อ่าวสวนใหญ่
Ao Suan Yai
A long, gentle crescent on the north-west coast. The water stays calm and shallow far out, little Koh Kham sits just offshore, and the mountains of Koh Chang fill the horizon.
Trat · Eastern Gulf of Thailand
The island that
chose to stay quiet.
Coconut groves, glassy shallows and long golden evenings — kept this way, on purpose, by the families who have called Koh Mak home for over a century.
01 The Island
No 7-Eleven.
No jet-skis.
No hurry.
Koh Mak lies in the eastern Gulf of Thailand, between Koh Chang and Koh Kood — sixteen square kilometres of palm groves and rubber trees, ringed by soft, shallow bays. A few hundred islanders live here, many descended from the families who planted its first coconut groves more than a hundred years ago.
Its name comes from the areca palm, หมาก (mak), whose nuts islanders once gathered here. The pace has not changed much since.
- 16km²of island, flat enough to cycle
- 5founding families still at its heart
- 0jet-skis, by community agreement
- 1hrflight from Bangkok to Trat
— What makes it different
A rare kind of restraint
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I
Thailand’s low-carbon pilot
Koh Mak was the first destination chosen for the Low Carbon Destination programme of DASTA, Thailand’s sustainable-tourism agency. Islanders and resort owners keep it going through a shared community charter.
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II
Nothing to sell you
No convenience-store chains, no jet-skis, no banana boats. Small family minimarts that close early, and quiet roads used more by bicycles than cars.
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III
Owned by its own
Most of the island still belongs to the descendants of its founding families, whose coconut and rubber plantations shaped Koh Mak from the early 1900s. Tourism arrived slowly, and on their terms.
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IV
Room to breathe
Small, low-rise resorts tucked beneath the palms. No towers, no crowds — and long stretches of sand where yours may be the only footprints.
— Field notes
02 Bays & Islands
Two bays, and a scatter of islands to swim between
อ่าวเก่า
Ao Kao
Palm-fringed and unhurried on the south-west side, looking out towards the Rayang islands — the place to be when the sun goes down.
— Snorkel & paddle
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Koh Kham
A tiny island a short boat hop off the north-west tip. Clear water, a modest visitor fee, and a calm that comes from keeping numbers low.
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Koh Rayang Nok
White sand with a fringing reef close enough to snorkel straight from the beach. Day trips leave from Ao Kao in season.
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Koh Rayang Nai
Rocky and reef-rimmed, with no beach to speak of — this one is all about what lies beneath the surface.
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Koh Phi
Close enough to reach by kayak on a still morning. Paddle out, drift, paddle home for lunch.
03 The Journey
Getting here is part of it
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1 hr / 4½ hrs
Bangkok → Trat
About an hour on Bangkok Airways from Suvarnabhumi, or roughly four and a half to five hours by road.
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~30 min
Trat → Laem Ngop
A short taxi ride to the piers on the coast, where the boats for the islands leave.
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~50–60 min
Speedboat → Koh Mak
Across the open Gulf, landing at Ao Suan Yai or Ao Nid. Several departures a day in high season.
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Island time
Bicycle, scooter, bare feet
There is no car ferry and nothing is far. Most people simply pedal.
November – April
High season. Dry days, calm seas, every boat running.
May – October
The green season. Fewer boats, some resorts rest — and the island nearly to yourself.
04 Where to Stay
Six addresses, each with its own character
An independent selection — no bookings, no commissions. Rates and seasonal opening vary; check with each resort directly.
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01
Seavana Beach Resort
The island’s most polished address — private beachfront, a pool, and the kind of service guests write home about.
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02
Koh Mak Resort
Ao Suan Yai
The original. Opened in the 1980s on a founding family’s coconut plantation, with its own pier on the bay.
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03
Cococape
Headland by Ao Suan Yai
Known for its long sunset pier and a bar perched over the water. Bring a camera, stay for the light.
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04
Lazy Day Resort
Barefoot and honest value: bungalows a few steps from the sand, with kayaks and snorkels on the house.
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05
Good Time Resort
Between Ao Suan Yai & Ao Kao
Pool, yoga and gardens, a stroll from both bays. A long-time favourite with families.
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06
Little Moon Villa
A handful of sea-view villas on a quiet slope. Small by design, peaceful, and warmly looked after.
05 Low Carbon
Low carbon, by consensus
Koh Mak’s rules aren’t laws handed down from Bangkok. They are a community charter, agreed between the families, the resorts and the people who work here — kept because the island wants to keep them.
Quiet water
No motorised water sports — no jet-skis, no banana boats. Kayaks, paddles and fins instead.
Fewer engines
Limits on the vehicles brought over from the mainland, and no car ferry. Bicycles do the rest.
Less plastic
A long-running island campaign to cut single-use plastic, with recycling for what remains.
Replanting the reef
The Koh Mak Coral Conservation Group, led by islander Noppadol “Ueng” Sudhidhanakul, replants coral and seagrass in the bays and tends them by boat every week. Koh Mak is one of the few places in Thailand where coral planting is permitted. Visitors can join a planting dive, and so can researchers and students.
A working model
As DASTA’s first low-carbon destination, Koh Mak has become a reference point for sustainable island tourism in Thailand.
Travel lightly
Rent a bicycle · Refill your bottle · Eat at family kitchens · Leave only footprints
เกาะหมาก
Come slowly.
Leave lightly.
The boats run all through the dry season. The palms have been waiting a hundred years — they can wait for you.