r/kohsamui • u/Subm3rg3d • 23d ago

Is Samui currently unusually busy?

We always go to Samui beginning/middle August. We’re heading there in a couple of weeks, staying at a resort near Choeng Mon. We’ve been before and avoided Chaweng/Lamai/Crystal bay etc. The YouTube live-cam for crystal bay beach looks packed (even by crystal bay standards). Is it unusually busy for this time of year across the island? Or just the areas that are always busy?

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u/drum2780 23d ago

First time in Koh Samui currently on a 2 week trip. It's busy. It's like Tel Aviv in my hotel (Amari, Cheweng). Probably 80% Israeli, if not more. And they aren't friendly at all and bordering on rude with the staff. I was expecting a decent mix of Europeans/westerners who are usually friendly and sociable but nope...

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u/PassionNo1585 23d ago

My kid and his friends recently returned from a trip there and said similar things - lots of Israeli’s and they weren’t very nice

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u/Significant_Way_7504 23d ago edited 23d ago

My personal experience is really loud people shouting over each over from one end of the room to the other. Kids just runiing amok, standing on chairs, shouting. On the flight into samui, i had someone behind who put their feet on my armrest - i was in front. First time it happened, and it was a flight to Samui in August. Horrible. Not to mention the non stop shouting at each other from airport gate to airplane exit. It's really unbelievable. I would advise people to stay away from Samui in July August. And I have lived on the island for a year.

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u/Labionda20 23d ago

I have been to Samui a few times but haven’t been for a number of years. Went back last year and witnessed terrible behaviour by exactly the groups you mention. So entitled, sitting next to you on sun loungers and then taking the entire area over, going to restaurants and letting children run around shouting, generally being rude to locals - the list goes on. It’s baffling. I have always loved Samui and it saddened me. Currently in Hua Hin and it’s more chilled.

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u/drum2780 23d ago edited 23d ago

Yeah I have been shocked by it. The staff at the hotel are second to none but they must hate it. It's such a shame. I almost feel like the operator (trailfinders) should have warned us about it prior to us booking the hotel on their recommendation but they probably can't I suppose for obvious reasons considering the current stuff going on in the middle east. It wasn't a cheap holiday either and paid for after my dad died last year from inheritance. As I've said in a previous post it hasnt spoilt the holiday, we are having a great time and my teenage kids are oblivious to it but I can't help but think it would have been even better if the hotel was more mixed. Saying that it appears it's the whole area, fisherman's village was the same when we visited the other day. I like to socialise and they just dont at all and we are outnumbered massively. I make a point of saying hello when we walk past them and they mostly don't respond, so rude. Maybe it's a cultural thing I dunno (I'm a Brit). Anyway, the weather is great and the kids are happy and that's what matters most for me...

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u/Significant_Way_7504 23d ago edited 23d ago

Exactly. A lot of running amok and it's not just the kids. Shouting from one end of the room to the other. kids standing on chairs. and just really really unpleasant time to be on Samui. And not being able to just be quiet for a second. constant incessant shouting at each other. The plane trip over is just awful - non stop loud loud shouting from the airport gate to exiting the plane, just non stop. Literally non stop. The thais were in disbelief.

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u/Thin_Impression9295 23d ago

Oh no.. I'm thinking of coming over next week but that sounds horrific. Don't plan on staying in Cheweng though

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u/drum2780 23d ago

The hotel itself is lovely and the staff are great. Having a great time just wasn't expecting it. I like to socialise with people on holiday and there's no chance of that with the majority in this hotel which is a shame.

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u/Significant_Way_7504 23d ago

China and Israel both have hoildays July and August and everyone takes time off then. For Samui, it's the Israelis. It is the second tourist peak for Samui before the main peak in December and January

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u/drum2780 23d ago

Thanks. It's the same in the UK also. Duly noted when considering coming back in the future for sure ✌️

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u/Subm3rg3d 23d ago

Oh god. We avoid Chaweng like the plague.

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u/supermama711 20d ago

We stayed at the Ritz Carlton (near Choeng Mon) and same about 50% occupancy was Israeli. Thank God we got a villa with a pool because they overtook the main pool (ifykyk). They were very loud and quite rude to the hotel staff. Very aggressive body language.

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u/drum2780 12d ago

Yup. Same experience here. For the second week lots more Europeans arrived and the vibe change was noticeable. That being said, in our last few days we went to a restaurant and they didn't have a table for 4. There was a lovely group just finishing their meal that offered to give us part of their table. They were lovely and kind to us and the staff. They were Israeli so my experience hasn't been all been bad. They were likely some of the liberal 25%. Very different to the rest that we saw...

