Koh Samui: best sunsets in the world.
Located in the Gulf of Thailand, Koh Samui is the second largest island in the area. It is the hotspot of long-stay travelers, locals, occasional travelers, but most importantly: backpackers. This island has one of the best ratios of budget/quality in the world. The island is 50 km long and can be explored in less than a week.
Going to Koh Samui from Bangkok is a relatively easy trip. Below there is an outline of the itinerary of The Five or Six team, including maps and reference to other important websites, followed by some general remarks and advices.
We woke up in the morning and checked out from the accommodation in Bangkok. The trip to Koh Samui starts in Hua Lamphong, the main train station in Bangkok, located in the Pathum Wan District. The station is pretty old, dating from 1916. If you have been in Frankfurt train station, don't get surprised if the style of this station reminds you of Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof. From a westerner point of view, the station looks very old and dirty but all turns into beauty if you learn how to appreciate chaos and mess. It is highly recommended that you get yourself a package trip that includes trains, busses and ferries. I bought a ticket in this website for around 30€ (overnight train + bus + ferry). The website seems a little bit non-serious and non-professional but I have booked a lot of trips with this website and I never had any problem, so I encourage you to go ahead and do the same.
From Hua Lamphong there are trains that go to Surat Thani Train Station. From there buses take you to Tha Thong Pier, where you can catch a ferry to Koh Samui. Again, everything is much easier if you book a one ticket passage so you won't have to go around buying tickets and waiting for ferries.
The train ride takes about 11 hours and you are provided with dinner (for an extra cost), a bed (very comfortable and quiet) and a early morning breakfast in the bed. The train goes through all kinds of terrains but everything is dark outside (if you chose the overnight ride) so you won't get a glimpse of the landscape.
Once arrived to Surat Thani Train Station, there is usually a bunch of disoriented travelers that go to Koh Samui as well, so be proactive and find out which bus you need to take. The bus ride to Tha Thong Pier takes around 30-45 minutes. Once in the Pier they will guide you to the ferry and now there is nothing you can do to not arrive at Koh Samui (hopefully...). Check the map below for a reference outline of the trip.
The ferry to Koh Samui is mostly through shallow waters. The trip is around 80km and the way there is surrounded by islands of all sizes and shapes with tropical beaches. It should take around one and half hours to reach the island. The waters are very greenish/blueish and it is the paradise for island lovers. Some of the small islands are occupied by locals, who have those islands all for themselves. There are also fishermen working in their so-distinct boats. The far-away landscape consists of step mountains with very sharp cliffs and quite a lot of vegetation.
In Koh Samui island, there are more things to do than you can imagine. Starting from beautiful beaches or nature expeditions to crazy parties and amazing resorts. But Koh Samui is also a place to sit back, relax and taking time for yourself while being disconnected from tourists attractions. I choose the second option and stayed at Tong Yang beach, which is located in the west side of the island. This area is much quieter than the northeast area, where parties, high end resorts and beach attractions take place. So this ensured some nice peaceful resting time during my stay in the island. During my lodging in Koh Samui I hospice myself in a resort of small bungalows in the beach. The first days I was a little bit confused of what to do around the area until I realized that nothing really interesting for a tourist was around. With time I learned to appreciate the local life. Time to get some cultural enrichment.
The first evening in the island I looked around on google maps what was available for dinner. We ended up alone in the restaurant of a resort having a good dinner, although that was a mistake. Always aim for local traditional food rather than westerner food. The next day, after exploring the area, I found myself with some really nice coconut juice directly from the coconut, which I would really recommend. This drink is widely served all around the island, but stomach-sensitive people be aware, the consequences over the toilet are brutal... That day we decided to have some self-made dinner, so we headed to the nearest seven-eleven and grabbed some beers and some pre-made rice. That evening, by the beach with a beer, no cellphone and a nice sunset I enjoyed for the first time the landscape, the quietness and harmony of that place. The sunsets from that place are extraordinary and if you are a photography lover, like me, you will definitely enjoy that place.
On the other hand, far from the quiet and peaceful side of the island (only during the low-tourist season), the opposite happens. Crowded streets full of tourists, souvenir stores, McDonalds, resorts in the beach, jet skis rentals are the new normality in this metropolitan area: Bo Put. The most predominant species is the westerner sapiens with a fanny pack, depressed and in his mid 50s. Chances are that prices will be higher the closer you get to this touristic region of the island. This is due to the high demand in tourism. Koh Samui's population, over 60k, devote themselves to tourism, exports of coconut or rubber. That being said, it is the perfect place to make your Instagram followers a little bit more depressed and jealous.
Transportation in the island has been made the easy for you. You see a tuk-tuk, you hop on, ask for the price and you get a very cheap ride. Use the price of 8€ from one side to the other side of the island as a reference. Riders are anxious to get you onboard so just make a little thumb signaling when the vehicle passes by and they will definitely stop. Their insanity goes to another level when they carry more people than they should on a tuk-tuk or a pick-up truck. So sometimes you have to be prepared to squish your ass in between two British sweaty young kiddos and their family.
During your stay in the island you will enjoy the landscape, beaches and amazing local food. Be aware of scams and don't be a jerk when haggling. But also don't waste too much money on little fancy stuff, spread your money across all your trip. Often, beaches are polluted with a lot of trash and that's a shame. So make sure you respect the environment and don't leave your trash behind, and if you can, make it a better place than it was before you arrived.
