The Sleepy Paradise of Koh Mook
Set in the crystal clear waters off the coast of Trang in Southern Thailand, Koh Mook is a hidden gem of an island. Beautiful beaches, great accommodation and plenty of tasty food to eat, Koh Mook is the island you wished you had heard of earlier. Thailand is full of “Paradise Islands” but the little island of Koh Mook (sometimes called Ko Muk) is a world away from the busy beaches of Koh Lanta, Samui or Phuket. We have been to this gorgeous island twice and this is our complete guide to Thailand’s sleepy island paradise - Koh Mook.
Often in Thailand you have to share your paradise, share it with many, many other people. There is a fantasy when backpacking that you’re going to find “The Beach”, an unspoilt and deserted strip of white sand and paradisiacal blue water. Then you remember that Thailand is a well known, well connected and a fantastically popular tourist destination. Thailand welcomed 28 million tourists alone in 2023. That beach you’re looking for is not going to be deserted! This isn’t meant to be a downer, the beaches, even the busiest ones are phenomenal, but if you want to find a quiet cove, you will have to look a little harder.
Koh Mook felt like we had arrived before the mass tourism wave. We’re not old enough to say for sure, but we feel that Koh Mook must have been what it felt like to backpack Thailand in the Seventies and Eighties, before mass tourism and resorts came. It's not often in Thailand that you can find a place full of staggering beauty without the crowds, but whilst we were on Koh Mook it seemed like we had.
Koh Mook has not yet succumbed to the mass tourism or exclusionary, exclusive resorts of its neighbours. The island exudes a genuine laid-back sleepy charm.
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Okay backup, there is one resort on Koh Mook, the Sivalai Beach Resort, so it hasn’t completely escaped the notice of developers. However, we have visited twice, both times in the high season and the island was very quiet, laid back and didn’t feel anywhere near as busy as our previous destinations of Koh Lipe and Koh Lanta.
In this Koh Mook travel guide:
Where is Koh Mook?
Koh Mook or Ko Muk as it is often spelt, is a small island just off the coast of Trang province in southern Thailand. North of Koh Libong, and next to the smaller islands of Koh Kradan and Koh Ngai, Koh Mook sits in perfect clear-blue waters and is surrounded by natural beauty, corals and amazing wildlife. Koh Mook island is easily walkable from one end to the other in 30 to 45 minutes and although you can rent a scooter, you really don't need to. Just slow down, relax and take in the beautiful laid back surroundings.
Getting to Koh Mook - How to get to the island?
The obligatory Thai ferry stickers.
Ferry / speedboats from the other Thai islands.
Whilst on Koh Lipe (another fantastic Thai island, check out our article here), we had been nosing around the travel agents trying to suss out our next move. Koh Mook grabbed our interest as it seemed to be a small stop on the way north to more popular islands. Koh Mook seemed to be a far less popular option than Koh Lanta and Koh Phi Phi where most other travellers seemed to be heading. We booked ourselves on the speedboat from Koh Lipe. One ticket from Koh Lipe to Koh Mook on the speedboat cost us 1250 baht. We booked our tickets in person on the island of Koh Lipe, but if you wanted to book in advance and online, you could use 12Go. If you are travelling in the high season, we would highly recommend booking in advance as the ferry tickets sell out quickly!
After a quick stop at Koh Libong (yet another beautiful island, check out our article here), our speedboat headed across the water and docked at the end of Koh Mook’s very long pier. There are taxis available to take you from the speedboat to your accommodation (100 baht - same price for anywhere across the island), but as we were backpacking it was time for us to walk.
If you’re not coming from Koh Lipe, Koh Mook is accessible from most of the other big islands, sometimes it's a stop along elsewhere and sometimes as a direct speedboat.
Getting to Koh Mook from the Thai mainland
There are connections to the mainland via the city of Trang. Trang bus station is well connected and has links to the main towns of the south as well as Bangkok and further afield.
If you’re looking to make your own way there, the pier from the mainland is called Khaun Tung Ku Pier (ท่าเรือ ควนตุ้งกู) - Location and public ferries run daily from here to Koh Mook.
Booking travel tickets to Koh Mook
As we have mentioned you can get to Koh Mook from any of the western Thai islands as well as from the mainland.
Have a look below for some booking options below:
Accommodation on Koh Mook
The island of Koh Mook has a decent array of accommodation choices, ranging from basic bamboo huts and hostels to a resort and a small selection of luxury boutique hotels.
We opted to stay at the Smile Resort. A private room with en-suite bathroom and air conditioning cost £17.50 a night. This is at the upper end of our backpacker accommodation budget. However, for a private room on a Thai island it was really a pretty good price, especially as breakfast was also included!
