Best Swimming Beach On Samui

[luxecat]

Hi,

I'm heading to Samui in April and May and would really like to take a dip in the ocean. I always stay in Chaweng for the night life, but i have a problem. The ocean water there gives me a rash every time I jump in. Not just me either. The last time I was there my girlfriend went swimming in Chaweng and emerged with red spots all over her body. We had to go to the pharmacy for medicine and it took a week for it to clear. I'm allergic to other things as well, but it seems to me Chaweng has some pretty toxic waste in the water. Is there a cleaner part of the island better for swimming?

[MSingh]

Surely the best Beach on Samui for Swimming these days would be Koh Tao/Phanagng ??

Serioulsly, Maenam maybe ??

Chaweng/Chong Mon has the Jet Ski's, Bophut the Boats, South Coast has a lot of Coral...

Thinking about it, Lamai's probably your best bet, great Beach & nice part of the Ocean there too, although it does have Jet Ski's too..

[mattias33]

If you normaly have a rent car on your holiday, i could reccomend Lipa noi beach, south of Nathon on the westcoast of the island. But you go there daytime for the beach and get out of there when the sun goes down, that area is absolutely nothing to stay in for a tourist, but the beach is nice. At least some parts of the year, depending on tides and winds (others may fill in information) it is the best beach on the island. Normaly early spring (jan-april) it is very good. Good for kids aswell. Shallow water.

Lamai is nice too, and there are some good hotels right on the beach. The nightlife is there and the restaurants aswell. Choeng mon is my favorite on the island, but if Chaweng gives you allergic reactions, most lightly Choeng mon would to, its the same kind of water. And alot of jetski pollution.

Theres a few good and cheap hotels in Ban rak wich have pools on the beach. The beach works for tanning, but its nothing to swim in. The tourists there seem to tan on the beach and swim in the pools, wich offcourse works to. Ban rak nowadays have very good nightlife and many good restaurants.

/Have a nice holiday!

[samuibeachcomber]

yep lipa noi and lamai,mae nam too.

[koheesti]

I always thought the beach (& water) in Choeng Mon was one of the best on Samui.

[longtom]

The best for swimming is definitely Lipa Noi. Watch out for the jellyfish though, last year there were loads around May, but the harmless kind when I'm right (small white, Thai fishermen didn't care). Maenam is also good, but not sure where all the resorts are dumping their sewage.

[mattias33]

I always thought the beach (& water) in Choeng Mon was one of the best on Samui.

Have you been there lately? The few times we went at the end of last year there was practically no beach at all due to high water and windy conditions. The chairs were gone and the massage ladies moved out, the restaurants were covered in plastic as protection for the wind. Kind of a funeral feeling. Is it ok again now? I too enjoy that beach very much and its the closest one that is really good for us living in the north.

[Geppis72]

Hi,

I'm heading to Samui in April and May and would really like to take a dip in the ocean. I always stay in Chaweng for the night life, but i have a problem. The ocean water there gives me a rash every time I jump in. Not just me either. The last time I was there my girlfriend went swimming in Chaweng and emerged with red spots all over her body. We had to go to the pharmacy for medicine and it took a week for it to clear. I'm allergic to other things as well, but it seems to me Chaweng has some pretty toxic waste in the water. Is there a cleaner part of the island better for swimming?

No doubts, LIPA NOI best beach on the island !

overnight stay is simple amazing, looks like a real paradise, please do not tell to many people we like as it is,

we can just afford to have couple of luxury Resort like The Place and Nikki Beach Club both to be open soon....

just to have some nice place to stay for dinner and live music, who lives here is not looking for more...

[Birdman]

I always thought the beach (& water) in Choeng Mon was one of the best on Samui.

Sand and water are nice indeed, but the surounding changed a lot. Looking from O Sole towards Honey Seafood there are almost no palmtrees anymore and a lot of beachchairs and sun umbrellas.

Not many jetskies now, but with more tourists they will be back in numbers. As well as the huge plastic playground for children in the middle of the bay. This year 2 major hotels will open over there.

Choeng Mon is nice in the evening with all the small beach restaurants.

The sea at Lipa Noi Beach in April and May could too low for swimming.

[PoorSucker]

Take a snorkeling trip to Koh Tan, only 20min with boat from south Samui.

Beautiful beach, good snorkeling and clean water.

[NALAK]

if i were you i would stay out of the ocean here. you go in with a small cut and it will get infected, eye infections are common. work it out there is no sewage system here.

having said that lipa noi does look nice and does not have to much development,

Edited January 29, 2009 by NALAK

[Birdman]

if i were you i would stay out of the ocean here. you go in with a small cut and it will get infected, eye infections are common. work it out there is no sewage system here.

ี

uh yeah ? - you are saying the millions of tourists, who come to the island to have a good time at the beach are risking their health in the sea? What a superficial and untrue statement!!

I live next to a beach on Samui since 20 years. In that time I swam not only in front of my home, but also everywhere around Samui endless times and I NEVER had any kind of health problem - to the contrary!

