Ko Samet / Ko Samed questions

[Guest anonone]

Hope someone can help me out with some information on Ko Samet / Ko Samed (not sure of the preferred spelling).

 

I will be back in Pattaya the end of September and thinking about taking my Thai friend to Ko Samet for a night, maybe two. Enjoy some great beach time and check out someplace different than Pattaya / Jomtien.

 

Most importantly, anyone have recommendations for a place to stay on the island? This is more of a splurge thing. Looking for someplace upscale, air-conditioned a must, nice quality room, great location, etc. I prefer to support gay run businesses, but I haven't found any hotels on Ko Samed marketed as "gay owned" etc.

 

Is there much of a gay scene at all? I am not expecting a Pattaya-type atmosphere, just a comfortable place to hang out in the evening and have a couple drinks. While we can certainly make do just about anyplace, it is always nice to be around other gays.

 

If not, perhaps best to limit the trip to one night and find ways to keep ourselves occupied in the evenings...

 

Any tips or recommendations greatly appreciated.

[Guest anonone]

Kinda surprised there was no reply to this. I figured Ko Samed was a fairly popular thing to do.

 

If no one has any experience with Ko Samed, any thoughts on staying the night on Ko Larn? Same type of information sought after...

 

Recommended place to stay (more upscale) and any other tips?

 

I am just looking for a quick side trip as a special night out type of thing. My friend does not really like visiting Bangkok, so looking for more of a secluded /romantic getaway.

 

If there is some place else to consider, I am open to suggestions. I am only in Thailand for a short time, so would prefer not to travel a great distance from Pattaya.

 

Thanks.

[pong]

you should not be that surprised-time is short and this is, contrary to your belief, not a very pop destination.

No, there are no real ''gay'' places, but this is Thaild; there is no discrimination against male-male couples, the Q to ask is daft simple: do they allow prostitutes. Lots and tons of mixed (str8 and farang-Thai) couples go there for the same purpose.

And take a honest and str8forward look into your friend: are you only wanting that luxe room for you- or do you really think he needs it?

Also note that travel to that island is not that comfy but rather normal Thai style: a cramped minibus (dont worry-ANY placeyou stay in PTY can book you in) and a small deafening loud-speedy boat, often with wade across the sea to get to destination.

Koh larn is tipically a 1 day excursion for the same; farang and casual friend. there is hardly any accomm on it.

Weekdays it can be very quiet, on weekends and certainly long Thai weekends do plan ahead and book.

Beside this western comfort (AC as such is not): do you also want western food available? I think this is far more an issue to look out for.

[mahjongguy]

Stay at TubTim. In the evening, walk a few meters to the next beach, have drinks at the Silver Sands.

[aussie_]

I stayed at Hat Sai Kaew (Diamond Beach), the main tourist beach on Koh Samet for a weekend in July 2010 with some Thai friends. After checking out a couple of places we found some newly built bungalows on the beach for 1500 baht on the first night and 2000 baht on the second night (Saturday night). I did go for a walk the next day and found some very nice bungalows on the road between the pier and the beach for 1000 baht per night. Not sure of the names for these places, just walk in and ask to see the rooms if the place looks OK from the soi, there are usually some rooms available even on the weekend.

 

We enjoyed a nice meal sitting on the mats at one of the beach side restaurants. There are fire dancing shows with many sexy guys near the Ploy Pub, you need to get there early if you want a seat. After the show there was an impromptu party/disco at the outside bar of the Ploy Pub. Plenty of gay boys at the other indoor disco in the same Ploy Pub complex which finishes at 3 am. On the second night we walked about 2 km along and near the beach to another place where there was an assortment of str8 bars and clubs where we found a very gay disco being held in a large beach side hut. If I was not with my then bf there were plenty of available guys. Sorry about the lack of precise directions, ask the locals or the boys at the Ploy disco about any gay places, they are friendly enough.

[Guest anonone]

Thanks for all the replies. This is just the type of info I was looking for..

 

Pong - I have known my friend for over a year. The luxe part is for both of us. We typically stay in pretty basic guest-house type places, but we both like a bit of splurge occasionally. I wasn't really worried about discrimination...we have been comfortable everywhere. I prefer to patronize and support gay businesses, so wanted to see if there were any on the island.

 

And Western food is of no concern. We eat Thai exclusively.

 

Mahjongguy- thanks for the recommendations.

 

Aussie_I really appreciate all the info. My personality is usually a bit more plan oriented, but I am learning to be more "go-with-the-flow". Thailand does that to ya...it is a good thing.

 

I will take your advice and we will just wander the beach to look for a suitable place. We will probably go during the week, so I am sure availability will not be a problem.

[Guest JamesBarnes]

Dear Anonone,

 

Ao Phai Beach is very popular with the Bangkok gay crowd at weekends and Silver Sand Resort is gay friendly... www.silversandsamed.com

 

Have a great time!

 

Best wishes,

 

James.

[khaolakguy]

Good information from Aussie and James! Is the beach and the sea there still good quality? It was about ten years ago, that I went there, and it was beautiful then.