A few secrets of Thai magic

By BRUCE HEILBUTH

Our speedboat bumps over a powderblue sea off the coast of the Thai resort island of Samui. Bracing my legs and squinting against spray, I stare ahead to where a group of jagged islets loom like broken teeth on the horizon.

“That’s Ang Thong marine park,” our guide shouts over the roar of the engines. “There are 42 islands here, maybe the most beautiful in all Thailand.”

As we approach we see a series of limestone massifs, cloaked in rainforest and ringed by white beaches, rising dramatically from the water. Soon we are snorkelling over coral bommies amid blizzards of tropical fish. Later we move on to a fishing village for a lunch of deep-fried skewered prawns, omelettes and chicken curry in coconut milk.

Experiences like these are among the plethora of attractions enticing visitors to Koh Samui (koh: island) in the Gulf of Thailand south of Bangkok. Now the most popular island destination in the kingdom after Phuket, Koh Samui is an oasis of nodding palms, beaches, cheerful locals and languid resorts for all budgets.

Just some of the reasons more and more Indian visitors from Australia as well as the subcontinent are holidaying here.

“Indian guests like the personalised service we can give and the large villas that can accommodate the whole family,” says Nigel Tovey, General Manager of the Baan Taling Ngam Resort & Spa, one of the island’s premier properties set on a wooded hillside overlooking the ocean. “They also like the quiet beaches away from city noise . . . other resorts are just too noisy for them.”

Luke Salway, Resident Manager of Silavadee, another, new resort on Koh Samui, agrees that Indian visitors enjoy the seclusion and shun the busier areas. “We’ve just had a family to stay who never left the hotel – they went to breakfast, the spa, their pool villa, dinner and back to, the villa! And our chefs make wonderful vegetarian curries.”

So important has this market become, he adds, that Silavadee’s sales team recently completed a trip to India and is now contracted directly to many Indian agents. Many resorts on the island and elsewhere in Thailand cater for the Australian Indian community in a similar fashion.

In addition to appreciating that fact that flights from Delhi to Bangkok are just five hours and those from Sydney to Bangkok are nine hours, the visitors appreciate the accommodation deals available on Samui, a 40-minute flight from the capital. Resort rates start at around $80 per night and remarkable discounts of up to 75% are available depending on the time of the year. For folks who want to do more than sit by the pool, there’s activity ranging from elephant trekking to clubbing, shopping, cycling, diving among sharks and enjoying massages in cool, scented spas. These are the ingredients that make a visit among the gentle Thais an experience that lives in the memory long after the trip is over.

For more information on Thailand, visit www.thailand.net.au

Main picture: Limestone islands off Koh Samui rise dramatically from the water.

Inset from left: A room at the Baan-Taling Ngam Resort & Spa, an elephant ready for a jungle trek and a pool at the Pavilion Samui boutique resort

•

•

•

“The internship placement was very helpful. It gave me real practice at a local IT company, where I was able to experience how a local company does business. I learnt so many skills there.”

“There are great discussions in Professional Year classes where students and teachers can exchange ideas.”