Thai island resorts

I'm looking for a thai island resort to spend a week or so with my thai bf this December.

I'd like somewhere where it's possible to rent a hut on a beach for reasonable price, and where there's outdoorsy things to do.......waterskiing, snorkeling, jet-skiing, hiking, maybe waterfalls, etc.

Any suggestions? I thought I saw a thread on this topic awhile back but I can't seem to find it.

Many thanks for your suggestions.

[catawampuscat]

Koh Chang is reasonably close to BKK and Pattaya and has everything but of course it is being rapidly developed and in Dec. it will be high
season.. Koh Samut is closer and smaller and has its charms.. Koh Samui seems to have gay or gay friendly establishments now and may be
worth the trip and of course Koh Phuket has a well developed gay scene and althou highly developed has beautiful beaches and easy access to
other islands...

Hi Cat, thanks for your suggestions. I'm doing some research on your suggestions. How did you go about making reservations for staying at these islands?

[AMARETTO-old]

The " Royal Embassy Resisence Hotel " have apartments and bungalows for rent, situated on Kamala beach Phuket Island.

Le Royal Embassy Residence, proposes the hiring of luxurious apartments and bungalows in a small corner of paradise located at Kamala.
You will, also, be able to benefit from the Spa, Hammam, jacuzzi, and meetings of traditional massages. 2 private swimming pools are at your disposal.
Bungalows from 1st november to 20 december : 2500 baht
http://upload4.postimage.org/1352521/1.jpg (http://upload4.postimage.org/1352521/photo_hosting.html)http://upload4.postimage.org/1352524/thumbMX.jpg (http://upload4.postimage.org/1352524/photo_hosting.html)http://upload4.postimage.org/1352528/thumbMX2.jpg (http://upload4.postimage.org/1352528/photo_hosting.html)http://upload4.postimage.org/1352529/thumbMX4.jpg (http://upload4.postimage.org/1352529/photo_hosting.html)

Apartments from 1st nevember to 20 december : 2500 baht


http://upload4.postimage.org/1352536/dinerroom.jpg (http://upload4.postimage.org/1352536/photo_hosting.html)
http://upload4.postimage.org/1352541/salon.jpg (http://upload4.postimage.org/1352541/photo_hosting.html)http://upload4.postimage.org/1352538/kitchen.jpg (http://upload4.postimage.org/1352538/photo_hosting.html)


Phuket is rich in various activities: at sea, in forest, boat, jet ski, water skiing, diving, fishing, golf, exits night....

website : http://www.royal-embassy-residence.com/index_an.php

[lonelywombat]

Kh Samui is an island and quite beautiful. If you have your bf with you,you should find something of interest

http://www.gaykohsamui.net

subscribe to their yahoogroup and ask the questions again. send blank email to

gaykohsamui-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Hi Cat, thanks for your suggestions. I'm doing some research on your suggestions. How did you go about making reservations for staying at these islands?

You can book Koh Chang from any travel agent in Pattaya (or BKK) and at most times of the year with only a couple of days notice (although December in the high season you may need to give more notice). The agent will arrange transportation (minibus), ferry and hotel reservation (all inclusive in the price).

Thanks for the feedback, guys. I think i'm liking Koh Chang with possible a secondary trip to Koh Samui. Any particular resorts that you liked on either island i'd be grateful to hear your suggestions.

Thanks for the feedback, guys. I think i'm liking Koh Chang with possible a secondary trip to Koh Samui. Any particular resorts that you liked on either island i'd be grateful to hear your suggestions.

I see in your first post that you want a beach cabin. Make sure you stipulate this if you book with a travel agent in Thailand. A lot of the hotel complexes are standard hotel blocks.
I stayed at one resort on the western side of Koh Chang but that was about five years ago and I'm sorry to say that the name of the resort is lost in the mist of time ! There were about fifteen or twenty cabins in the tree line at the back of the beach which had a restaurant/reception area behind the cabins.

Has anyone been adventurous and tried Koh Lipe?
http://www.kohlipethailand.com/index.html

Ideally my bf and i would like to live in a beach hut in a peaceful area in the evening, but be close enough to any action on the island.

Is thee western island more quiet than the eastern side? How long does it take to get from one side of Koh Chang to the other?

Ideally my bf and i would like to live in a beach hut in a peaceful area in the evening, but be close enough to any action on the island.

Is thee western island more quiet than the eastern side? How long does it take to get from one side of Koh Chang to the other?

There is not much "action" on the island other than what you can make for yourself, although there a small number of gay island workers who frequent some of the hotel bars/restaurants looking for fun. Most gays bring their b/f with them. It is basically a chill-out sort of holiday area with nothing much to do in the evenings except eat, drink and stroll along the beach. Some of the hotel complexes occasionally have B-B-Qs on the beach. All this was about 5 years ago and things have probably livened up a bit and you can bet there is now the inevitable karaoke somewhere near.

