Koh Samui and Koh Tao flood update, March 2011
Things are starting to look slightly better again on Koh Samui. As already mentioned, the ferries are up and running, also between the islands the ferries are up and running again and the airport is in full swing. The next thing will be to start cleaning up, especially with clear skies and no wind being predicted for the next week. After that, damage assessment and repair work will start, the mayor expects apparently at least 5 month before everything is fixed and repaired. Be advised that this statement implies all damage, the major problems should be tackled immediately.
Many things need to be re stocked though, currently the island is out of gasoline and diesel, there's a 4km tail back at the Chaweng PTT gas station and at the airport are apparently still around 1.500 people waiting to be flown out. Besides water in various and the usual places, things are on the way up! With the ferries running again, I would expect food supplies to be coming in again and the shelves at the supermarkets should be stocked again in a few days.
The Samui Triathlon, scheduled for 24th April has been cancelled as a result of the current rain damage.
Ring road surface damage, just the tip of the iceberg I'm afraid.
To all people that send emails and left messages on this blog, I've been busy today doing my work, I'm currently in the middle of teaching an IDC on Koh Lanta and come 12th June I'm participating in a half Marathon in Phuket, so my training schedule needs to be continued whenever I have time and this evening it was dry on Koh Lanta, enough to squeeze out an 8km run! I'm a bit surprised by the amount of visits to my blog and also by the amount of emails and messages I received regarding the flooding so please be assured, I will answer all messages, mails and posts and will start in a few moments.
Footage of the evacuation on Koh Tao by Tom Lansford
One for the Dutch amongst my readers, Rik of Riks Restaurant in Bang Rak was on the NOS radio with a live update
Some people donated again, much appreciated Oliver, Jeanette and Sari but two people said they found it hard to find the button, it's now on top of the page, left hand side.
Take care out there and I wish everyone affected in Southern Thailand by these floods very dry days to come soon!
Camille
54 comments:
Hi,
I've been following your blog about the flooding daily. Thank you so much for the great source of information.
I am visiting Koh Phanang at the end of May/start of June for my honeymoon. Do you know whether there has been much damage there? I'm hoping that everything will be back to normal by then, but noticed your comment that some areas may take 5 months to clean up.
Many thanks in advance for your help. I hope the beer fund is going strong.
The end of May and start of June will be just fine! 5 months before everything is fixed, the major damage will be fixed rather swiftly or as quickly as possible.
i should arrive samui on april 4.WOuld you recommend me still go on the trip? Bangkok airway allows rebook and refund tickets for all flights on or before APril 5. I appreciate so much for your suggestion.
Camille your blog is fabulous! We are visiting Koh Samui in 2 weeks time, is it likely to be back to normal by then and do you know if anymore storms are predicted or can we expect some sun?
Hi Maggie,
Just realize that Samui was a disaster area for a few days and that plenty of clean up and repair work will be in full swing, if you can deal with that, by all means visit! Anybody visiting is welcome!
Hi Camille
Thank you very much for your blog, I've been following it for a while. I'm supposed to visit samui on April 30th. Do you think this date will be fine?All the best for you and your friends at this situation.
Many thanks for your help and cheers!Marc
The weather forecasts are good for next week and no storms are predicted at this stage. I would expect plenty of sunshine.
Marc,
The end of April should be just fine.
Hi Camille,
I discovered your blog by chance and im so glad I did! thanks you for taking the time to share with everyone!
We are due to come to Samui on 16th April for our honeymoon, we are obviousley concerned about the floods and the damage to the island. We are staying at the Tongsai Bay for 10 days, do you think things will be ok by then? Selfishly we are worrying about having to spend our 10 day honeymoon stuck indoors in the rain!
Any advice you can give me would hugely appreciated. thanks and good luck with your marathon! x
Hi Paul,
By the 16th Samui should be in good enough shape to welcome you and the Thongsai Bay is a great choice and they will make sure it will be a rememberable day.
