Koh Samui (เกาะสมุย), Thailand Infomation

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Koh Samui, Surat Thani, Thailand Information

Koh Samui

Covering some 247 sq km (95 sq miles), Koh Samui’s raw beauty is still largely intact, and its laidback vibe is the reason the island attracts so many repeat visitors. Many have secured their own piece of tropical paradise by buying holiday houses or condos here, which are more affordable (and offer better value for money) compared to those in Phuket.

Koh Samui is also fast becoming Thailand’s hottest spa destination, with a wide variety of extravagant hotel-based pampering spas as well as independent day spas and retreat centres that claim to restore both physical and spiritual health. For those who tire quickly of the soft sandy beaches, the verdant jungles and waterfalls of Koh Samui’s interior offer a different kind of escape.

Koh Samui is becoming increasingly cosmopolitan. Dining choices are becoming varied and upscale, with more design-conscious eateries independent of hotels opening by the month. While the nightlife scene is always busy, the island is short on stylish bars and clubs, with most socializing taking place in dingy “beer bars” Brit-style pubs and meat market clubs.

Koh Samui conjures images of an island paradise, and Koh Phangan is equally idyllic too, except that it's often overshadowed by wild, anything-goes, all-night Full Moon Parties. If you prefer to dive or snorkel, head to the pristine dive haven of Koh Tao.

History

For over a century, the immigrant Chinese from Hainan and Muslim fishermen on these islands derived their incomes from coconut plantations and fishing. While tourism dominates today, many of Ko Samui’s poorer islanders still make their living off the coconut plantations.

Samui didn’t start playing a role in regional or international circles until the latter half of the 20th century. Prior to this, the island was populated, as the oral stories go, by two families originally from Nakhon Si Thammarat and a few more traders from southern China and Muslims from the Malay peninsula. The inhabitants lived off the land and sea, isolated from the mainland by an arduous ocean journey and from each other on the island due to mountainous terrain and no paved roads. It is believed that the island derives its name from the Chinese word for ‘safe haven’, thought little historical evidence exists to confirm or deny it.

Coconut plantations, which flourished in the interior mountains, provided the first cash crop for the island and began to fuse Samui to the world at large. Coconut-shipping boats would make the journey between the mainland and the island and introduced the need for more large-scale development. In the late 1960s a village headman lobbied the central government to build a road on the island – a construction project equipment from the mainland to grade high-terrain. Because there are no bridges to the mainland, the task of transporting earth-movers from the boat to the shore proved more difficult than road construction. The double-lane Ring Rd (Rd 4169) was completed in 1973 circumnavigating the island.

The other dramatic event in the island’s history was the arrival of foreign tourists. Many claim the coveted title of being first, but the agreed version is that a Peace Corps volunteer arrived in the early 1970s aboard a coconut-trading boat. Lamai, and altger Chaweng, became the stuff of legends for the young backpackers on the Asian hippie trail. The white sand beaches, gentle island life and easy access to marijuana made Samui the queen of the counterculture for the next 15 to 20 years.

But the island was much too pretty to be claimed by the penny pinchers for long. The Samui airport was built by Bangkok Airways in 1989 and small-scale family guesthouses started to go upmarket in search of package tourists. Samui’s first luxury hotel was the Tongsai Bay, built in Choeng Mon By Akorn Hoontrakul and his Imperial Group, a Bangkok investment company, in the late 1980s. By the late 1990s, Chaweng’s guesthouses had converted themselves into hotel resorts.

Following the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami on the Andaman coast, tourism was diverted to Samui creating more demand for rooms and a market for more affluent visitors. What was already a busy tourism ecocomy exploded with new properties to meet perceived demands. Samui’s hotels continue to upgrade and foreign hotel brands are beginning to infiltrate what was mainly the locals’ domain. There are more than a dozen proposals to build four-and five-star hotels between 2008 and 2010.

Geography
Ko Samui is located in the Gulf of Thailand, about 35 km northeast of Surat Thani town (9°N, 100°E). The island measures some 21 kilometres at its widest point, and 25 km at its longest. It is surrounded by about sixty other islands, which compose the Ang Thong Marine National Park (Mu Ko Ang Thong National Park) and include other tourist destinations (Ko Pha Ngan, Ko Tao and Ko Nang Yuan).

The island is roughly circular in shape, and is about 15 km across. The central part of the island is an almost uninhabitable mountain jungle, Khao Pom, peaking at 635 m. The various lowland areas are connected together by a single 51 km road, running mostly along the coast to encircle the bulk of the island.

