Help with Ko Samui, PLZ???!!!

Hello- was wanting to know what port Princess Sapphire will dock in Nov.24, 17?

And has anyone just rented a car for the day and toured the Island on their own?

thank

Donnakg:confused:

It was a tender port for our recent P&O cruise near Na Thon on the north west side of the island. There were lots of taxi drivers with cars and vans waiting where the tenders dropped us off. We had no problems getting one to take us to the other side of the island and wait for us while we shopped and had a swim at Chaweng Beach. We paid him at the end of the day.

We were there on Golden Princess and, like P&O, the ship anchored off Na Thon. There were heaps of taxis available at the tender wharf and prices seemed reasonable.

oz61 and OzkiwiJJ-- thanks for the info.

Did you by chance see any car rental agencies there also?

Also is the town of Nathorn and Na Thon the same thing, confusing?LOL

thanks Donnakg

When we tendered at Ko Samui in Nov 2016 (Azamara Journey) it was VERY windy and the local tenders (NOT our lifeboats) were having a tough time connecting to our ship. Tendering took a VERY LONG time. It took us 4 attempts to tie up on our return trip. We had no plans, and in fact, just walked around Na Thon, had a beer and a foot/leg massage, but I felt bad for people who had booked tours or made plans - many were late getting there, I'm sure. These things happen in tender ports....

I googled and found car hire places, don't recall seeing them in port, but then we weren't looking, so.... ;p

Hoyaheel--

thanks for your input. We also are in Nov , 2017.

Maybe we'll be better to just wing it,

thanks Donnakg

As others have noted, the pier completely fills up with guides & taxis, though - we were inundated with offers as we tried to walk off the pier to explore on our own (not in a scary way - just in a crowded Asian way:D) Pier was completely empty on our return- locals clearly know when the cruise ships arrive and show up in time....

Can you just get off the boat and walk around in Ko Samui or do you need to have an agenda?

I have been thinking about trying to hire quad bikes but interested in what else is there.

Ko Samui is a comparatively large area with at least four distinct beach areas with their respective towns. We have stayed at Chewang, Lamai, and Bohput. We have not stayed on the other beaches. We arrived and departed by ferry, close to where the cruise ships anchor.

Bohput is the smallest of the three. An old fishing village. Interesting area but the beach is not great for walking since it is very much on an incline into the water. Chewang and Lanai are beside each other. Both great for walking with small bars along the beach. Lamai has some interesting rocks at the end of the beach. You can sit on the chairs/beds for free as long as you order a drink. Lots of vendors selling food. We regularly ate lunch on the beach. Lamai has a larger commercial area, more hotels and restaurants.

Lots of cabs, lots of motorcycle cabs.

There are also some great day trips from Sumui. If you select one, a local told us never to pay the adult rate-always insist on the childs rate. This is what we do and we have never paid more.

thanks iancal! great info!

I understand that there will be taxi's, etc. at the port of Koh Samui in Thailand. I've read that dollars and euros are accepted....can someone comment on this? :cool:

Thank you.:)

Some photos of our day in Koh Samui last year. We spent a relaxing day there.

Some photos of our day in Koh Samui last year. We spent a relaxing day there.

Thank you for sharing your photos....looks like a great DIY (do it yourself) Day. :cool:

Hi just wondering about tours offered privately around Ko Samui thinking of just getting one on the dock. We do not really want to sit on the beach for the day.

Any suggestion appreciated

Thank you :)

There are some fabulous day trips by speedboat out to the islands w/kayaking and swimming. We travelled by land and stayed for a week so it was easy to arrange tours. I suspect that you might find some people selling tours at the dock.

Can you just get off the boat and walk around in Ko Samui or do you need to have an agenda?

 

I have been thinking about trying to hire quad bikes but interested in what else is there.

Yes. Taxi prices on the pier seemed to be set, so we went for a short walk off the pier. Then when a taxi pulled up in the town, he agreed to a reasonable price for four hours, stopping and waiting for us at a couple of beautiful beaches.

Make sure you have a full day for a tour. I had wanted to do a cooking class but we were only in port a few hours so wasn't able to fit anything into my schedule. We're not beach people, so we tendered to the pier and walked around the port (Na Thon), had a beer and a foot massage (we got Thai baht at an ATM - we were in bangkok for 2 days after and knew we'd use it)

I'm glad we didn't book anything because (as I noted above) tendering was very problematic when we were in port and was taking much longer than usual to get on & off the ship. And I was on a small ship!!! Can't imagine trying to do it with 2000 or however many.....

Some photos of our day in Koh Samui last year. We spent a relaxing day there.

Thank you for posting this link to your blog of the HAL Far East Discovery cruise which we will be doing soon. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it and looking at your great photos!

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Yes. Taxi prices on the pier seemed to be set, so we went for a short walk off the pier. Then when a taxi pulled up in the town, he agreed to a reasonable price for four hours, stopping and waiting for us at a couple of beautiful beaches.

Thanks for the info. :)

Make sure you have a full day for a tour. I had wanted to do a cooking class but we were only in port a few hours so wasn't able to fit anything into my schedule. We're not beach people, so we tendered to the pier and walked around the port (Na Thon), had a beer and a foot massage (we got Thai baht at an ATM - we were in bangkok for 2 days after and knew we'd use it)

 

I'm glad we didn't book anything because (as I noted above) tendering was very problematic when we were in port and was taking much longer than usual to get on & off the ship. And I was on a small ship!!! Can't imagine trying to do it with 2000 or however many.....

Thanks for your info. :)

Thank you for posting this link to your blog of the HAL Far East Discovery cruise which we will be doing soon. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it and looking at your great photos!

 

Sent from my SM-G800F using Forums mobile app

Thank you for reading and thanks for the kind words! Have a wonderful cruise!

Thank you for sharing your photos....looks like a great DIY (do it yourself) Day. :cool:

You are most welcome! It was a very relaxing day.

Some photos of our day in Koh Samui last year. We spent a relaxing day there.

Fab photos - going to hopefully repeat your experience -thanks again

H

Fab photos - going to hopefully repeat your experience -thanks again

 

H

You are very welcome! Have a wonderful cruise!

Our experience from a land trip to Ko Samui several years ago is that the beaches are great- but each one is different.

Same with the speedboat trips out to the other islands to see the limestone karst islands, do some kayaking, hiking, etc. We did several of these. They were great. There are similar formations on the Adaman Sea side near Phuket and in Halong Bay. Local food is very good-especially at the markets.

We spent a week. A few days in each of three locations. Taxis were cheap as were minibuses. There were plenty of both. We never really bothered with a rental car. We were not interested in the on island venues such as elephants farms etc. You will also find motorbike taxis.