SURVEY: Koh Tao -- Cursed Island or the real 'unseen' Thailand?

[jack71]

6 hours ago, Wuvu2 said:

There have been a lot of criminal and civil actions against people who cause tarnish to Thailand's reputation and marketability as a safe tourist resort. "Truth" is not a defense for criminal defamation laws in Thailand. The OP may want to be very careful about publishing the results of this survey.

Get real.....   Is an islands residents going to get together and track down an anonymous tv forum user and sue them in court. Thanks for giving me my first laugh for today

[BostonRob2]

This thread reminds me of people who get their information about Thailand from books like The Beach, and believe it. 

[LomSak27]

11 hours ago, Samui Bodoh said:

It is not a cursed island, it is not a coincidence, nor is it the underbelly of Thai society.

That sums it up.

 

Koh Tao has an unsavory reputation for some time.  Like many things in Thailand, how would you know? Really, how would you.

In the late aughts, Koh Tao got a nasty reputation among backpackers, because of the ‘motorcycle scam’. Think Phuket, jet ski scam, and you know how this works. Still it wasn’t like newspapers, or popular travel guides, ever mentioned it. It was on a couple internet travel forums & word of mouth, that's all. 

Same with their PADI accidents. I hear nothing but good things about the PADI classes there, but I do not pay attention, why would I. Years back a coworker wanted to take a sailing course. Going to double up and do a PADI also. However, a person we both know, living on Samui, sent info about a spate of accidents, mostly fatal. Surfacing and getting run over by a boat prop. No idea if the dive sight was not buoyed, or they were ignoring it. Again unless you are paying attention or in the area, how would you know. I assume it is better now, but being Thailand maybe they’re able to keep them out of the news and who would know.

As for me, the pictures of a motorcycle shop owner and some of the bar girls on K Tao in the weeks after that infamous double murder, uh, celebrating the event. I guess that is the only way to put it. Forever put me off of going there. Of course Pesticide fatals on Phi Phi have done the same with those islands. BTW I haven’t been to a Thai beach in over a decade. If I beach, I go to Indonesia. 
 

 

[Drew3223]

6 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

 

Agreed.... its a lovely island, plenty to do nice people, laid back and relaxed....

 

BUT.. it also has a reputation and a very clouded past. People have disappeared there, been murdered there. 

 

It has garnered attention due to a couple of high profile murders and when scratching the surface there have been other murders and disappearances there which add up.

 

Perhaps Koh Tao is the just as risky as elsewhere, or perhaps the reputation is valid and the island is disproportionately less safe than other islands and tourist area’s of Thailand.

 

The Island clearly has a very dark and somewhat machiavellian underbelly which if crossed the consequences can be dire, but that can be said of many area’s in many countries. 

 

 

There are enough stories coming from this island which suggest an an untouchable yet murderous element running things....   the message seems clear, enjoy the island but stay on your best behaviour, don’t cross anyone and stay in safe groups at night - that advices would be wise for visitors anywhere, but seems more so for Koh Tao.

 

 

 

 

 

Yep.

 

*Deleted*  around and find out.

Edited June 6, 2021 by Scott

[NoshowJones]

13 hours ago, LomSak27 said:

That sums it up.

 

Koh Tao has an unsavory reputation for some time.  Like many things in Thailand, how would you know? Really, how would you.

In the late aughts, Koh Tao got a nasty reputation among backpackers, because of the ‘motorcycle scam’. Think Phuket, jet ski scam, and you know how this works. Still it wasn’t like newspapers, or popular travel guides, ever mentioned it. It was on a couple internet travel forums & word of mouth, that's all. 

Same with their PADI accidents. I hear nothing but good things about the PADI classes there, but I do not pay attention, why would I. Years back a coworker wanted to take a sailing course. Going to double up and do a PADI also. However, a person we both know, living on Samui, sent info about a spate of accidents, mostly fatal. Surfacing and getting run over by a boat prop. No idea if the dive sight was not buoyed, or they were ignoring it. Again unless you are paying attention or in the area, how would you know. I assume it is better now, but being Thailand maybe they’re able to keep them out of the news and who would know.

As for me, the pictures of a motorcycle shop owner and some of the bar girls on K Tao in the weeks after that infamous double murder, uh, celebrating the event. I guess that is the only way to put it. Forever put me off of going there. Of course Pesticide fatals on Phi Phi have done the same with those islands. BTW I haven’t been to a Thai beach in over a decade. If I beach, I go to Indonesia. 
 

 

You took the time to write an interesting post, yet you cannot print what PADI stands for,  even just once, which spoiled the post for me. Pure laziness with your typing I would say.

[Daffy D]

2 hours ago, possum1931 said:

You took the time to write an interesting post, yet you cannot print what PADI stands for,  even just once, which spoiled the post for me. Pure laziness with your typing I would say.

Wonder who is the lazy one here?

 

The island is renowned as a prime diving area, apart from anything else, and a quick Google would have told you PADI stands for Professional Association of Diving Instructors.

 

[Xango111]

It's amazing. Nobody asks one of the most important question: Could they swim? Knowing this pool very well. It's tricky: About to thirds of the pool are shallow, then you have a steep descent into an area with a depth of about 2 m. So if they could not swim and got into this area it's highly probable that one of them panicked.

[NoshowJones]

32 minutes ago, Daffy D said:

Wonder who is the lazy one here?

 

The island is renowned as a prime diving area, apart from anything else, and a quick Google would have told you PADI stands for Professional Association of Diving Instructors.

 

and just how am I and lots of other posters who have no interest or knowledge about diving going to know that? Why should anyone have to start googling because some posters treat  forums like texting on a smartphone.

[BarraMarra]

Still waiting for The Hammer 2021 reply responding to Numerous Death's and lack of investigating these death's and rape's. No I have never and never want to visit an Island with the reputation Koh Tau has. You do not need to visit to read all about the disappearances, that have Occurred on an Island the size of Koh Tau. You cannot shift the blame on a few websites that don't look favorable on Koh Tau.

It has a reputation that the Island has never come clean and allowed an investigation where Police are not in the pockets of rich influential Koh Tau family's. Phuket and Samui are also Islands but do not have a reputation like koh Tau has for murders or Disappearances of Western Tourists.

[Daffy D]

1 hour ago, possum1931 said:

and just how am I and lots of other posters who have no interest or knowledge about diving going to know that? Why should anyone have to start googling because some posters treat  forums like texting on a smartphone.

Up to you.

 

[Quidio]

It's one place I am going to give a big pass on.

 

[Hanuman2547]

Due to the recent spate of unfortunate incidents since at least 2014 I will choose other islands to visit and give Koh Tao a miss.  I have been there before, although just for a day, more than 20 years ago.  Back then there were a lot of complaints about the coral reef being destroyed.  

[Ian Yarwood]

“THE CURSE OF THE TURTLE: The True Story of Thailand’s ‘Backpacker Murders’ “ - by Suzanne Buchanan 

 

Some of my random thoughts about this important new book available to preorder on Amazon for 15 February 2022.