Kai Bae beach is the second busiest beach on the island after White Sands. However, unlike White Sand beach it still has some charm. There are still plenty of bungalow resorts in which to stay. And in recent years the central area of the beach has been developed and now boats three of Koh Chang’s best resorts – Awa Resort, Gajapuri Resort and The Chill. They may be the best places to stay but as far as the beach goes you’ll find better stretches to the north, around Chang Park and Cliff Beach Resort. Or to the south where a wide sandy beach runs from Kai Bae Hut down to Sea View Resort. The nicest stretch being at the far south outside Sea View Resort.
Let’s start at the northern end of the beach and work south. This first video was taken outside Chang Park Resort. Cliff beach Resort is to the north and the new White Knot Resort, with just a handful of bungalows and a beach restaurant is immediately south of where I was standing. There’s a nice wide beach at Chang Park which is due to a bit of beach landscaping and bringing more sand up onto the land. The benefit of this is that guests have a nice beach even at high tide. Just a pity the resort is faded and in need of renovation, which is planned for the near future.
Moving a bit further south, now outside Coral Resort. North of this spot lie the three best resorts on the beach Gajapuri, Awa Resort and the Chill. as you can see the beach is pretty narrow. At high tide it almost disappears. However, it;s an easy walk 5 minutes south to get to the best stretch of Kai Bae beach.
From Coral Resort, head south past Nang Nual Resort, Kai Bae Hut, KB Resort and Kai Bae Beach Resort to Mam Kai Bae Resort – which is where this video was taken. Some old coral in the water and, in June when this video was taken the tides are very low, so not easy to swim with stones underfoot. However, in High Season, the tides are much higher and swimming isn’t a problem.
Finally after a few hundred metres along the sand, past Kai Bae Grande Villa and Porn’s Bungalows we arrive at the southern tip of the beach. Sea View Resort and Siam Bay Resort share the beach here. The bungalows from Siam Bay actually run in front of one of the Sea View hotel blocks which is a bit of an odd arrangement. This video was taken standing by the small pool at Siam Bay. The seabed in this area of the beach is devoid of stones or coral, which I don’t think is a natural phenomenon. But regardless, there’s no danger of standing on anything sharp in this area.
What have you learned from this?
If you want to stay at the best resorts on Kai Bae beach then you won’t get the best stretch of beach. That will have to be a compromise. If you’re looking for a mid-price bungalow on the beach then the resorts at the south end should fit the bill. KB Resort is the pick of the bunch but Kai Bae Beach Resort, which now also has some good value hotel rooms and a new swimming pool to go along with the older bungalows would be a good alternative if you wanted to save a few Baht. For families with older kids who don’t mind a bit of a walk to the village then Sea View Resort ticks all the boxes.
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