trip to Thailand is always one of our favourite weekend getaways. There is nothing more relaxing or refreshing than enjoying a dip in the tropical ocean waters, sitting by the beach cocktail in hand, or taking a boat out for some island hopping and snorkelling adventures. We managed to get all three of those activities covered in a single weekend. Check out our Koh Samui travel guide for inspiration for your next weekend escape.
Koh Samui, Thailand in a weekend: travel guide summary
Saturday: Enjoy a day beachside in the clear and quite waters of Crystal Bay Beach, relax with a cocktail, enjoy a beachfront massage and a day of swimming. Finish the evening with a rooftop dinner at the Height Restaurant.
Sunday: Take an island hopping tour to Angthong National Marine Park.
The full Koh Samui Thailand travel guide:
Getting to Koh Samui:
We took a Friday evening flight from Singapore direct to Koh Samui via Bangkok Airways. The flight included a meal and our baggage allowance.
When to visit Koh Samui:
For the sunniest weather in Koh Samui with lowest chance of rain visit during December to April, we visited over Easter long weekend. May to September is also sunny, however there is chances of rain. October and November are the wettest months of the year.
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Where we stayed in Koh Samui:
We did a lot of research into where to stay in Koh Samui before booking the trip. We've had many experiences with traveling to Islands in Thailand and often find that the most popular touristy beaches are most definitely not the nicest. We prefer to look for the quite lesser known beaches with clear waters and few tourists. Our search led us to Crystal Bay Beach. There are only a few hotels directly on the beach, all within a reasonable price range, nothing too luxurious but clean and comfortable none the less. The real benefit though is the amazing beach side views of being in this location, which is 100% worth the stay. We very much enjoyed our beachfront stay at Crystal Bay Beach Resort. The hotel was tucked into the corner of the beach surrounded by pristine waters and a rock front. Breakfast was included, and was situated on the rooftop to take in the surrounding views.
Other Koh Samui Hotel Deals: Top Hotel deals in Koh Samui
Saturday: Crystal Bay beach, Koh Samui
Our morning started with a rooftop breakfast at our hotel followed by an ocean dip. We strolled down the beach for lunch at Crystal Bay Yacht Club, staying to enjoy a few cocktails served out of a large pineapple and some local fried rice and chicken satay. In the afternoon we opted for beachfront massages at our hotel.
For dinner we indulged in a romantic evening at the Height, a rooftop restaurant at the Silvadee Pool and Spa Resort, a 10 minute taxi ride from our hotel. As we were there during the full moon we witnessed the most amazing bright moon rising while feasting on a steak dinner.
Sunday: Full day island hopping tour of Ang Thong Marine Park, Koh Samui
Before visiting Koh Samui, we researched and pre booked our day trip to Ang Thong Marine Park. Again having been to Thailand many times before we felt there was a risk we might end up on a large boat trip with many tourists and were looking for something more private. We ended up booking with 100 Degrees East, as they guaranteed a maximum of 12 guests per tour, and ensured they would take us to islands that were not crowded.
Our tour offered hotel pick up at around 8.30am for our boat departure at 9.30am. We arrived to meet only two other couples who would be joining us for the day. It was lovely to have just a small group with us. It took just over an hour by speedboat to reach the beautiful marine park, comprised of 42 islands. Our first stop was snorkelling in the northern most island, Koh Wao, where the water was clearer than it is within the rest of the reserve, allowing us to see an abundance of corals and marine life. The highlight for us was swimming through the limestone caves, surrounded by schools of fish as the light glistened in through the cracks of the cave.
Our next stop in Ang Thong Marine Park was a small island nearby, where we enjoyed a spread of local food and a kayaking tour around the surrounding islands. There was no one else on the islands except for our group. Being just the two of us travelling, our tour guides were also kind enough to take many beautiful pictures of us together during the trip.
Our final stop was at the centre of the Ang Thong Marine Park to see the famous Emerald Lake, a stunning landlocked salt water lake separated from the sea by sheer limestone cliffs. We hiked to the top of the island to witness the lake from the viewing platform, affording stunning view over the whole of the National Park. The views were worth the 10 minute heart pumping effort to reach the top.
After arriving back at our hotel around 5.30pm we freshened up for dinner. Just a short walk from where we were staying was the The Cliff Bar and Grill, offering beautiful sunset views over Crystal Bay Beach. We enjoyed a delicious Mediterranean feast which had us well ready to sleep by the time we finished.
We hope you enjoyed our weekend travel guide to Koh Samui, Thailand. For more travel guides around Asia, check out the destination section of our blog.
Your,
LITTLE SHERPAS
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