If your looking for unspoiled Asian paradise , theres little of it left on
Samui .( or anywhere ! if you find it let me know ). On the other hand , if
your after nice beaches , cheap prices , great food , relaxed sunbathing or
full on partying then Samui probably has something to offer you.
A little history first . Samui was and still is the coconut island,but today
the income from coconuts is a small part of the G.D.P. of the island.
A bungalow complex is usually 10 or so individual bungalows in rows back from
the beach with a restaurant in the middle . Expect to pay
anywhere from 80 - 25,000 baht / night ,depending on your comfort
level.
The marketing of Samui is aimed mostly at the middle class package tour
group.There are still many of the old backpacker hangouts but the days of the
magic mushrooms and gunja are gone.( serious drugheads headed for KohPhangan
but even thats being cleaned up)
DON'T BE ONE OF THESE PEOPLE !
THE ONLY WAY TO TRULY EXPERIENCE SAMUI IS TO GET OUT AMONGST IT. Go to
Chewang at night and see the worst of it.... Visit a temple on one of the
Buddhist days ( like Big Buddha on Loy Katoung in november ) and see the
best... Go for a trip up a few side roads , the hilltop farms , the early
morning markets , the deserted beaches , thats where the real Samui is...
From the early 80's tourism caught up with samui. Some of the first backpackers
stayed with local familys and it was probably from this that Samui gained its
reputation for friendliness above the usual Thai hospitality.
The first bungalow was naturally First bungalow, still on Chaweng
beach.
The transport was on the back of an infrequent truck for the boneshakeing 15 km
trek from Nathon to Chaweng.. today it's hanging off the side ,back or top of a
kamikaze taxi along a hopelessly narrow concrete road ,where the only rule is
get there first and don't mind the motorcycles they don't make much of a dent.
The night boat from Suratthani to Nathon is still in operation and the
preferred way of getting to Samui for the romantic (adventurous / foolish
during the stormy season.)
With the rise in tourist numbers the variety of
transport to and from samui has increased. Ferry's ,express boats , hover
craft , planes. ( the ferry's being the safest. )
The road around Samui has been concreted to a width of 6 metres which on the
main ring road is still to narrow due to the large volumes of traffic , and
mentality of the average driver. (I've always found the motor bike and a
defensive attitude the best transport.)
The main road is in constant upgrade /
repair ,especially around Chaweng where flooding due to unchecked development
is an annual occurrence.
When hiring cars and bikes be careful as some of them
are not in good repair and downright dangerous,if in any doubt don't take it ,
the roads are hazardous enough.the larger bungalows and hotels will provide
transport or reliable hire car / bikes. Read any hire agreements as a lot of
times you'll be liable for any accidents .( Easy way to ruin a holiday and
lighten a bank balance .)
The road toll was up to 1 death / day. Who knows what it is now? No published
figures.
A local taxi fare from Nathon is .at a rough guide........ Mae Nam 15 bt .
Chewang 25 bt. Lamai 20 bt. allow for inflation , but don't be conned into
paying above the local rate.. also don't argue if you think your being
overcharged 5 bt.
( it's embarrasing to watch europeons in arguements with Thais about
20 cents
Use a bit of commonsense and remember in Thailand you'll make more friends
, have a far better time and earn more respect if you keep a calm and level
exterior even though inside , you want to murder everyone around you. )
Contrary to what many tour and travel agents would have you believe there
are still many beachfront bungalows in the 100 - 300 baht range. Most bungalows
have double bed , fan , toilet. The restaurants are the secret to a good
bungalow , generally the better the the food /price / cleanliness , the better
the rooms will be. Prices are no reflection of standards !
Expect to pay between 20 - 30 bt. for a meal of rice /soup /noodles. at the
local markets. Add 5 bt. for the bungalow restaurants.
Only drink the bottled water which will cost around 15 bt. / litre . With the
rapid development and use of septic tanks ,as there's no main sewer system , it
won't be long before Samui has a major pollution problem besides the visible
one of rubbish.
Samui has a population of around 35,000 , 20,000 of who work in tourism ,
theres an
annual influx of approx. 800,000 tourists ,75% of them from overseas. This puts
the island under a lot of strain environmentally , with an annual water
shortage and during the stormy seasons frequent power faliures.These problems
are being worked on by the government and as more money pours in
will be solved..
(one of my
favorite memorys of Samui is an evening spent in a beachfront restaurant
playing 'pock dang' a thai gambling game , by the light of kerosene lamps , as
the storms crashed , lightning reflected across the sea and the rain bucketed
down. )
There is now a large population of Europeans living on the island .Some
running bars / restaurants / bungalows .Others simply takeing advantage of the
cheaper cost of living.Due to this popularity there have been a number of
holiday house tourist developments, where people lease a house for 30 - 60
years . ( Thailand doesn't allow the sale of land to foreigners. )
.As anywhere in the world drugs are still avaliable and there is a hard drug
problem amongst the Thai population with its
resultant increase in crime and violence ,but the average tourist will see
little of that. ( corruption is an institution in
Thailand ,there are many examples of police enticing people into drug deals,
then arresting and fineing them ,as a way of increasing personal finance. ).
but no one was innocent.
just use your common sense.
There have been a number of large hotel developments similar to Phuket and
other tourist spots around the world. It's now possible to fly into Samui , be
chauffeured to your hotel spend a week on the beach at $100 a day eat $30
meals, take a half day sightseeing tour , then fly back to your country and
reflect on your
Samui experience