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bronzedwarr-
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On 31st October the missus and myself will be deserting the misery that is 'Brown's Britain' for nearly 7 months of fun in the sun... And we can't bloody wait!

The trip will take in Thailand, Oz, The Philippines, Malaysia and finally Bali/Lombok before heading home in May next year.

The reason for my post is this... We've travelled in the area a few times before but only ever towards the end of the 'season'( Feb-March etc ), just wondering what to expect in November and December.

We intend to spend November down the East coast of Thailand then head for the Andaman coast for December ( We're sun worshipping, beach bums at heart! ).

Obviously, late December will be bedlam and a general rip off ( I'm prepared for that... ) but what about November on the East Coast, any first hand experience of places like Koh Samet, Koh Chang, Koh Wai and Koh Kood in November?

Are they busy? Is booking ahead advisable?

Particularly interested in views of Koh Samet and Koh Wai - Not been there you see...

Cheers!

#1 Posted: 4/9/2009 - 05:01
somtam2000

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Booking ahead --- ahh it depends. Mainly on how much you're going to be moving around. For example, arriving on Ko Samet on new years eve without a reservation probably won't be a good experience, but arriving say Dec 21 and willing to stay ten days without a reservation should be less of a problem.

There's a story about reserving ahead here: http://www.travelfish.org/feature/101
And about booking for the FMP here (I know you're not talking about the FMP, but the advice holds for most islands over Xmas and New Years): http://www.travelfish.org/feature/45

In November this will be much less of a problem -- weekends on Ko Samet can be busy, but the others -- well, you'll find something!

#2 Posted: 4/9/2009 - 06:59

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tezza

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November is a good month for the eastern Gulf because anecdotally and statistically the wet season tends to end earlier there.
I have done Novembers here - the only places I'd be thinking of booking ahead are Samet for Friday and Saturday nights (it's very popular with local Thais weekends) and maybe White Sand Beach on Ko Chang past mid November.

#3 Posted: 4/9/2009 - 16:28

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tezza

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Oh yeah, I think I did trip reports here on TRAVELFISH on Samet and Whai after my latest trip - the search function may find them or you could scroll down in the TRIP REPORT section of the forum.

#4 Posted: 4/9/2009 - 16:31

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Lots of beaches and islands info - http://tezza-thailandbeachesandislands.blogspot.com/
bronzedwarr-
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Thanks for the info, Tezza.

Couldn't find your trip reports for Koh Wai or Samet I'm afraid ( Possibly down to the fact that I'm sat at work and its very difficult to sift through the posts in detail! ).

Any recommendations on accommodation on either island?

Lonely Beach is where we stay on Koh Chang, White Sands always reminds me of Chaweng on Samui... Which in turn reminds me of a Spanish Resort! Not really my cup of tea that.

#5 Posted: 4/9/2009 - 19:13
Tilapia

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Hi,

I wrote this a while ago, found it, and am just going to copy it here rather than start over ...

>> Regarding Koh Wai ... it is a lovely spot with a great beach, decent bungalows and some great snorkeling. The food was always really nice, as well. BUT, I found that the day traffic from Koh Chang was WAY too much. Boats pull up to the pier each day and dozens of package tourists invade the beach during the best part of the day. For this reason alone I don't recommend the place. Also, because of the location of the places on the island, you'll get no sunsets or sunrises. This is just my opinion. Some people aren't bothered by the throngs from Koh Chang, but I certainly did mind, especially when they come and sit on your bungalow balcony to have photos taken.

Otherwise, lovely spot.

Personally, I'd try Koh Mak (beside Koh Wai), Koh Jum, or Koh Si Boya (both not too far from Krabi and Koh Phi Phi.)

#6 Posted: 4/9/2009 - 20:20
somtam2000

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"especially when they come and sit on your bungalow balcony to have photos taken"

You're kidding right?!

#7 Posted: 4/9/2009 - 20:39

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bronzedwarr-
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flashpacker
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Cheeky bleeders.

I'd have started charging for the honour, they'd run a mile...

From your description, I'm sold. Sounds ideal for us, great beach and snorkelling is what we want plus its only for a few days before we head on to Koh Kood.

Also as we'll be there around the second week in Nov, I figure it shouldn't be that busy so the 'hordes' won't be too troublesome.

Thanks Tilapia.

ps. We did Koh Mak last year and were a bit disappointed to be honest. Beaches weren't that clean and there seemed to be an abundance of dogs everywhere.

#8 Posted: 4/9/2009 - 21:50
Tilapia

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Somtam,

I wish I was kidding. When Thai Fun (http://www.asia-discovery.com/kohchang/tours/kc-13.htm) arrived and the people piled off, a couple of Amazon-type women in stiletto heels(!!!) started posing on the steps and front porch of bungalow next to ours, while their boyfriends snapped photos of them between swigs from large bottles of Chang. The poor guy staying there was swinging in his hammock and watching in disbelief.

The island has plenty of pros, but for me there were almost as many cons, and all of them were related to the day traffic from Koh Chang. It's likely that these won't come into play when it's not peak season.

