best thai islands for couples
Between Thailand’s islands of Phuket, Koh Samui and Koh Phangan, there is enough paradise for everyone.
Tropical karsts rising from the glistening sea; pure white sand slipping through toes; the chanting of monasteries Thailand’s islands are the archetypes of tropical paradise. The country’s largest isle is Phuket, a former trading post called Jung Ceylon locally known as Thalang, now the name of its main northern town. However, the island, set in the southern Andaman Sea, is not quite untouched. In the 18th century, it successfully defended its tin mines, fending off a Burmese invasion. Soon after, Chinese, Arab, Indian and Portuguese businessmen began migrating, adding a little spice to the local melting pot.
Those seeking solace will be best appeased in the island’s north a wildlife haven. Sirinat National Park combines coniferous forest, coral reef and 13 kilometres (eight miles) of white sandy beach. Forest meets soft sand at Hat Nai Yang, where baby turtles hatch and crabs scuttle from one shell to the next. The ocean here is a snorkelling gift from the gods complete with colourful coral reef. At Hat Sanambin, tourism has left more of a mark, with luxury resorts lining up for some of the island’s best views.
Further inland is the Gibbon Rehabilitation Project, which aims to counteract the damage done by poaching and animal abuse healing and protecting a crucial member of the local jungle environment. Visitors are welcome, but are not allowed to take flash photography or interact with the animals, as is done in zoos or less responsible conservation projects.
Further south, on the eastern side of the island, is Khao Phra Thaeo National Park, home to the angelic Bang Pae Waterfall. Just a short 15-minute hike, the verdant rainforest makes for a stunning picnic spot, and its swimming holes a refreshing break from the hot sun.
On the opposite side of the island is Hat Bang Tao, an eight-kilometre (five-mile) stretch of beach widely considered one of its most beautiful. Though some of it remains a sparse paradise, there are plenty of amenities, such as the stunning Laguna Phuket, which drops a heavy dose of luxury right in the middle of the sun-kissed shoreline. In recent years, the untouched stretch has seen a spike in restaurants, bars, shops and beach clubs all marked by a higher-than-average price tag.
Further south is a true hidden gem, only spoken of in whispers. A tuk-tuk ride and a precarious walk away, Hat Laem Sing is the tiny, virgin beach all island-hoppers dream of one day finding, yet never quite do.
The stretch is not far from Patong Beach, the island’s nightlife capital. Its backstreets are awash with bars, most notoriously Bangla Road, where merry crowds spill into the street navigating a dizzying network of go-go bars, food vendors, market stalls, clubs and street performers.
The island’s diverse cultural heritage is on full display throughout the eastern Phuket Town where the Old Town drifts between Chinese and Portuguese architecture, where gentrified cafes, art galleries and boutique hotels keep temples and shrines company. The Taoist Samkong Shrine was built by a wealthy Chinese family and continues to play a role in the lives of local villagers, who drop off offerings. It is also where, every year, during the Phuket Vegetarian Festival, hardy devotees make a show of their faith, by piercing their faces with spikes and swords.
Similarly, the small, 19th-century Shrine of the Serene Light is tucked in an alcove, surrounded by colourful, Portuguese-style buildings. The best place to start soaking in the Sino-Portuguese architecture, however, is Thalang Road, which runs through the Old Town, Talat Yai where the Thai restaurant, Blue Elephant, occupies a stunning restored mansion. It is also home to curiosities like Nguan Choon Tong, the island’s oldest herbalist, a novelty whose mystery can be smelled from the street outside.
Not too far away is the resplendent Buddhist Khao Rang Temple, home to the island’s first large Buddha icon set atop Rang Hill, adjacent to the remarkable Khao Rang viewpoint. However, Phuket’s real Big Buddha lives near the stunning Chalong Temple, atop a flight of stairs solemnly looking over the island’s rich forest and glittering beaches, with perhaps the finest views of all. Once a quintessential hippie escape, Thailand’s secondlargest island of Koh Samui has been driven upmarket a must-stop destination for the region’s island hoppers. Mirroring the growing influx of visitors, Chaweng Beach is its busiest and largest with a mix of families and backpackers jostling for their own slices of paradise. In the main stretch, one is never wanting for a bar, beach club or simple wandering vendor, a saviour with ice cream in hand. Unsurprisingly, adjacent to the beach is the island’s centre of restaurants, souvenir shops and drinking establishments.
