Yes, there is a cost associated with being in a location that is more remote and consequently more peaceful than the crowded beaches of Phuket, Pattaya, Samui etc. To provide our guests with the highest quality of fresh seafood, fruit, vegetables and other consumables requires us to make frequent trips to mainland Thailand. We get supplies from Phuket, Bangkok and even as far as Chiangmai, where many varieties of vegetables such as endives are grown. There is nothing available locally and certainly not when catering for an average of 250 guests, for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Although we can absorb some of these transportation costs we also must pass some on to our guests.
You might also be surprised to know that, there are times during the year – especially from November to April – that seafood is scarce on the island, prices go up because of a higher demand, and that local fishermen do even take their catch to Phuket were the demand is even higher and therefore the money made of the sale of their catch becomes even greater!
One particular product that may appear to be excessively expensive throughout Thailand is wine. This is not due to gouging by the restaurants, hotels and resorts but is a reflection of a huge import tax levied on this beverage, in the region of 300%. To this one must add brokerage fees for the wine merchant coupled with transportation costs from the country of origin to Bangkok and Bangkok to Koh Lanta. Nevertheless, we do stock a wide variety of wines catering to our guests’ demands. And you may want to know that we still manage to sell some of our wines at a cheaper price than many other tourist destinations in Thailand, including Bangkok!
