Fodor's Expert Review Koh Mak Panorama Resort

Editor's Note: This location is no longer in operation.

If the bungalows here look more like something you'd find on safari in Africa, it's thanks to owner Khun Luang, a Chanthaburi gem dealer who spent many years on the continent searching for rough stones. Most of the bungalows are clustered in a coconut grove above a slope that leads down to a man-made river. Bungalows have many amenities—cable TV, phone, hot water—but no air-conditioning. A few two-room bungalows on stilts right on the shoreline are a better option, but pricey at B12,000. Most of the coastline is rocky, but there's a small sandy beach near the bungalows. The sprawling open-air restaurant serves wonderful Thai food (a good thing, since there's no other place to eat in the immediate vicinity). The resort can arrange transportation to Koh Mak, a small island south of Koh Chang, via speedboat from the pier at Laem Ngop.