Samui

Koh Samui offers a gentler island rhythm in the Gulf of Thailand. Coconut groves, quiet bays, wellness retreats and hillside villas looking out towards the Ang Thong archipelago create an island where privacy, spa culture and slow tropical days define the experience.

Koh Samui is the largest island of an archipelago in the Gulf of Thailand, some 35 kilometres off the coast of Surat Thani province, with Koh Phangan and Koh Tao to the north. A ring road circles the island; Chaweng and Lamai on the east coast are the liveliest beaches, while the north — Bophut’s Fisherman’s Village, Choeng Mon, Maenam — and the hilly west and south are quieter.

Coconuts were Samui’s economy for generations, and plantations still cover much of the interior, along with waterfalls and jungle tracks. The Big Buddha and the temple of Wat Plai Laem stand on the north-eastern tip. To the west, the 42 islands of the Ang Thong National Marine Park, with their lagoons and limestone cliffs, make the classic day at sea.

Samui has its own climate, sheltered from the Andaman monsoon. The driest, sunniest months run from late December to April, and the weather usually stays settled through July and August, when Thailand’s west coast is wet — which makes Samui a natural summer choice. Temperatures are high throughout, reaching the low thirties at the peak of April.

The rainy season arrives later than elsewhere in Thailand, from October to December, with the heaviest falls usually in November, when seas on the east coast can be rough. Songkran, the Thai New Year in mid-April, is celebrated with water and temple processions, and the full-moon parties of neighbouring Koh Phangan shape the boat traffic every month.

Most of Samui’s leading resorts belong to international hotel groups and stand apart from busy Chaweng. Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui terraces down a hillside on the north-western tip of the island; Conrad Koh Samui looks west over the sea from the south-west coast; Six Senses Samui occupies a headland in the north-east; The Ritz-Carlton, Koh Samui lies on Choeng Mon Bay; and Banyan Tree Samui fills a private bay near Lamai.

LVXVRY books Four Seasons through Four Seasons Preferred Partner, The Ritz-Carlton through Marriott STARS & Luminous, Conrad through Hilton for Luxury and Six Senses through IHG Destined — at the official hotel rate, with the privileges each programme attaches to the stay. For Banyan Tree, LVXVRY advises on and arranges the stay, and can add a day by boat to the Ang Thong marine park.