Thailand Destination Guide 2020

KOH CHANG & KOH KOOD
Boat trips, snorkelling, swimming, scuba diving and trekking are
popular activities on the second largest Thai island
Koh Chang is an island in the Gulf of
Thailand, close to the Cambodia border.
It is a popular tourist destination and yet
‘Elephant Island’, which is what its name
means in English, has still somehow for the
most part managed to retain its remote,
wild and rugged feel. Yet this is an island
that has changed, almost beyond all
recognition, in the last decade or so.
Little more than ten years ago Koh Chang
was still considered malarial, it did not have
24 hour electricity, had few paved roads and
only very few motorised vehicles.
Today, vast influxes of tourists have brought
things along dramatically. The populous west
coast in particular has leapt into the future
with abandon, though it should be said that
in some cases, the island’s infrastructure
sometimes struggles to keep up with the
huge and increasing numbers of people
who want, understandably, to visit this
outstandingly lovely island.
Most people come to Koh Chang to find
paradise on the sands, in the jungles, in
the seas and beneath them. Boat trips,
snorkelling, swimming, scuba diving and
trekking are all popular activities on the
island, as are enjoying a little light retail
therapy, eating fine food and having a few
drinks.
The nightlife is lively here, but is not usually
considered to be as wild and over the top as
on other islands. This is a place of relaxation
and recreation and is also seen by enthusiastic
eco tourists as their gateway to the remote
islands of the Mu Koh Chang National
Marine Park. All of this nature, unspoiled,
sets this island apart from other Thai holiday
destinations.
While this is the second largest Thai island
after Phuket, and has suffered some of the
less savoury consequences of mass tourism,
Koh Chang does offer plenty of places, far
from the busy west coast beaches, where
you can still find the real Thailand, its heady
landscape and its exciting wildlife. This
means that intriguingly, it is an appealing
destinations for families, eco conscious
travellers and older people as well as young
backpackers, with, of course, accommodation
options to suit them all. Koh Chang can cater
to almost every holidaymaker’s requirements
and desires.
Koh Chang is in some ways typical of the
contradictions and intriguing features that
make modern Thailand and Thai culture what
they are. It exemplifies some of the best and
worst features of this country, which has fastforwarded
into a mass tourism explosion and
yet has retained so much of its vibrant and
fascinating cultural heritage.
Certain ecological preservation methods put in
place in the Koh Chang National Park area gave
us hope that their amazing natural ecosystems
will be preserved as well.
82
CBS TRAVEL ASIA - THAILAND DESTINATION GUIDE