Though still crowded, more solace can certainly be found at Bophut Beach the so-called Fisherman’s Village, named after its historic roots. Here, old Chinese shophouses converge with the rapidly extending fingerprints of modernism reimagined as a centre of artisanal cafes, quirky restaurants, quaint hotels and on-trend bars. Jet skis and go-karts are on hand for some excitement, and the beach is also the launching point for trips into Ang Thong Marine Park.
The park is a cluster of 42 tropical islets, which can be traversed by speed boat and explored on foot. It is an absolute wonderland for the wanderlusty, with gloomy caves, steeped in stalagmite and stalactite formations, limestone cliffs, saltwater lakes, mangroves and dry evergreen forests to explore. The ocean here is teeming with life, just begging to be experienced by snorkeller and diver alike; from sea turtles to parrotfish and sting rays. On land, the forests boast white-bellied sea eagles, bats, monitor lizards and pythons. Some islands even allow for overnight camping, and kayaking expeditions.
Back on the mainland, Maenam Beach offers up some true peace and quiet, with just enough restaurants to keep visitors happy and fed. Most of the local accommodation is high-end, which means hammocks and pampering.
Although the island has reinvented itself, its hippie roots still run deep, with the tropical paradise a natural setting for many a wellness retreat. Luxurious resorts such as Kamalaya offer up suites and villas, with stunning views of the island’s natural wonders complete with holistic treatment plans, encouraging guests to detox, eat well, meditate and learn yoga.
Meanwhile, the Dipabhavan Meditation Centre offers a slightly more intense, earthy option; a silent meditation retreat, where guests sleep on bamboo beds and wooden pillows, behind mosquito nets feasting on simple vegetarian dishes.
For something a little less extreme, there’s always the lure of the yoga retreat offered in abundance across the island, from the Sunart Centre, tucked away in the mountains, to the Orion Retreat Centre. The latter offers a wide variety of holistic therapy options, such as Reiki healing, with visitors enjoying the comfort of beachfront bungalows and villas on the island’s west coast. With an irresistible Thai spa menu hidden away from the noise and crowds, it is a cross between the best of the old Koh Samui, and the new.
For a true spiritual dalliance, Koh Samui’s magnificently colourful Wat Plai Laem temple sits atop a lake standing beside a spectacular statue of the bodhisattva of compassion, fanning her 18 arms, joined by a white laughing Buddha. Donations are rewarded with a bag of fish food, for the many hungry mouths encircling the temple.
The island of Koh Phangan was first made famous for its rambunctious Full Moon Party, where the crescent Hat Rin Beach is transformed into an enormous openair nightclub-cum-festival. Tens of thousands of neon-clad revellers flock to the event every month, notoriously drinking spirits mixed with energy drinks from buckets.
However, for those who find even the miniaturised Half Moon Party too wild for their liking, the island takes care of its beaches diligently cleaning them, and avoiding the temptation to open the Pandora’s box of overdevelopment. Visitors generally arrive at the port town of Thong Sala, the island’s capital, packed with banks, markets, restaurants and other amenities. Martial arts curiosos can even stop by to watch a Muay Thai bout or two, though this is not for the faint-hearted.
The town’s night food market sizzles and steams with a delicious array of made-to-order curries, noodles and banana pancakes. Travellers on a shoestring will also enjoy its many ‘All You Can Eat’ BBQ restaurants, for just £2.35 ($3) a head. Scooters are also available for hire, though it’s always a good idea to take photos before leaving the premises.
Of course, the island shines brightest away from the bustle, especially when the lunar partygoers have left. The northern fishing village at Chalok Lam bay sits along one of its prettiest beaches, kept company by an array of wooden and concrete shophouses, and a lingering smell of fish. However, this is no gimmick the fishermen still haul their fresh catches aboard colourful boats, ready to be enjoyed across the island’s various eateries.
Just down the beaten path, where the forest grows wilder, the shrines of Wat Pho and Wat Nok are overshadowed by the island’s Yang Na Yai trees. One 400-year-old specimen, at 53 metres (174 feet), is often-called the country’s largest of its kind. It’s a staggering landmark for Wat Pho’s herbal sauna, initially set up by the temple’s abbot to heal monks and help them unwind. Today, foreign visitors can enjoy sitting in the sauna, while a stew of herbs bubbles away, feeding them natural goodness to replace the released toxins.
