You've hopefully come to this site because you are looking for information on Koh Chang Island in South-East Thailand. If so then congratulations, you've struck gold! This website exists to tell you all that you need to know about Koh Chang and the nearby islands of Koh Mak and Koh Kood. Our Map section brings you the most up-to-date and detailed maps of Koh Chang and its beaches. If you are looking for somewhere to stay then our Accommodation Section will help you to find the best Hotels and Resorts on Koh Chang. If you want to know more about the different parts of the island then look no further than our Koh Chang Beach Guide. And if you find that, like so many other visitors, you fall in love with the island and want to move here to live or work then why not browse through the ever-growing detailed listings of Koh Chang Property and Real Estate. And there's more. You can browse through the site to get detailed information on Koh Chang weather, activities and transport information as well as our regular Koh Chang news updates below and in our archives.
April 17th
So at the moment Koh Chang is in the eye of a water-throwing storm. The original (and best) Songkran party went off with a splash last weekend - the island was full and lots of fun was had. But rather than leaving this festival aside until next year the island is bracing itself for the next wave which begins on this Friday and apparently lasts for the whole weekend. For the last few years Koh Chang's local government, in its wisdom, has held a second Songkran. In its defence they do hold a procession of nicely decorated floats. There will apparently also be a concert by a Thai megastar.
Here's a couple of ideas for the next event. Firstly if the announcements on the inevitable cars that are crawling the island were to be in Thai and English then foreign tourists feel welcome to take part. Secondly, and this might seem like a ridiculous idea - why not hold the festival during the first Songkran when everyone is ready for it?
It doesn't really help that it's been raining a lot over the kast few days as well - how wet can you get? So anyway if you're on Koh Chang this weekend then adopt the usual precautions; phones and valuables in plastic bags, careful on the roads.
March 25th
Hello and welcome to a fiercely hot and sunny Koh Chang. Just how you'd want it really.
The first thing to announce is the arrival of our new issue. What a cover! The picture was taken by Khun Raht of Kongoi jungle trekking and it is well good. Don't know who the acrobat is but anyone prepared to do a handstand on Koh Chang's highest point deserves our awe and probably a little bit of fear. Anyway click the photo or this red bit of text to read the guide or scroll down the page for an even more lovely reading experience.
And our new Restaurant Guide is out as well - don't say we never do anything for you. Read, eat, drink and be merry!
The latest entrant in our occasional series of Koh Chang building sites should actuallybe of some interest to anyone driving a motor vehicle on the island. This is the new PTT patrol station that is due to open in Klong Son on April 1st. This hopefully will mean cheaper fuel on the island. In the past on Koh Chang you have been charged about 5B a litre more for fuel than on the mainland. There are also all kinds of stories of the island's petrol stations overcharging, undermeasuring and once, memorably, filling tanks with water instead of petrol so the new garage will - hopefully - be a good thing for consumers.
UPDATE: This garage is open now. Prices are just a little more than the mainland, they issue VAT receipts. There's also the inevitable 7-11 and a coffee shop that makes reasonable coffee. Let the fuel price war begin!
Also in Klong Son work to widen the main road is proceeding rapidly. This is badly needed for the increasingly frequent times when the queue for the ferry spills all the way back into Klong Son village and through traffic has to run the hairy white knuckle gauntlet (to mix a few metaphors) down the wrong side of the road for hundreds of metres.
In other depressing news two killer whale pups were caught in fishing nets of Koh Chang. One died and one is being hopefully nursed back to health in Salak Phet on Koh Chang. It seems like every week that dolphins and other marine mammals are killed by drag fishing nets in and around Koh Chang. So much for the Marine National Park.
March 4th
It is worth noting that even when Koh Chang is busy - which thankfully it has been this year - there are places where you can easily escape the crowds. And you don't even have to go far to find them. The picture to the left was taken at the Northern end of White Sand Beach last saturday afternoon. No crowds, almost no people, easily found by going for a short walk.
All you have to do to get to this tranquil haven is to walk up the beach past Rock Sand Resort (stopping for a Gelato ice cream whilst you are there is recommended) and there you are.
And that's not all. We continue to add new listings to our property section and we now feature individual pages for all of the businesses, land and houses that we have for sale. There's lots more photos and detailed information.
Go on, take a look.
Previous updates
Koh Chang's largest used bookshop is next to the main Post Office at Pearl Beach between White Sands Beach and Chai Chet.
The Online bookshop is found at www.BooksThailand.com. There are thousands of books in stock in about 20 languages so feel free to come in and browse or order online and your books will be delivered to you anywhere in Thailand. They also have an air-conditioned, fully furnished apartment upstairs that is available for daily rental.
There is also a cafe/bar that serves coffees, drinks, beers and spirits, sandwiches and snacks.
BooksThailand is open from 9am to 7pm seven days a week.
The best photos of Koh Chang, bar none, live in the portfolio of Koh Chang Photographer. This Bang Bao based photography studio take striking and original images of Koh Chang, not just your standard beach view stuff. If you don't believe us then check out the new issue of The Koh Chang Guide above. It contains lots of Koh Chang Photographer's images and looks great as a result. You can check out their work at www.kohchang-photographer.com or at www.facebook.com/KohChangPhotographer.
They also specialise in commissions for wedding photos and other assignments such as hotel and resort photos. If you plan to tie the knot on Koh Chang then get in touch and they will make a great job of photographing the event.
You will find all our Previous Front Page stories and lots of other articles and features here.