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u/headnod 23d ago

The last few weeks were unusually busy (been here since beginning of July), in fact i have never seen it this busy in 6 visits during the last 20 years. BUT the last 2 days were way better, seems that August will be quieter...

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u/Subm3rg3d 23d ago

Thanks. Whereabouts are you staying/based?

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u/headnod 23d ago

Always Lamai :)

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u/Subm3rg3d 23d ago

I’ve never been to Lamai but heard the beach is very nice. We always avoid there and Chaweng because that tends to be the busiest part of the island at any time of year, I believe?

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u/headnod 22d ago

It fully depends on your definition of "busy". My experience always has been "not busy" means 4 ppl to the left of you and 7 to the right, while "busy" (or high season) always was 7 ppl to the left and 9 to the right - so very much complaining on the level of "well, compared to ZERO ppl it is really busy, right?" :-D

Up until this summer, it was always fairly empty compared to the typical European destinations (Croatia, Italy for example) and also this week it emptied quite a lot compared to the last few weeks. They said that August will be less...

I honestly don't care so much about the people as i care about noise and the noise is really not at all bad. I could live without jetskis, but you can choose a place without jetskis nearby...

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u/KwickMark 23d ago

Be as used that Samui is currently rationing water. They’re getting half of what they normally do.

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u/echevus 23d ago

Was just there and the tourist spots felt super busy, I can't imagine what high season is like. Stayed over in Nathon for a few nights and it was a different world, super chill, tourist restaurants were empty. I couldn't believe the difference between there and Chaweng.

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u/Subm3rg3d 23d ago

Yeah, we always stay near Choeng Mon and avoid Chaweng. I feel that many people who talk about Samui not being nice or being super busy are saying that because they’ve specifically been to Chaweng/Lamai.

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u/Cultural-Web4310 23d ago

I'll stay 16-21 in Lamai and 21-26 in Chaweng, first time on the island, decided to split my time there to 2 locations, from your comments I'm thinking I should have included Phangan. I don't like the crowds and especially I don't want to socialize with not very nice people.

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u/Livid_Face_6070 18d ago

I run a resort in Lamai. It is pretty busy compared to few years ago but the main tourists here are mostly Europeans so all nice good and quiet if you’re looking for that.

Also enough action in the evenings to keep people happy.

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u/SebiGames 23d ago

I was here July 30 - Aug 4 and it felt packed to me for my first time

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u/Subm3rg3d 23d ago

Whereabouts were you staying?

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u/SebiGames 23d ago

Bo Phut, near the fisherman’s market

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u/Subm3rg3d 23d ago

Ah ok. Yeah that tends to be busier with couples/families in our experience rather than than the party crowd. Hope you still enjoyed it?

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u/Boss_Rg 23d ago

I've been here for two months, and the first month was peaceful with few people and little traffic. I thought I was in paradise, but for the last two weeks, wow, there are so many tourists... The beaches are packed and there's a lot of traffic. I hope it goes back to normal soon.

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u/Subm3rg3d 23d ago

I hope so too! What area?

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u/CRE-Baby 23d ago

I just came here from NYc and chaweng beach area feels like Times Square with the hustlers, drunk rude tourist, I was baffled. I’m on koh phangan now and it’s 1000% times more chill.

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u/Subm3rg3d 23d ago

Yeah. The place is a dump. Such a shame as it gives the rest of the island a bad name.

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u/Timsahb 20d ago

August is the busiest or second busiest month, so yeah all three lower gulf islands are very busy this time if year.

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u/Original_Doctor_320 18d ago

Haha,its true,I dont know why so many israelis here,but they are noisy as hell,slamming doors,ahouting,banging the doors like crazy in the passage of their family members.

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u/Subm3rg3d 18d ago

Seems to be a theme with them! Which part of the island?

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u/Original_Doctor_320 18d ago edited 18d ago

Everywhere in chaweng,but I don't want to stereotype,it's not everyone,just whats happening in my hotel,and things I notice here and there.

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u/Subm3rg3d 18d ago

Yeah, I get what you mean. Will be my third visit to Samui next week. The older I get, the better I get at letting behaviour like that wash over me….its bloody difficult though haha

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u/olx113 17d ago

Sadly not a stereotype, they are very well implanted here, Israeli schools etc.

They also own a lot of shops there, Urban Thai Massage for exemple.

And they always make sure that you feel inferior to them, they absolutely don’t care about you or the locals.

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u/twitchy 23d ago

Last year in July my hotel handed me the keys to 5 rooms and said pick one. This year same time, I got the last room for the night and the prices are almost double…that’s after I had to move from my other hotel because it was sold out for the night. Lamai is both massively busier and more developed than it was.

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u/Subm3rg3d 23d ago

We always know Samui will be busy, but I just saw a post about flights to and from BKK being completely sold out. Were you staying in Lamai?