We are coming to Koh Samui in May (1st) Staying at Rockys on Lamai. Please can you tell us how it looks as we can not get through via e-mail. I assume because of the electricity problem. Many thanks Tracey
Hi Tracey,
May will be just fine, no update on Rocky's right now though!
hi Camille
i'm glad to hear you are ok.
we are going to thailand next week. we will be in bangkok tuesday night (05.04.2011) and next day we are going to cambodia, stay there for 2 days and then coming back to Thailand. few days around country (tiger tample etc). we have booked hotel on koh samui for a week (from 11.04.2011 to 18.04.2011). the hotel we have choosen is
Hutcha Resort
82811 Moo 1 Maenam Beach, Suratthani
Samui/Thailand
could you tell me what do you think about it.?
will samui good place to stay whithin next 11 days? hoe long does the recovery take after flooding (i know this is not first time, but very first time in april)? how ussualy the weather looks like in april?
i hope you and your family are safe.....
Dariusz
Hi Dariusz,
Within 11 days a lot of clean up and repair work will be done. In my opinion you will be fine!
Hi Camille
Firstly what a great blog, came across it quite high up on google whilst trying to find some info on the floods.
Please can you give me some info on Koh Toa?, Im bringing my wife and kids to Koh Toa on the 8th of April and we are staying at Tanote Bay. In your opinion do you think Koh Toa will be open for business? and do you no if the west side of the island has been hit?
We fly into Bangkok on the 5th and head down do Chumphon on the 7th (do you know if this area has been affected also)and supposed to get the ferry on the 8th.
Any info would be great as i have a wife who is worrying a great deal!
Kind Regards
Marcus
Hi Marcus,
Koh Tao has been hit rather badly and i don't know how long they will need to recover and repair things in order to be able to accommodate everybody again without a hitch!
All of Koh tao has been hit, Tanote bay has not been exempted! No information on specific damage or such.
Hi! And thanks a lot for this really helpful blog! Its impressing that you share all your information frequently, you can't realise how much we all apprechiate it!
Well, you said that it would be ok to visit koh samui in the end of april (I saw it in a comment), but do you think the weather will be nice by then? And are there any of the cheaper guesthouses/bungalows that are totaly destroyed and will not be fixed until the end of april? Also, how is Koh Tao and Koh Phangan at the same time?
A lot of questions...answer if you have time, and thanks again!!
Best regards /Sara
Hi Camille
I would like to say this is the best blog I have seen!! You are doing a great job and I'm pleased you seem to be safe and well. We are due to come from Phuket to Koh Samui on 11th April for 9 days to stay at the Samui Ocean Hotel in Chaweng, in your opinion do you think it would be advisable to come to Koh Samui or to arrange to stay in Phuket for the rest of our stay? there isnt much information getting back to us in England.
Thanks
Dear Camille,
we are going to koh samui on 7 th april to samui boat lagoon villas, bohput. villas manager wrote that vilas are ok , but we have 5 years old daughter ....can U pls. let us know when food supplies will be ok? would U recommend us to come, we planned 3 weeks stay...or not ? thank U very much in advance
Iveta
Hi Camille.
Great blog you got:)
I am traveling to Ao Nang Villa Resort, Krabi with my family on April 7. We have small children and are unsure whether it would be too unsafe to be in krabi. Do you know anything about the condition in krabi?
Kind Regards
Anders
Hi Camille
We are due to do to the Kirikayan Spa resort near Bohput on 20th April. Do you know of any problems there
Cheers
Andrew
Hi I'm supposed to be coming to Koh Samui next Thursday...any idea what it will be like?
hi camille,thanks to exist!
I was stucked at the pier from sunday,your blog has been really helpful.now I'm bangkok.
one thing,I had to reach djl scuba diving but I can't put myself in contact with them(no phone,no mail),what do you suggest to do?
'cause I've to finish my scuba diving course.....
hope there everything well!
cosimo
hi...my family and I just arrived back from koh samui..
if you are thinking of going in the near future I would think really carefully..
I know it is horrendous for the locals...
But it was horrendous for the tourists too..
we stayed at Bandara in Bophut for 8 nights.. Lovely resort....but it rained the entire time..
Got to the airport ..found out all flights cancelled..after 10 hours...standing room only ... we got taken to a hotel...that was flooded..no water... no power... food being washed in flood waters.. horrific...
flood waters up to our heads...all our luggage and items damaged... was absolutely horrific.. I would still be there if I didnt go off... being nice didnt work at all... it is so hard to get off the island ..people we met are still stuck there...
if you were supposed to leave monday ...you then go on a standby list ..people flying out today have priority... we were advised to stand at airport all day... waiting 10 plus hours ... was not fun... not with a child especially ..standing room only..
really not hygenic...
horrific..
