Samet Nangshe Viewpoint in Phang-nga National Park is undoubtedly one of the best viewpoints you can find in Thailand. The unobstructed view over the gigantic limestone hills floating on the ocean gives you chill every time you look at it. Facing the east, the sunrise view in this viewpoint is also extraordinary, promising a view you’ll remember for life. Maybe it sounds like I’m being too fluffy, but I just want to express how much I appreciate its beauty. If you’re planning a visit, here is a comprehensive guide to make your visit happen effortlessly.
Before my visit, I searched the internet, but unfortunately, there weren’t many articles covering this topic. Yea, there are a lot of big websites mentioning Samet Nangshe Viewpoint, but none of them cover them thoroughly. So I guess I should probably write on this so that it makes people’s life easier.
So let’s dive into the main topic and see how we can visit Samet Nangshe Viewpoint, shall we?
Contents
Getting to Samet Nangshe Viewpoint in Phang-nga National Park
First off, Samet Nangshe Viewpoint is located around an hour’s ride away from Phuket town on a motorbike. A little bit longer if you’re going from Krabi. Motorbike is easily rentable throughout the entire city, but there’s a motorbike rental shop in Phuket with a ridiculously good rating.
If you’re interested, look up Som Motorbike Rental Phuket in Google Maps. I rented with them and their attitude is great. For me, I rented a scooter for 200 Bahts per day for 3 days. The owner quoted me 250 Bahts, which I think is overpriced for that old scooter.
I read from a Google Review that they got a motorbike for 180 Baht, that’s why we bothered to bargain.
If that’s too far for you, renting from your hotel manager is a much easier option.
Riding to the Viewpoint
Google Maps, again, works well here. Just navigate to ‘Samet Nangshe Viewpoint’ and it’ll bring you right to the entrance.
The road condition is great unlike those in Vang Vieng, Laos. Not much up and down, no ridiculously steep roads. Overall, it was a pleasant ride other than the strong wind hitting our faces all the time.
You’ll ride through many orchards on your way, like rubber tree orchards, etc.
Remember to apply some sunscreen on your forearm. The uneven tan on my forearm looks really ugly. I also recommend wearing sunglasses that cover your eyes completely, so that the wind can’t enter and dry off your eyes. Also, a face mask will surely help.
And if you want, buy some snacks before going up. The restaurant closes at 8 pm, so who knows you might get hungry in the middle of the night?
Hiking Up to Samet Nangshe Viewpoint & Entrance Fee
Once you arrive at the entrance, you will be directed to park your motorbike and pay the entrance fee. As of February 2020, the entrance fee is 30 Baht per person.
An additional fee of 90 Baht will be charged if you want to use the transfer service (round trip), which saves you some sweatings.
But I wouldn’t recommend the transfer service because the hike to the viewpoint itself is pretty awe-inspiring. Halfway through the hike, you’ll be presented the view of the limestone hills in Phang Nga Bay, which is those you see on the photo earlier.
Those views make the hike much more rewarding, at least for me. It felt like I earned it, also reminds me of my trip in Cat Ba Island watching over the Ha Long Bay.
After 15 minutes of hiking through the dirt road (where you’ll be bombarded by the dust every time the truck drives by), you’ll arrive at Samet Nangshe Viewpoint.
Here, you’ll find colorful tents, chalets, a restaurant and many decorations for tourists to take photos with.
The strong wind is consistently blowing when you’re up there. Here are some photos for you to get a better picture of what the summit has to offer.
Staying Overnight in Samet Nangshe Viewpoint
Staying overnight here and wake up for the sunrise is one of the best things to do in Phang-nga National Park, Thailand. The sunrise view is just crazy.
Anyway, as I mentioned, there are a lot of tents and chalets for rent here. However, it seems like there is not a fixed price for the tents and chalets. From what I read in Google Reviews, some people managed to rent a tent for 150 Baht per night.
But guess what? When I was there, the owner hesitated when I asked about the price for a second, then quoted me a whopping 450 Baht. For a tent. Like, whattt?
It was our last few days in Thailand and we’re afraid of overspending, so we passed.
Even with bargaining, we don’t think we can pull the price down to even 200 Baht. The business was bad that night, only a friendly Italian couple rented the tent, and there were only 4 of us up there that night.
We didn’t know about the price of a chalet but our guess is that it’s around 700 Bahts, probably almost the same as what we read in Ao Tho Li Viewpoint reviews.
What Did We Do?
The wind up there is really strong and cold in midnight. It’s blowing non-stop and guarantees you a sleepless night. The mosquito army raids you all night long if you tried to sleep inside the closed restaurant.
We didn’t rent a tent so we had to stay up all night long and that decision made us doubt our life. We thought that photographing the Milky Way can kill our time easily, but there were so many clouds and no Milky Way in sight.
It was a bad decision. If you’re visiting, please rent the tent for your own sake.
How Were The Tents Like?
Well, as you can see from the pictures below, the tents are just perfect for two campers. I would suggest renting the chalet for 3 people.
Once you booked with them, they will prepare an insulator mattress along with two pillows in the tent for you. The tents look pretty new and in good shape so you probably don’t have to worry.
Here are some of the photos we took in midnight.
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What to Expect?
Well, now you know about the cold wind and mosquitoes. One more thing you should know is the crowds.
Before sunset, the crowds will keep on coming so don’t expect to have everything to yourself. There are always at least a dozen visitors up there until the sun goes down.
At night, there are only campers and stupid people like us. The owner of the restaurants, I guess, is sleeping at their house behind the restaurant.
In the morning, visitors start coming up around 5.45 am when the sky is still dark. You might want to wake up at this time to set up your tripod or camera if you’re in for the sunrise shot.
Big crowds start flooding in around 6.30 am. Everyone’s posing for their photo and there’ll be a lot of noise. But if you got yourself a good spot, you don’t have to worry about people standing in front of your camera.
If you’re up for breakfast there, the restaurant opens around 7 am.
If you’re into these kind of landscapes, then I’m pretty sure you’ll love a backpacking trip to Laos!
If you prefer to take a tour, here’s an option you should consider joining!
Wrapping It Up
So what do you think about this blog post? Did it help you in planning your trip to Samet Nangshe Viewpoint? Phang-nga National Park is more than just James Bond Island and Wat Suwan Kuha. Feel free to leave a comment below if there’s anything you’d like to add, like the prices of a chalet, etc. Let’s make this post more helpful. Anyway, hope you enjoy the view and travel safely!
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