Exploring Thailand: Koh Chang Island
“Sometimes escaping from the world and all the hassle… is the remedy you didn’t know you needed!”
Nature Beach Resort - Ko Chang
As Thailand’s third largest island, Koh Chang is not one to miss! If you’ve heard of places in Thailand and this doesn’t spring to mind then I don’t blame you! During my pre-Thailand planning (albeit non-existent), I had never even considered it to be a place to visit. You see, when you only have limited time, you don’t want to be wasting it in places that aren’t the best (even if you don’t know what the best is yet) and end up ‘playing it safe’ by visiting the places you’ve seen everyone talk about…Phuket, Chiang Mai etc. Someone I knew had suggested that I go check it out and I’m glad I went. It’s funny, that what was supposed to be a couple of days to settle in, enjoy the beach and relax, turned into nearly a week of exploring the island from top to bottom! I actually had to force myself to leave the island on day six so that I could explore the rest of Thailand.
Koh Chang was the first island I visited in Thailand. My original plan was to go to Bangkok for the first day or two, meet a friend out there and then head off to Phuket (or someplace) and work my way around Thailand. I think you can tell that I was just planning to wing it the entire time and my only real “plan” was to go with the flow! Since I had only booked the first night’s accommodation for my entire six-week trip (what’s travelling without uncertainty?), this meant that I was flexible when thing didn’t go to plan. My plans changed last minute so I decided to start my travels in the south instead. This was ONE DAY before I was going to fly from London and Koh Chang was very far from my original hotel in Bangkok (a boujie 5-star at that) and I had no idea of how I was getting there or what transport to take or anything for that matter. I just heard that it was full of beaches and forest and that it was a great place to start my trip, so with faith and a bit of luck, I just went with the flow.
Travelling to Koh Chang wasn’t as complicated as I had thought, however, I think I got lucky with my timing. This doesn’t take away from the fact that it was the MADDEST TREK. If I’m keeping it real, you’ll probably want to stay a night in Bangkok and not jump straight off the plane from London to Koh Chang as I did. My reasoning was that the flight was already long enough and I’ll be tired anyway so what’s another 6-7 hours to the island? It sounds hectic I know, but in hindsight, I think it was the right decision. Besides, you can just rest and recover on the beach the next day. Since my plans changed so quickly, I didn’t have time to figure out what to do once I landed except that I needed to go to Trat. Asking around at the airport helped a great deal and there was an information stall to point me in the right direction. There are two ways to get to Trat: catch another flight or go by road via private car, coach or minibus. Obviously, if you choose to take the flight, you can most definitely do the whole thing in one go since the flight is only another hour on top!
Transport to Trat
Flying: There are currently four flights a day from Bangkok to Trat with a duration of one hour. Please note that the fourth flight has been added since the end of 2018 but it is subject to demand. This is a great way to skip the hours of travelling by road so if you’re a bit more organised than me (which isn’t hard), this option will make your life a lot easier. You can check out the flight details here.
Transport to Ko Chang! Cheap but not too shabby either!
By Road: If you want to save some coins and don’t mind the 6 hr+ journey, or you’re just very last-minute like me, then this is your best and cheapest option! For the daily bus services, you’ll need to make your way over to Ekamai Bus Station and you can take a shuttle bus or train from Suvarnabhumi Airport straight there. From there you can purchase your ticket (which you can also pre-book) and hop on one of the shared mini-busses which are dirt cheap (like £6) and not even that uncomfortable! Regardless of whether you’re going in a private car or bus service, it’s going to be a long drive on a fairly straight road so be prepared to sleep, read or come with downloaded movies to keep you occupied! This is definitely a cheap way to do it and if I remember correctly, my entire trip from the airport to Trat cost less than 8 pounds! If you’re already in Bangkok, there are services that can pick you directly from your hotel and will save you some hassle! Be sure to check this first with your hotel or a booking agent nearby.
Ferry Timetable in Trat
Ideally, you’ll want to get a bus service that aligns with the ferry service at Trat so that you’re not waiting for an hour like I was! You can avoid this by checking the bus and ferry times here but if you do have to wait, the weather is usually gorgeous so you can tan, or you can hang out in the restaurants nearby and wait for your ferry to arrive.
I’m in Trat, now what?
