Lonely Beach

Lonely Beach (Hat Tha Nam) sits on the south-west coast of Koh Chang, about 25 minutes by songthaew from White Sand Beach, and has long occupied the role of the island's backpacker quarter — a reputation for budget bungalows, cheap food, a relaxed drug culture, and an international crowd of long-stayers who value its distance from the more commercial northern beaches. The beach itself is small and not Koh Chang's most beautiful, but the surrounding coconut palms, shallow waters, and simple beach bar scene have their own charm.

The main reason people stay here is the price and the pace. Bungalows start at ฿200–400 per night — the cheapest on the island — and the local restaurants (many Thai-owned, not resort-facing) serve good food at local prices. The general atmosphere is of people who have stopped to rest and found it comfortable enough to stay longer than intended. The community of long-term budget travellers and young Western expats gives it a social energy that White Sand Beach, for all its superior infrastructure, cannot replicate.

South of Lonely Beach, the road continues to Bang Bao fishing village — a community on stilts over the sea with a wooden pier lined with seafood restaurants and tour-boat operators. Bang Bao is the southern departure point for snorkelling and diving trips to the national park islands (Koh Khlum, Koh Wai, Koh Mak, Koh Kood), which have among the clearest water in the Koh Chang archipelago. The combination of Lonely Beach accommodation and Bang Bao island trips is the preferred itinerary for the budget island-hopper.