Budget Hotels in Koh Tao
7 Cheap Hostels & Dive Lodges
Clean, Genuinely Well-Reviewed!

Scoring 8.7 from 64 reviews — with no negative reviews in the past two years — Blue Tao is a small two-storey hotel that sits right on the sand of Sairee Beach, from around ฿1,250, which is cheap for an air-con room on the beach on Koh Tao. Step off your balcony and you're a few paces from the sand, with Koh Nang Yuan out on the horizon. The beachside restaurant has a wide menu that guests rate well, the staff help arrange dive trips and lend out snorkel masks for free, and it's a few minutes' walk to Sairee village with its dive shops and restaurants.

Scoring 8.6 from 45 reviews — In Touch is a bungalow resort at the southern end of Sairee Beach, the stretch that's calmer than the mid-beach bar zone, from around ฿900, with both fan rooms and air-con rooms with a fridge. The draw is its own beachfront restaurant and bar, which lights lanterns in the evening and becomes a sunset spot where passers-by stop for a seafood BBQ. Rooms are about a minute from the sand, guests call them roomy and good value, and the staff are friendly. It's a few minutes' walk to the shops and dive shops of Sairee village.

Averaging 8.5 across 1,800-plus reviews — Savage is a design hostel in the middle of Sairee Beach with a rooftop swimming pool over the island and sea, with pod beds from around ฿650. Dorm beds are private pods with a privacy curtain, plug, safe and reading light, and every room is air-conditioned. Up top, the pool and bar-lounge look out to the sea and the islands, with a pool table and several chill-out corners — a good fit if you're travelling solo and want to meet people. It sits in the thick of the Sairee bars, restaurants and dive shops, all within walking distance.

Scoring 7.9 from 79 reviews — Assava is a beachfront dive lodge on Chalok Baan Kao bay with both a swimming pool and its own beach, hard to find at this price, from around ฿1,200. It's a PADI 5-Star centre with stay-and-dive packages, which suits anyone here to take a course or dive for several days. Chalok Baan Kao is a southern bay that's quieter and slower than Sairee, with cafés, dive shops and restaurants along the water. The air-con rooms have a balcony and are clean, and the staff sort out courses and trips for you.

Tripadvisor guests heap praise on the price and the owners — Tao Thong Villa is a family-run set of wooden bungalows on a hidden cove tucked under granite boulders near Sai Nuan Beach, from just ฿500, the cheapest in this article. The bungalows are simple fan rooms, but guests say they're clean and great value, the Thai mother and daughter who run it give a warm welcome, and there's a little library and guitars that make it feel like staying at a friend's place. The cove is quiet and clear, and you can walk along to Chalok Baan Kao and up to the John-Suwan viewpoint — a good fit if you genuinely want peace on a small budget.

Scoring 7.2 on Tripadvisor — View Rock is a set of bungalows climbing the slope above Hin Wong Bay, a quiet east-coast bay known for clear water and snorkelling the reef straight off the property, from around ฿600. There's no sand beach here, but there's a large deck and sea access over the rocks — put on a mask and you're straight onto coral and fish. The bungalows are simple with full bay views, the restaurant is well priced, and it suits anyone who loves snorkelling and quiet and won't mind a basic room.

Tripadvisor guests love the social vibe and the price — SpicyTao is a backpacker hostel in a garden behind Sairee village, famous for having the cheapest dorm beds on the island, from around ฿200 with free breakfast. The dorms are simple fan rooms, but the charm is the big garden, the hammocks, the movie corner and the group activities like BBQs and going out together — a fit for solo travellers on a tight budget who want to meet other backpackers. It's about a 10-minute walk from Sairee Beach, the trade-off for a price well below the beachfront places.