Thorn Tree travel forum

1

Good idea: Fly to Samui and take the boat to Koh Tao !!
Rainy season is approaching, but I would not worry about it.

1) It is impossible to escape bad weather in Thailand, but most of the time it last only half an hour.
2) Koh Tao/Phangan
3) Koh Tao/Phangan
4) Don't worry about food. It is great.
5) No problems with your shots. Forget about malaria pills.
6) Enjoy as much as you can.

In a world without walls and fences,who needs Windows or Gates?

2

it's not bad weather here right now...?! it might rain for an hour in the evenings but it's nice. snorkel at mae haad (koh ma) on koh phangan. food is usually better in the local places rather than tourist places. i never take preventative meds and have lived here for years just fie, but there is a risk of dengue fever in this area so use mosquito spray.

3

See the first link below for the misleading nature of weather forecasts and the nature of the wet season - summed up, no reason not to travel and have a good holiday with sufficient sun to burn to a crisp if you don't take care.
There is also a separate snorkelling thread with suggestions for good snorkelling spots - the best place has some very nice and cheap bungalow places.
There is another thread on Ko Tao in general.
Do a search for susyq who recently had a report of her trip and mentioned good snorkelling spots.
BTW, with 3 weeks, I would be tempted to have a look at Phangan too. Mae Hat has good snorkellling and cheap digs. Plus being a nice place.

Beaches and Islands Info
Wet Season Info
Some Tips on Not Drowning

4

Thanks everybody! I am leaving very early tomorrow, so I really appreciate you answering so fast.

Tezza, on your website you say that Samui has 300mm and 20 days of rain in October. That sounds pretty wet.

Could you give me a specific lodge/bungalow on Tao and/or Phangan right next to excellent snorkeling and cheap?

Should I still get the Typhoid shot today?

And what would be the most important pills to take with me?

5

Check out AC Tours snorkeling trip. You will love Phil he is a great guide. I loved that trip so much I ended up getting my diving cert with them. See if they will cut you a break on a place to stay if you do tours with them....but i think they might run the same tours everyday and that could get a little boring.

http://www.acresort.com/

myurl

6

Forget Koh Tao, the diving around Phuket is way better than anything around Koh Tao, and it sounds like the weather is too! We're basking in sunshine (or we were earlier, when the sun was up anyway).

7

If nightlife is not important to you then you couldn't go past Hin Wong Bay and View Rock Resort. The resort is built into the side of a very steep hill and bungalows start at 300 baht - I personally went for a 500 naht one which had divine view and in very good shape. The snorkelling is fantatstic and the bay is large enough to explore all day. Also a dive place there if you want to arrange that. Food is simple but good. They meet the boats each morning and afternoon so look out for the View Rock Resort folk and they'lll drive you there (along a steep and bumpy road).

8

I can only agree, snorkeling and diving is much better in Koh Tao than in Koh Samui or even Koh Pan Ghan. Even nicer is the west coast but also a lot more expensive. Something you should consider if you choose Phuket for example.
If you land in Koh Tao though, drop in to the Blue Marlin Divers office in Mae Haad and we will help you to find a nice place to stay. If you decide to go scuba diving on Koh Tao we will be happy to accommodate you.

http://www.bluemarlindiving.com
http://www.kohtao-community.com

9

Yep, Hin Wong is the go according to several past posts - any of the places there is good value.
Tanote is pretty good - Poseidon has been rec as a good cheapie
Ao Leuk has also been rec for snorkellling - Ao Leuk Resort and Nice Moon have cheap bungalows

Rain on 20 days means 10 on average with NO rain of any type - plus a number of others with maybe one or a few showers/storms.
If you want a good snorkelling bungalow on a very chill beach in the Andaman, try Ao Toh Koh Resort on PHi Phi.
I have more details in my PP info thread second link below.

Beaches and Islands Info
Wet Season Info
Some Tips on Not Drowning

10

Thanks everybody!

Thank you SUSYQ!

I spent three weeks on Ko Tao and had a great time. Nice nature, nice people, low prices, low crime, good food. Great country Thailand.

After taking a look at the map of the island I also first thought that either Hin Wong Bay or Mango Bay should be the nicest places, but I met a woman on the plane from Bangkok to Ko Samui who told me that she knew a very quiet resort on Sai Daeng Beach so I went with her.

It was the Eastern part of the beach, one that is accessible mainly by boat. The bungalows were kinda basic. The first they gave me was leaking and it cost 500 bhat/night. It was OK. The second bungalow was on the neck of the tiny peninsula that stretches out to Shark Island. I could see both Sai Daeng and Aou Leuk bays from its terrace. And I snorkeled West as well as North to Tanote. Good snorkeling but nothing spectacular. At night the bungalow was shaking in the wind. There were plenty of geckos and once a little snake crawled on my terrace.

There were the "Impala divers" right there, but they were kinda expensive and it bugged me that the boat went three times a day. I walked to Mae Haad a few times but it was a bit hot and steep. I rented a little bike in Mae Haad and rode it to my resort but it happened to be dark and I was lucky I didn't fall of this bike. Next day I returned it.

Then I met a diving instructor at Yang (restaurant near Mae Haad) who made me a terrific price on both diving and certificates, so I jumped on it. I was AOWD and decided to do EFR, RescueD and Divemaster. To save time I moved to Mae Haad. After some negotiation I got a bungalow that usually cost 800 for 500 and stayed for a week.
I was diving every day with Dive Masters equipment and boat, dived up to four times a day and spent the rest of the time reading the books. Most of the time we went to Champhon pinnacle. There were always loads of sharks and other nice stuff.

When I completed the courses, I rented an ATV and, following susyq's advice moved to View Rock Resort. I didn't follow susyq's advice blindly and checked out other places like Laem Thian, but liked View Rock best. 400 bhat for a very nice bungalow overseeing the bay and no other tourists.

Then I snorkeled around Hin Wong, Mao and to Laem Thian and explored the rest of Koh Tao by ATV until my departure.
Snorkeling was best in Hin Wong. There was an absolutely gigantic Titan TriggerF living there. So big, I got a bit worried when I first saw it. But it never went after me. I wasn't brave enough to approach it, but I swear it was over a meter long and when it bit throuw the corrals it almost hurt my ears. There were also plenty of schools of fusiliers, little barracudas and other stuff. On my last day I dove down and caught a nice size Hawksbill turtle. It pulled me around until I ran out of air. After that I dove down to it a few times but it never let me touch it again.

Once while riding the ATV through the forest at night, I had to stop because a huge snake was crossing the road. It was easy 5 meters long a almost a foot thick. It was very beautiful. I am pretty sure it was a python. Burmese perhaps?

The woman I met on the plane told me there were no police on ko Tao. But around a 100 police arrived then. They were pretty thorough: controlled traffic, closed all drug-dealing bars and searched people. They left after about two weeks. But the famous Thai MJ wasn't easy to come by.

I would like to return to Thailand or somewhere there in January for about a month. Of course I'd like to go to a different island or even country. Any ideas?