 About Ko Lanta
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Welcome to Koh Lanta Island, Krabi, Thailand - Online Reservations Guide
100 Years Koh Lanta Island
Koh Lanta Island was known long ago as “Pulau Satak”, a name of Malayan origin meaning Long Beach Island.
Koh Lanta Island's name of today is most probably a corrupted form of the Javanese word "lantas", that
means a fish grill, which is built of wood with a square grill on top
where the fishes are set in a circle. This finally gave the island the
name “Koh Lantas”. In 1917, the name was changed to today’s “Koh Lanta”
and the two main islands together with 51 smaller isles became a district
of Krabi Province.
In the late Eighties, the first bungalows opened up Koh Lanta Island to tourists. Resorts like Kaw Kwang, Lanta Villa, Lanta Sea House, Relax Bay Tropicana, Dream Team and Waterfall Bay Resort date back to this time.
Koh Lanta Island is connected to the electric power supply of the mainland since 1996 and can be reached by car ferry. The number of cars, that was around 15 pick-up trucks before the car ferries started their operation, increased rapidly through the easier access to the Koh Lanta Island.
Until 1998, the district office was located in Si Raya Village (Lanta Old Town), the former capital of Koh Lanta Island. With the boats from Krabi arriving to Saladan village, the new building of the district office was erected on Lanta Noi Island, opposite Saladan Village. The main street from Saladan to Lanta Old Town and Sang Ga-U village on the east coast of Koh Lanta Island was paved in late 1998, today nearly all roads on Koh Lanta Island have an all-weather surface of changing quality.
In January 2001 the Koh Lanta Island received the first telephone lines from the mainland, the antenna for the mobile phones followed immediately. GSM phones are now working at most beaches along the west coast and in Si Raya Village on the east coast of Koh Lanta Island.
In December 2001, the district of Koh Lanta turned 100 years, an event, that was celebrated with a street procession of decorated cars and trucks from Saladan Village to Si Raya Village, releasing of prawns into the Andaman Sea, a sumptuous gala dinner attended by many high-ranking officials of Koh Lanta Island and Krabi province, with different performances on the stage and nightly fireworks. Demonstrations of local customs, like mat weaving and shadow play were shown, while sport competitions were running during the following days with participants coming from Koh Lanta Island and neighbouring provinces. An extensive story about the 100 years celebrations can be found in the 2003 edition of the "Lanta Magazine". Please click here.
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