Ao Noi, a corner of paradise on the island of Ko Kood

This is my first article on the island of Ko Kood (also spelled Ko Kut or Koh Kood) and given the large number of photos, I had to find several topics to avoid overloading everything on a single post. And so I start with the one about our accommodation and especially its location, Ao Noi beach. This is also the first time that I write an article dedicated to a particular place (including a hotel) because it is not in my habits, and no, I was not paid to do it.

But the particularity of the place, starting with the beauty of the beach, deserved to dedicate a post to it. Imagine, a very picturesque setting, with a pretty little idyllic bay, covered with white sand and a small jetty specific to the resort which completes this setting to admire the sunset. Seeing the photos I cracked and decided that this would be where we would sleep if we ever visit Ko Kood. Here we go!

Ao Noi, a private dream beach

The islands south of Trat, an area close to neighboring Cambodia, are part of a region that I particularly like. I can mention in particular Chanthaburi city, which I am particularly fond of, because it is surrounded by mountains and not far from the seaside. Consequently, I regularly explore these regions and took the time to visit some of the islands, which have nothing to envy their more famous sisters in the south of the country.

Concretely, I had started by visit Ko Mak, a few years ago, then almost 3 years ago (already!), when the mess with Covid was just beginning, I realized visit Ko Chang. All I had to do was see Ko Kood, which is the 3rd main island in the area (and the 2nd in terms of size). While looking at the different beaches on the island to target where to stay, I came across a 360° image that I put below.

From then on, it seemed obvious to me that this was where I wanted to go. I literally fell in love with this view (how could I not!). The problem was that when I looked at the accommodations in the area, I quickly realized that there was simply only one… The beach being privatized, it was the Ao Noi Resort or nothing…

Well, when I say privatized, not quite, because by law, all beaches in Thailand are public. A private beach as such is illegal, but the law can easily be circumvented... To obtain this private aspect, resorts, often luxurious, take over such a plot of land that it is virtually impossible to access it by land. And conversely, a hotel obviously has the right to block access to its establishment to the public other than its customers. Some therefore take advantage of this isolation of access to charge entry... This was formerly the case at the Ao Noi Resort, where it was possible for 100 bahts to access the bay. This is apparently no longer possible today, therefore reserved for customers only.

Afterwards, if it is not possible to access a beach via the hotel taking up all the space in front, it is technically possible to access it by boat, and the hotel cannot therefore prevent you from disembarking there since the place is public...

Pros/Cons of Ao Noi Resort

For the record (I seem to use this phrase quite often!), the resort is, from what I have been told, always managed by a Thai gentleman, now in his seventies. He was the first to set up a hotel on the island, which was then untouched by any tourism. I also got this information from a Frenchman who helps (helped?) the family to continue managing the establishment via the web, while the latter depend a lot on word of mouth and a largely Thai clientele, targeting in particular the French and international public.

I used "helped" because the dedicated website, which was notably in French, no longer exists.

[Update 2025: a site has since risen from the ashes:] https://aonoiresort.com[but in English only]

Despite this information and until proven otherwise, the resort is still operational to this day. If I condense the information, here is how we could summarize the Ao Noi Resort.

Product Highlights

++ If I go into detailClearly, the bay where the resort is located is magnificent. Lined with coconut palms, with rocks marking the two sides of the beach, it's a picture-perfect setting. In the middle of the bay, there's a wooden pier with a shelter, the perfect spot to admire the sunset.

++ The bungalows are divided into two areas, the most expensive ones are close to the reception area, while others are a little further away at the end of the beach, next to a rocky part. Everything is surrounded by vegetation, and not just coconut trees, which are certainly perfect for the exotic side, but can be problematic. Because I won't draw you a picture, getting a nut on your head can really kill you... The phenomenon is such that the resort anticipates this eventuality by calling on an ally to overcome this problem... A monkey!

Of course, animal rights activists wouldn't appreciate the spectacle, but they are trained and still regularly used by Thais to quickly collect coconuts high up in trees. And shortly after our arrival, I was watching this demonstration, explaining to us in passing that they do it regularly to avoid having unexpected accidents of falling on customers.

The welcome was courteous. It's a small establishment, so there wasn't a huge staff, especially at that time, but that actually reinforces the feeling of a more family-run hotel. Furthermore, when we asked to rent a scooter, they quickly found us a way to get around for the next few days.

++ Finally, the last advantage, as I mentioned earlier, is that the resort is located on a bay which, in addition to being stunning, is essentially accessible only to hotel guests. This creates a feeling of exclusivity and privilege, like the beaches of luxury hotels, often privatized in secluded bays (despite Thai law stipulating that any beach, regardless of its location, is public!).

The negative points

— While having a beach all to yourself is appealing and enticing, it comes with a slight drawback. You're isolated. The bay is only accessible via the private road leading to the Ao Noi Resort, so you have to return to the main road to then move on elsewhere, assuming you can rent scooters (and for that, I refer you to my article concerning driving in thailand).

The hotel also has its own restaurant, but you might quickly want to try other places, which requires getting around by scooter each time.

The isolation is still relatively relative, as there are areas with a few restaurants not too far away. From the main road, there are several if you go 500 meters north, and the same is true if you head south, where you'll find a few dining options.

But to reach the road in question, it's already about 750 meters from the resort. So, assuming you're on foot, that's at least a 2,5 km round trip to get something to eat. Now, I'm reasoning here like the average Thai person, who hates walking to get food… Let's be realistic, it's only a 15-minute walk each way, with the return trip to digest. But the main road isn't lit at night, and there's absolutely nothing to see along the stretches you have to walk along.

Another negative point, directly related to the next point, is that it's a bit expensive for this type of standard. Admittedly, they are bungalows near the water, but they lack any particular charm, especially the interior. From the outside, it's alright, with the nice little terrace; there's a good vibe about it.

But the dominance of dark wood inside and the lack of decoration make them rather bland (not to say ugly). This wouldn't be such a flaw if the site were well-maintained (see below).

— And that brings us to the last negative point, although I think I'm putting things into perspective here, because, for the umpteenth time, I remind you that we were in the middle of the COVID period. It's already almost a miracle that the resort continued to operate during that time; we can easily understand that maintenance was carried out to the bare minimum.

However, basic things like a clean bedroom and especially a clean bathroom seemed like a minimum to me. The windows of the bungalow were dirty, as were the cords connecting to the water heater, the shower head needed to be changed, and there was dirt in some corners on the floor (probably due to the presence of ants digging tunnels, a classic in bungalows surrounded by vegetation).

These are just details, but when you add up, when you pay 2 baht (about €200) for a room, it deserves some attention, given the usual standard in hotels in this price range in Thailand. Even if this rate corresponds to the high season, since outside of it, you would have to pay "only" 60 baht, it is still expensive for the country.

When I see proportionally the rooms and the setting of a hotel like the To The Sea The Resort Koh Kood or Koh Kood ResortThere's no question about it, you can clearly see that we're paying a lot for "exclusivity".

These examples are slightly more expensive than our bungalow, but as a reminder, ours were the cheapest despite the name (VIP Air Con).

The new rooms, Villa Sea View and Villa Beachfront, built with more permanent structures closer to the main resort area and the bay, are consequently priced similarly: 2,800 and 3,500 baht respectively. And while the upgrade undoubtedly provides added comfort, the comparison with the aforementioned establishments remains valid. The Ao Noi Resort lacks "personality."