Located on the road from Pattaya to Koh Chang island, Koh Samet (Koh Samed) is a beautifully tiny island in southeast Thailand.
There are two ways from Bangkok to Koh Samet:
From Ekkamai Bus Station (From Bangkok center or Suvarnabhumi airport to reach here by BTS or taxi). Then, you buy a bus ticket whose price is 157 baht. It is a bit cheaper to buy round-trip tickets. The earliest trip is at 7 am and the latest is at 7 pm. The bus starts every hour, runs about 4 hours, next goes to the pier to Koh Samet. If you are in the Khaosan area, you can take bus number 2 to Ekamai bus station.
From Victory Monument bus station (can also go there by BTS or taxi), you take a 16-seat Van for 200 baht. This car runs to Rayong ferry about 2.5 hours for a distance of about 220km but the car runs not punctually, just waiting for guests enough, it takes 3 hours or more to reach Rayong. Van runs straightly on the highway, rarely stops, so you should limit drinking water.
Buying tickets to Koh Samet Island: The round trip ticket price is 100baht. It takes you 45 minutes by wooden boat. Another option is canoeing. Price is above 1000 baht, of course, is very fast and no waiting.
When the train has just arrived, get off and go a few steps to reach the taxi station to get to the center. Price ranges from 30 to 40 baht. You can walk for about 15 minutes. Before going to the center area, you are required to buy tickets to the island for 200baht.
For the return ticket, you can go to the Bus ticket counter at the Nuanthippeir train.
You probably stay for 1 or 2 nights. There are not many attractions on the island, mainly resort, swim and relax with family. 2 days 1 night staying is a norm. You are able to stay 2 nights 3 days if you want and like. You can also combine to go to Pattaya and Koh Samet island. It is likely to visit Koh Samet during the day and return to Pattaya in order to oversleep.
The beaches
Koh Samed is impressed by the fine white sand beaches, you are spoiled for swimming, bathing, lying on the beach to enjoy cocktails and relaxing. You can spend 1 day on the beach and 1 day walking around to explore the island.
Explore the island
The vehicles you can choose to travel are motorcycles or ATV vehicles (4-wheel terrain vehicles). In addition, you can also walk around, go up the hills in the afternoon, reach to the Bay, and freely admire the picturesque scenery of the island.
Others activities
-
Koh Samet Temple
-
Night squid fishing
-
Watching shows at the beach in the evening
-
Diving
-
Taking photos
In terms of accommodation, you should choose in Sai Kaew area, where has stunning beach and plenty of bar & restaurants. It is better for you to book a hotel in advance for Koh Samet is also the island that Bangkok people often bring their families here on their holidays and summer vacations. In addition, booking directly will be more expensive than booking online. If you are familiar to book rooms at Hotels2thailand, you can choose some hotels in Koh Samet. Besides, booking hotels on Agoda is another option.
Some suggestions for hotels and resorts:
-
Sunrise Villas Hotel
-
Lima Bella Resort
-
Jep’s Bungalows
Renting motorbike service is available everywhere, thus it is so easy to seek. Price is from 100 baht to 300bath an hour or by day depending on vehicle type. There are ATVs here, which are quite interesting. When renting, you are required to deposit around 1000 baht.