Bronzedwarrior, here is the link to the Travelfish "unofficial" reviews on the place.

http://www.travelfish.org/accommodation_profile/thailand/eastern_thailand/trat/ko_wai/all/2519

Assuming nothing has changed, you should be able to reserve a place through Mr. Bert. His cel phone number is 081-2686157.

Just before signing off ...

- If you are going during high season, ask for a bungalow further up the beach. There is a very good, smaller beach and the day trippers aren't allowed into that area. The bungalows are set further back from the beach and are surrounded by trees. It's very nice. That is, only if you plan to stay at Paradise.
- If you see Thai Fun, or any other large boats full of day trippers coming to dock, and you haven't eaten yet, get into the restaurant asap and get some food because it will fill to capacity and you might end-up waiting for an hour or more to get lunch. The staff will be catering, almost entirely, to them (they buy more beer!).
- The best coral is at that smaller beach I mentioned. You don't have to go far from the beach to see it. The beaches are white sand. Gorgeous!
- There are more bungalows further down the coast, too. Go to the end of the pier and turn left. Some are completely on their own and built over the water. Day trippers don't go into that area, either. Very little sand, though.
- There are also a couple of quiet bays on the south side of the island where you can snorkel. You can get to them via the pathway that goes around the island. Makes for a very nice walk through small homesteads, rubber tappers and coconut collectors' huts.
- Don't expect great sunsets from your hammock. You'll be facing the wrong direction.

#9 Posted: 4/9/2009 - 23:25
SBE

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Oh dear. There was a discussion about Ko Wai recently and it didn't sound too bad ... clean beaches and good snorkelling though the day trippers were mentioned.

What about Ko Kood/Kut? Is that any better?

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"We did Koh Mak last year and were a bit disappointed to be honest. Beaches weren't that clean and there seemed to be an abundance of dogs everywhere."

Ditto my experience in 2006...

I thought the island itself was rather nice and had good potential ... if only something was done about the trash problem. I much preferred it to big Ko Chang.

So are they or are they not addressing the problem seriously? I keep seeing reports that "it's all been cleared up now" but that's what they said last year and the year before too. Are we talking one proper trash clean per year or what? If so, when is the big annual clean up so that people can make sure they are there just after it, not just before it.

Did you try and swim or snorkel bronzed warrior? There was loads of trash in the water too and the reefs I saw had been totally destroyed. Hardly any fish to speak of though I did see a turtle which rather amazed me!

#10 Posted: 5/9/2009 - 01:12
tezza

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BRONZED, I'm too lazy to search for and link those threads - the same stuff and a lot more info including accommodation and pix are available in the link below in my sigline. Note you can't beat TRAVELFISH for multi-user surveys of accommodation.

In it I mention RUBBISH on Mak's main southern beach was no longer a problem on my latest visit - it was evident the locals had done a cleanup at the end of wet season. But looks like the effort is inconsistent. Mind you, I'd be surprised if the bungalow owners did not keep the section in front of their place clean.
But yeah, even if the uninhabited sections away from bungalows were cleaned up at the start of dry season (wet season on-shore winds are a major depositor) the Thai fishing industry and household sector is so world-class at depositing iunwanted junk into the sea or where it could be washed into the sea, these areas could get pretty untidy after a month or two.

On the Whai page I point out it is easy to ESCAPE THE DAYTRIPPERS - even at neat Ko Whai Resort which is adjacent the pier. Actually TILAPIA covers this.

I don't regard Kut as better than Whai or Muk. But certainly bigger and even quieter and well worth a visit. Something like big Ko Chang many years back.

#11 Posted: 5/9/2009 - 10:09

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Lots of beaches and islands info - http://tezza-thailandbeachesandislands.blogspot.com/
bronzedwarr-
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flashpacker
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You've certainly covered some islands Tezza!

Sorry, I hadn't spotted the link in your sigline. I have now...

Its a great help, cheers.

SBE - Yep, 'tried' is the right word. The water around Koh Mak was pretty murky, snorkelling was practically impossible... Infact swimming wasn't that pleasant either.

We were there around the 10th Feb 08 and the beaches were littered with a whole host of unpleasant items ( Tampons, nappies, etc, etc ) plus there were the usual offenders ( Plastic bottles, plastic bags ). Daytrippers I guess??

Mind you, everyone always seems to blame them!

Koh Kood/Kut was much nicer. Beautifully clear sea, decent visibility and the feel of the place in general was wonderful. A really isolated feel.

Didn't get much of a chance to snorkel mind as the day we arrived I managed to break mine! From what I saw though there wasn't much evidence of coral.

We stayed at Siam Beach on Ao Bang Bao, a gorgeous little bay. A sister operation to the one on Koh Chang's Lonely Beach I believe. There is only this resort and one other there and you do feel very isolated here. We had the beach to ourselves until midday virtually everyday and even then we were only joined by the odd back packer or family.

Its very difficult to get around Koh Kood in general. There is no infrastructure and the roads are, at best, dirt tracks and, at worst, ravines!

Just the way I like it!

#12 Posted: 6/9/2009 - 19:14