Koh Samui Prices

« 🐘 Riding elephants in Samui 🐘
The elephant is a symbol of Thailand and a sacred animal. Historically, people have relied on them for heavy agricultural work, construction, and military efforts. Nowadays, the use of elephants for these purposes is banned. Therefore, elephant sanctuaries cater to tourists and afterwards receive elephant pensions. 🐅👩‍🦳

In Thailand, only government employees and military personnel receive pensions. Everyone else relies on their children, grandchildren, or closest relatives for support. On Samui, there are several places where you can experience elephant interactions (Elephant Tracking).
The cost for riding usually is around 20 USD for adults and 14 USD for children. 🐘

I wouldn't recommend trying to feed them; they might get used to it. We rode through jungles, but I think riding near waterfalls could be more interesting, possibly including swimming. 💦
Elephants are very interactive with people, so it's best to keep some bananas in hand to offer them. 🍌 Bananas are sold in parks for about 1.50 USD. It’s prohibited to feed elephants your own food.

The guide might take photos of you for tips during the stroll. 📸 Make sure to ask for a photo op on the neck and head of the elephant—it’s a unique experience! 🙏 »

« Tomorrow is a new day and new places. I wonder if anything can surprise me more than Samui? We'll see tomorrow 😉.

We rented a car for a day for $30, which is around 14,000 KZT. It’s definitely cheaper to take a bike, but they didn’t let us rent one due to lack of driving experience 🤷‍♀️. Renting a bike costs around $4-6 for the day - 1,500-2,000 KZT.

In any case, having a car brings a lot of benefits. No worrying about sunburn, we’re traveling in comfort, and all our stuff is in the back seat, including our swimsuits ready to go 😄.

Here’s the best picture ❤️😘. »

« Quest completed ✔️ we managed to find a house not far from the beach, shops, and all sorts of cool stuff like smoothies and selfie sticks for $1. »

« Maenam Beach is this amazing beach located in the northern part of Koh Samui, and it's very popular with tourists traveling with kids. You can find a spot both in the shade under a palm tree and out in the sun. Swimming is comfortable – there are no rocks in the water, and it gets deep almost right away. The sand is coarse and yellow. During winter, waves are rare. Often, while there might be storms at Chaweng and Lamai, Maenam is calm and perfect for a dip.

In the area, there are plenty of houses available for long-term rental. On Thursdays, a walking street opens up with shops and restaurants. Prices are lower compared to Lamai. A big plus is the presence of two markets: a morning and an evening one. The morning market has very low prices. This beach is ideal for families with kids, especially those who go to bed around 9 or 10 PM. 🌴🌊🍽️ »

« I hit the jackpot: 1.20 USD in Thai roulette 🎰💰 »

« In Thai apartments, washing machines are very rare. Mostly, people do their laundry in outdoor machines like these. Payment is made in coins of 10 baht. »

« Our accommodation for the first 3 days. $8 per night. Good morning everyone. »

« In Thailand, most people get around on scooters. For tourists, it's the easiest and most economical way to travel. Personally, I like that such a motorbike costs about 4,500 THB (~$130)/month. »

« So, here’s what we’ve got: after withdrawing 10,000 Baht, we're charged a fee of about $5.00 (it’s not mentioned as dollars on the receipt, only noticed it through a bank SMS). Right now, that totals around $19.20, with the exchange rate being almost 1:2 during the withdrawal. As of now, our card works only at major retailers like Tesco, while 7-Eleven and many smaller shops don’t accept cards, and it’s rare to find a restaurant that does. Cafes? Forget about it. Hotels accept cards, but they also charge an extra percentage. So, cash is a must everywhere. It’s like they really prefer cash here! I remember being shocked in the US during winter when our money was all on the card, and we ended up paying 11% on any card transaction! It’s everywhere! »

« "Honda PCX150 (2015 model!) for rent at $115 per month!
Bike for RENT - Honda PCX150 (2015 model!) - $115 per month!" »

« Rambutan, mangosteen, and dragon fruit. If anyone's curious, during my vacation, I bought and obviously ate: half a medium watermelon, a couple of kilos of bananas, two small pineapples, one mango, one dragon fruit (the white one with black seeds), a kilogram of rambutan (the one with hairy skin), and a kilogram of mangosteen (the one with bright burgundy skin). I paid for everything 300 baht, which is about $8.50. »

« On the island of Koh Samui, there's a small elephant park where you can ride or simply feed the elephants by purchasing a basket of bananas for just 0.85 USD! This female elephant is already 47 years old and only lets you pet her if you're feeding her. Overall, everyone can have an amazing experience here. 🐘🥰 »

« Mini laundromat. The washing machines vary in drum size, wash duration, and price: $0.60 - $0.90 - $1.50. You need to drop the required number of coins into the coin slot, and then the machine will start washing. (The one on the far left ate one of our coins 😠😠😠) After some time, all you have to do is come back and collect your clean laundry. The drying part is on you, though! But if you're too lazy to dry it yourself, there are plenty of laundries around that will wash and dry your clothes for you. The cost of this service is typically calculated based on the price per kg of laundry. »

« Rum distillery in Samui. The rum is made from sugar cane. For tasting, there are 5 varieties: natural, lemon, orange, pineapple, coconut. The price for 1 tasting is about $1.70. For all 5 varieties, it’s around $6.80. You can buy a bottle of your favorite. »

« The bus from Koh Samui to Bangkok was neither VIP nor economy. Just an average experience))) They provided free water and blankets too) The price was around $23, if I'm not mistaken.. »

« I was looking for a vegetarian café and a pharmacy, and then I got sick in the jungle ☺️ By the way, if you're planning to visit a tropical island, make sure to bring your sunscreen and burn creams with you because everything is more expensive there. A cream like Panthenol costs 500 baht, which is about $15 at the current exchange rate. »

« So much happiness for just 35 baht)) »

« A cozy little house just 100 meters from the sea costs 9,000 baht per month, which is around $270. For that kind of money, you can't even rent a studio apartment in a major city. Is it really expensive to live while traveling? :-)) »

« As I mentioned, we rented a Toyota Vios for 28 USD per day. It's not the most budget-friendly option, considering we did this just a day before our arrival. I haven't looked into this for January yet, but I'm sure it can be rented for one and a half times less or even cheaper. But that's just a minor detail. »

« Here is the oil for 400 baht. »

« I'm super happy! I managed to find an apartment for $240 a month just 15 minutes from the sea and the center. It's very cozy and modern, yay! »

« Paradise Park
While you stroll through the park, you'll come across goats, rabbits, horses and ponies, ostriches, and deer, painted in bright colors, as well as many other amazing representatives of the animal kingdom, including some rare species. Admission starts from $23. »

« Renting a house in Samui is just 300 USD a month :) The house comes with air conditioning, water, a stove, a refrigerator, and a bed... really, that's all you need on this island for a peaceful getaway :) »

« I found a Muay Thai gym. The prices are pretty steep, of course. It's 200 dollars a month, just as much as my rent. »

« Here it is, Koh Samui. After 13 hours on a bus and 2 hours on a ferry. A hellish journey to paradise island. The trip from Bangkok to Samui cost 18 USD. »