Ao Chalok Lam

Introduction

Chalok Lam Bay photo

© fish4

Ao Chalok Lam is a beautiful 3 kilometre bay on the much quieter and less developed northern side of Ko Pha Ngan. Originally a fishing village that used the beaches to dry the squid, it has been transformed into a tourist location with many very affordable places to stay. It is ideal to party at Hat Rin and then chill out in a cleaner more natural environment such as Ao Chalok Lam. The bay itself is huge and there are some fantastic views from the hills overlooking it. The villagers of Chalok Lam are very friendly and chilled out. If you get up early enough you will see most of them at the Thai Temple in the village for morning prayer.

Sights and Activities

• Thai Temple: There is a nice local Thai temple on the outskirts of the village.
• Chinese Temple: There is a nice local Chinese temple on the outskirts of the village.
• Elephant Trekking Camp: Experience some eco tourism with this group providing elephant trips and hikes.

Getting There

The best way to get to the beach is to just grab a truck from the ferry landing.

Getting Around

Chalok Lam Bay West

© fish4

By Foot

Is the best way to get around. Just remember to take your shoes off when you enter a business.

Sleep

Property	Address	Type
Fantasea Resort
Niramon Villas
Wattana Resort
Mandalai Hotel
Chaloklum Bay Resort

Keep Connected

Internet

There are countless internet bars across the country in big and small towns. Internet cafés are widespread and most are inexpensive. Prices as low as 15 baht/hour are commonplace, and speed of connection is generally reasonable, but many cafes close at midnight. Higher prices prevail in major package-tourist destinations (60 baht/hour is typical, 120 baht/hour is not unusual). Keyloggers are all too often installed on the computers in cheap cafes, so be on your guard if using online banking, stock broking or even PayPal. Remember that in the smaller towns and more traditional areas the owners and staff of internet bars prefer if customers take off their shoes at the entrance and leave them outside. This might seem strange although this gesture goes a far way to make friends and give a positive image of foreigners to Thai people.

Outside the most competitive tourist areas, free Wi-Fi is not as common as in neighbouring countries in many budget hotels and guesthouses and they may charge small fee for Internet by LAN or Wi-Fi even if you bring your own laptop. Wi-Fi is commonly available in cafes and restaurants serving Westerners.

Phone

See also: International Telephone Calls

The international code for Thailand is 66. 999 connects to all emergency services. Standard GSM emergency number 112 is supported in mobile networks. 911 for Tourist Police Department, English available.

For mobile phone users, Thailand has three GSM mobile service providers - AIS, DTAC and Truemove - which may be useful if you have a mobile phone that will work on either one or both of the GSM 900 or 1800 frequency bands (consult your phone's technical specifications). If you have one, you can buy a prepaid SIM card for any of the Thai carriers in any convenience store for as little as 50-200 baht and charge it up as you go. Using your own mobile phone while on holiday with a Thai pre-paid SIM card can save a lot of money and lets you give your number to family back home, so they can have an emergency contact number.

Post

Thailand Post is the Thai postal service that deals with all local and international mail in Thailand. The business is operated from local post offices. Post offices are easy to recognise with their red white and blue motifs and the words 'Thailand Post' in English and Thai above the entrance. They are open from Monday to Saturday, usually 8:30am to 4:30pm (main ones until around 8:00pm), though keeping shorter hours on Saturdays (usually until 1:00pm). They are generally closed on Sundays and Public Holidays. Each post office offers a comprehensive service which includes an Express Mail Service (EMS) and parcel post. They also have a price calculator for letters, postcards and parcels, both domestically as well as internationally. They also have a track and trace system and money transfer services. If you want to send packages, it might be a good idea to check with private courier companies like DHL, TNT or UPS, as they are fast, reliable and generally quite competitively priced.