TrickyMel

I am travelling to Thailand in early April with my husband and 13 year old son and would like to find out about anyone's experiences in Koh Samet and Koh Chang. We are going to Pattaya first as my father has been living here for a couple of years but after this we would like to spend about 4 nights on an island with nice beaches, snorkelling and enough activities to keep us entertained.

My father is trying to sell Koh Samet to me as it is closest to Pattaya but from what I have read so far, there are heaps of mosquitos and the beaches aren't as nice as other places. We quite like the sound of Koh Chang as it is larger and sounds like there is a bit more to do there. We don't mind having to travel further if it means we will enjoy ourselves.

Any info would be greatly appreciated.

Mel

JamesA

Both are OK but if I had to suggest one to you it would be Koh Chang, much better accommodation choice and it really is not so much further. A car and driver will take you down to Trat and then the boat ride over there, the road is very good and pleasant enough drive, you can stop along the way. Barali is a nice mid range place on Koh Chang, we do not know your budget but you can get anything from very cheap to top luxury, so gives us an idea.
Note that Thai new Year ( Songkran ) is mid April to plan your days around that, you don't really want to travwel over those days so be sure you are 'positioned' either Pattaya or the island you decide over that period between 12th and 17th.

crellston

I agree with JamesA, Koh Chang provides more than enough to do for 4 days. The beaches are reasonable and the snokelling is good (although you will need to go on a boat trip to some of the sites). There is an elephant conservation camp in the interior where you can go trekking through the jungle which is great fun.

We stayed at the Amari Emerald Cove a 5* which was v. nice but expensive by comparison with the rest of the island, but as it was only 25% full we got a reasonable deal on arrival.

TrickyMel

Thanks for replying so quickly!

We would be looking at mid to top range resort style accommodation and Barali seems to be well recommended so we might look into staying there. We will be going from 4-8th April then after this will travel to Chiang Mai for Songkran.

rhkkmk

we stayed at barali based on james' suggestion and that of travelduo...we were quite pleased...the food however was terrible...easy solution is to eat next door at the tropicana where the food is excellent....amari is fantastic in every way if you wish to pay the higher price....we were very pleased with barali...

it was quite a long ride from pattaya to chang however and relatively expensive in a private car...public transportation upon arrival at chang (pier) is quite limited...arrange for your hotel to pick you up...

JamesA

After Koh Chang you can fly from Trat to bangkok with bangkok Airways and then connect either with them or another carrier to Chiang Mai. Look into the bangkok Airways pass as that would be 3 sectors taking it you will fly back CM to Bangkok. The Trat-Bangkok flight is only 34-40 mins.

There are also mini-vans that do regular run Pattaya to Koh Chang to save money, your Father will know all about that and even if you do car and driver he will be able to get you a good deal.

travelduo

As bob said, we loved koh chang! I posted here before that the best part was sitting on the beach and not seeing another person in any direction! Plus the $5an hour beach front massage! This was 2 years ago and I'm not sure if it is the same now. After all the travel we have done, it is still my wifes favorite place.

TrickyMel

Thanks again everyone,

Is anyone able to recommend what the best snorkelling sites are around Koh Chang. My son has only been snorkelling once before but the visibility was poor and the reef wasn't the best I have seen.

Also, whether you can hire motorbikes on Koh Chang. My husband and I have been to Thailand before and hired motorbikes on Koh Samui and Koh Phang Ngan and found that this was a great way to explore the islands.

travelduo

Yes you can hire the motor bikes, we did and it was great!!!!!!!! we used the barali van the first time, but that was a waste, so we got the bike and loved it!!!!!!!

I think that there is only one main place that the snorkel boats leave from. We used the Wings Dive Center for our dives, it was not the best dives we have ever had but not too bad either. You can find the Wings Dive place right on the main drag in town, there is really only one road so you cant miss it.
let me know if you want to see some of our pics from the trip, some are really good!!!! Jeffrey