Koh Samet is located about 200 km east of Bangkok and it's a popular holiday destination for the Thais themselves, many come out there for the weekends.
We got picked up at the airport, and then we had a two-hour drive in a minibus down to the little coastal village from where we would board the speedboat. Another 20 minutes, and we arrived at our paradise!
We checked into our sea view bungalows on the beach, and went straight out for dinner. Found a restaurant with a TV and a DVD player - super! The kids watched a movie, and we could have lovely dinner (and beer!) in peace.
The next few days were spent in a very relaxing mode down at that beach. Us adults on sunbeds, with drinks and fresh fruit almost free-flowing (well, from the bar, and the beach vendors..!) and the kids in the sand: digging holes, chasing each other around, swimming, throwing a frisbee, kicking a ball, building sand castles, collecting shells etc. They couldn't have been happier - and neither could we!
I took long walks down the beach and Nathan managed to finish his Stieg Larsson book (yes, finishing a book for the first time in I-don't-know-when!).
One afternoon we rented a speedboat to take us around the island, and to do some snorkeling, but that was a bit of a flop. The visibility was near to zero, so we didn't see any fish at all, and the fumes from the motor made us all a bit sea sick. Plus, four out of the five kids fell asleep...
But we finished the trip on a fish farm, and that was really cool! (Worth the whole trip!) The kids got to feed the fish and the turtles, and I can tell you - they were h-u-n-g-r-y! Lucas has been talking about sharks ever since!
The island was really quiet, at least compared to Phuket which is the only other side of Thailand I've seen - not too many people at all, mainly Thais. It was the perfect family location. At the same hotel as us were a couple of other Swedish families, so the kids quickly made some new friends - and I managed to score some books they had finished reading!
We were off line for the whole week, and even though it really did us good it felt a bit weird not even being up to date with the news. Very relaxing though, we were really just there and then. Some well needed family time.
All in all, superb holiday - we will definitely go back! It was so lovely!
Here are some pics:
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