Phuket.com Magazine

October 2008 - Special Samui


	Lamai Beach - Koh Samui

Welcome to Phuket.com's October issue! Everyone has heard of beautiful Koh Samui in the Gulf of Thailand and this month we take a trip to Samui, exploring its hotels, restaurants, unusual features and tours.

We review two newly opened resorts: The Shasa and The Kala as well as dining out at Olivio at Baan Haad Ngam and View Phangan at the Melati Resort. This month's Ten Reasons to Stay features the sumptuous and exotic Six Senses Hideaway Samui. We also zoom off by speedboat to visit Koh Tao and Koh Nang Yuan – both snorkeling and diving Meccas.

If you like dining with the sand between your toes check out our Beach Dining section as well as finding out more about one of the most famous and largest parties in the world: Koh Phangan's Full Moon party. Hotel News brings you the latest lowdown on what's happening as regards the hospitality industry on the island while Unusual Thailand exposes some very frisky rocks on one of Samui's beaches.

The Editor
editor@phuket.com

The Kala Resort

The Kala's slogan is 'Where Time Stands Still' and it certainly has done so for the hundreds of beautifully preserved French-Colonial Cambodian antiques and fittings distributed throughout this 38-room-and-villa boutique hillside resort.
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10 reasons to stay at: Six Senses Hideaway Samui

Six Senses Hideaway SamuiThe Conde Nast Traveller Readers' Travel Awards recently proclaimed Six Senses Hideaway Samui not only the Best Leisure Hotel in Asia but also the best in the worldwide Top 100 List.
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Top 10 Samui Resorts

For some years now Asia Web Direct has annually highlighted the island's most successful Top Ten hotels. As the saying goes, "nothing succeeds like success" and here are AWD's Top Ten Most Successful Samui Hotels of 2008.
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Shasa Hotel Casavela

This newly built five-star, all-suite hotel on a compact six-rai beachside property makes the most of its refreshing sea breezes and views out over the Gulf of Thailand as well as maintaining state-of-the-art touches in its facilities, design and attitude.

The 32-suite, one beach-villa hotel features 100% sea view accommodation with spacious balconies and sumptuous room fittings, all featuring similar designs and leitmotifs.

Koh Samui From the breezy and colourful lobby to the well-appointed and atmospheric 'Z' restaurant, Shasa emanates class and succeeds in balancing cutting-edge modernity with a beachside feel.

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View Phangan and Olivio Restaurant

Beachside dining provides romantics with all the firepower they need to ignite that Love Bomb. This month we explore two options in this explosive culinary arsenal: Olivio, in Baan Haad Ngam Resort, Chaweng, and View Phanghan, in Melati Resort at Thongson Bay in the north of Koh Samui.
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Koh Tao Tour by Speedboat

Samui is surrounded by some 40 islands. Some of them have only recently been inhabited and some still aren't. Even though the movie version of Alex Gardner's 'The Beach' was filmed in Koh Phi Phi it was here in the lower Gulf of Thailand that the author imagined his idyllic islet to be. There are many day trips heading out to explore this wonderworld. We chose to head to Koh Tao and Nang Yuan – two neighbouring islands 90 minutes from Samui.
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Beach Dining in Koh Samui

Chaweng Beach is seven kilometres long and features for the most part powdery white sand. The sea is never rough and dangerous here and many people find strolling along at dusk after a hard day doing nothing a relaxing activity. Chaweng Beach at night seems worlds apart from the noisy hustle and bustle of the Beach Road with all its neon lights, hawkers and crowded bars whereas in reality it is no more than 300 metres away.
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Koh Phangan Full Moon Party

Haad Rin Nok Beach on Koh Phangan is regarded by many as one of the best places in the world for viewing the full moon. No surprise then, that it’s also the venue for the famed Full Moon Party – a must for travelers from all over the world. As with many famous events, no one seems quite sure when or how the Full Moon Party started. Read more...

Grandpa and Grandma Rocks (Hin ta & Hin yai)

Art often imitates Nature, but less common is Nature imitating Art, especially the Art of the Ribald. But in Thailand anything is possible including, on Koh Samui, the natural geological formations known as Hin Ta and Hin Yai Rocks (the Grandpa and Grandma rocks), which look, respectively, like male and female genitalia. The beachside rocks, located between Lamai and Hua Thanon, raise indulgent chuckles or embarrassed titters from those who go to see them. Even stranger, they are close to one another, giving rise to a convenient legend explaining how they came into being.
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What's up in Koh Samui

Super sexy ladies come to Samui, ferry fares go up and Koh Phangan celebrates its second film festival. Read all about it in Samui News...

Samui Hotel Updates

Not long ago, luxury or five-star accommodation choices were limited on Koh Samui. But now things are changing rapidly and it looks at though the island will soon have all the big names in the hotel industry, including such high-end international brands as Conrad, Starwood and Hyatt.
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