Samui Vs Phuket?

[Tchooptip]

Neither one of them...

Too hot and too rainy...

Especially Samui always rain so what u going to do if the only thing u can do is going to the beach?

Samui too rainy?

[carmine]

Neither one of them...

Too hot and too rainy...

Especially Samui always rain so what u going to do if the only thing u can do is going to the beach?

Samui too rainy?

indeed, stupid advice again. What the OP needs to know here is that Phuket gets considerably more annual rainfall than Samui' Better here to avoid november in its entirety through to christmas. Other than those months you will get generally good weather.

Personally i don't feel the weathers been good here over christmas for a good few years here bar the odd exception but i'm not referring to loads of rain, just not blue sky and sunshine.

[carmine]

Phuket. less traffic better roads, better health care, Very cheap to travel off the Island, check out various rant threads. When it does rain in Samui floods with stinking water easily and power outages come quickly again read the threads about it. Samui is the only place I have been to in Thailand where the beach side of the road is developed the heck out of and in Chaweng its difficult to get access to the beach.

Phuket is expensive but no more than Samui less than a 1000 at times to fly to BKK, Patong not to good but the beach has been cleaned up. I visited both for 5 years 20 years ago regularly, settled in Samui 15 years ago for 9 years. Been back once never again. Just my opinion of living on both islands. Bear in mind you are posting on the Samui thread and people love living here. Just my opinion as asked by the OP.

On the mainland now beats them both IMHO

Sound observations save the Samui flooding bit. The drainage system has for the most part dealt with that. Its still too early in the day though to discuss the whole electric thing!!

[Birdman]

no, not at all. But it still has wonderful places and beaches where time stands still. Nice villages with walking streets. Never this ugly public beach chairs and umbrellas like in Pattaya or on Phuket before. Almost all resorts are right on the beach without a street in between. And most forget, that the whole huge interior of the island are beautiful rainforests, tense palm forests, fruit plantations with over smaller and bigger waterfalls, where almost no one lives.....I still like it here a lot

For the benefit of the Op i feel obliged to correct a point made with regards to "ugly beach chairs". Its appears that the ugly ones here strewn across chewing, lamai and cheong mon beach you find aesthetically pleasing in some way?

You will be delighted however to know that the ones you find so distasteful in Pattaya and on Phuket have long been removed but our ones remain.

As for the term "time stands still" What on earth are you talking about?

really can' help, if you don't know what I am talking about.

Here, BTW, that's Lamai during top high season March. Full with ugly umbrellas and beach chairs. No

[coulson]

I think we should have a good hearted photo fight between Samui and Phuket? Maybe on another thread though. Samuijimmy and other Samui photographers, are you a game?

25 pages of photos dating back to 2007.... already ..... Samui, Koh Phangan, Koh Toa and Marine Park .....wins hands down!

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/125263-images-of-samui-phangan-and-tao/page-25

Phuket contributors only have 7 pages.... guess there is not much worth taking photos of in Phuket and area !!!

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/40586-images-of-phuket-and-the-andaman/

Clearly then, people in Samui are left with more time on their hands to pursue their interests.........Phuket might be too much fun

[evadgib]

Samui is the only place where you'll get thrown in to a pub!

[marstons]

Samui is a comfortable, tropical Island, Phuket is a city by the sea. Have lived on Phuket end of the Eighties, it was a tropical island than.

Phuket not exactly City by the sea but a paradise not to far from Patong.

[Mole]

That's Bang Tao beach. I walked from one end to the other end just this morning, so immediately recognized that pic.

[samuijimmy]

Personally I prefer the calmer beaches of Samui ...

[Basil B]

Phuket, Surin beach surf

http://oilinki.com/blog/surin-beach-during-low-season

Make me feel seasick just looking at the picture.

[samuijimmy]

Me too^

Well to those who say nothing is happening with Samui roads....

They are paving a lot of the ring road, currently the Maenam area Soi 3 area today .... with a long Zebra Crossing!

[Mole]

After coming back from Phuket, these are my thoughts:

Phuket is much bigger and more developed than Samui. Patong reminds me of Pattaya. What a dump. Even Chaweng is like a small village compared to communities in Phuket. In Phuket there are a lot of areas where farangs are virtually non existent, while on Samui, farangs are pretty much spread out all over the island. Prices of things such as food are cheaper in Phuket. Lot more shopping malls. Here in Samui, one has to get off the island to do some serious shopping such as clothes or computer accessories, etc. Samui is much more rustic and laid back. The interior of Samui has unspoilt jungle and one can hike, bike or motorbike on trails or roads in the jungle and hills. Pretty much every beach on Samui has beach front properties, while in Phuket, most properties beside the beach are public land, so no buildings can be erected.

Edited June 15, 2015 by Mole

[wellred]

Is Samui really more expensive than Phuket now? I usually stay in patong and budget 7-10k bhat a day. Will be spending a week in lamai in August. Are prices as high as patong around the bars?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[khunPer]

Is Samui really more expensive than Phuket now? I usually stay in patong and budget 7-10k bhat a day. Will be spending a week in lamai in August. Are prices as high as patong around the bars?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

It's depending what you are going to spend 7-10k baht on accommodation – and what kind of life-style are you expecting – or the evening in the bars…?

Prices around the bars in Patong, or around the bars in Lamai…?

Edited June 17, 2015 by khunPer

[marstons]

That's Bang Tao beach. I walked from one end to the other end just this morning, so immediately recognized that pic.

Yes Bang Tao at one end and Layan at the other end and my local bar when I lived there.

[fish fingers]

I haven't been back to Samui since 2001.

Which island has the least dodgy expats?

[Gulfsailor]

I haven't been back to Samui since 2001.

Which island has the least dodgy expats?

That would be Samui. At least since 2001

[PoorSucker]

I haven't been back to Samui since 2001.

Which island has the least dodgy expats?

Koh Taen.

[motocrosser]

Samui roads are very very dangerous and after 10 years of living here thinking its time to leave for my own safety!and riding a bicycle on the roads should be taken with a lot of care,the once paradise island has become a dangerous place to live!

[PoorSucker]

Samui roads are very very dangerous and after 10 years of living here thinking its time to leave for my own safety!and riding a bicycle on the roads should be taken with a lot of care,the once paradise island has become a dangerous place to live!

Roads here were more dangerous 10 yrs ago, did you ever see someone on a bicycle before they put on tarmac..

[motocrosser]

It's not the roads it's the drivers!ive lived in Phuket and the driving standards are so much better than Samui!the attitude in Samui is I don't care about anyone else and I can do whatever I like!