Smile Resort was great. The room was comfortable, clean and surprisingly large. The staff were super friendly and helpful. The included breakfast (fresh fruit, eggs, toast and mini sausages) was tasty and always good. In high season, when the hotel is busy, the breakfast is a buffet set up. If it is quiet in the hotel, breakfast will be cooked to order. There was also free water, tea and coffee.
The location was 5 minutes outside of the main strip of the island, and a half hour walk to our favourite beach.
If you’re looking for other options on the island either budget or bougie, check out the map below:
What to do on the island of Koh Mook
Pearl Beach (หาดไข่มุก)
This white sand beach stretches around the triangular peninsula from the main jetty, and is the closest beach for those staying at the big resort hotel of Silalai Beach.
Lined with palm trees, and beachside restaurants and cafes, this beach was extremely popular with families. There are also kayak rentals on offer.
As you walk further away from the resort, the beach turns into an almost sandy harbour, with local fishing boats anchored up.
We were told, but never managed to see, that during low tides, armies of tiny crabs swarm back and forth across the beach.
Charlie Beach
Charlie Beach is confusingly known by any of three names. Charlie Beach, Garnet Beach or simply Sunset Beach. We’ll be calling it Charlie Beach as this was how it was introduced to us.
If you’re staying in town, Charlie Beach is about as far away from you as you can get. Luckily this is Koh Mook so as far away as you can get isn’t very far! A 30 odd minute walk from the main town, the route to Charlie Beach is a great example of why we love Koh Mook. The town's tourist heart quickly gives way to green foliage and local village life. Wooden stilted houses line the road with intriguing side roads leading down to the local village. Impromptu barber shops, watermelon sellers and all manner of vendors are dotted along until even these peter out and give way to the jungle.
A small hill and a little forest walk later and you emerge from the jungle to tall coconut palms framing a picture-perfect bay. The beach spreads out in an ivory arc between limestone cliffs backed by the green jungle.
The first time we arrived we couldn’t believe our eyes. We thought that beaches like this only existed in postcards. Its golden sands and blue waters stretched out in front of us, Charlie Beach was jaw dropping.
The beach never got too busy on any of the times we visited. There is a line of market stall vendors selling drinks as well as hot food. These stalls would loan you their deckchairs or recliners, either in exchange for your custom or for a 200 baht fee for the day. We bought some Thai style chicken wings and a Som Tam salad from the market stall ladies and both were excellent.
Another bonus to Charlie Beach will come as no surprise to those who have read our Koh Lipe article - the beach dogs!
Charlie Beach was home to two of our favourite beach dogs we have met on our adventure so far. A brother and sister pair of cheeky troublemakers, we dubbed Snowflake and Santa (it was nearly Christmas). They were super friendly and very cute.
Each time we ordered food on the beach, we would be treated to the pantomime of the food vendor attempting, unsuccessfully, to distract the dogs from our meal. This resulted one time in two bartenders lifting Snowflake up (one took her front paws, the other took her back) and manually removing her a good few hundred metres. Snowflake who was clearly used to this treatment and was loving every minute of the attention, promptly ran back to us and hid under our seats. She never stole any food but she did give us very soulful eyes whenever we took a bite.
Look at the cute little rascal!
When you feel like a change of beach location, you can head to the left of the beach where the two beach bars sprawl out across the sand.
The first bar (the one closest to the ocean) is called the Fanta bar and in addition to serving cold beer and good food, is the perfect place to lounge around watching the sunset.
The Fanta Bar
The Mong Bar
The bar behind, Mong bar, is your usual reggae style beach bar and makes for a very fun laid back evening once the sun has gone down. When you walk up to the bars, you will likely encounter the lively young man from the Mong bar who will attempt to get you straight into one of his bar's seats. Our advice is if you’re just looking for drinks, just sit in the nicest looking chair in the best location - we recommend the front row seats for sunset!
It’s also worth pointing out that the Fanta bar doesn’t have an inside space so for after dark drinks on the beach you’ll need the Mong bar. Both bars have toilets on site, the Mong bars inside and to the left of the bar and the Fanta bar’s up a very steep stone staircase to the right of the bar (left at the top of the steps).
Both bars are around the same price point:
Jellie beer price index: 1 x large bottle of Chang beer - 100 baht - thoroughly reasonable for a large beachside beer.
On the cliffs overlooking the beach there is also a great restaurant, Ko Yao (วิวพอย์ โกยาววิวพอย์). This is another great place to watch the sun set and we will talk about it more in the best places to eat and drink on Koh Mook later in the article.