I know it is just my opinion ..but to live through this for a week almost was bad enough... I wouldnt recommend my worst enemy go there...
please if you are going in the near future really think about it...
so bad everywhere...
Hi
We are currently at rocky beach near lamai beach. We just arrived here in very bad weather conditions 2 days ago. In the resort here called rocky we don't notice so much of it all. Water and electricity are back on and plenty of good food.
Hi Cosimo,
Good to know that you're fine and back in Bangkok.
Regarding DJL, wait a few days and try their email address or website or try to call them from Bangkok. I'm sure that they will get back to you rather soon.
Hi Camille, we (10 of us) are supposed to be vacationing there on 14th of april and the family is worried as there will be 2 young children in the group. We are planning to stay in the Napas Villa. What would your advice be for us? Any help/advice will be much appreciated.
Hi Farish,
-If you're planning to visit Koh Samui within a week or so, expect a damaged island with a lot of clean up and repair work going on. I'm sure that hotels that aren't affected will do their uttermost best to accommodate you but Samui won't be at it's prettiest!
-If you're planning to visit Samui around mid April, I would expect a lot of damage and debris been taken care of and your visit should be fine.
Hi, Just enquiring if it is safe to stay at pavillion hotel in Lamai. Due to fly there 3rd april. Thanks
please keep in mind that I do NOT have lists of individual hotels and their current state. If I stumble over one or hear about one I will post it here on my blog.
-If you're planning to visit Koh Samui within a week or so, expect a damaged island with a lot of clean up and repair work going on. I'm sure that hotels that aren't affected will do their uttermost best to accommodate you but Samui won't be at it's prettiest!
Cazz,
Thanks for the update and sorry to hear about your experience.
Nice to hear an update from Rocky's Resort and good to know that all is well there. Enjoy dinner, it's good there!
Morning, i know you will be a very busy man so thank you for taking time to
read this. Your blogs are very useful and i will be keeping track on them
every day. Myself and my best friend are from scotland, due to fly out for
a 2 week holiday in Bangkok, Phuket and Koh Samui from next Fri 08/04. we
really do not know if we should cancel the holiday or not. Our hotel in Koh
Samui is Al's resort and we cannot get hold of them to know if the hotel is
damaged or not. Do you know?? should we cancel our holiday? we have spent a
long time planning and saving for this, all internal flights and hotel are
booked and paid for. Thank you, Louise.
Hi Louise,
Although I know Al's resort very well, I have no information about the current state of the resort. However, in a weeks time a lot of clean up and repair will have been done. I hope you will enjoy your trip nonetheless.
Hi Camille,
we are due to come out to Koh Samui 12th April for our daughters wedding.
We're booked to stay at the Imperial Boat House hotel at Choeng Mon Beach.
We can't get any information about its status. Tried to contact them bp phone and email, but no reply. Have you heard anything?
Thanks,
Laura
Hi Laura,
No news from the Boathouse but I assume things will be back to normal within a week.
HELP CAMILLE!
We are so thankful we found your blog! Thank you SO VERY Much for all your posts!
My husband and I are scheduled to stay at the Seaflower Bungalows on Koh Phangam on April 6. We can't get ahold of the hotel. do you have any idea what the status is? I heard the ferries are back and working from Koh Sumai to Koh Phangam, but do you know if the flights are still running from Bangkok to Koh Sumai? We are super stressed and would appeciate any guidance!! Thank you so much!
-Alison
Hi Alison,
Please keep in mind that I do NOT have lists of individual hotels and their current state. If I stumble over one or hear about one I will post it here on my blog.
Koh Phangan had also issues with flooding but no details are known to me.
The airport opened already 3 days ago.
Hi Camille!
Your blog is really great!
We are thinking about going to kho lanta now. You are there at the moment now, aren't you? how is the situation there? is it possible to dive and how is the weather?
thank you so much for your help!!
We arrived in Koh Samui on Thursday 31st March. Weather is warm and dry, overcast but sun comes out too. We arrived first day after the airport re-opened. We are staying in hotel south end of Chaweng Beach. No trouble with electricity, water, food supply is normal, restaurants all open. beach is lovely. Haven't toured around the whole island yet, but some parts have been more affected than others of course. These people are trying very hard to get everything back to normal as quick as they can, as they need the tourist dollars to survive.
