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Day 1 in Koh Samet Island

We’re a little exhausted when we arrived to Koh Samet Island. It is because we woke up early and then travelled a total of 4 to 5 hours from our place north of Bangkok. Good thing that the beach of Koh Samet Island looks good that excitement immediately removed our exhaustion. The thought of lazing out at the beach soothed my mind.

The ferry that we rode brought us to the Na Dan Pier located on the north coast of the island.

The beach is still far away so the easiest way to reach it by riding a pick-up car. We paid about 20 or 30 Baht to reach the entrance to the beach area of Koh Samet Island.

Tourists should not worry riding these pick-up cars because the road is concreted and paved. Rough roads are found in the interior of the island.

Koh Samet Island is not just a simple tourist destination. The Thai government declared the whole island as a national park. It was named Khao Laem Ya – Mu Koh Samet National Park. There are park rangers who ensure that the wildlife on the island is protected. Park rangers approached us the moment we went down the pick-up cars. They told us to pay entrance fees before entering the beach. Good thing we were accompanied by a Thai office mate who negotiated down the price of the entrance fee. Each of us paid 30 Baht instead of 100 Baht entrance fee for foreign tourists.

The sea is calling us but we ignored it because we need to find rooms where we can drop our things and stay for the night. Good thing that not all resorts on Koh Samet Island or of the high-end super-expensive types.

We avoided luxurious hotels and resorts not only because we don’t have enough money but also of the fact that we will stay more on the beach than in our rooms. It is good that majority of visitors to Koh Samet Island are Thais because many hotel owners offer room rates that are affordable to the locals.

Our Thai office mate found a room that costs around 800 Baht per day that have two beds. We rented one room for men and one room for the ladies. Traveling in group meant that we share the expenses so I didn’t pay the whole 800 Baht (which makes the penny-pincher in me smile).

Our room is located in the Sai Kaew Beach area. The place has plenty of hotels and resorts. Souvenir shops and grocery can be found in this area. Beach side restaurants are plenty and one of the first things that I noticed are the tables and cushions near the sea. Food is not yet served because beach restaurants are only open during the evening.

The sea around Koh Samet Island is still clean. Me and my friends enjoyed dipping in the seawater although I wish sometimes that the sea is less salty.

Sai Kaew Beach is just one of the many beaches of Koh Samet Island. There’s the Ao Prao, Ao Wai, Ao Nuan and so much more. We decided to take a peek at another beach and we picked Ao Prao.

We hitched a ride on a pick-up and passed a rough road before we reached Ao Prao Beach. Ao Prao Beach is the only beach located on the west coast of Koh Samet Island.

Ao Prao Beach looks like a private beach resort because the resort in the area is of the high-end sort. Fortunately, the beach is accessible to anyone. It is 5 years ago, somewhere in Davao Gulf, where I made my last dip in the sea. Such a long time, huh? That’s why I stayed in the sea of Koh Samet as much as I possibly could.

Time passed very quickly, especially when we are having fun. The sun began to set few minutes after we reached Ao Prao Beach. Our first day in Koh Samet Island ended with the orange ball of fire being swallowed by the sea. Want to know how to reach Koh Samet Island from Bangkok? Please read the first part of this post series for info.

Some information found on this post was obtained from Koh Samed website. Posted by Ishmael Fischer Ahab at 7/12/2013
Tags: Explorer's notebook, Koh Samet Island, Rayong, Thai beach, Thailand

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