KOH KRADAN

Early next morning we started what would prove to be an epic journey involving four boats to get to the remote Thai island of Koh Kradan for another hotel review. We were up early to catch our ferry which we thought would take us directly to our destination. What we didn't realise was that the 'ferry' was actually a speedboat which nipped across the border to Koh Lipe in Thailand on an exhilarating yet bumpy journey. Immigration consisted of handing over our passports to some guy who returned soon after with the relevant stamps. We had, meanwhile, transferred to another boat - closing our eyes and praying as we jumped across the void between decks as the two boats bumped up against one another - which then took us on a longer, noisier ride to the tiny port of Trang. Our enjoyment of the sunny top deck and great views of the beautiful islands passing by us was only tempered by the realisation that we had only been given a 15 day visa for Thailand. We had expected 30 days but, unbeknownst to us, in November 2008 the Thai authorities changed the rules for people entering the country over land or water which means that only those entering at an airport can get such a visa. And we thought the Thai government wanted to encourage tourism and was concerned about visitor arrivals falling this year in the midst of the global economic crisis! Funny way of showing it… We decided to put it out of our minds for the time being and kept our fingers crossed that it wouldn't scupper our plans to explore all that Thailand has to offer.

At Trang we had time to change some Malaysian Ringgit into Thai Baht and bought some tasty fried rice and chicken schnitzel-type things on a stick. There was nothing much to Trang other than a few shacks, a Tsunami warning tower and the ever-present photo of the King and Queen who are held in the highest esteem across the country. We finally got to Koh Mook, the next stop on our journey, an hour later than planned which meant that the longtail boat which we had arranged to take us to our final destination, Koh Kradan, had long since been and gone. Typically for Team West, a heavy rainstorm began as soon as we landed at the beach at Koh Mook. Yes, it even rains on us on a desert island. Duncan called the hotel from the resort near the beach and the longtail turned up soon after to take us across to Koh Kradan for our first taste of a proper remote island getaway.

Again, we spent three days here reviewing the hotel which was in a beautiful location with perfect white sand, crystal clear blue sea and palm trees. Maybe we're getting too spoilt, but we were disappointed with the hotel's unimaginative and formulaic image. Worse than that, the service was lousy, particularly given the price tag on a night's accommodation. We thought we were being too picky at first but, over the course of three days, they forgot our orders, brought us lukewarm food and served us our starter and main course dishes at the same time. And for some reason the staff seemed remarkably bad-tempered for a country known for its charming people and warm welcomes. Not good for the review, and a bit disappointing for those guests paying a lot for a top quality hotel, but we had a great time otherwise enjoying the infinity pool and kayaking around the island for some of the best snorkelling ever with huge schools of beautiful, multi-coloured fish everywhere we looked. Other entertainment was provided by a group of Thais who took over half of the hotel for a photo shoot with both male and female models posing in a variety of skimpy swimwear, while a posse of camp stylists touched up their make-up and handed them accessories. We also had to find the time, during this hectic schedule, to plan out the next stage of our trip and call Emma's mum to wish her a happy birthday.