1 Week in Koh Samui

Our time in Koh Samui was great. The last time I was there, it was way too brief and we barely left the hotel so I wanted to take this chance to explore more of the island.

So this time around, we rented a car and ended up doing a loop around the whole place. We also did a little bit of jewelry shopping, got Hainanese chicken a few times, and also indulged in a few spa sessions.

We stayed at the Renaissance Marriott Koh Samui, which is where my sis and I stayed before. It's a friggin' awesome hotel and I would stay here again and again and again. Each couple stayed in their own villa and it was so luxe and comfortable.

For dinner, we went to Tawann, which is the hotel restaurant. It's actually really delicious. We didn't see our favorite server from our last visit, but we still had a great time.

In the morning, we got up and went to the best breakfast buffet I've ever eaten. Afterwards, we indulged in some pool time and then headed to the spa.

After our relaxing massages, we walked around the hotel grounds and explored the beach.

In the evening, we took the hotel shuttle to the Lamai Night Market. It was much smaller than we remembered it being; apparently covid forced it into downsizing. We enjoyed a few kebabs and drank some fresh juice before heading back to the hotel to get dinner at Tawann again.

In the morning, I got up early to try and catch the sunrise. Even though we were on the southern side of the island and I couldn't properly see the sun, the sky still looked glorious.

After eating breakfast, we got picked up by a shuttle and taken to the marina to take a boat tour to the Ang Thong National Marine Park. It was so much fun. We picked a speedboat tour, which took us to a snorkeling spot, an island for a hike to a gorgeous viewpoint, kayaking, and the Emerald Lagoon.

For dinner we went to Tawann a third time and ordered the seafood platter special. It was a fun and delicious dinner.

In the morning, my sis and I went to yoga, which was super fun. It was a good workout and the instructor was so cool and had us do a bunch of acrobatic poses.

We had also signed up for a photography session with one of the staff, which wasn't the best, but it was free and we still had fun.

This was also the first day of our rental car. We picked it up around noon and then headed out to our first destination: Hin Ta & Hin Yai, which are a bunch of rocks that look like genitalia.

After that, it was off to Wat Sila Ngu, the red clay temple.

And then we went to Wat Phra Chedi Laem So. It was an extra good time for me because we met a cute little doggy.

And then it was off to another temple: Wat Khunaram where they have a mummified monk.

By this time, we were feeling pretty peckish, so we stopped by a convenience store for snacks and then tried out some Thai McDonald's.

For dinner, since we had the rental car, we ventured out of the hotel and went to a Hainanese chicken rice place.

In the morning, I attempted to watch the sunrise again. This time, it wasn't as majestic, but it was still peaceful and beautiful.

It should be noted that I went and got free hotel breakfast every morning. I ordered Thai iced teas every time, had a bowl of congee every time, and over-indulged every time.

After breakfast, we got picked up by our cooking instructor. We stopped by a local Thai market to pick up ingredients and then headed to their outdoor kitchen to learn to cook some authentic Thai dishes.

I booked with Smiley Cook and learned to make pad thai, panang curry, papaya salad, steamed fish, and then they gave us some bananas in coconut milk for dessert. 

After our cooking class, we hopped back in our rental car and visited Big Buddha and then we watched the sunset.

For dinner, we headed to the Bophut Fisherman Village for the Night Market. We indulged in pad thai, some mango sticky rice, barbecue ribs, roast duck, and coconut ice cream.

The next morning, my sis and I attended another morning yoga session and learned a few new acrobatic moves.

Then we got breakfast and headed out for the day.

We visited the Namuang Waterfall, Lipa Noi Beach, and the Hin Lat Waterfall.

Once we'd had our fill of hiking and waterfalls, we ended up hopping around from jewelry store to jewelry store, buying some gold souvenirs. For dinner, we stopped by another Hainanese chicken rice place on the way back to our hotel.

The next morning, we just spent some time relaxing and enjoying each other's company before we packed it up and headed to the airport to our next destination.

And here's my video diary from Koh Samui: