Koh Samui is Thailand’s second largest island. It’s a great destination for couples, families and party-goers alike as there’s something for everyone. From sandy white beaches to elephant encounters, visiting colourful temples to learning to cook popular Thai dishes. Here’s my recommendations for the top things to do in Koh Samui.
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How to get to Koh Samui from Bangkok
If you’re travelling to Koh Samui from Bangkok your options are quite limited. You can get a bus, which takes around 14 hours, or you can fly. The catch with flights is there is only one airline that flies to and from Bangkok and Ko Samui which is Bangkok Airways. Whilst it’s convenient as the flight is around an hour, it’s quite expensive as there’s no competition. Our return flights from Bangkok to Koh Samui in February, for two people, cost us £536 – not cheap!
Where to stay in Koh Samui
Where you stay in Koh Samui depends on what type of holiday you’re looking for. If you’re looking for a party-style holiday with your mates then Chaweng is the place to be as you’ll be right by all the action.
If you’re a couple or a family, you might want to opt for Choeng Mon, Bophut or Lamai. We stayed at the 5 star Ritz Carlton in Choeng Mon Beach and found it to be the perfect location as it’s close to Bophut and the Fisherman’s Village and just a short drive to Chaweng. It’s a beautiful resort too with luxurious rooms and lots of dining options.
We were tempted to stay at the Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui – and no, not because of White Lotus! We’ve been staying at Four Seasons resorts around the world for years and they always deliver in terms of beautiful resorts. But we felt that the location was just a bit too far from where we wanted to explore. For example, the Four Seasons is about a 30 min drive to Bophut.
Getting around Koh Samui
Koh Samui is big but not huge. It’s possible to travel around the island in under two hours. There are plenty of taxis in popular spots and you can order taxis on Grab or Bolt. Also, many of the excursions, such as a cooking class, elephant encounter or visiting Angthong National Marine Park, include hotel pick-ups in the price.
My husband is Italian and has been driving a scooter since he was a teenager so we opted to rent a scooter for 3 days so we could explore the island at our own pace. It cost only £7 a day and they dropped off and collected the scooter at our hotel, so super convenient. There are loads of car and scooter rental companies all over the island but I’d recommend booking them in advance.
We found the driving in Koh Samui to be pretty relaxed. No one drove fast or recklessly and we did feel totally safe. No way would we drive in Bangkok but Koh Samui was absolutely fine!
Here are my top things to do in Koh Samui
We stayed five nights in Koh Samui so had time to pretty much see and do everything we wanted to.
Visit the Big Buddha Temple at Wat Phra Yai
Have you even been to Koh Samui if you’ve not see the Big Buddha? At 12 meters tall, you can actually see the Big Buddha from other parts of the island – and even from your plan when you take-off or land! It’s impressive and worth a visit but we much preferred Wat Plai Laem, which is nearby.
Located on a small island called Koh Fan, the Big Buddha was built in 1972 so is not particularly old. There are lots of shops and a few restaurants around so you can easily spend an hour or so. When we visited, we saw the temple, then had some lunch and walked around the shops.
If you walk to the other side of the temple, you’ll see some interesting characters right by the sea – including a mermaid sitting on a rock and a man riding a dragon!
Take a Thai cooking class with a local family
When we were in Bali we booked a cooking class but unfortunately I was really ill and we had to cancel it so I was determined to do one in Koh Samui. We booked ours through Get your Guide and chose the top-rated one with a local Thai family. Depending on where your hotel is, they pick you up and drop you off.
We started with a tour of Big Buddha Market, which we’d actually already been to ourselves. But of course it was so much better with a guide, especially as they explain all the different ingredients in Thai cooking – some of which I’d never heard of.
After the market we headed to the family’s home, with an outdoor cooking school in their garden. We were served a lovely, non-alcoholic cocktail made from the purple butterfly flowers, whilst the chef talked through the four dishes we were going to make that day.
On the menu was a green papaya salad, chicken Massaman curry, chicken Pad Thai and a pudding of banana and coconut milk. We were also taught how to make coconut cream by hand, using a traditional machine.
Of course, as time is limited, a lot of the ingredients are already prepared – such as the Massaman curry paste – but we got to chop things up and cook everything fresh. I have to say, the Massaman curry was insanely good! Honestly, one of the best I’ve ever had.
