Koh Samui, Paradise for Sure.

August 8-15 Koh Samui

What an amazing island.  The summer monsoon season hits the Andaman Sea hard but largely spares the  Gulf of Thailand, so we concentrated on island there. Koh Samui did not disappoint. We decided to stay on Choeng Mon Bay. It's known as among the more family friendly beaches of Koh Samui, and Koh Samui itself avoids the full moon revelers. Wow, the horseshoe shaped beach was beautiful, the water was so warm and the eight dollar massages on the beach were the best. Right behind the beach is a small village of shops and restaurants, so finding food and supplies and laundry is a step away.

We chose The Imperial Boat House Beach Resort, and it did not disappoint. The hotel is surrounded by lush trees and vegetation which made it feel very secluded. We were fortunate enough to get an actual rice barge boat that had been converted into a hotel room. Upstairs was a lounge area, while downstairs was a bedroom. The hotel set up an extra bed in what was dressing area. The kids loved it as did the adults.

During our time in Koh Samui, we did two excursions through 100 Degrees East. We chose this company based on the fact that it is small groups  and at least 4 staff members. Moreover, they were so awesome as our youngest broke his heel while in Koh Samui and one of the staff carried him up and down the stairs to see the Emerald Lake, if you do this tour you will understand how hard this climb is. On one of these, we visited the Angthong Marine Park. The islands of this park provided the inspiration for Alex Garland's book The Beach (it should be noted that the movie was shot on Phi Phi Le island in the Andaman Sea). We sea kayaked around tropical islands and had lunch and some time on our own beach (pictured). The other excursion was to snorkel off Koh Tao. The snorkeling in Koh Tao is spectacular: clear water, huge schools of fish, intact reefs, giant clams along the bottom.

Beach time in Thailand is great. Villagers walk up and down the beach selling goods, ice cream and food.  The grilled corn and shrimp are amazing and the kids loved having mid-morning ice cream treats. After lunch, mom and dad take turns getting bargain massages on the beach, under the shade of cabanas on the sand. This part of the vacation was really a treat.  It was great to watch the kids run in the water, swim, go beach combing and just be kids.  It was very hard to leave this paradise. Word of advice, watch out for some of the rocks, they are sharp. Good luck leaving.