New Rasananda Site and Review of Tanaporn Massage House

New Rasananda Site

The Rasananda is now officially the Anantara Rasananda. The change has no doubt helped to improve business for the luxury resort as it is now affiliated into a larger group of luxury resorts and hotels. On the negative side the change has detracted from the unique quality of the resort; rather it has joined a corporate entity. The branding is all about Anantara not Rasananda. The Anantara group have made sure of this by publishing a new website for the Rasananda. The old website address now has a re-direct to the new one. It is of course a professional website but not as stylish. And worst of all the Rasananda webcam has gone. I thought this was a brilliant idea. A chance to spot Tony Blair chatting to Saudi oil barons around the pool has gone.

Tanaporn Massage House

Tanaporn Massage House has been a long time favorite of people who return to Thong Nai Pan Noi beach. The massages and spa beauty treatments are first class, the surroundings beautiful and the staff friendly. Greg and Porn give great service and at prices much better than at the spas belonging to the big resorts. They finally have a bit more web recognition with the latest review of Tanaporn Massage House on www.thongnaipan.info.

Finally...

It was a long monsoon this year, the sea is still a bit choppy but the beaches of Thong Nai Pan Noi and Thong Nai Pan Yai are as busy as they have ever been. Good news. Let's hope that other parts of Thailand and especially Bangkok soon bounce back from the terrible flooding in 2011.

Baan Panburi Re-opens on Thong Nai Pan Yai

Baan Panburi have done the same thing as Flip Flop Pharmacy: after being shouldered out of Thong Nai Pan Noi they have re-opened on the next beach, namely Thong Nai Pan Yai. Is this a trend I see? Are the older businesses from Noi all going to move to Yai as Rasanada slowly buys up the whole beach?

Anyway, this is good news. Baan Panburi became very popular in Thong Nai Pan Noi. The rooms were cheap but had air-con and closet space, and the 'Beach Club' did average food but had a great happy hour. The staff at the Baan Panburi in Thong Nai Pan Noi used to be excellent, especially Boy and the two women (I forgot their names). 

It looks like the new Baan Panburi Village in Thong Nai Pan Yai is very similar to the old one. There's a big restaurant on the beach and the bungalows are made of bamboo and wood and offer great value. Garden Huts are 300 to 600 THB, the Seaview Huts are 900 to 1,500 and the Thai House is 700 to 1,400 THB. The cheap bungalows are fan with cold water and the Seaview bungalows and Thai House has air-con and hot water. The interior of the Seaview looks well done from the picture below.

Although the choice of accommodation types is limited at the moment, they have just opened and are sure to add bungalows and cottages over the following year. 

They are also sure to have a happy hour, regular BBQ nights and Thai dancing for the peak and high seasons. Baan Panburi has a lot of experience in catering for guests in Thong Nai Pan and it will be no doubt a popular place to stay in Thong Nai Pan Yai.

SAGA Holidays to Thong Nai Pan Yai

Things have indeed moved on since the first hippies discovered the tucked away beaches of Thong Nai Pan Noi and Thong Nai Pan Yai. The area seems to have by-passed the phase of being over-run with Israelis clutching their army pay and gone straight into the mainstream of tourism.

The latest tours by Saga include Siam Island Adventure. It is an 11 night tour that costs £1,549. For the same money I could travel around South America for 3 months. Nevertheless, for those who don't want to think about buying tickets or finding places to stay the package tour will always remain popular. The Japanese who fear that all the world is dangerous bar for their ugly city or town where they live, the guided tour is the norm when going abroad.

The 'Siam Adventure Tour' starts in Bangkok and takes in Hua Hin and Chumphon before hitting Koh Phangan. Tourists are treated to 2 nights at Havana Beach Resort in Thong Nai Pan Yai before visiting Than Sadet and then moving on to Koh Samui.

What is interesting about the Saga holiday to Koh Phangan is that it chose Thong Nai Pan rather than Haad Rin, Haad Yao or Ban Tai as its beach location. This is confirmation perhaps that Thong Nai Pan is the best beach on the island. It is also intersting to note that the price of £1,549 is not enough to stay at the better resorts of Santhiya, Panviman or Rasananda. In a way I'm pleased as I like the owners of Havana.

However, if you are reading this and you are thinking of going to Koh Phangan for the first time, then unless you are old don't waste your money with Saga. Thailand is one of the safest places to travel in the world. Why not make your own way down to Koh Phangan from Bangkok and why not give some of your money to the local businesses along the way instead of giving it to corporate entities in First World countries?