A mountain hike away, on the opposite side of the island, is the stunning Hat Khuat, nicknamed Bottle Beach after the shape of its protected cove. Though it is not the easiest to get to, with its choppy waters often inaccessible to boats, it is well worth the sweat it takes to get there. Isolated and untouched, it is where the forested hills roll rapidly down to white, powdery shoreline; where rocks tease out of the translucent sea, and angelfish dance in the shadows. Coconut trees vie for supremacy, as birds soar heavenwards with the gentle breeze.
Waterfall chasers looking for a change of pace are sure to enjoy the Than Sadet National Koh Samui’sBophut Beach, once a fisherman’s village, is today a hotspot, full of cafes,restaurants and boutique hotels Koh Samui’smodernWat Plai Laemtemple is among itsmostinteresting, completewith an 18-armed giant bodhisattva of compassion Park, where the Nam Tok Phaeng waterfall tumbles down a cliff face, feeding the luscious jungle below. Navigating the thickets, full of geckos, banded bullfrogs, monkeys and monitor lizards, is best enjoyed by hikers climbing up the path to the island’s highest point, the peak of Khao Ra mountain 625 metres (2,050 feet) high.
However, one of the country’s best sunsets can be enjoyed at the dramatically nicknamed ‘Secret Beach’ a sandy cove to the northwest. Though the spot plays host to a scattering of subtle resorts and bars, serving up refreshing strawberry daiquiris, it is not hard to steer clear of the crowds. The reward for daring to venture this far afield is a slow and silent sunset, dressing all the world in its warmth.
Phi Phi Islands
Phi Phi Islands boast some of the world’s most stunning landscapes. The smaller of the two, Phi Phi Leh is home to Maya Bay, featured as the idyllic tropical paradise in the 2000 film The Beach. Elsewhere, Viking Cave hides within a limestone cliff, harbouring swifts’ nests collected by sea gypsies and 400-year-old cave paintings, depicting various ships. Visitors can only stop over during the day, as there is no accommodation, and camping is prohibited. Last year, the Thai government closed the bay temporarily, in an attempt to undo some of the damage caused by the roughly 3,700 daily visitors.
Phi Phi Don, the larger island, is rather more developed with no shortage of accommodation, bars and eateries. Though it remains roadless, one is never too far from thumping bass and strong cocktails. The half-hour, winding hike to Phi Phi viewpoint, brings some solace, with a panoramic view to die for at the top.
Phi Phi Island Village resort offers an escape to the island’s north, shielded by thick overgrowth. Further afield, Phi Phi Natural Resort creates even more distance from the crush of crowds and parties, tucked between the forested hills and a beautiful private beach.
Koh Lanta
This archipelago is among Thailand’s trickiest to reach, a journey across air, land and sea. It is therefore among the country’s less visited a stunning set of 52 islands in the southern Krabi province. Although resorts cater to the discerning needs of ultra-luxe travellers, it is still very much a land of naked, pearlescent shores, crystal sea and colourful reef. Just south of the main Saladan Pier.
Phra Ae Beach is dressed in pine trees, with sparse hotels, high-end apartments and delicious restaurants tucked neatly away from the views of paradise.
However, the best beaches are all hidden further south. Klong Jark Beach is not only among its quietest, but a brilliant launchpad for expeditions into the jungle. The crowds continue thinning in the south, towards the Mu Ko Lanta National Park.
As the smaller island of Koh Lanta, Noi is frequented even less by outsiders its empty beaches, rubber plantations and Muslim fishing villages ripe for exploration.
Koh Tao
Set between the islands of Koh Samui and Koh Phangan, Koh Tao is smaller than both, but offers a little of each. Named ‘Turtle Island’, after its abundant population of sea turtles, its waters are prime diving territory swarming with the Gulf of Thailand’s finest. However, turtles are not the only seadwellers in town. While sharks and eagle rays encircle sunken shipwrecks, reef fish hurry among the coral.
The island has 25 dive sites in all, many reached by fishing boat. Meanwhile, its shallow bays and limestone karsts make for stunning snorkelling territory. Lionfish zip by seahorses, gently rocking above zebra-stripe sea kraits, slithering along the sandy bed below. This underwater world truly resembles an alien planet, as flatworms ripple like paper, mingling with polka dot and rainbow-coloured sea slugs.
Koh Tao also boasts abundant jungle hikes, and a party culture with its very own cocktail, the Sangsom bucket made of Sangsom Rum, Mekong Whisky, Coca-Cola, and the country’s beloved energy drink. M-150.
