#returntotravel | Koh Samui | Thailand

 

Ever just need to escape?

Well, that's what Thailand was for me this year: an escape.

Much like wanting to go home to Baguio was last December, Thailand was this year's reprieve from the lows of 2023.

Every year brings hardships, and places like Koh Samui are blessings when we need to reflect on the highs.

Koh Samui's Beyond Samui Resort was an excellent place to relax, unwind and recuperate from the stresses of 2023.

Koh Samui in general also offered fun day trips like:

Piggy Island with Smorkling

I was unsure about this when my sister first told me about this experience, but now I'm glad we did it!

As much as the highlight was to feed the pigs on this island, I enjoyed the boat ride and the snorkelling that came as part of this day-trip package.

Koh Mad Sum (Piggy Island) had shallow shores perfect for swimming and relaxing. Neighbouring islands offered snorkelling, kayaking and fishing opportunities for tourist. Overall, it was an excellent way to spend the day.

Samui Elephant Home

I really enjoyed visiting an elephant sanctuary in Samui. I was releived to hear that there were many elephant sanctuaries on the island. Making these protein balls and feeding them to the elephants gave me so much joy!

Marie (above), Hong (her bestie), Bahn and Lucky (Marie's adopted baby) call Samui Elephant Home their - you guessed it - home.

Cared for by individual carers plus educational directors for tourists, these four elephants are well looked after and recuperated. I recommend researching and visiting an elephant sanctuary.

Jeep Jungle Safari

This was a fun tour. 

Picked up by an adventure Jeep and taken to Wat Plai Laem as the initial meeting point, they day is filled with jungle exploration and temple sites. 

I actually wanted to check out temples while I was in Samui and this tour surprisingly had plenty to see! It meant that my sister and I didn't need to add an extra day to visit temples near by. The tour guides took us to so many that I felt like we saw most of the temples on the island.

The highlight of the tour was swimming at the pool end of a waterfall! The freshwater pool was a cool reprieve from the Thai humidity and a really fun experience. Short, but fun.

Another feature was the Tarnim Magic Garden. A hidden temple within the jungle, this garden features its own mini waterfall as well as a series of stone statues that portray Buddhist beliefs.

After lunch, the tour ends at Pra Buddha Dipankara Temple. The highest point of the Island is home to a temple with plenty of stairs for a 360° view of the island and the Samui Museum (which I did not visit, apologies fellow museum lovers, I was too tired after the walk up the stairs!).

Overall, Koh Samui was an excellent escape from my 2023 stressors. I am definitely thinking about revisiting in the future.

sL xxx