Palm-fringed island in the Gulf of Thailand
Ko Samui is the Gulf of Thailand's main island, greener and gentler than the Andaman coast, with coconut groves inland and a ring of beaches around its edge. Chaweng is the busiest strip, Lamai slightly calmer, and the north coast's Fisherman's Village at Bophut has a Friday night walking street in old wooden shophouses. Resorts and spas run up the hillsides, and day trips reach the jungle-covered islands and emerald lake of Ang Thong National Marine Park.