In general, I am still a winterizer, spent only a month on Samui, but the principle is the same, using the same method you can come back in six months and two. And one Norwegian woman, our neighbor, has been renting a house for almost 20 years and feels great.
It was our first experience of this kind – with a two-year-old child (it was on the island that he turned two) and so far away. True test drive was six months ago, when he and I vacationed in Italy in August and rented a house too. But that was two weeks, it was short flights, and it was Europe. So Southeast in a winterization format, albeit a small one – for the first time.
- Transportation: flights
- Transportation: ferry
- Accommodation: hotels
- Accommodation: house rentals
- Transportation: rental cars, bikes, cabs
- Insurance
Transportation: flights
With flights to Bangkok everything is clear, you need a minimum of connections and preferably a night flight. Flying from Bangkok to Samui is possible in several ways. As usual, expensive and convenient, as well as cheap and inconvenient. At first I thought to take one option there and another – back, but it so happened that I took the option for economical tourists both ways. But I will tell you about the second option too.
The most convenient flight is directly to the airport of Samui Island, which is considered very beautiful and unusual because of the lack of facilities. But since it belongs to a private airline – Bangkok Airways – all the charms of monopolization are present. Flights are also made by Thai Airways, and a couple of other airlines fly from other countries, but apparently the tariffs for service are so prohibitive that neither everyone’s favorite low-cost carrier Air Asia, nor a little less known Lion Air (Indonesian budget carrier, which, like its Malaysian counterpart Air Asia, has a Thai branch) can make flights to this airport. Prices for our dates in rubles from Bangkok were in the neighborhood of 150 dollars round-trip for one passenger.
A cheaper option is to fly with the already mentioned Air Asia or Lion Air to Surat Thani airport, which is on the mainland, but not far from the islands of Samui, Pangan and Tao. The round-trip flight for two people (Roma is still flying free) came to 90 dollars. Feel the difference? True, this is not the final price, but still the savings were more than 50%, and Roma took his first ferry ride in his life.
Transportation: ferry
So, from Surat Thani airport you need to get to Donsak Pier first. With Air Asia, you can buy a bus ticket to the pier and then to the ferry on the website together with your plane ticket. Lion Air doesn’t have this option, but it’s by no means a problem. Moreover, it frees you from running around looking for the right bus from the airline – you can just go to the counter at the airport on arrival and take a complex bus and ferry ticket for 400 baht per person. And that, as it turns out on the way back, is overpriced and you can still save money.
The bus arrives directly to the pier, ferries to Nathon pier leave every hour. On the bus a man from some travel agency came up, asked what kind of hotel and said that a minibus from his office will take us to the best for only 200 baht per person. OK, great option, because even public pickup trucks like Songteo in Pattaya will charge at least 120, and a cab will cost 600 and up. I don’t know if there are similar peddlers at the airport in Samui proper, if there are only cabs there, then that’s another argument for thrifty tourists. So, the man put stickers on us with the name of the tour company and blessed us, assuring us that the bus will not be late and everyone will get on the ferry at 1pm.
Of course the bus was late, or rather some of the passengers were quicker to catch it. Well, and my diligence, taking into account my wife, child, suitcase, a large and two small backpacks and a stroller, left much to be desired. The ferry was in front of us, but a fat and very dark Thai guard with puffy lips, looking like a cop from an American cop comedy, flatly refused to let us in.
The problem was that there was a minibus waiting for us to the hotel. In this case you should stop arguing with the fat Thai, put thumbs, index and middle fingers of both hands, take a deep breath, exhale long to say “ussaaaa” and go to solve the problem. On the pier we found girls, somehow affiliated with this company, who for about 10 minutes called someone back and finally said the coveted “dont vorri!”. – the minibus was gonna take us away. We went to a cafe and ate pad thai and noodle soup.
The ferry goes an hour and a half, there are both open decks and closed ones with air conditioning (I read that they are like VIP, but I went there quietly), there is a toilet and a shop-cafe, but they don’t sell beer there. What’s the toilet for? At the exit there were indeed some minibuses, and by the method of poking (including the sticker on my T-shirt) we found ours. Loaded up. Let’s go. Yay, we’re on the island!
Looking ahead, I will say a few words about the way back. From the hotel to the pier we decided to go by car from Kiwi Taxi service, which I liked very much and I immediately decided to order their car from Bangkok to the airport. The site is clear, the support is adequate, all the steps are laid out. The difference between economy and comfort class car was quite small, so I decided to take the comfort. The minibus Toyota Alphard arrived. Directly business class, leather interior, separate climate for passengers and so on.
