Sa Kaeo - Lalu (2)

First time I went to Lalu ( http://tinamue.blogspot.com/2011/02/sa-kaeo-lalu.html ), I got slightly lost in the small village. This time, I noticed a sign during my trial-and-error attempts to find the right road. Although in Thai, it started to dawn upon me why signs to lead visitors to Lalu disappear once visitors enter the village.

The sign I saw gave directions to a "visitor center". However, the "visitor center" is actually a parking lot from where unsuspecting and gullible visitors are supposed to rent a rickshaw motorcycle for the last two kilometers rather than driving themselves on gravel roads. .

Now that I've been to Lalu three times, that's enough. So although I've now saved the location in my GPS, I probably will not return.

Chantaburi - Chao Lao

Located east of Khung Krabain Bay is Chao Lao Beach. The beach is very beautiful and is popular among locals who come for picnics on weekends. It boosts brown sandy beach and shallow water suitable for fooling around.

Once upon a time - when I first visited - there were only a few resorts that all catered to Thai visitors coming down from Bangkok for a weekend. I was very impressed by the beach's white sand and clean water. But over the past five-six years, rapid development has taken place most clearly symbolized by that access to resorts (now fancy places with swimming pools and Wi-Fi) has been made easy by the construction of a modern new road complete with separate lanes for cars, mopeds, and bicycles.

DIRECTIONS: Coming from Bangkok towards Chantaburi, get off Sukhumvit when you see directions to road 3399. You can also take the backroads from Chantaburi city via Ta Mai and route 3352, but be warned that the one-way streets of Ta Mai can make passing through this town a bit of a navigational challenge.

The most scenic beach in Chantaburi is Khung Wiman adjacent to Chao Lao. The beach is flanked with pine trees while the water is clear and good for swimming. Next to Khung Wiman Beach is Khung Krabain Bay. It is the site of one of Chantaburi’s mangrove forests and to the Khung Krabain Study and Development Center under Royal Patronage. 


You can explore the mangrove forest via a 1,600 meter long wooden walkway and rent a kayak for paddling around, but don't expect to see any manatee apart from this concrete one.

Located opposite Khung Krabain Mangrove Forest is Laem Sadet Beach, which stretches for three kilometers. There are a few resorts on this beach and an aquarium has been opened.

Trad - Koh Kham (a trip back in time)

Koh Kham was once one of the best destinations for basic (backpacker style) accommodation on an absolutely amazingly beautiful island setting.

The island is small and barely a kilometer from Koh Maak (in the pic above, it is Koh Mak you can see in the background) and has crystal-clear waters plus a number of coral reefs easily within snorkeling distance.  

Since Koh Kham is very small, you can’t do much on the island, but it was ideal to relax in a quiet atmosphere with a book or with one of the many games found in the restaurant. If you want to do more than just reading or swimming, you can rent kayaks to cruise around the island.

Koh Kham was the perfect spot to really get away from it all.  However, in 2008 this all changed and the island was sold to an individual who "developed" the island into a four star destination -- the long running, rustic, and reasonably priced Koh Kham Resort owned by khun Lor has closed down.