I’m planning to have 2nd honeymoon in either of the above place. Pls give me some suggestions. We would like to have exclusiveness, while also like getting access to nice restaurants and beaches.

As for resort in both places, any recommendations? Pls let us know y our preference and any comments on the resorts below:

Koh Samui:

a)Evason – does it worth the money?
b)Sala Samui Resort and Spa
c)Anatara resort and Spa
d)Le Royal Merdien – How far is it from the airport?
e)Buri Rasa - is it too close to the busiest area?
f)Napasai – a Pansea Orient Express Hotel
g)Tongsai bay

Actually we love pool villa. So apart from Evason which is really expensive, any good resort offers this type of room but at a relatively reasonable price?

Krabi:

a)Pimala
b)Rayavade

Many many thanks in advance.

Daisy

First what time of year ? Samui and krabi have very different weather patterns for much of the year

Note that Krabi is an area, the Rayavadee is near Karbi Town / Ao nang areas, I think by Pimala you mean the Pimalai and that is actually way south on Koh lanta Island !

All these places are very different so you need to decide location first, in very simple and basic terms:

Koh Samui nice busy tourist island, beaches, restaurants, plenty of nightlife in Chaweng.

Karbi area around Ao nang etc is much quiter than Samui but this is where you find the amazing scenary, it is far more a place for taking trips to enjoy the scenary. Ao nang has quite a few restaurants, to get to and from the Rayavadee you need to go by boat, perhaps take a look at the Nakamanda which does not require a boat trip, about 10-15 minutes from restaurants and busier area.

Koh Lanta is very quiet, a few restaurants not nothing like the choice of Krabi and far far less choice than Samui, Koh Lanta is for lazing around and doing little, perhaps some snorkeling, but it is a get away from it all place.

I'm planning to visit in Dec or Jan06. Any difference in weather for these 2 places? I tend to choose Koh Samui because it looks to me the island offers magnificient seaview all over the places, and we love it. BTW we're planning to stay for 4 to 5 days.

December tends to be very wet on Koh Samui. But if you are looking at Krabi area you certainly can't delay a decision as already many places will be absolutely full as that period is peak of high season.
Certainly Samui benefits from many more absolute beachfront locations but Krabi has the 'scenary'
If you are looking for lux/5 star places try this, you will quickly get an idea of the different areas and what type of places are available, huge selections, photos, reviews

Samui:
http://www.phuket-luxury-hotels.com/...ry_hotels.html

Krabi:
http://www.phuket-luxury-hotels.com/...ry_hotels.html

Koh Lanta:
http://www.phuket-luxury-hotels.com/...ry_hotels.html

I would also suggest not setting your heart too much on one particular property because it could well be 'full' so you may have to go for a choice of places and then see which ones are available and what room types are available for the dates you want, then make a decision. Good luck. You need to check out flights pretty fast also.

JamesA,

How wet is Samui in December?? I am spending 9 days there and hope to not have rain too much of the time. I understand it is a tropical climate, but how wet is very wet?

Also, i have been wondering - how long are the days in Dec? Meaning, how many hours of sunlight will we have in Thailand mid to late December? Just wondering....

Hi JamesA:

U must be an Thailand expert, there’re lots of your useful comments here. U’re right, flights are very full for direct flights to Samui. I dropped Krabi now. What about Hua Hin comparing to Samui, in terms of food, scenary, activities and weather.

Thanks again, pls let me know your comments asap, so that I have to proceed with hotel booking.

There is a small difference in daylight and it varies a little from place to place but very roughly something like 6 am to 6.30 pm, that does change a little to maybe 6.20 to 6.30 pm but anyway you get a full day.

I would allocate spa and relaxation days for those days when you get up and it rains, it does vary a great deal, I should not worry too much, just use the sunshine days for beach, not so great days for trips and any rainy days for spa, massage, relaxation etc.
Weather of course goes up and down, we should have been away this weekend but clouds and rain hit the coast south of Bangkok today so we have put off the weekend away.

I put in the rainfall stats a few weeks ago, I will try and find it and re-post, also will re-post a Hua Hin summary I just did for Spygirl.

Samui beaches are nice and it's a fun vacation island, nightlife etc, not so much in the way of scenary but scenary is often in the eyes of those who 'see' so it varies a lot.
The main difference between Samui and HH is that Samui is clearly a tropical vacation island whereas HH is a coastal area that does not rely on tourism so much, it's more for those who want some beach but also like to see temples, national park, elephants, waterfalls, and are not into heady nightlife. But hotels get equalyy if not more packed full in Dec/Jan.
And of course transport is never ever a problem as you only need a cab ride to get there.

Rayavadee is actually beachfront at Had Phra Nang, the loveliest beach on the peninsula called Railay. The beach was beautiful in Dec 2004, before the tsunami. We swam there every day. Rayavadee has had some positive & negative reports here but I'd stay there if I had 40,000 baht a night to throw away. Or you could stay in Ao Nang and hire a boat everyday to take you there & bring you back for around 1000 baht per day.

JamesA and others, thanks for your info. How's the weather in Jan for Samui and Krabi then? Is it better those days? If so, I may change my vacation time. I decide to drop HH and thinking of Krabi, as over last few days, have learnt that there is a few national parks, and nice beaches which are of great scenery.

sorry a few more about Krabi.........about Kon Lanta or PP Island, which place is better for stayig? And how to get to PP island or Koh Lanta from Krabi and how long it takes, assuming we will be stayig at Sheraton. 'Cause I'm thinking whether I could stay 2 nights in Krabi, then 1 night in Koh Lanta or PP Island, then return to Krabi for another 1 or 2 nights. Pls advise.