Must see places with your Kids

When people think of Thailand many people think of Phuket, Thailand’s largest and most touristy island. Our family likes to travel to less busy places and we mostly stay away from over commercialized areas so Koh Samui was the perfect island for us. Ko Samui is Thailand’s second largest island located in the Gulf of Thailand off the east coast. It is only an hour flight from Bangkok making it a very accessible destination but not yet as busy as Phuket. Koh Samui is known for its beautiful beaches lined with palm trees, dense mountainous rainforest and luxury resorts and villas. It also has amazing food, markets, hiking and even a 12m-tall golden Big Buddha statue at Wat Phra Yai Temple, a local must see landmark.

Here are some amazing things to do on this island that has a little something for everyone! We stayed here for 7 days which we felt was a good amount of time to explore the island.

STUNNING BEACHES

You really can’t go wrong with any beach on this island but we had a few favorites:

Chaweng Beach

This beach is located on the East Coast and is the longest beach on Koh Samui. It is a very busy beach lined with many resorts and restaurants but when you see it you know why. The sand is soft, powdery and white and the water is a beautiful blue color.  It is absolutely stunning! Be sure to walk the streets of the busy town of Chaweng which is packed with shops and restaurants. Lots of fun restaurants to try with delicious budget friendly Thai food.

Lamai Beach

Lined with fancy resorts, this beach is stunning with beautiful sand and calm warm water. We had to find parking outside of the resort along a narrow road and walk in but it was so worth it. The water here is clean and so is the beach. There’s also restaurants and cafes along this beach so it’s easy to grab a quick bite. We stayed in a Villa close to Bophut to keep costs down but if you’re looking for luxury resorts the ones here would not disappoint. It is much quieter than Chewang if you’re looking for a more peaceful place to stay.

Bophut Beach

This beach is located on the North part of Koh Samui behind the Fisherman’s Market. The sand there is more yellow and coarse but it is quite large and has water activities that you can do. There weren’t many people there so we found it very relaxing.

WATERFALL HIKES

Our family enjoys being active and a must-do at every place we visit is to find the best family-friendly hiking spots. We hit up two hikes on this island that are worth checking out.

Namuang Waterfall (Namuang I and II)

These two waterfalls (located close to each other) are accessible by car and there are parking lots for each of them and a fairly short hike. We chose to park at Namuang I, and did the short hike only a few minutes from the car park area. It is the most popular waterfall so it is quite busy and there is a market there to buy food, drinks, souvenirs, etc.

At these falls you are able to cool off in a creek at the bottom which can be perfect in the tropical heat. This waterfall is the most accessible if you’re wanting just a quick walk to see a waterfall.

For the second waterfall, Namuang II, you can either drive or walk there which will take you about 45 minutes. Once there it’s about a 1 km hike up from where you would park. Walking to the parking lot plus doing the hike was quite hard because of the heat and humidity. Our kids were troopers and managed it with lots of stops to drink water and rest in the shaded areas. This waterfall is far less busy than the other one which is great. There is even a waterslide that drops into a natural murky pool below but the slide wasn’t on when we were there. There’s also a huge drop off the waterslide so we didn’t think we’d let the kids go down it even it was open. And….what is in that murky water anyway?

BIG BUDDHA TEMPLE – WAT PRAH YAI

You can’t miss this guy which is located close to Bophut and Fisherman’s Village. You walk up a set of stairs to see the statue and you can look out and get a view of the neighbouring island Koh Phangan. It is a religious site so be sure to follow the dress code or they will not let you in meaning make sure your legs and arms are covered. There are sarongs you can borrow if you forget to bring one and there are people watching to make sure you dress appropriately.  There are also many cafes, clothing stores and souvenir shops located near the temple so you can get some shopping in as well.

Unfortunately, we missed Big Smiling Buddha which looks incredible. We didn’t find out about it until after we left so I suggest you check that out.

Fun Facts: Did you know that “wat” means temple and “Koh” means island?

FISHERMAN’S VILLAGE

Located in Bophut, this is a must-see! It is a walking street with a market/shopping area lined with traditional old-style shops with modern cafes and restaurants that are right on the beach. Normally fairly quiet, it comes alive Friday nights as a market where you can buy clothing, jewelry, fabric and other unique market items. There are also food stalls with delicious things like pad Thai, spring rolls and banana pancakes for a taste of traditional fare.

AWESOME FOOD & SMOOTHIES

An important part of travelling is to experience the local cuisine and the food in Thailand does not disappoint! From traditional Pad Thai to fresh fruit smoothies made on the street, you will be in heaven. There are three notable places that we went to:

• Had Bang Po – this was voted as the number one beach restaurant in the world in Travel & Leisure magazine. The Pad Thai and seafood were amazing but really, it was about the view. The tables are only about 10 feet back from the edge of the water and you bury your feet into the soft powdery sand while looking out over the ocean. The kids loved it as they could play in the sand while waiting for the food.
• Hemmingways on the Beach – is located in Throng Krut which is on the south coast of Koh Samui. The tables are inside but the restaurant is located right on the beach. It is owned by an ex-pat and the food is incredible. It is pricier than most Thai food places, especially street food but they pride themselves on high cleanliness and food safety standards as well as the freshest ingredients. The fish gets caught in the morning and cooked that day!
• Sweet Sisters Café – if you’re looking for vegetarian and vegan-friendly food, this is the place. It does have meat and also has something there for everyone. It’s a health food café and there is a health food store right next to the café. Their homemade and granola are. The café is clean but it is pricey.
• Fresh fruit smoothies & shakes – you must try the roadside fresh fruit smoothies! Filled with tropical fruit like fresh coconut, mango, pineapple, bananas and other fruit grown locally and blended together, you are in smoothie heaven. Priced at about $2 Cdn for a large smoothie, you can’t get better than this. I will dream about these forever!

THAI MASSAGE

You cannot visit Thailand and not get a Thai massage! We found a place we loved in Bophut and it only cost about $20 for 90 minutes. We loved it so much that we ended up going here even with the kids. It was their first massage ever and the ladies that worked there were so professional and kind. I had a nagging shoulder injury that almost completely went away after my first appointment. I can’t rave more about having a Thai Massage.