Hey there everyone,

I have been reading others' questions and have formed a pretty good idea but wanted to get some advice as well.

We will be a family of three (adult and two teenagers) looking for a long weekend break in June (4-ish days, from Delhi), and Ko Samui seems to be one of the places that isn't going to be in the midst of the monsoon at that time.

We are looking for a hotel/resort where we can spend time relaxing on the beach and maybe splash around in the water. If the hotel has a great pool instead of swimmable beach that's fine, though a nice sandy beach to relax on is a plus. While a place with sea-view or beachfront rooms isn't a necessity (though much appreciated!) what we'd value most is easy access from the room to the beach. We also want to be able to get out a little bit, to eat outside the hotel and maybe do some minimal shopping/exploring.

Having read through the forums, the Renaissance seems a good fit, though I was wondering if it's perhaps a bit far from restaurants and the like? And the Anantara Bophut seems closer to some restaurants and shopping but I'm a little unclear as to the quality of the beach there. The Zazen also is within our budget (about $300/night for the three of us) and has excellent TripAdvisor reviews. If you have other suggestions, I'd love to hear them; thanks!

We do enjoy snorkeling, and I understand that that would involve a day trip from Ko Samui... do these hotels arrange this? Or would we best off going through an outside operator?

Thanks very much in advance; the information on here has already been so helpful!

the anantara is a great location and fairly new....in the same area i have stayed in a beachfront bungalow at Peace Resort....it is on the beach, sort of backs up to the anantara, has a good restaurant and has a fantastic pool with views to the beach and ocean....and it is way less expensive... i would not choose a room other than beachfront or beach view...

i have eaten at zazen and the food and setting were fantastic but we did not like their rooms at all... it really is too far to walk to town while A and P are walkable...

bophut is convenient and has a few good eating places

Bophut Beach is not good, the water is not that clean.

We stayed at The Saraan Hotel and both the beach and the pool are fabulous. The hotel restaurant is great and Dr. Frogs is right next door and is a terrific restaurant! They offer a shuttle to Chaweng every night. The rooms are huge and beautiful.

Thanks for the suggestions so far!

rhkkmk, would you say that the Bophut beach was not that great but that the other factors (great pool, eating places nearby, etc.) make staying there worthwhile?

And has anyone been to the Renaissance / knows anything about it?

friend---you have it just right....the beach itself is fine, maybe a bit narrow, but a lovely to look at area...i did not find the water dirty, but not inviting either....for one thing you need to walk 1 mile to be waist deep.....but i found everything else about that area totally pleasing and convenient and i did not find one other area we liked better and we did the complete loop around the island...

Well we stayed at Bophut for 4 nights and Chaweng Noi (The Saraan) for 9 and Chaweng Noi was so much better. Everyone at Bophut was complaoining about the beach. Chaweng Noi beach has super sand, nice waves and is very clear.

Thanks a lot! I'll keep looking at places in Chaweng Noi and Bophut and make the decision based on what you've said.