It’s quite simple from here! You can buy a ticket for the large car ferry once you arrive by the port (note: you’ll need a minibus from the airport first if you’re flying) and then you can just walk or drive onto the boat for a short journey across the water. Cambodia is really close to this island and you can see it from the boat too. It’s worth a visit if you get the time to venture over, plus it’s another country to tick off the list! Once you’re off the ferry, you have officially arrived in Koh Chang and can catch a taxi from the port on that side or hire a bike (of course, if you came on your own transport, you can drive right on!).
I remember people hitting me on my socials asking me how I knew the way and I had to laugh because I actually wasn’t sure how I managed to pull it off. It’s OK though, I know the way now and hopefully, my trial and errors will benefit you in the future and save you more time. In total, my journey from London to my accommodation in Koh Chang was a whopping 26 hours non-stop but it didn’t feel as bad as it sounds. Still, I’m sure it could have been a lot quicker and smoother had I planned a little further in advance and not wasted time figuring out where to get transport.
Exploring Koh Chang
View from the Tree House with the sea and island in sight- Oasis Koh Chang
This was my face after realising the hill was LONG with my baggage!
As explained previously, there are many beaches on this island. White Sand beach is the most popular (north) and Lonely beach is another popular hotspot, especially for travellers (in the south). Other beaches include Kai Bae and Klong Prao which are spread out along the island. You can find every type of accommodation from hostels, to hotels to private homes to rent out during your stay which means that anyone is welcome. My first-night accommodation was at Oasis Koh Chang which was in a BEAUTIFUL location and had the best views on the island! This is located in Lonely Beach and should cost you 100 Bhatt per person by taxi from the ferry. I can’t lie though, that trek up the hill was a bit mad ngl and by the time I had walked up the hill (250m) in the heat I was ready for a shower! You could definitely take a bike up there but I thought it was a light bop up the hill - maybe not with luggage! The staff there were super lovely and gave me a little mosquito spray to use since we were high up in jungle settings. It’s absolutely worth it though and the views from the tree-house are breathtaking and they have a cute little outside lounge and bar where you can chill, eat and drink (you should really check out their page!). The guys there are super helpful and gave me a rundown on the area and direction to the beach.
Fresh Seafood Pad Thai! Wonderfully cheap and incredibly delicious.
That evening, I decided to walk around a little bit (as I always do) and found a nice little spot selling pad Thai: a traditional Thai dish. Here I managed to get a large portion of seafood pad Thai and two bottles of coke for 90 Bhatt (about £2 pounds!) and it was one of the cheapest locations for food that I found in Thailand! No complaints there!
Finally arrived! 26 hrs later and still looking fresh.
Not bad for a Hostel. This had a funky communal area with a pool outside.
Although I went during the off-peak season, there was no denying that this place was QUIET. I found that I was usually the only young person in a hotel and I really had to look for people on day one and two! Honestly, it was like walking around town after an apocalypse. I remember thinking “26 hours of travelling to see no-one? If I skrimmmm!” All jokes aside, I was really thankful for the peace and got to chat to loads of shop-keepers and business owners on the island and the fresh air and jungle setting really gave me the peace of mind I was so desperately needing! During peak season the place becomes a little busier with tourists though this island is generally one that is quiet which is why people like to go. Sometimes escaping from the world and all the hassle (especially from a city like London) is the remedy you didn’t know you needed! I must also add that Lonely beach is a popular place for solo travellers, and although I was solo travelling too, I stayed pretty much the entire trip in hotels alone (but it’s the hostels where the travellers were at). It’s not that I refused to do the whole hostel thing, but when you’re in a country that’s cheap enough, why wouldn’t you want to stay in a hotel when 4/5 star hotels were costing between £17-£30 a night (not Bangkok though, those were European prices!) and 3 stars were considerably less. I did try out a hostel on the second day in hope of finding more people but it was still pricey for hostel standards with a pool, so no surprise when I was yet again the only person there (with one middle-aged couple) - a flop! Lonely beach was feeling pretty... well lonely!
The night started with a fire show and ended with shots!