Ellie giving off some cyberpunk vibes!
After dark, tuk tuk taxis queue behind the market stands to ferry you back to town, again this will cost you 100 baht per journey, like all taxis on the island.
This was pretty much the only situation we used the tuk tuks for whilst on Koh Mook. It was easily walkable back to the main strip of the island, just make sure to bring a good torch with you.
The Emerald Cave
As soon as you step off the pier on Koh Mook, you will see billboards and vendors offering trips to the “Emerald Cave”. This intrigued us but, wherever possible, we like to do things by ourselves rather than with a tour. Luckily for us, there is an easy way to do a DIY tour to the Emerald Cave.
From Charlie Beach, it's a short fifteen to twenty minute kayak (around 2km) out to sea and around the coast to the Emerald Cave. Kayak rentals seem to be pretty uniform across the island at 100 baht per hour.
To find the Emerald Cave from Charlie Beach, set off to the right. The kayak journey takes you around some dramatic coastline, under rocky overhangs and past some staggeringly tall cliff faces. The entrance to the Emerald Cave is quite small and easy to miss, however there are usually a small throng of tour boats clustered around making it a bit easier to spot.
A small opening in the rock, with a rope dangling in front of it marks the underwhelming entrance to the Emerald Cave. At this point there was an advantage to going with a tour group. Everyone coming out of the cave had head torches, we only had our phones…
We had been briefly briefed to paddle into the cave and the only direction we needed to remember was to go right when there was a fork. Armed with this comprehensive knowledge we set off into the mouth of the cave.
As soon as we were past the caves' ragged entrance, you could see why it was called the Emerald Cave. The light shining through the water bathed the whole cave in a turquoise green light. This light however faded fast as we paddled our way further into the cave. Ellie was performing a sterling service as our headlights, but our phone torches meant we could only see about a foot in front of the nose of our kayak. We bumped into walls, narrowly escaped stalactites (we didn’t even see the fork in the cave) but eventually we rounded a corner, and saw light in the distance. We exited the cave and found ourselves in a lost world.
The cove of the Emerald Cave is magic, a circle of beach and jungle, seemingly cut out from the towering rock all around. Our kayak pulled up to the tiny beach and we spent a good fifteen minutes wandering around, taking photos and staring up at the vertical rock walls. The water on the beach of the cove seemed even more vibrant than that of the cave. The beach was fairly busy with a couple of other tour groups there but this didn’t distract from the beauty of the place.
On our way out, the cave was filled with a bellowing moaning sound. The group in front of us thought it sounded like a dragon, we thought it sounded more like John’s stomach when he is hungry. Apparently the sound is caused by water rushing in and out of distant caves and openings in the cliffs, not a overly hungry dragon.
For those who want to do an organised tour of the cove, any of the islands many tour operators will be happy to help, but just remember to check around and negotiate. We saw a staggering variety of prices offered for this small trip. It may be worth seeing if there is another longer trip (e.g. a day out snorkelling) that would also include the Emerald Cave.
Tips for visiting the Emerald Cave:
Bring a torch - don’t be us and attempt a budget remake of The Descent!
The best time to visit the cave will be medium to low tide as this allows the most light in before the tide gets too low. Do not attempt to enter at high tide as the cave will pretty much disappear under water.
To get in and out of the cave - going in stick to the right hand wall and you can’t go wrong and on the way out stick to the left.
When paddling through the cave be wary of swimmers as some of the tours swim through the caves rather than kayak.
If you want to swim through the cave, you can tie up your kayak onto some nearby rocks but this is at your own risk.
Outside of the cave there are ‘helpers’ who will guide you/drag your kayak through the cave for a fee. We didn’t find this necessary, however if you are claustrophobic or worried about going through the cave, this would be a good option.
The Koh Mook Viewpoint
The spine of Koh Mook is a series of hills and towering limestone mountains. The majority of the island is clad in thick jungle or (mostly overgrown) rubber plantations. In the past, Koh Mook had a walking trail that looped from the north of the island, up to a viewpoint, round to two secret beaches and back to town. At the time of visiting only the trail to the viewpoint was accessible, COVID having worked its magic and the jungle having reclaimed the rest. We love a good wander so we decided to hike up to the viewpoint.
The trail starts at the Nurses House hostel (we loved the look of this place and may look into it if we find ourselves back on the island), and quickly leaves the town behind. The sleepy streets and guesthouses are replaced with rubber plantations. The path starts flat but quickly curves up a steep slope and begins ascending the mountain. The rubber plantations become increasingly overgrown with the quick growing foliage taking back the spaces between the trees. The path is steep and, thanks to the Thai sunshine, very hot - make sure to bring plenty of water! The steepest portions of the trail have ropes attached to trees to help haul yourself up. The trail is well marked with red arrows showing you the way and the path is decently maintained.
