Вот он - рай на земле Here it is - heaven on earth

We rested in Thailand in November-December 2007. Our tour included visiting 3 places: 1 - Bangkok, 2 - Chang Island, 3 - Pattaya. I won’t write about Bangkok, a lot has already been written and almost everything is true, but in terms of impressions - the city itself (the ratio of splendor and poverty), Beijing and Shanghai are brighter, Bangkok wins a lot in terms of historical sights. Changes in climate, food and time zones are not easily tolerated, especially in the conditions of a busy program of the first days in Bangkok, but the island compensated for all this. And now about the island. It is very difficult to convey delight in literary language (there is no practice), but this is really a paradise! This resort has just begun to develop (80% of the territory is jungle), so there is some lack of infrastructure for entertainment and shopping (not that it didn’t exist at all, but the choice is small - this is not Pattaya). For that, nature, silence, the sea are beyond praise!
In many ways, these impressions are the merit of the hotel in which we rested, since we didn’t have much need to go beyond it, with the exception of excursions and small forays to the fruit market. The hotel area is a tropical garden (very well maintained) in which there are very cozy bungalows with excellent sound insulation (even being on the terrace of the bungalow you can not hear what is happening in the room and vice versa). True, the order of the location of the bungalow is somewhat strange, it is not always possible to immediately find your bungalow, for that there is an opportunity to walk around the territory (if you get lost, you can always resort to the help of the staff). The staff is almost invisible, but very helpful. They even apologized in writing to us for the noisy construction work that was supposed to be carried out at the other end of the hotel during the daytime, two days. As a result, we did not hear this noise.
Absolutely calm (this hotel, and perhaps the island as a whole, is not for lovers of noisy holidays) and safe. When we were slightly burnt and could not be on the beach all day, we ran to swim in the sea directly from the bungalow without closing it (we just covered the door). I won’t comment on the cuisine - it suited me, but my condition when choosing a hotel was the presence of European cuisine (we don’t like all this exotic (except fruits), especially seafood). As for fruits, it is cheaper to buy them in small markets outside the hotel and ask there to be cut. Rich selection of fresh juices. I am amazed by the Germans and other Europeans who drink water in unlimited quantities (mineral or sweet like Cola) and absolutely do not drink fresh juices or packaged juices, which are also very good. Coconuts could be asked to pick directly from the palm tree (there are a lot of them on the territory) and they will immediately prepare it for you to use.

The sea is clean and calm. The hotel is located in the lagoon. There are no scooters and other motor equipment. In the morning, boats come up for tourists who have signed up for water excursions, and in the evening they bring them back, the whole day is silence. There are about a dozen of the same hotels in this lagoon, but if there were 5 people in the sea (in this lagoon) at the same time, it was crazy excitement. There are a lot of interesting design solutions on the territory of the hotel, it is impossible to describe everything, in one word it is very cozy. And now about what you need to consider if you decide to go there. Firstly, do not forget that almost all hotels there are of the bungalow type, that is, one-story detached houses located in the garden. Hence the conclusion that lizards can appear in the vicinity of the house and on the terrace (they are harmless, but impressionable people can spoil the mood). There are mosquitoes, and pet small ants in the bathroom.
For us, it was not fundamental - we live in a private house for half a year. Secondly, without an elementary knowledge of the English language (at least at the level of the school curriculum, although the schools are different for everyone), there is nothing to do there. This is not Pattaya, there is no menu in Russian and it will not be possible to communicate with the staff on it. Russian-speaking guides up to 10 people on the whole island and all hotels, they are not able to solve all your problems. Personally, we saw them 2 times (1 - when we bought excursions, 2 - on one of the 3 excursions). Since the review turned out to be very large, I will not write about excursions. They are there, not very many, there are very worthwhile ones, but this is a subjective matter (everyone likes his own).
Summary. After this paradise, we did not like Pattaya at all. I want to return to the island again, and to Pattaya only if I go to Thailand with a person who has never been there, so as not to deprive this person of the opportunity to form an opinion about Thailand.
This is my personal impression, because I wanted a quiet, relaxing and educational holiday.