Harmony
Trip Start
Jun 09, 2006
1
3
33
Trip End
May 29, 2007
Where I stayed
Ko Chang is definately a hidden gem when it comes to island/beach hopping in Thailand. Far away from the islands along the Andaman coast or any others in the Seas of Thailand, it's only about a 6h bus east from Bangkok (near the border with Cambodia) and a 30-45 min ferry. Lonely Beach and Long Beach don't have the resort-ness feel to it (although Lonely Beach is getting there), so its very laid back and cheap, even compared to the rest of Thailand. The island is federally protected as a National Park so the scenery is excellent wherever you are. Somebody told me that they filmed Jurrassic Park here to give ya an idea of what its like. The first few nights we stayed at Lonely Beach (which isn't so lonely anymore) at a place called Siam Hut. The beach here is phenomenal, as hopefully the pictures tell. The bungalow we stayed at was right on the beach, although we spent alot of time at Treehouse I overlooking the Sea of Thailand. The sunsets are incredible (there are only a few here but everynight was worthy of a picture), some of the best I've ever seen with spectrums of colours filling the entire skyline and reflecting off the water. After a party at Treehouse, we decided to move to Treehouse II on Long Beach on the other side of the island. This place was awesome. It was the only bugalow stop on the beach so it made for a highly isolated feel and was much more relaxing than Lonely Beach. VERY CHILLED. Hung out with some people from France, Japan and England and of course our host Dae. Celebrated Christmas with all of them, which was quite a special experience. Pretty much a solid week of beach loungin, good food, swimming and chillin out. Ko Chang is a perfect spot if your looking for the Thai island feel, without the choas and buildup of Phi Phi or Samui. Get there soon as it won't be like this for too long....
