10 days on Koh Tao

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Aaaah Koh Tao. Relaxing lazy days on the beach, snorkelling in the sea, a beer or two at sunset followed by a green curry and papaya salad before walking home along the beach in the moonlight. Then do it all again ten times over and you'll still be left wanting more.

We stayed in Mae Haad. This is the more functional end of the island where the ferries come in but it's good value, quiet at night, and well located for days on Aow Leuk or Sai Ree beach and evenings out in Sai Ree village. There's also a couple of nice little bars on the beach nearby. We'd start the day with a breakfast in 'Cappucino' a french run bakery and cafe with good food, music, coffee, and wireless. Then take a walk to either Sai Ree or Aow Leuk depending on how the mood took us.

Aow Leuk is the more attractive. A beautiful beach in an enclosed bay with great snorkelling either side and lots of reef fish to see. It's quiet, relaxing, and picturesque. In the afternoons it fills a little with dive boats as they turn up to hold their lessons in the shallows but there's hardly a disturbance. Sai Ree beach is long and the water shallow, not quite as attractive as Aow Leuk but has many more places to eat and drink as it joins up to Sai Ree Village where the main Koh Tao nightlife is. We liked the end of Sai Ree closest to Mae Haad, it's a little quieter, cleaner and the beach is wider. We would make our way down the beach as the day wore on arriving at Big Blue divers in time for happy hour and the sunset. Then Thai food in one of the nearby roadside cafes a short walk away. We found a good one and ate there most days, the food was excellent.

Although you'll be convinced by the regular offers of 'Taxi?' that you need a lift to get places on Koh Tao, many are walkable. Tracks down to the beaches themselves are often very rough so the taxi either won't attempt it or will charge double. We didn't but it would be much cheaper to hire a moped although there's so many of them, it would be nice to see more people attempt to see the island on foot. We walked most places and it was fine although the walk back from Chalok Baan Kao Bay to Mae Haad along the coast was not well signposted and a bit of a scramble at times. You are rewarded though with a series of secluded little coves with just a handful of beach huts and hardly anyone on the beach.

Koh Tao could be a great place for trekking but there's little emphasis on it. For an island that is attempting to raise it's eco credentials the locals and the visitors seem glued to their mopeds. Another good idea while we're on the eco trip Koh Tao; If more places allowed people to re fill their water bottles for a small charge you could easily halve the amount of plastic used on the island. We only found one that would, Mr J's in Mae Haad.

On our final day we took a longtail across to Nang Yuan where a thin strip of beach links three small islands just off Koh Tao. The snorkelling is good, it's quiet and very pretty. It's a little more exclusive and you pay a fee to get onto the island but it was nice to do it once. We probably should've seen more places around Koh Tao but were very happy with our routine. Just one more sunset? Why did we leave?

Double fan room in Mae Haad cost 350 baht a night
Basic breakfast in Cappucino 130 baht
Taxi to Aow Leuk from Mae Haad 200 baht (although you can walk it in 20 minutes)
Re fill your water bottle at Mr J's in Mae Haad for 5 baht
Green Curry, Papaya Salad and a large bottle of Chang in a street cafe in Sai Ree Village 200 baht
Longtail to Nang Yuan from Sai Ree cost 200 baht return per person
Access to Nang Yuan 100 baht per person
Ferry to Koh Tao from Surit Thani 550 baht per person

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Photos

Aow Leuk Liverpool supporter
There's 1000 on Koh Tao, dogs that is, not Reds