The cooking class was lots of fun and is fairly small – there were 8 of us in total – so you get individual attention too. Everything we ate was so good! We thoroughly enjoyed it and it’s an experience I’d definitely recommend. It cost around £119 for the two of us, which I felt was good value for what we received.
Here’s a YouTube short if you want to see more of the cooking class experience.
Do a day trip to explore Angthong National Marine Park
An absolute must, if you’re visiting Koh Samui, is a day trip to visit the stunning Angthong National Marine Park, which is an archipelago of 42 islands about just over an hour by boat.
There are many companies offering tours to Angthong National Park but we went with family-run 100 Degrees East, who have been conducting these tours for over 20 years. They guarantee a maximum of 12 adults (or 14 guests if there are children aged 4 to 12) and they plan their itinerary to avoid the other tours as much as possible. They also offer a hotel pick-up and drop-off, towels, sanitised steel water bottles, snorkeling gear, refreshments and lunch.
The first island we stopped at was to snorkel. There was also the option, if booked in advance, to scuba dive. After that we traveled to another archipelago to kayak. Somehow my husband and I couldn’t coordinate and kept going into the rocks so we had to be towed by the staff. Hilarious and embarrassing!
Then it was just a short ride on the boat to Koh Sam Sao, which was absolutely stunning! This is where we had a delicious lunch of friend chicken, green thai curry, mixed vegetables and rice. Then after, we even had time to hike up to the viewing point for this incredible view. It’s recommend to bring trainers (sneakers) with you as you also hike a bit to the Emerald Lake.
After Koh Sam Sao, which was really quiet, we headed to the Emerald Lake, which was much busier. To get to it you have to walk up some steep, narrow stairs so good shoes are advisable!
The Emerald Lake is also known as The Blue Lagoon or Inner Sea and it’s located on Ko Mae Ko. It’s basically a large lake that is 250m by 350m. You can only admire it though – it’s not possible to swim. It’s widely considered to be the inspiration for the hidden lagoon in The Beach, a novel by Alex Garland that became a film in 2000 starring Leonardo DiCaprio.
Our last stop before heading back was Monkey island, which you’d think would be packed with monkeys but we only saw two! We had some time here to swim and sunbathe before the hour-long boat ride back. We thoroughly enjoyed this excursion and would highly recommend it. 100 Degrees East may be pricier than other tour operators but we felt it was worth every penny.
Feed the elephants at an ethical sanctuary
One of the things I really wanted to do in Thailand was visit an elephant sanctuary to see rescued elephants. There are many on Koh Samui but it was important to me that we visited an ethical one. I did my research and we chose Samui Elephant Sanctuary, which has two locations – one in Bophut and one in Chaweng Noi. As we were closer to Bophut, that’s the one we opted for.
Samui Elephant Sanctuary is award-winning and is listed by World Animal Protection as a Best Practice Elephant Venue and was awarded the Best Animal Welfare by the Tourism Authority of Thailand. So if visiting an ethical elephant sanctuary is important to you – which I hope it is – then book a tour at Samui Elephant Sanctuary.
They offer two types of tours at different times of the day. You can choose the Half Day Tour which is three hours and they offer morning or afternoon, or you can do the Short Elephant Encounter (which is what we did), which takes place at either 10am or 1pm and lasts 1.5 hours. Note that you must pay for the tour in cash when you arrive.
All the tours include a hotel pick-up and drop-off (if you’re staying in certain areas), tea, coffee, water and snacks and insurance. If you’re doing the half day tour, you’ll also get a buffet lunch or dinner.
We choose the 1.5 hour tour as we thought it was plenty of time – and for us it was. You get to learn about the sanctuary, prepare food for the elephants and then feed them, which is really sweet. Then you are taken on a walking tour around the sanctuary where you can see the elephants just going about their day – maybe having a swim or eating some leaves from a tree. You also get to take photos with them, under supervision.
We really enjoyed visiting the Samui Elephant Sanctuary and I’d recommend it if you want to see elephants in their natural habitat and have an ethical encounter with them.
Explore the vibrant temples at Wat Plai Laem
Wat Plai Laem was just a few minutes from our hotel and is located near Big Buddha Temple so I’d highly recommend visiting both in the same day. My husband and I were both so impressed with Wat Plai Laem as it’s a pretty big complex, surrounded by a lake, but also, it has amazing statues and the colours and detail are just incredible. It’s quite modern as it was only built in the early 2000s but it definitely feels older.