My own view is that although it is a great place to chill out, 3 or 4 nights maximum are about as much peace and quiet as I would like.

Most of the hotel resort areas are on the western side. It takes anything from 10 minutes up to 30 minutes on a pickup truck - baht bus type - (provided by the hotels in cooperation with each other) from the ferry landing, over the central hill/mountain, from one side to the other. Time depends on how many other passengers for the ferry they have to pick up.

[andrewcraig]

I would be interested in how your trip went How about a holiday report.

On my only trip to Phuket I stayed at the Patong Beach Bungalows. The accommodations were pretty basic but the location was good and service very friendly. I was traveling alone during Songkran and the staff of the hotel invited me to join in with them in festivities. from your bungalow you can look out on the beach and ocean or enjoy the hotel's pool.

Being a farang not used to the heat of Songkran season, the staff opened up the pool late in the evenings just so I could cool off.

It's not the Ritz but I got a Ritz-like treatment

[jinks]

On my only trip to Phuket I stayed at the Patong Beach Bungalows. The accommodations were pretty basic but the location was good and service very friendly.

It's not the Ritz but I got a Ritz-like treatment

This must have been before the tsunami wiped the old bungalows off the map.
Last week they were fine. All rebuilt, the pool refurbished and the beach side bar and restaurant open to all.

The gay section of the beach is directly in front of the bungalows.
Volley ball as the sun goes down.

It is overpriced, but as a frequent quest I get a substantial direct booking discount.

I did not have to go to my favourite club for the NYE show...
Khun Tangmo sold his troupe to 12 hotels each one getting a 45 minute show from half of the troupe.

The best part of the Evening was at Midnight...
Every major hotel on the curved Patong bay has a firework show.
From our position, we had the best seats to see 30+ firework show !

Half of "we"

http://www.jinkscorp.com/holidays/thai/phuket06/images/ton1_jpg.jpg

Guess who this is at the New Year Party.....

http://www.jinkscorp.com/holidays/thai/phuket06/images/guesswho_jpg.jpg

http://www.jinkscorp.com/holidays/thai/phuket06/2007.jpg

Part of the Tangmo Troupe.

http://www.jinkscorp.com/holidays/thai/phuket06/images/tangmo3_jpg.jpg

[Sen Yai]

Being a farang not used to the heat of Songkran season, the staff opened up the pool late in the evenings just so I could cool off.

It's not the Ritz but I got a Ritz-like treatment

MrBill, whilst I think there may be a small sign stating 'opening hours' the pool is accessible at any time as it is un-fenced and immediately adjacent to the bungalows. I can't see how the staff 'opening the pool late in the evenings' could have contributed to your 'Ritz-like treatment'. However, the staff are of course charming and friendly!



It is overpriced, but as a frequent quest I get a substantial direct booking discount.

Oooohh jinks! you must be a V-V-VIP! Maybe it's because of your (near) celebrity status as moderator of this forum! How much (or how little) do you pay?

The Patong Beach Bungalows resort is open and very busy.

I never ever found any reason to complain about this place.

Has anyone been adventurous and tried Koh Lipe?
http://www.kohlipethailand.com/index.html


Not so popular island any more. Accomodation can be very rustic. With about 4 qkm and maybe 800 locals (mostly friendly sea gypsies) and sometimes difficult to access.

No banks. GMS from AIS is working if weather is fine. Main attractions are four lovely beaches with wonderfully soft white sand.

There are three popular spots where everybody migh turn end up invariably: Phoo's place, Moonlight bar on Pattaya Beack or Jack's Jungle Bar between Sunlight and Sunset Beach. Our name will be known at any of this places.

Especially during weekends some Malay men turn up meeting local ladies.

Haven't been there after the Tsunami but I might guess the island has been battered and will still be in bad shape. There wasn't much which could stand against the striking waves.

I went there from Satun and continues to Lankawi Island.

Has anyone been adventurous and tried Koh Lipe?
http://www.kohlipethailand.com/index.html


Not so popular island any more. Accomodation can be very rustic. With about 4 qkm and maybe 800 locals (mostly friendly sea gypsies) and sometimes difficult to access.

No banks. GMS from AIS is working if weather is fine. Main attractions are four lovely beaches with wonderfully soft white sand.

There are three popular spots where everybody migh turn end up invariably: Phoo's place, Moonlight bar on Pattaya Beack or Jack's Jungle Bar between Sunlight and Sunset Beach. Our name will be known at any of this places.

Especially during weekends some Malay men turn up meeting local ladies.

Haven't been there after the Tsunami but I might guess the island has been battered and will still be in bad shape. There wasn't much which could stand against the striking waves.