The old capital is Nathon, on the southwest coast of the island. It remains the major port for fishing and inter-island transportation. Nathon is the seat of the regional government, and the true commercial hub of the Samui locals. It has a charming pace, and is almost small enough to walk everywhere. The old Chinese shop houses along the middle street whisper of an exotic history.

Each of Samui's primary beaches is now also nominally considered as a small town, due to the number of hotels, restaurants and nightlife that have sprung up in recent years.

Administration
Ko Samui is an Amphoe (district) of Surat Thani Province, subdivided into 7 subdistricts (tambon). The complete island is one municipality (thesaban mueang). The district covers the island, as well as the Ang Thong archipelago and some other small islands nearby.

Ang Thong
Lipa Noi
Taling Ngam
Na Mueang
Maret
Bo Phut
Mae Nam

Ang Thong Marine National Park
Lying some 31 km (19 miles) west of Koh Samui, there are 42 islands that make up the Ang Thong Archipelago. The Ang Thong Archipelago stretches over a 100-sq km (39-sq mile) expanse of land and sea. Each of the 42 island’s beauty rivals the beauty of most other tropical islands. Virtually uninhabited by humans, the islands are home to a diversity of flora and fauna, including macaques, langurs and monitor lizards. Pods of dolphins are also known to take shelter in the waters in the later part of the year.

Visitors must experience the excitement of kayaking or sailing among these lovely islands, exploring the caves, lagoons, and beaches, or simply taking in the breathtaking sights. Ang Thong Marine National Park literally means “Golden Bowl”, and it takes its name from Talay Nai (inland sea), an emerald-green saltwater lagoon encircled by limestone walls that are covered with vegetation. Ang Thong Marine National Park is a must stop on any day trip to the island chain. The picturesque lake can be reached by a trail from the beach on the island of Koh Mae Ko.

Several tour companies on Koh Samui operate day trips, including kayaking expeditions to the archipelago, which usually include a stop on the largest island, Koh Wua Talab, or Sleeping Cow Island. Besides the beach and the park’s headquarters, there is a steep climb 400 metres (1,312 ft) up to the lookout point that gives a breath taking view of the surrounding scenery. Also involving an arduous climb is Koh Wua Talab’s other highlight, Tham Bua Bok, or Waving Lotus Cave. It is named after the lotus-shaped rock formations.

Diving and Snorkelling at Ang Thong is usually best experienced at the northern tip of the island chain around the islet of Koh Yippon. Although visibility isn’t crystal clear, the shallow depths make it easy to view the colourful coral beds, which are inhabited by sea snakes, fusiliers and stingrays. For divers, there are also shallow caves and archways to swim through.

Climate
Ko Samui, being in Suratthani Province, has essentially two seasons; warm and tropical most of the year, with a short rainy season. Unlike Phuket and most of the rest of Southern Thailand which has a 6-month rainy season between May and November, Samui's weather is relatively dry for the vast majority of the year, with the rainy season being primarily confined to November. [4] For the rest of the year, since the weather is tropical, when it does rain, it usually doesn’t last long; rain showers of 20–60 minutes are typical.

Economy
Historically the island's economy has been based around subsistence agriculture and fishing, with coconuts as the main cash crop. From the 1980s onwards, tourism has become an economic factor and is now the dominant industry. The construction of a stable, high-speed internet connection in recent years has also made the island a feasible location for IT-based enterprises, which are beginning to provide a certain degree of economic diversity. The island's climate and accessibility make it particularly attractive for international investors.

Transportation

By Plane

Bangkok Airways operate 16 flights a day from Bangkok Suvarabhumi Airport. There are also flights from Phuket, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur and Hong Kong.

By Plane and Ferry

Fly to Surat Thani and the take the ferry to Samui. Airlines serving Surat Thani are Thai Airways, Nok Air and Air Asia. The ferry leaves from Surat Thani Pier every hour (from 6am) To Nathon Pier on Koh Samui.

By Train and Ferry

Trains leave from Hua Lumphong Bangkok station to Surat Thani. Buses take passengers from the railway station at Surat Thani to the ferry, which then travels to Samui, so passengers can buy an all inclusive fare. Journey time from Bangkok to Surat Thani is 10-12 hours depending on the type of service. Ferry time to Samui is 1-2 hours.