Tubtim Resort

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A hop and a skip from Bangkok, Koh Samet is one of Thailand's most visited islands, although the place really gets busy at the weekend.

We took the bus from the Ekkamai Eastern terminal to Ban Phe where ferries depart for the island. It took a little longer than the 3 hours we had been told, but was cheap and we got a snack!



Tired as we boarded the boat, the 45 minute journey was bathed in a beautiful light as the sun went down across the far side of the island.



We had been recommended a few places to stay, but the Tubtim resort sounded like the best all rounder - away from the hustle of the main stretch, where the beach is covered with deckchairs from water to bar, but not so isolated that we couldn't explore a little.

We did try to hire a scooter and drive around the island one day but, unlike in other places in Thailand, this proved quite difficult due to the terrible condition of the roads.

Tubtim was a pretty good place to stay ,although the staff got more surly with us as our week drew on and in the end we discovered a much more friendly and professional establishment on the next beach with better food.

While we were there though, it was fine. We tried the fried fish with spicy salad one night, which was rather expensive at 350Baht and disappointingly appeared to be just a deep fried fish with a papaya salad tossed on top.



One of the reasons we couldn't leave the resort though was because of the little puppy dog that Sophie bonded with. He was rather cute and took a shine to us, hanging out at our bungalow at every opportunity.



The bungalows here are situated up the hill behind the beach, with more expensive air-con ones closer and the one we had tucked away in the staff quarters (we went budget!)

The shop, kitchens and reception were near the bungalows and then the restaurant is just off the beach, with tables spreading down to the sand.

We took advantage of their free wifi and hung out at the restaurant a lot of the time.



Even so close to Bangkok and with a large number of tourists each year, the beach here is extremely well kept with soft white sand and turquoise clear water. We enjoyed swimming and cooling off in the beach, while further along you could take jet skis, banana boats and the like.



This beach also boasts a fine view of sunrise and we attempted to get up to see it on a couple of occasions. Unfortunately it was a bit cloudy both times, but you can still get an idea of the amazing colours in the sky from this picture.



There are probably nicer resorts on the island, but for the money, I think we got a reasonable deal. It got a lot busier at the weekend when locals descend on the island and the staff were quite rude during these hectic periods, but all in all, we had a great stay.

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