I went there from Satun and continues to Lankawi Island.

[jinks]

It is overpriced, but as a frequent quest I get a substantial direct booking discount.

Oooohh jinks! you must be a V-V-VIP! Maybe it's because of your (near) celebrity status as moderator of this forum! How much (or how little) do you pay?

I am sworn to secrecy.... 2500 per night. (Peak season)
I could not op-out of the compulsory dinner.

Not a VIP, just that I have been stopping there for over 12 years.
I missed 2004 and in 2005 stayed at Club 17 (http://www.cluboneseven.net/)


Patong Beach Bungalows (http://www.patongbeachbungalows.com/)

It is overpriced, but as a frequent quest I get a substantial direct booking discount.

Oooohh jinks! you must be a V-V-VIP! Maybe it's because of your (near) celebrity status as moderator of this forum! How much (or how little) do you pay?

I am sworn to secrecy.... 2500 per night. (Peak season)
I could not op-out of the compulsory dinner.

Not a VIP, just that I have been stopping there for over 12 years.
I missed 2004 and in 2005 stayed at Club 17 (http://www.cluboneseven.net/)


Patong Beach Bungalows (http://www.patongbeachbungalows.com/)



That’s what I would consider a fair price is respect of location and days from X-mas till Jan. 02, 2007, during Chinese New Year and maybe Sonkran.

I never ever paid as nearly as much as 2000 TBT anywhere in Patong for a good quality room. Of course, there is not much room for bargaining if the locations is fully or nearly fully booked and there are some regulars still to some.

Connect Guesthouse, Rendez Vous, ClubBamboo or the Siam Palm are some or rare examples of offering realistic value for money accommodation. All of them having a long list of regular guests.

And I always try to avoid Phuket between X-mas and end of Sonkran. Phuket is brilliant all around the year destination for holidays.

Generally I never ever paid the rates announced on Internet. Especially rates given on the hotels own web site there often are totally unrealistic. You get more realistic price with Asiarooms.com and other booking services. They deduct from even discounted prices around 10 % commission plus 3,5 % credit card – so if you quote there rate and offer to pay this rate minus 10 % directly in cash to the hotel, you are close to the more realistic price. This shouldn’t be a problem for any regular guest with a good record.

With smaller guest houses it’s a different matter but I am not a person battling for a 50 or 100 TB discount.

Holiday accommodations are large tourist areas function like factories: They suck bleached tourist in chew them for a while and spit them out again slightly roasted and drained. With sophisticated CRM software running in background and listing pro and cons of any guest, including previous rooms, amount of money left, tips and most likely sexual preferences, they know it all and score you, don’t worry. They welcome you by name and try to smooth everything in order to avoid any trouble and having you back again soon.

It is overpriced, but as a frequent quest I get a substantial direct booking discount.

Oooohh jinks! you must be a V-V-VIP! Maybe it's because of your (near) celebrity status as moderator of this forum! How much (or how little) do you pay?

I am sworn to secrecy.... 2500 per night. (Peak season)
I could not op-out of the compulsory dinner.

Not a VIP, just that I have been stopping there for over 12 years.
I missed 2004 and in 2005 stayed at Club 17 (http://www.cluboneseven.net/)


Patong Beach Bungalows (http://www.patongbeachbungalows.com/)



That’s what I would consider a fair price is respect of location and days from X-mas till Jan. 02, 2007, during Chinese New Year and maybe Sonkran.

I never ever paid as nearly as much as 2000 TBT anywhere in Patong for a good quality room. Of course, there is not much room for bargaining if the locations is fully or nearly fully booked and there are some regulars still to some.

Connect Guesthouse, Rendez Vous, ClubBamboo or the Siam Palm are some or rare examples of offering realistic value for money accommodation. All of them having a long list of regular guests.

And I always try to avoid Phuket between X-mas and end of Sonkran. Phuket is brilliant all around the year destination for holidays.

Generally I never ever paid the rates announced on Internet. Especially rates given on the hotels own web site there often are totally unrealistic. You get more realistic price with Asiarooms.com and other booking services. They deduct from even discounted prices around 10 % commission plus 3,5 % credit card – so if you quote there rate and offer to pay this rate minus 10 % directly in cash to the hotel, you are close to the more realistic price. This shouldn’t be a problem for any regular guest with a good record.

With smaller guest houses it’s a different matter but I am not a person battling for a 50 or 100 TB discount.

Holiday accommodations are large tourist areas function like factories: They suck bleached tourist in chew them for a while and spit them out again slightly roasted and drained. With sophisticated CRM software running in background and listing pro and cons of any guest, including previous rooms, amount of money left, tips and most likely sexual preferences, they know it all and score you, don’t worry. They welcome you by name and try to smooth everything in order to avoid any trouble and having you back again soon.