Unforgettable Day Trip in Thailand: Ang Thong National Park

We spent the first part of our G Adventures tour exploring the northern part of Thailand including an amazing visit with elephants in Chiang Mai.  We took a 50 minute  flight from Bangkok to southern Thailand for a week of island hopping and rainforest trekking.  After landing in Ko Samui our tour guide and van driver escorted us to the main strip of a busy little beach town. 

Ko Samui is an island in the white square of this map.  The main strip is bustling with international young people visiting beach front bars and clubs as well as hostels for inexpensive accommodations. 

Our hotel the Mercure at Chaweng has a very nice pool area, air conditioned rooms with decent showers and breakfast is included.   Across the street from the hotel is a beautiful white sandy beach.  The water is clean and warm and so very salty.  I paid 200 Baht ($6) for a cushioned lounge chair under tree.  Along with a place to sit for the day I also had access to the hotel bar, pool and toilets.  Well worth it.

The next day our group crossed the island of Ko Samuii and took a ferry 90 minutes to the Ang Thong National Park. This park is made up of 43 islands surrounded by beautiful turquoise water.  The ferry moored near one of the bigger islands and we boarded smaller long boats to reach the beach.

The first island had a sandy beach and a steep hiking trail to the top of the mountain.  Stone steps were lined with ropes on the side to assist in the climb.  The climb is steep but he views were spectacular, especially from the top.

After the hike, we returned to the ferry where chicken curry, rice, vegetables and watermelon were waiting for us.  The next island we had a  kayaking lesson on the sand then followed the leader around the island and through some caves. Very cool.

 

After hiking it was off on another hike that overlooked a green lagoon at the peak.

We weren’t the only foreign tourists on this trip.  The trails were crowded. Not sure where he was from. LOL

After the hike I used my goggles and went for a swim.  The water was amazingly clear and clean. Little fish of many colors joined me in a refreshing swim above the undamaged coral reef. It was an amazing day with spectacular views and I finally got some much needed exercise!

Our group enjoyed dinner near our hotel back in Ko Samui at a Swedish restaurant that served Australian steak. Yummy!

Off  to the rainforest now if I can leave this beach: Next post:

Jungle Trekking at night or my least favorite thing to do in Thailand rainforest.