After watching a new hit Chinese celebrity reality show “Chinese Restaurant”, also known as “中餐厅” in Chinese, from our hotel’s broadcast satellite TV, we found out that the filming of “Chinese Restaurant” actually took place in a picturesque island, namely Koh Chang.
Therefore, we decided to visit this beautiful island and reality show filming locations in Koh Chang. Koh Chang is a beautiful island in Trat Province. Before departure, we booked bus tickets from Pattaya to Trat with Phet Prasert online in advance from BusOnlineTicket.co.th.
Here is the summary of our journey:
| i. | Check-in in Phet Prasert’s office |
| ii. | Board the Phet Praset bus |
| iii. | Phet Prasert Bus from Pattaya to Trat |
| iv. | Drop-off at Rayong and Chantaburi Bus Terminals |
| v. | Arrival in Trat Bus Station |
| vi. | Check-in in Travel Mart’s office |
| vii. | Board the ferry at Centrepoint Pier |
| viii. | Arrival at Koh Chang Centrepoint ferry jetty |
Check-in in Phet Prasert’s office
One day before the scheduled departure date, we rode a 30 minutes taxi to Phet Prasert office located in Pattaya city Chon Buri from Pattaya Beach Road to check-in our tickets for bus from Pattaya to Trat.
Passengers who are planning to take bus with departure time from 10pm to 7am are advised to check-in their bus ticket at least one day before the departure date. This is because Phet Prasert office will only open from 7am to 10pm. If you are unable to check-in your bus, you can show your e-ticket to the driver on your departure date as well.
Board the bus
On the departure day, we waited outside the Phet Prasert office since it wasn’t open yet. The bus arrived outside the Phet Prasert office on time at 5am. One of the staff got off the bus and asked us to present our bus tickets for verification before loading our luggage on board. Before departure, the staff gave us a packet of biscuit and drinking water for free.
Phet Prasert Bus from Pattaya to Trat
Phet Prasert bus was a double-decker bus. The interior of the bus was spacious and comfortable equipped with air-conditioned, curtains, reclining seats, spacious legroom, TV, CCTV, fire extinguisher and toilet facilities. Moreover, Phet Prasert also provides every passenger a blanket for the passengers to snuggle up and get some sleep on longer trip.
Drop-off at Rayong and Chantaburi Bus Terminal
The bus stopped at Rayong Bus Terminal 2 to drop-off some passengers after travelling for about 1 hour. Then, the bus continued its journey. After another 2 hours, the bus stopped at Bus Terminal Chantaburi to drop-off another batch of passengers. We never get bored throughout the bus journey because we really enjoyed the beautiful scenery on the way to Chantaburi Bus Terminal.
Arrival in Trat Bus Station
After an hour of travel from Bus Terminal Chantaburi, the bus arrived in Trat Bus Station. Once we got off the bus, we walked to the songthaew platform to take songthaew from Trat Bus Terminal to Centrepoint Pier in order to take ferry to Koh Chang.
Check-in in Travel Mart’s office
It took us about 30 minutes from Trat Bus Terminal to Travel Mart’s office by taking songthaew. Once we reached Travel Mart’s office, we bought our ferry ticket. One of the staff gave us a guidebook titled “The Koh Chang Guide” for free to allow us to know more information about Thailand’s third largest island, Koh Chang before departure.
Board the ferry at Centrepoint Pier
One of the staffs from Travel Mart led us to the ferry terminal in front of Travel Mart’s office to wait for the shuttle mini bus to take us to Centrepoint Pier to take the ferry to Koh Chang.
We waited for about 15 minutes in the ferry terminal before the shuttle mini bus arrived.
It took us about 5 minutes to reach Centrepoint Pier from the ferry terminal.
Arrival at Koh Chang Centrepoint ferry jetty
Finally, we arrived at Koh Chang Centrepoint ferry jetty from Trat Centrepoint Pier after travelling on sea for about 45 minutes. The whole journey from Pattaya to Koh Chang took us about 7 hours.
Things to do in Koh Chang
We didn’t feel tired after a long bus journey so we decided to go to the White Sand Beach, Koh Chang Night Market and “Chinese Restaurant” filming locations.
We went to White Sand Beach to bask in the sunshine, smell the sea breeze, listen to the waves, and enjoy the stunning view of the beach.
In the evening, we went to the famous “Chinese Restaurant” filming location to take pictures. Unfortunately, when we reached there, the shop sign of “Chinese Restaurant” was already removed. However, we still were able to take some pictures with the shop and the famous swing.
At the reality show filming location, we also found out that the place had become a crowded destination full of Chinese tourists. We believe that the Chinese celebrity reality show “Chinese Restaurant” made Koh Chang; a lesser-known island, to one of the popular islands in Thailand.
Moreover, we also went to the night market located nearby the White Sand Beach. The Koh Chang night market normally opens at 7pm.
Travelling to Koh Chang was a great fun and the island itself is a treasured beauty. We were glad we made it to the island. You should include Koh Chang in your travel list too. Book your bus tickets online at BusOnlineTicket.co.th and enjoy the trip!
