Laanta Lanta Festival

Old Town

Every year on Koh Lanta, on the 7th, 8th and 9th of March, the Laanta Lanta Festival is held in Old Town.

Everyone sits out on the street to enjoy the bands and parades

Old Town is located on the southeast coast of Koh Lanta and is very different to the west side. It was originally the main town on the island and many of the buildings are made of wood with most extending over the sea. It has the feel of the 'Wild West' as you walk through it. 

Normally Old Town is a quiet little town that is much less touristy than the west coast and is usually very quiet by 5pm, however all this changes for these 3 days.

Different groups parade through the town

The town is decorated, the road closed and many stalls, bars, restaurants and shops turn the main street into a vibrant Walking Street. There are bands, competitions, dancing, parades and lots and lots of people partying. We thoroughly recommend that it is on your itinerary if you are in Koh Lanta during those days. Try to arrive late afternoon, as this is when the parades start and plan to stay till late. This is one of the few times of the year that there will be many taxis in Old Town to bring you back, so no need to ride a motorbike.

Lanterns adorn the main street

Nick and I will be there on the 8th as that is also our Wedding Anniversary.

The stage where dancing and beauty competitions are held

Hope to see you there!

An Early Contender for Husband of the Year

There is nothing more than our staff and we enjoy more than helping someone celebrate a special day.

Nathan contacted me before their arrival asking for our help in surprising his lovely wife on her birthday. We hatched a plan that whilst he enjoyed breakfast with her in the restaurant, Nick and the housekeeper, cleaned the room and decorated it with flowers. Nathan had also organised with us a bouquet of flowers and a bottle of bubbly.

She was surprised and delighted.

If you are staying with us and need any help or advice on celebrating a special day, contact Mellisa directly.

Rain is fun in Thailand! (Video)

Before people arrive in Thailand they are often worried that there holiday will be ruined by bad weather. Rain can happen at anytime of year, but rarely does it ruin a holiday and often it is a welcome relief as it cools the temperature.

Our guests even take this opportunity to shower in the rain!

Benji the Superstar

Now there is one thing we notice everyday at Mook Lanta Eco Resort, Benji has at least one photo of him taken!

Now we have lots of lovely cats and Sam, the dog is lovely, but certainly not as fluffy as Benji, but Benji does have the ability to capture peoples hearts. So much so, a customer came out every morning just to say 'Hi' to him and was left nearly distraught when he though he would not have the chance to say goodbye to him before he left.

So we are giving Benji, his own, and our first Instagram account: Benji_mook_lanta_eco_resort where we, and we hope our guests will share some of his photos.

Let's make him a star!

Big things to see from Koh Lanta

Whalesharks spotted at Koh Haa 1 & 6

Koh Lanta is not only a great place to learn to dive, but it is a great location to continue your diving, as the waters are clear, the seas calm and there is plenty to see.

Manta Rays sometimes seen at Hin Muang/Daeng

Koh Lanta is blessed with 3 key areas for diving nearby; Koh Haa (5 islands, but there are 6) is a group of islands offering a shallow sandy shelf (ideal for your first ever SCUBA dive), caverns and caves which are large and safe to explore and beautiful marine life. Near Koh Phi Phi, the dive centres here normally dive the 2 Koh Bida islands (Bida Nai and Bida Nok) a Divemaster's heaven because there is so much to show your guests in the slightly greener water (which nourishes the marine life). Finally there is Hin Daeng and Hin Muang (Red Rock and Purple Rock) which are named after coral that is on top of them and are much further south and only available to more experienced divers because of the deeper waters and stronger currents and the usual location to see Whalesharks and Manta Rays

Koh Haa Lagoon (Perfect 1st Dive)

This week has been a great week for diving here, with Andaman Dive Adventures seeing a Guitar Shark (something I have never seen in my 16 years of diving and teaching diving) on Wednesday at Koh Haa 1 and at Koh Haa 6 on Sunday. Tuesday there was a Whaleshark at Bida Nok and on a larger one spotted at Koh Haa on Friday!

Guitar shark

So you don't need to be an experienced diver on Koh Lanta to see some big stuff! Contact Andaman Dive Adventures for more information.

Walking Street in Old Town, Koh Lanta

Yesterday was my birthday, so luckily for me I had the day off and as it was also the walking street night in Old Town, we decided to spend the night over there.

Old Town during Walking Street Night

Old Town lies on the east coast of Koh Lanta and has a very different feel to the rest of Koh Lanta. Most of the buildings are made of wood (almost giving it a wild west feel), half are over the sea and sunrises are spectacular here (especially if you stay in a room over the sea).

Fresh Hotel over the Sea

 Old Town is much quieter, normally, compared to the rest of Lanta, only getting really busy when the Laanta Lanta festival is held there (March 7-9) and Loy Krathong, but this year they started a walking street every Saturday night. At around 4pm they shut the main road to vehicles and the bars and restaurants put tables and chairs on the road. Many bars have bands and ladies from the local school entertain the tourists with some traditional Thai dancing.

Our bedroom for the night

We arrived early afternoon and checked into a beautiful room over the sea (Fresh Hotel) and enjoyed lunch at Fresh Restaurant (also over the sea, with stunning views and great view).

Sausage now lives at Big Tree Restaurant & Bar

Big Tree Restaurant and Bar

After lunch we went to Big Tree Restaurant and Bar to say 'Hi' to the owners, good friends of ours, and of course Sausage, the now famous 3 legged wild sausage dog who was rescued by the residents of Old Town, repaired by Lanta Animal Welfare and homed by Big Tree. Sausage now has a huge fan club, the volunteers at Lanta Animal Welfare often come to see her, and she is winning over the tourists. One guest bought her one of Big Tree's delicious hamburgers whilst they ate there and left more money so she could enjoy another the next day!

Old Town Cowboy

Red Earth was the band of the night at Old Town Cowboy

At sunset, the band, Red Earth started opposite Old Town Cowboy and the crowds grew. As the band were finishing their first set, Elvis (yes you read that right!) walked into the bar and the crowd cheered. This was Elvis's first night in Old Town and I don't think it could have gone better for him (think he prefers it to Las Vegas!). Elvis normally does just one hour, but extended it as the audience was really enjoying the show.

Elvis arrives in Old Town

After Elvis the Red Earth struck up some more tunes but were interrupted twice by a small group of ladies from the local school, dressed in traditional outfits and performing some traditional and beautiful Thai dancing and then a wonderful fire dancer. Even Sausage wandered up to Old Town Cowboy to watch.

It was an amazing and fun night and I cannot recommend it enough if you happen to stay on Lanta on a Saturday night.