The water is very fine, because there is no industry on Samui, big hotels have their own sewage systems and Lamai, Chaweng and Nathon have their sewage treatment plants. The only danger are the jet skies.

It is paradise for tourists.

[luxecat]

Thanks for the info all. Looking forward to trying out some different parts of the island. As with anything in life, sometimes you just have to dive right in.

Cheers.

[NALAK]

if i were you i would stay out of the ocean here. you go in with a small cut and it will get infected, eye infections are common. work it out there is no sewage system here.

ี

uh yeah ? - you are saying the millions of tourists, who come to the island to have a good time at the beach are risking their health in the sea? What a superficial and untrue statement!!

I live next to a beach on Samui since 20 years. In that time I swam not only in front of my home, but also everywhere around Samui endless times and I NEVER had any kind of health problem - to the contrary!

The water is very fine, because there is no industry on Samui, big hotels have their own sewage systems and Lamai, Chaweng and Nathon have their sewage treatment plants. The only danger are the jet skies.

It is paradise for tourists.

well the op and his partner had a problem after going into the ocean, and i will never beleive they have a proper water treatment plant. Even the UK dumps a lot in the ocean. if there is no problem why is the op asking the question? as a matter of interest why does paradise need so many pharmacies and hospitals.

Edited January 29, 2009 by NALAK

[Birdman]

as a matter of interest why does paradise need so many pharmacies and hospitals.

1) Many pharmacies: They are everywhere now in Thailand. Just look at Phuket for instance. Why??? It's very good business to sell cheap medicine.

2) Many hospitals - that are 5 on the 3rd largest island in Thailand: Traffic accidents are the main income source for them.

And also: It's a very good business to provide medical support in a variety of different health related issues.

As a matter of interest, tell me about your statistics re. getting infected because of polluted seawater...

[Rooo]

Lots of skin rashes, are the result of sea lice.Itchy skin, little bite like marks.

[Gertrude]

Alas, there are none.

I did a survey last year in just about every beach/area around the island. None would met European standards, and most are possitively dangerous.

PH & KT are little better.

This is mainly due to the fact that these beaches are in the Gulf of Thailand.

Untreated sewerage flows freely into the Gulf from Bangkok and all of the towns upstream of the rivers flowing into the gulf. Also all of the towns between Bangkok and Suratthani do the same.

So if you enjoy swimming in SH^T, feel free to do so, at your own risk.

Edited January 30, 2009 by Gertrude

[Nirvana]

if i were you i would stay out of the ocean here. you go in with a small cut and it will get infected, eye infections are common. work it out there is no sewage system here.

ี

uh yeah ? - you are saying the millions of tourists, who come to the island to have a good time at the beach are risking their health in the sea? What a superficial and untrue statement!!

I live next to a beach on Samui since 20 years. In that time I swam not only in front of my home, but also everywhere around Samui endless times and I NEVER had any kind of health problem - to the contrary!

The water is very fine, because there is no industry on Samui, big hotels have their own sewage systems and Lamai, Chaweng and Nathon have their sewage treatment plants. The only danger are the jet skies.

It is paradise for tourists.

well the op and his partner had a problem after going into the ocean, and i will never beleive they have a proper water treatment plant. Even the UK dumps a lot in the ocean. if there is no problem why is the op asking the question? as a matter of interest why does paradise need so many pharmacies and hospitals.

yes but there are alot of turds in the UK

[samuibeachcomber]

Lots of skin rashes, are the result of sea lice.Itchy skin, little bite like marks.

yes tend to agree re sea lice being the cause.having said that i dont think the waters around thailand are very clean,but then again i swim every day here on samui and i've never been sick from it.whenever you have a lot of people in the area the waters are never going to be that clean.I think most of the pollution comes from run off after its rained.

[aka_jack]

I personally like the beach up near koh matlang.

[koheesti]

I always thought the beach (& water) in Choeng Mon was one of the best on Samui.

Have you been there lately? The few times we went at the end of last year there was practically no beach at all due to high water and windy conditions. The chairs were gone and the massage ladies moved out, the restaurants were covered in plastic as protection for the wind. Kind of a funeral feeling. Is it ok again now? I too enjoy that beach very much and its the closest one that is really good for us living in the north.

Duh, that was due to the weather. The same happened at Bophut Beach 3 weeks ago. Monster waves and virtually no beach to speak of. Days later it was back to normal.

[mattias33]

I always thought the beach (& water) in Choeng Mon was one of the best on Samui.

Have you been there lately? The few times we went at the end of last year there was practically no beach at all due to high water and windy conditions. The chairs were gone and the massage ladies moved out, the restaurants were covered in plastic as protection for the wind. Kind of a funeral feeling. Is it ok again now? I too enjoy that beach very much and its the closest one that is really good for us living in the north.

Duh, that was due to the weather. The same happened at Bophut Beach 3 weeks ago. Monster waves and virtually no beach to speak of. Days later it was back to normal.

Yeah, but the chong moen seemed to be ruined for nov-dec. Not that we were thre everyday but even the restaurant workers said it was unusuall to last that long. Kind of lost interesst going there and being dissapointed, but i guess its back to normal now again?