Visiting Koh Larn Island

Posted by Party Pete on January 29th, 2008 filed in just visiting, sightseeing

I was chatting with this nice bar girl in a Pattaya bar and suddenly the topic changed to what other destinations I had visited in Thailand besides this popular seaside resort town. I still could remember the rather difficult names of some of the localities.

The places I had travelled to before included: Korat, Phuket, Phitsanoluk, Koh Samui, Nakhon Si Thammaratt, Had Yai and off course Bangkok. She seemed truly interested when she asked if I had ever seen the island of Koh Larn. “No never” was my honest answer and she admitted to never have been there before as well but she would love to go.

Well that was just great! Right away I suggested we could go there together the next morning. She was delightfully surprised and first thought I was just joking. However, I ensured her that I was serious and really would like to take her with me. At the end of the evening she decided to stay over at my place and we spent the night together.

Still a bit tired from the night before we had a quick breakfast the next early morning and arranged the trip to Koh Larn.
We had to wait less than 20 minutes until somebody did bring us to a meeting point not far away from Beach Road. The spot could easily be reached on foot and we only waited there for a short moment. Several other travellers arrived as well and after 10 minutes we all went to the beach where our boat was waiting.

The type of vessel was a longtail boat, which offered rather narrow spaces just sufficient for taking a seat opposite another passenger. However, it seemed the seats in the boat were only for 50% occupied, so we were allowed to freely choose the most comfy seat.

After 15 minutes of sailing the boat arrived at the square para-sailing pier. I and my lovely girlfriend were not interested in participating and we just sat and looked how the others experienced their adventurous 30 seconds lasting trip.
From this point we had to embark on a two-story shipt. This vessel featured a covered part and some nice spots to sit. The group which was going to navigate this leg of the voyage contained about 30 persons. The boat gently chugged along at a pleasurable, slow speed and after 45 minutes sailing we approached Koh Larn.

Another modestly-sized vessel, which featured a glass bottom, came out to meet us. While slowly approaching the island’s shore, we were allowed to open the glass’ covers and tried to see some of the wonderful coral bottom. Unfortunately, that day the water wasn’t clear enough and therefore we couldn’t see clearly the corals. So, soon our captain decided to head for the coast.

Since we booked this day trip spontaneously, my girlfriend wasn’t able to bring some swimming gear along so I bought her a nice bathing suit, pair of slippers, and a shower cap, all for less than 800 baht. Once on the beach we could locate a relaxed spot and hired a set of comfortable reclining chairs. The few active vendors on the island luckily didn’t hassle us much.

On the island there are several options to participate in water sports activities such as snorkelling, fun banana boat rides and taking a walk underwater. However, I just wanted to relax on the beach and do nothing at all. Besides fully unwinding we fooled a little bit around in the warm sea water.

We decide to have lunch in a small eatery. We ordered fried rice, soup with glass noodles, and grilled fish. The served cheaply priced food tasted really good, much better even than at many other posh restaurants I ate before. After completing our lunch we just strolled around for a while checking out the gift shops and than back again to our lazy beach chairs. At the end of the day we took a refreshing shower and headed to the boat for our return voyage.

Relaxing some time on Koh Larn is really worth the trip

We slowly navigated our way back to Pattaya Beach while enjoying a most welcome nice breeze and scenic views. It truly was an unforgettable day and often wished life could always be that simple and relaxed! If you ever visit Pattaya you should not miss a trip to laid-back Koh Larn.