I decided it was time to do some proper walking around to find out what else there was on this island. Thankfully, I bumped into a couple from Holland (and my first black person - I know some of you can relate to the feeling!) who were also looking around but who were staying in another hostel in another part of the island. Where I was staying happened to be the spot for nightlife so they were there for the evening bars and clubs. At this point, I thought I had nothing to lose and my expectation for a busy night was frankly on the floor so anything was a good shout to me. The couple had met a load of other people so I decided to exchange numbers and meet them later. FINALLY, I found people! There were many and they were young, and I had somehow plugged myself into a group of at least 10 from various parts of the world… students from Germany, medical doctors from America, two sisters from Italy and the list goes on. This night got pretty wild and involved a game of pool, watching the football, clubbing and bar hopping… and lots of alcohol! It ended with half of the group getting up on the bar and dancing whilst the barman poured alcohol around them and lit it on fire. Eventful to say the least! More numbers were exchanged and a little WhatsApp group was made So I finally felt like it was worth staying.
The next day I moved locations and checked out the Nature Beach Resort which was a beautifullll hotel with completely different views from Oasis but equally as breathtaking. The rooms were lush and it was right on the beach with a great vibe, great facilities and plenty of tourists! This was located further down (towards the pier) but was still in Lonely beach and is a 20-minute drive from Klong Phu Waterfall. Over the next few days, I gallivanted around the island and tried out different hotels in different areas. I managed to stay in contact with some of the others but mostly did my own thing. On day four (I think) I decided to book onto a island tour to the waterfalls, elephants, temples, beaches etc via my hotel (where I was again, one of the only few guests) and figured out it would be the most effective way to cover the island and see all the different things whilst hopefully meeting new people.
In my own little secret world. Exploring the Island
I told my new friend who was travelling from Germany about it (hey Christina!) and asked her if she wanted to join me on the tour as I could negotiate the price down for us. She agreed after I managed to haggle the price down to 700 Bhatt PP from 3,000 Bhatt (peak season price) for the day. It’s a good thing I asked the driver how many other people had booked because he would have fully taken on my booking knowing damn well that there was no-one else booked due to low season (Nah I could actually laugh though). I used this to my advantage and told him that I wanted to re-arrange the day and the locations because I wanted to hit the beaches when the sun was at its peak instead of late afternoon. He was really flexible and was more than happy to just skip anything we didn’t want to do and spend more time in the places we did want to go. The day was packed, starting at 8 am and finishing at 6 pm but it also meant that we had a private driver for the day who ended up being more like a dad (with good photography skills) than our tour guide.
Me, Christina and our lovely driver, Mr Kai.
P.S I’m not short!
I wish I could remember his first name but we had so much fun at the many waterfalls, temples and viewpoints that we ended up giving him another 700 Bhatt each in tips. I know I usually celebrate my great finesses but it’s not everyday ooo! Sometimes, you have to appreciate when people go above and beyond their job roles and due to low season, he hadn’t had work in a while. Why rob a man of an honest living when it costs nothing in comparison to us and he made us feel at home? £35 for a full day with a private driver is a deal in itself!
How can you not smile when you’re at peace?
One of the biggest rooms in Koh Chang! This room was lush and had a beautiful balcony with an outdoor dining table - Chaipura Resort.
For my final night, I decided to visit another end of the island by Khong koi beach in a place called Chaipura Resort. This place was aesthetically gorgeous with massive rooms and a cute entrance and pathway by a really pretty beach. As a guest, I also had access to their water sports equipment so I borrowed a kayak and Christina and I spent hours in the water. It was so fun that we went so far out we had to figure out how we were going to row back when the water became rough and windy (it’s no joke). In the evening, the hotel resort offered a free transport service to Bang Bao Fisherman Village where we had a lovely evening in a restaurant that sat over water (as in your feet literally dangle over water which you can see under a glass table). This is definitely a place to go as a couple or a group of friends as the scenery is so beautiful. The Resort also arranged a time with us to come and pick us up so it saved us taxi fares too.
There are so many things I did in Koh Chang that I haven’t mentioned, and so many things I didn’t get to do such as jungle trekking (due to the weather), snorkelling and cooking lessons just to name a few. I had some good memories there and enjoyed my little bit of time out from the world. Swimming in a fresh waterfall with fish nibbling at my feet remains high on the list of my highlights in Thailand. I feel like this island really brought me peace and good company and I would really love to return again (but maybe in peak season!). If you ever plan to visit Thailand, Koh Chang is a place you must not forget. In peak season you can also island hop to the three islands close by and enjoy even more water activities! If you have any more questions or want to know more, please feel free to contact me!
A restaurant above the water! A great way to spend an evening.
Liz x