The Gulf Islands gave us New Year's chaos, bad tyres, chilled coworking, and one very windy island trip. Here's how it actually went.
Koh Tao: New Year's with locals, then bikes
We were on Koh Tao for New Year's itself, which we hadn't fully planned around. It turned out to be one of the better nights of the trip. New Year's began with some locals we'd met who were eating odd delicacies and drinking Thai whiskey in a way that felt like being let into something — then later, running to the beach for fireworks and a jungle party that went until the early hours.
The bike situation was less positive. We rented scooters to explore the island and discovered (too late) that the front tyre on one bike was essentially smooth. One flat, a very slow puncture on a hill, and a lot of pushing. Lesson: check the tyres properly before you leave the rental shop and refuse the bike if they're not in decent condition.
Koh Tao is small and beautiful. The diving spots around it are some of the best in the Gulf. The town area is lively without being overwhelming. We'd go back.
Koh Pha Ngan: A week of balance
Six nights on Koh Pha Ngan, which was the right amount of time. We weren't there for the Full Moon Party (it was the wrong week) and experienced the island at its quieter, more residential pace.
The coworking scene here is real. There are several beach-facing workspaces with fast enough WiFi to actually get things done, and a settled community of remote workers who use the island as a long-term base. We fell into the rhythm of it quickly — morning work session, afternoon swimming, evening food and exploration.
The hiking on the island is underrated. There's a network of trails through the hilly interior that most people on beach holidays never find. The viewpoints are worth the effort.
The hostel social scene was excellent — we met people staying for weeks who had arrived for a night. The island has a way of extending stays.
Koh Samui: Running to the south
Koh Samui is the grown-up island of the three. Airport, proper malls, international hotel chains, a development level that feels like a different country from Koh Tao. The area around Chaweng (the main tourist strip near the airport) is loud and expensive and not particularly interesting.
The advice we received — run to the southern beaches — was right. The south and southwest of Koh Samui is noticeably calmer, the beaches are less crowded, and the atmosphere shifts. We spent most of our time there and were glad for it.
Four nights on Koh Samui felt like enough. Good food options, reliable transport connections to the other islands and the mainland, but less character than Koh Pha Ngan.
Ang Thong: Beautiful and windy
The day trip to Ang Thong National Park from Koh Samui was an experience that the weather complicated significantly. The seas on the way out were rough enough to make the boat uncomfortable for most of the group. But once we arrived, the kayaking through the islands and the viewpoint hike on the main island were worth the journey. The landscape — uninhabited islands, clear water, no development — is striking.
The sunset on the way back, from the boat with the park islands getting smaller behind us, was one of those travel moments that justifies the whole trip.
Check conditions before booking: tours are cancelled regularly due to weather and you don't want to be on that boat in rough seas.
The Gulf Islands work well as a longer itinerary rather than a short hop. Give yourself at least two weeks across the three main islands and Ang Thong, and resist the urge to keep moving. The best days on Koh Pha Ngan were the ones where we didn't have any particular plan.