This island of 70K persons lies off of the southwest corner of Thailand. At 88 square mile, Ko Samui (or Koh Samui) is Thailand’s second-largest island after Phuket, situated in the Gulf of Thailand. Known for its palm-fringed white sandy beaches, lush rainforests, and coconut groves, the island is a major international tourist destination.

The ship anchored off the west coast of Ko Samui and commenced shuttle operations at 7:00am, using the ship’s tenders and also ferries provided by the local authorities. Our time in Ko Samui was limited, with the last shuttle leaving the island at 3:00pm. The trip from the ship to the island was also long – averaging 25 minutes. Therefore, the extra vessels were really important to a timely and smooth operation.

Today, we were guided by local tour company, Mr. Samui. After our outbound shuttle aboard one of the ferries, we met our guide, Mr. Nho and our driver, Mr. Goupphee, with a comfortable a/c van at the end of the shuttle pier. Our first stop was to the Na Muang waterfalls.

Next, we visited the Wat Khunaram Buddhist temple, famous for its mummified monk Luang Pho Daeng, whom died in 1973 and directed that his body be put on display as a reminder of the transience of human existence. It’s a beautiful temple and remembrance.

As we made our way around the island on the ring road that follows the coastline, we arrived to the Hin Ta Hin Yai, also known as the grandfather and grandmother rocks. Goodness, we weren’t exactly prepared for those visuals but there they were and we had a good laugh.

Ko Samui is famous for its beaches and the Chaweng Beach was our next stop. Actually, most of the island is surrounded by white sand beaches but this one was particularly beautiful. At the Long Beach Lodge, we enjoyed a cool drink and the ocean breezes; a nice respite in the glaring sun.

Our final stop was the magnificent Wat Plai Laem, a collection of Buddhist temples and statues, including the Phra Sangkachai and Guanyin. Phra Sangkachai is a massive white, seated “smiling Buddha” or “fat Buddha” (often associated with prosperity, joy, and the monk Budai). Guanyin, also known as Avalokiteśvara, has 18 arms, representing a form of compassion and mercy.

We covered a lot of ground in our 5-hour tour and returned to the tender pier with lots of time to catch the shuttle back to the ship. Unfortunately, many of the Princess tours were late getting back, causing a huge backup of passengers trying to get on the water shuttles and back to the ship. Hence, we missed our scheduled departure time by over an hour but the captain assured us we would not be late coming alongside tomorrow in Laem Chabang. Our tour tomorrow includes an overnight in Bangkok so it will be a couple of days before we’re back on the ship and we can post again.

Next two days: Bangkok, Thailand