Return tickets were taken separately for the ferry, it turned out that they cost only 120 baht. There was a grandmother and offered a complex ticket, already at 500 (here at 400 were taken). I told her about it – okay, honey, 400 so 400. Okay, apparently, the right decision is to take it at the ticket office. From the ferry to the bus, remembering the fate of being late a month ago, we decided to hurry with all our might – it’s not a month on the island ahead, but a plane with quite an independent schedule. And we were right, some people from our ferry stayed to wait for the next bus, and among them were tourists with pre-purchased complex tickets. The Thai woman who checked the tickets, having found out that we didn’t have them and would like to buy them, announced the cost of 500 baht for two people. In exchange for money she gave us stubs without price, I suspect that they cost 150 at the most, but where to buy them for such money I did not understand – on complex profiteers, here too. In the end it was 60 baht cheaper than on the way to the island, the complex ticket does not remove the headaches, so a trifle, but nice!
Accommodation: hotels
Before looking for a house, we checked into a hotel first. And in Bangkok too, because we’re not exactly reckless parents and decided it was still worth it for Roma to rest for a day after the flight. I have a long-standing friendship with the Banyan Tree hotel chain, and we successfully used their hospitality in Bangkok and the first couple of days on Samui. So, we decided to have a fling, a few days we can! In Bangkok it was Banyan Tree Bangkok, where I’ve been before, but never stayed overnight (in 2013 I had dinner on the rooftop in the chic restaurant Vertigo). This time I took my family to show a great view of Bangkok at night, but during dinner Roma decided that it was time to sleep and successfully passed out on a couple of chairs, turning our dinner into a romantic one with oysters, white wine and other sea bass and delicacies.
On Samui, it was decided to continue the banyan tree theme, and a minibus from Nathon harbor took us to Banyan Tree Samui. Classic backpackers, our traveling companions, were surprised by the dissonance: oh, the hotel is behind a fence, oh, there is security, oh, wow, look at the view from the lobby! The view is really wonderful, it’s useless to argue. Short check-in, 2 minutes by electric car and we are in the villa with its own pool! The rest of the day was spent on the hotel grounds, had dinner at the hotel restaurant Saffron, and Anya even used the spa center. The next day, leaving the family content with the hotel amenities, I took the bike and went in search of a lodge, but more on that later.
Now, since this chapter is about hotels, I’ll have to break the chronology. On the way back we also decided to spend a couple of days in a hotel before we left, and chose Outrigger Samui. Here too, there are separate villas, but the concept is a bit different than Banyan Tree. The houses are not as enclosed, less privacy, more public space as a percentage. There are houses with small pools, we got a house with a hundred meters of area and its own eight-meter pool. In general, everything here is simpler and less expensive-rich than in the previous hotel, but we liked it very much, and the cost is two or three times lower than in Banyan Tree.
On the way back in Bangkok we also decided to spend the night – transfers, sea crossing and flight, and fly out tomorrow morning – quite a logical step. This time we stayed at my favorite hotel in Bangkok – Dusit Thani. By the way, I slept in it exactly a year ago, when I returned from Myanmar, and even went to the spa, which is very good for a city hotel. But this time it was not about the spa – after a budget flight and a cab from Don Muang, which was quite long in traffic, we were hungry, so we went to the restaurant of molecular Thai cuisine Benjarong, which I was once praised and which is located on the first floor of our hotel. We were offered to choose from the menu or to taste what the chef recommended. We chose the second one: when the dishes were served, he would personally come out and tell us what the specialty of each dish was, why these ingredients are mixed in front of us before serving, why this beef is cooked for 72 hours and so on. To say that we were full – nothing to say, we wanted to refuse the dessert, but the chef, having learned about it, came out to change our minds, and quite successfully!
In the morning I ate breakfast only because it was breakfast at Dusit Thani, and I remember from last time that it was wonderful. Otherwise I just wouldn’t have gone – a meal like this is enough for 24 hours, granted the cuisine is molecular! After breakfast, the driver from Kiwi Taxi was already waiting for us in the lobby to load our stuff and take us to the airport. Home!
Accommodation: house rentals
There are a decent number of houses for rent on Koh Samui. After the tourist boom of the 80’s, local fishermen and landowning farmers realized what’s what. They built “Thai style” houses on their territory (living room and bedroom on stilts, half a level below – kitchen and combined bathroom), and themselves engaged in the operator of these resorts. New houses purely for rent are being built to this day, and quite at a brisk pace.
