I heard so much about this island, the Koh Samed / Koh Samet of Thailand. Located in the Gulf Of Thailand off the province of Rayong, it is the largest and westernmost of cluster of islands not far from the coast.

The island name actually came from the cajeput tree that is found throughout the island. The island is also known as “Magic Crystal Island” and it is very popular among both the local and foreign tourists. Koh Samed is also popular with its high end villas and resorts. It is a destination for honeymoon goers.

I was invited to Rayong in by Tourism Authority of Thailand for a media trip in June. It was my first time there, even though I heard so much about it from my parents. The highlights of Rayong are their fruit orchards, the sandy beaches and the islands at the Gulf of Thailand.

Together with other media, we stayed at Novotel Rayong Rim Pae Resort. As we reached there, we were given the usual formality of Thai hospitality. We were ushered to their beautiful lobby as their service desk staffs were sorting out our rooms.

Novotel Rayong Rim Pae Resort lobby desk

Meet Sue, the friendly staff from Novotel Rayong
Credits must be given to their fast services as we got our room keys fast and they also delivered our luggage to our rooms.

Can you spot the welcome fruit platter at the small table?
The room I had was pretty decent in size. There is also a fruit platter on the table in the room. This is the small detail that really makes the customers happy. By the way, I loved the idea of the fruit platter and also the King size bed.

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One of the popular tourist attractions in Rayong is their fruit orchards. I’ve heard so much about the fruit orchards of Rayong, particularly from my parents who travelled there for food a few years ago.

Landscape Park at the orchard

Part of the itinerary of the Tourism of Thailand Media Trip, I was there with the other media for a feast that we could never forget. As we reached there, we were greeted with a welcome drink.
Then we hopped on a coach for a sight-seeing tour around the huge orchard. After a couple of minutes of sight-seeing, we were brought to a hut for the fruit feast.

Durians were particularly popular among us. Their infamous “Golden Pillow” durian was somehow differs than Malaysian’s durians. The “Golden Pillow” tasted sweeter than common durians and the flesh was meaty.

Have you tried rambutan before?

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