The main Buddhist temple incorporates both Chinese and Thai traditions but there are lots of Hindu deities, such as Ganesh and the eighteen-armed Shiva, which is just so beautiful and impressive.
And of course you can’t miss the giant smiling Buddha, which is from Chinese Buddhism. The Buddha’s smile is believed to bring happiness and prosperity.
Wat Plai Laem is open every day from early morning until evening. As it’s a holy place, remember to cover your shoulders and knees. The temple complex is built on a small lake and apparently it’s good luck to feed the giant carp. There are fish food dispensers all around the complex where you can buy fish food for just 10 Baht.
Explore the stunning beaches
Koh Samui has some absolutely stunning beaches and some pretty average ones. For example, the beach at our hotel wasn’t amazing. It was nice – and convenient – but definitely there are better beaches. Here are the beaches on Koh Samui that I recommend.
Chaweng Beach
My favourite was probably Chaweng Beach as it’s got white sand and crystal-clear water. It’s also a bit of a party beach! Thankfully one side of the beach is super chill so you can avoid the club-like hotels. That part reminded me a bit of San Antonio in Ibiza!
If you’re looking for the quiet side of Chaweng Beach, head to Moonrise Seafood and Beach Bar. The beach itself is sort of hidden behind hotels, shops and restaurants so you need to find an access point, one of which is Moonrise. But it’s also a great place to have lunch or a drink as it overlooks the beach. We went for lunch and the food was great.
Bophut Beach
Bophut is where the Fisherman’s Village is and the night market so it’s absolutely buzzing at night but during the day it’s really nice to visit. There are loads of shops to visit and restaurants to eat at and of course there’s the beach. I had read a review by someone who said the beach wasn’t very clean and that the sand in the water was really slimy but I didn’t find that to be the case at all.
The beach is really long, at 2km, so plenty of space for everyone. It’s pretty laid back and is a good beach for families.
If you’re into water sports, then Bophut is definitely the place to be. We saw lots of people jet skiing but also doing flyboarding, which looks pretty fun! You can also do snorkeling and diving here.
Maenam Beach
We visited Maenam Beach on our last day in Koh Samui. It’s a beautiful beach with soft golden sand, palm trees and the sea itself is calm. There are a few hotels located along the beach and some places to buy food and drink.
It’s a pretty chilled, serene beach and has a nice long stretch to walk along. It’s a great beach if you’re looking for peace and quiet and to experience the natural beauty of the island.
Coral Cove
We discovered Coral Cove after our ethical elephant sanctuary trip as we were looking for a beach nearby. It’s fairly small but it wasn’t very busy so there was loads of space to lie on the beach. The sand here is more coarse than the soft sand in Chaweng Beach and the water was more wavy. When you enter the beach, there are two restaurants where you can get drinks or some food. So there are options if you plan to stay the day or over lunchtime.
There’s also a swing with bright plastic flowers on, right in front of the sea, so a nice photo opportunity for Instagram!
Check out a fire show
Fire shows are famous on Koh Samui and very popular. You’ll find one every night somewhere on the island. Even your hotel might put them on! Our hotel, The Ritz-Carlton, put them on twice a week but annoyingly we hadn’t checked properly which nights they did them and we missed out.
One of the most popular places to watch a fire show is on Bophut beach. The show takes place right in front of Coco Tam’s and take place every night at 7:15pm and again at 9pm. If you want prime seating though, you need to book. We didn’t…. however, there is a beach bar right next to Coco Tam’s, called Summer, that has bean bags on the beach where you can watch it for a minimum spend of 500 Baht per person. I didn’t get nice enough photos to share on my blog but it was really cool and definitely something you should experience!
Visit the Fisherman’s Village Night Market
Actually… visit any night market! They’re always great fun in Thailand and there are many all over the island. The Fisherman’s Village Night Market in Bophut is probably the most popular. It’s open every Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 5pm to 11pm.
It’s packed full of street food stalls, including Thai and other cuisines, and stalls selling clothing, local crafts, jewelry, souvenirs and more. And of course… cheap cocktails! If you’re looking for a fun, inexpensive night out then head to the Fisherman’s Village Night Market.
So those are my recommendations for the top things to do in Koh Samui. I can’t wait to return to and explore more of this beautiful island!
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