The cost of houses depends on the distance from the sea, the proximity of infrastructure and the condition of housing. It is possible to rent a new house with its own pool and two bedrooms, but in the mountains for quite reasonable money. For plus minus the same cost and the same condition, but near the sea will ask almost twice as much. Closer to the beaches of Chaweng and Lamai – the most party places, but houses by the sea is almost impossible to meet here – the whole beach is built up with hotels and not guests can go to the sea only in certain places, or through the territory of hotels. Lamai in this regard is a little more promising than Chaweng.
The most “sea” places where you can take a house within walking distance of the sea are Bang Po Beach and Maenam, both in the north. Maenam is considered the golden mean between relaxation and motion, Bang Po – purely for relaxation. And directly the beach on Bang Po is more suitable for swimming with children – shallow enough near the shore. Maenam is good for swimming adults. At the same time on Bang Po you can find grass and coral close to the shore and depending on the place and season it is affected by tides. There are no such surprises on Maenam.
When I biked to the addresses pre-marked in Maps.me, I was met with “Sorry, we are fully booked”. But I found a couple of options – on Maenam behind the ring road (it takes 20 minutes on foot to get to the sea) and on Bang Po almost directly on the beach, but there was some confusion with the Internet and initially we wanted not to go further than Maenam (I came here out of desperation). Having pre-booked these options (by word of mouth, without deposit and guarantees), almost without bread returned to the hotel, from which tomorrow to move out.
We decided to rent a car (it’s only one and a half times more expensive than a cab, and we still have to go to the store to stock up on food and to the hospital). Sometime after lunch (which took place in a wonderful place – Zhano) I already showed the house to my family. Here are its coordinates. My wife was captivated by the proximity of the sea, and the lack of internet, which I needed for work, did not embarrass her at all. To be exact, there was Wi-Fi, the router was in the house of a family from Kiev, and they said that the owner, who works in Bangkok and is here on weekends, just entered the password on their tablet and they do not know it. Okay, we were already tired, Roma has a fever and needs to go to the hospital, so fuck it – we will distribute from the local SIM card and wait for the return of the hostess. By the way, the speed from the SIM card (DTAC operator) was much faster than wifi, the password for which we got later.
About the price. Good and inexpensive houses in general on the island range from 15 to 20 thousand baht. Internet is usually included, but almost always it will be so bad, especially if it is one for several houses. So be sure to buy a local SIM card with 3/4G, the connection here is excellent and speeds are really cool. You have to pay for water and electricity separately. Sometimes (as in our case) water is free. Electricity costs a lot, the minimum I’ve heard about is 600-700 baht per month. If you use air conditioning, you can burn up to 2500 baht a month. We paid 1250 for the incomplete month, and the air conditioner was turned on only once, recognizing its ineffectiveness. 7 baht per kilowatt is the standard government price, but some landlords charge 10.
Gas: A cylinder costs 400 baht, which we were told lasts for three months. We ran out of it in the second week and had to discuss the price with a Thai who did not speak English – we did not want to pay the three-month price for three and a half weeks. We agreed on 200. Our house was originally priced at 20000 baht, but since we were going to live less than a month, we agreed on 16000 baht. It was not my position to bargain, but I couldn’t help but try. Kiev citizens pay 15000 a month, but they live for six months. Our house costs 1500 baht per day. It’s even strange that they went down in price when renting within one month. Maybe the Thai grandfather or I did not understand something, although all the bargaining took place with a palm branch and sand – what is there not to understand? Total accommodation 16000 + 1250 (electricity) + 200 (gas) + 450 (internet on the phone for a week) = 17900. Almost 18 thousand for everything, except, of course, food.
There is nothing to write about food. Vegetables and fruits are expectedly cheaper. Meat seemed that too, but we did not make a detailed analysis – it is subjective feelings. In a middle-level cafe to eat – about 500-600 baht for two people. I especially recommend Cafe Zhano on Maenam (soi 4 towards the mountains, on the left side) – insanely delicious pad thai, cool freshes and prices below average.
Transportation: rental cars, bikes, cabs
Transportation on the island is very good. Both in terms of choice and availability, and in terms of traffic – it’s not chaotic at all and quite civilized for Southeast Asia, the roads are mostly good, and the rentals are just a song!
On the second day on the island I rented a bike to tour the houses. At the first office near the hotel where I was staying. Remembering the divorce attempts on Koh Chang, I took a picture of it from head to toe. Instead of a deposit, it was enough that I was staying at Banyan Tree, although it was hard to check. Took it for a ride, returned it, and purely by accident forgot to refuel. OK, everything all right? – they ask. A quick look for any obvious damage is all the bike bothered to do when I got back.
Well, we’ve almost decided on the house, we still need to leave the hotel, plus we need to go to the hospital (Romka’s fever is under 39, we’ll talk about that and insurance later), plus we need to buy food for the house – rent will be much more profitable than a cab. In the same office I ask about a car – Toyota Corolla for 1000 baht.