As you near the top, the plantations give up and the jungle fully takes over. As the peak comes into sight, the jungle opens up and you will see the remnants of the camping station and cafe. We hope these come back as they are in an incredible location. The abandoned/disused cafe was interesting to have a nose around, with photos of previous expeditions pinned to the wall and old empty bottles lining the creaking wooden walls.
Just above and behind the camping station is the viewpoint. A window cut through out of the jungle. Framed by limestone cliffs and green trees, the view spills across the island and out to the blue of the Andaman sea. Sitting nearly perfectly in the centre, Koh Waen completes this impossibly picturesque view.
From the viewpoint there are still signs of the continuing trail, Koh Mook seems to be doing a lot of renovation whilst we were there and we hope that these paths reopen soon as it would be great fun to continue on the jungle trail.
The walk up to the viewpoint took around half an hour and although sweaty and steep in places was not a difficult hike.
Tips for visiting the Koh Mook Viewpoint:
Set off earlier in the morning or late afternoon if you want to avoid the worst of the sun's heat.
It gets very hot and humid, remember to bring lots of water.
As you’re walking through the jungle make sure you remember your bug spray.
We have now heard that the walking trail has been reopened, please let us know in the comments how you find it!
The Dugongs of Koh Mook
Here Dugong, Dugong, Dugong… No such luck!
We tried, every night we tried. Walking up the lamp lit pier and staring into the dark waters to try and spot a Dugong.
For those who don’t know what a Dugong is, imagine something between a sea lion and a cow but much cuter (seriously Google them). Dugongs feed exclusively on sea grass and have been known in the quiet of the night to graze their way right up to Koh Mook pier. We would love to show off some National Geographic grade photos of the sweet ocean grazers, but unfortunately we never saw one.
For those more determined than we were, you can arrange a Dugong watching tour through many of the island's operators. These will take you further out to different sea grass patches and massively increase your chance of spotting these lovely creatures.
Snorkelling and island hopping
Much like most of the other western Thai islands there are ample snorkelling opportunities. Throughout town tour operators offer a variety of different excursions. We had just done an excellent snorkelling trip from Koh Lipe so didn’t opt for this on our visit, but if we’re back, we definitely will next time.
Koh Mook is surrounded by the islands of Koh Kradang, Koh Libong , Koh Ngai and the tiny Koh Waen, again there are multiple tours offering to island hop you between these places.
If you’d like to book a private excursion that includes snorkelling, the Emerald Cave and some island hopping. Have a look here on Get Your Guide.
Best places to eat and drink on Koh Mook
Koh Yao Viewpoint Restaurant (วิวพอย์ โกยาววิวพอย์)
Situated in a perfect location overlooking Charlie Beach with a view across the bay and over the ocean, Ko Yao restaurant serves up all the Thai classics. We have eaten here many times on our visits to the island and it has always been fantastic. If you’re on the beach for sunset, this restaurant has the perfect vantage point from which to watch the sun go down. To get to the restaurant just walk to the far left on Charlie Beach and up the stone steps - you really can’t miss it.
Whenever we visited we would order the whole fried fish with a side of vegetables in oyster sauce. The fish is crunchy and covered in garlic chips on the outside, but flaky and perfect on the inside. The vegetables provide a perfect crunchy sweet accompaniment. If you do order this, make sure you ask for the chillies in fish sauce as they really made the dish pop!
The meal cost us 470 baht including rice - this was by far the cheapest whole fried fish we had found in southern Thailand so far.
Team Restaurant
Just off the crossroads of the main strip in town, the Team restaurant provided us with some excellent dinners. Team serves cheap, no nonsense Thai goodness.
We dined on green curries, pad krapow and the backpacker favourites of fried rice and noodles. Each time they were flawless, and all for a very reasonable price too.
Dinner for two (not including drinks) was around 200 baht.
Boon Chu Cuisine (ครัวบุญชู)
Right at the start of the main strip (as you approach from the pier) was the always busy and always welcoming Boon Chu Cuisine. We had an excellent penang curry and a seriously spicy chilli chicken and can heartily recommend both. The prices were similar to Team restaurant with mains being around 100 baht per dish.
Another advantage of Boon Chu Cuisine is the roti lady whose stall sits at the front of the restaurant. Open late, her sugar filled banana rotis made for the perfect constellation prize as we walked back from another Dugong free pier expedition.
A banana roti cost 40 baht.
