After two weeks in the north of Thailand we were ready for some beach time. The folks who managed our guesthouse in Pai had warned us how cold it could be up north in the “winter”. Then again, as Heather and I left our room each morning in shorts and tank-tops to have breakfast in the open-air restaurant, they would greet us from in front of the huge brick firelace that dominated one end of the dining area, a huge wood fire burning in it’s hearth, wrapped in down coats and wool hats. Maybe they don’t really know what winter is. But it was time to head south. After several visits to idyllic tropical Thai islands in the past, we knew that many had been over-touristed and overdeveloped. Signs in Russian and Chinese began to appear, indicating the onslaught of those particular groups. The locals had developed a certain surliness and indifference, no doubt in response to the treatment they were receiving.We had even told ourselves that we probably wouldn’t return to Thailand after our last visit in 2015. But we wondered if there were still any islands that hadn’t suffered from a Communist takeover. We found one island that did peak our interest. Ko Ngai is located off the west coast of southern Thailand, in the Andaman Sea, south of the larger islands of Ko Lanta and Phuket. It was everything we had hoped for. Ngai is home to about five or so sets of bungalows and three upscale resorts . . . and nothing else. No local village. No roads. No cars. No motorbikes. No jet skis. Just a long stretch of sandy beach, a decent coral reef and a swing hanging from a palm tree in front of our bungalow. But it wasn’t all Robinson Crusoe-esque. Each day around noon several long-tail boats would motor up to our beach, disgorge a couple dozen day-trippers who would spend an hour taking selfies, rouse me from the comfort of my beach lounger to take photos of them on the swing, then wade back out to their boats and return to their busy islands to the north. The folks who were staying on Ngai, if they had hidden out in their bungalows or enjoyed lunch in one of the restaurants during the onslaught, would reemerge like a swarm of hermit crabs, making their way back onto the beach to reclaim a chair or a shady spot under a palm tree.

 

A fairly decent coral reef just off the beach provided the only entertainment we needed. Hornbills roosted in the trees overhead. The only challenge to be faced was which of the four restaurants to dine in that evening and when could I enjoy my first cold beer. Ko Ngai restored my faith in Thai islands.