– It is not available, take this 7-seater minivan for 1200 baht.
– But I don’t need such a minivan, a golf class is enough.
– There’s nothing else, take this minivan for 1,000 baht.
– OK.
I returned the car traditionally with a blinking light – this time because the automatic gas station next to the rental shop, which I had noticed earlier, was not working, and I was in a hurry. And closed my eyes again. In general, here are the approximate coordinates of this place, you can work with them.
Also several times took bikes near our house, the office is called VBJ. Just as not steamed about gasoline, do not look at every scratch, and once, taking my bike and in parallel celebrating some family holiday, gave me fruit. Strange that they didn’t offer me a drink, it usually happens to me. Here are their coordinates.
In general, in this office, as in many others on the island, you can rent a bike for a month. It will cost a little more than 3000 baht, but up to three you can bargain, I think. At least in Russian-speaking rental firms for three a month can definitely be taken. For a week I was offered a bike for 1050 (up to 1000 to knock down not a problem, I suspect). All prices are for Honda Click, 125cc, it is the most popular bike on the island, more than 50% of the population. But I had to get around on an ad hoc basis, so we took what we could get. Once I took a Honda CBX 150 for a trip to the mountains for three of us, it’s more powerful and pulling, but if Click is fresh, it’s just as good. I somehow quite easily made a hundred on it (of course, without my wife and child), and overtaking uphill is a beauty, it pulls well. But – only fresh ones, better before 5000 km of mileage.
We also took a small Suzuki jeep for the weekend. And from Friday night to Monday morning. It cost 1500 baht for the whole time. It is good, only slow, but pulls in any mountain, which, however, did not prevent me to plant it once and try out the readiness to help local guys somewhere in the south of the island near the Muslim village of fishermen.
You can take a car for a month, the cost of renting a car in this case starts from 15 thousand baht. No one cares about driver’s licenses. Theoretically you can drink a beer and drive, but at this point think twice how well you know yourself, and remember the rules of insurance.
Insurance
While the thought from transportation has not gone away: if you do not have a category, A, then in the case of an accident, insurance, as a rule, does not apply. Even if you just didn’t fit into the corner and skinned your leg – most likely the insurance company will not reimburse. But I recommend that you don’t check.
Insurance – it’s a must, especially if you’re traveling for a longer period of time than a standard tour package. It costs inexpensive, and in case of what will save a very decent amount. I have long been taking all insurance on the site Cherehapa.ru, and for the whole family I took it here. This is a search aggregator – it gives a comparison of different insurance companies and their conditions. My wife and my child got a better insurance (with protection against non-entry and maximum coverage) and chose ERV insurance company – as I found out on forums, they have the best conditions for children’s insurance – they work with Bangkok Hospital – good private clinics in Thailand. To reassure myself, I contacted the hospital and asked if they were working. They assured me that everything is OK. I took a simpler insurance for myself, because if I use it, I will use it as a last resort, if I don’t go to the hospital on my own. Besides, I took for a month and a half, Thailand, Philippines and Hong Kong.
The insurance was not useful for me and my wife, but because of Roma we recouped the insurance costs. On the second day of his stay on the island he had a fever under 39, I called the insurance company, they said it was OK, we sent a letter of guarantee to the hospital and you could go. We arrived, we were quickly received by the nicest girls-doctors, all speak perfect English (employees are trained in clinics in the U.S.), Roma was surrounded by attention so that we instantly felt superfluous. The tests were done, in half an hour we were told that it was the flu, the famous A1H1.
Further more interesting – prescribed medication, immediately prepared bottles with mixtures, a printout on each of them with the name and method of application, and the one that should be stored in the refrigerator – covered with ice. So the service was okay. And the bill was 7500 baht. Okay, where can I talk to you guys about insurance? In a terribly air-conditioned office (apparently to cool down the emotions of those who have not done well with the insurance company) checked all the data and told the not very pleasant news that the insurance company must send another letter: the clinic sends a list of procedures performed, the insurer looks – whether everything falls under the terms of insurance and whether you are not trying to put a filling under the noise. The letter may come tomorrow, and while it is coming, the passport is held hostage.
Luckily the next day I stopped by and safely retrieved my passport, I didn’t have to pay anything extra. But there were those in the room who had something go wrong, very sorry for them. So carefully study the conditions, do not be lazy to read the contract. Roma recovered in a couple of days and began to spend his paradise sand-and-sea month. In the next part I will tell you what, besides lying on the beaches, you can do on Samui, and for now – good health and excellent travels!