Koh Mook Seaview Restaurant
Set amongst the fisherman’s houses and stilt supported wharfs, this little restaurant served up fantastic meals from a variety of set menus. These 3-course menus were a great way to enjoy a delicious lunch or dinner. The set menus came in two categories. The “Cheap Cheap sets” or the slightly more expensive premium menu. The premium menu included more fish options and ran at 250 baht per person, whereas the cheaper options were 150 baht.
The restaurant sits right on the water's edge with views across the fisherman’s bay. It’s a great place to dine and watch the locals go about their day.
We ordered from one of the cheap menus and chose the chicken satay, papaya and prawn salad and mango sticky rice. The satay was excellent, the papaya salad fresh and delicious and the mango sticky rice, well it was mango sticky rice so therefore fantastic!
An à la carte menu and barbecue options are also available.
Noodle Lady
Location - no Google Maps listing
On the walk from town to Charlie Beach, in the local village just past the boutique hotel, you’ll pass a small wooden shop selling steaming bowls of noodley goodness. We’ve eaten at this unassuming little gem twice and weren’t disappointed either time. Rich, yet light bowls of chicken noodle soup served unpretentiously amongst cackling Thai grandma’s and their raucous grandchildren. It was lovely to find and eat in a place not solely catered towards tourists.
It was also very budget friendly with a bowl of chicken noodle soup costing 50 baht.
Exhale Bar and Cafe
For those chasing their caffeine fix, Exhale Bar and Cafe is a great option. Set on the harbour's edge, this artfully decorated cafe serves up fantastic coffee. We stopped here twice and on the second time, the owner treated us to a bonus shot of his local whisky to go along with our coffee. It was an unexpectedly good combination at 10 in the morning!
One iced craft coffee cost 90 baht.
Miss Island Bakery Koh Mook -ร้านมาดาม
Another slightly cheaper coffee option is the Miss Island Bakery. This has the advantage of also selling muffins and sweet treats alongside perfectly good coffee.
One iced coffee cost 65 baht.
The bakery is open at night and serves pizza and other mains in the evening.
Oy Oy Reggae Bar
If beachside drinking isn’t your thing, the Oy Oy Reggae Bar will sort you out with comfy seats and cold beers. There was always a good crowd of both travellers and locals making for a fun and lively night here.
For those after a more chemically induced night, the bar also had an ample cannabis selection.
Jellie beer price index: 1 x small bottle of Chang beer - 90 baht. A little pricey, but you're on a Thai island so what do you expect?
Leaving Koh Mook - Where to go next?
You can’t stay here forever (no matter how much you might want to), when the time comes to go there are speed boats available to all the major Thai islands as well as transfers to the city of Trang and further afield.
We got the public ferry to the mainland pier of Khaun Tung Ku. Followed by a minivan to Trang bus station where we could make our onward connection to Krabi town.
Tickets can be booked through the island agents, on the boat or online via 12Go.
Other Thai Islands
If you are looking for more inspiration of what islands to visit in Southern Thailand, check out our other articles here:
Final thoughts
Koh Mook was just what we were looking for in a Thai island after Koh Lipe. Peaceful, relaxed and achingly beautiful, the island was a perfect oasis. With quiet beaches, good food and lovely locals, Koh Mook was fantastic. The Island is not as well known as some of the other islands of Thailand, and we don’t want it to be overrun, but it should definitely go on your itinerary for Thai island hopping!
Koh Mook, along with Koh Jum and Koh Libong, make up our three “lesser known” Thai island paradises. If you are looking for some island fun in Thailand, away from the crowds of holiday makers, do not miss Koh Mook!
Koh Mook - Essential Tips
The island of Koh Mook is car free, with only tuk tuks and scooters buzzing around. There are scooter rentals in town, but the island is so easily walkable that this seemed a little unnecessary.
Tuk tuks have a fixed price no matter the length of the journey. All rides cost 100 baht.
There is one ATM on the island, it's located on the main street on the left hand side.
Koh Mook is a rarity in Thailand and has no 7/11’s, however there are plenty of shops selling everything you could need from swimwear to suncream, mosquito repellant to shampoo.
The plumbing on the island was in our experience predominantly manual flush (a bucket you pour in) for the toilets. This really isn’t an issue but is worth knowing so it doesn’t come as a shock.
Half of Koh Mook is part of the Hat Chao Mai National Park. This national park extends onto the mainland and next time we visit we’re sure to explore more of this beautiful national park. The view of it from the ferry back was stunning, and it looks like a great place to visit.
Koh Mook can also be spelt as Ko Muk, this can get confusing!
Thanks for reading,
John & Ellie x
#adventuresofjellie
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