Hi Jenna,
Koh Lanta is absolutely fine, went diving today, flat oceans and no water damage what so ever on Lanta.
If in the North of the island or near Saladan try Blue Planet Divers or in the South part of the island or Ban Kantiang try Scubafish.
Hey Camille,
Cheers for the blog, info on this has been otherwise hard to come by in detail.
Just wandering, can I expect any price increase for staying on Koh Tao? Am on a major budget and if you have any info on a good, cheap place to stay It'd be much appreciated. We are planning to arrive on 4th/5th.
Thanks again,
Chapa
Hey Camille,
Cheers for the blog, info on this has been otherwise hard to come by in detail.
Just wandering, can I expect any price increase for staying on Koh Tao? Am on a major budget and if you have any info on a good, cheap place to stay It'd be much appreciated. We are planning to arrive on 4th/5th.
Thanks again,
Chapa
Hi Joe,
Good question about the price increase! I wouldn't expect an increase in accommodation but currently on Samui some veggies and foods are more expensive, question of demand and supply, much to the chagrin of my wife ;-)
Hi Camille
also came by your blog by chance. I have spent the best part of the past three days trying to locate my brother who was due to arrive back in the UK in the 28th March. All we know is that he was in Phi Phi and then going to Koh Samui before flying out on the 28th. Was there flooding around this time?Surely he can't still be stuck at the airport but also can't understand why he has not been in contact. The contact number we had for him while he was there simply goes onto voicemail and there has been no response from e-mails or FB. Not quite sure where to start looking or who to report this enquiry to. Any advice would be appreciated.
Thanks
Julie
Hi Julie,
Samui was in the midst of the floods around 28th March and the airport was closed for a few days. However, as you say, the airport is open and he should have been able to fly out again.
No idea where he could be but I will check and see if I can get some information about where you can go, maybe the Tourist Police on Samui +66 77.421.281 or +66 77.430.018
Hi Camille,
Superb blog - you're doing a great service to visitors and natives alike!
My partner and I were very keen to make Koh Tao a part of our visit to Thailand. We would probably be arriving by ferry from Chumpard on23rd April.
How is Koh Tao now? I'm finding it difficult to get any report on the extent of the damage there, let alone any update on how things are being put back in order.
Any advice or update from you would be great!
Thanks,
Stefan
Hi Stefan,
Koh Tao is just fine and is most likely the least affected of all 3 Gulf islands.
Hi Camille
thanks for your blog it is very helpful.
May i ask u i will arrive koh samui on 16april is the weather be fine recently? An also we want to book a day tour to koh tao for diving, should we still go?
THANKS FOR YOUR HELP .
Hi Tiffany,
For over a week now the weather has been brilliant, sunshine and near blue skies! The forecast is really good as well.
Please send me an email and I can sort out all your dive wishes, conditions are good enough to enjoy your dives.
Really thanks for your reply . SORRY i think i told u wrong.Not dives.I would book the lomprayah company to koh tao,koh nanyuen,mango bay,tian nok bay ,hin wong bay,sairee bay to snorkelling is it a good choice ? And other Q because i arrive samui at round 7pm 16april ,if i want to hv a day trip on 17,wont be too late to book?
thanks
Hi Tiffany,
Yes to all your questions.
hi camille,
we need your help. we liked to stay on koh tao from 29.03. till 01.04.2011 but as we tried to check if we can reach the hotel on i think the 27. and 28.03. we could not reach the hotel via e-mail or telephone i think due to the flood.
so we could not cancel our reservation ask them if the hotel is ok.
we wrote them e-mails and tried to get in contact with the hotel (jamahkiri) but we didnot get any answer till today and now they charged us the whole amount of our reservation because of NO SHOW!!
I think thats not fair - because it was not possible to get to the hotel. Can you help us to get information if the hotel was closed or something else due to the flood?!?!
THANKS A LOT
To the best of my information and knowledge the hotel was not closed. Being unable to get in touch with them most certainly had to do with the floods.
During the days mentioned by you I don't think that Koh Tao was reachable by ferry or any other means at all. Getting back just now to you does not show good customer service in my humble opinion.
There's not much else I can do but maybe you can go on Trip Advisor and write a short piece about your experience, I'm sure they will not be very happy about that. Just make sure to not to do it anonymous!
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