THAILAND ISLAND-HOPPING DESTINATIONS
you drop Hop till
Why settle for one island when you can hop from shore to shore along Thailand’s southwest coast, asks Ben Ireland
@ben_ireland_11 I
mages of your first foreign travels stick with you for
years – golden beaches, tropical sunsets and far-flung islands are among the memories of many a former backpacker who has toured around Thailand. Fast-forward a decade or two, and a lot of those ex-backpackers – now financially mature and looking to explore with the family – are keen to inspire the same love of travel in their little ones. And what better way than to go back to where it all started? The islands of Koh Samui
and Koh Phi Phi – the latter of Leonardo di Caprio movie fame –
have become more mainstream as the country has developed. They certainly didn’t have super-fast Wi-Fi when The Beach was filmed. But hoteliers with foresight have opened up other islands, making it more attractive than ever to try an island-hopping escape.
w KOH YAO NOI Take the aptly named resort of Paradise on Koh Yao Noi, a boat ride from Krabi or Phuket. It provides a luxury ‘beach chic’ feel that – although expensive – will make guests the envy of their social media followers. Views from its 70 villas, most of
which are decked out with private pools and outdoor showers, give a glimpse of the myriad limestone karsts poking out of the water in Phang Nga Bay. For a closer look, take a sunset cruise or float past on a canoeing trip to your own private bay. Managing director Josef
Raess is adding 25 Swiss Family Robinson-style treehouses and six beachfront villas to the at-one-with-nature complex. Raess, who opened Paradise in 2004, says: “You could tell Phuket was going in the direction of mass tourism. We wanted to be in the next phase. We wanted to
disappear into the islands, to have our own bay but still be within an hour of an international airport.” With a population of just
6,000 people, from which Paradise employs 95% of its staff, it doesn’t take a long time to explore Koh Yao Noi, so after a couple of nights enjoying the beach, spa and sampling the traditional Thai menu, where should guests move to next?
w KOH YAO YAI AND KOH PHI PHI It’s just a 20-minute hop over to Koh Yao Yai, and the beauty of the boat transfers is they
17 August 2017
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