Christmas 2010 may still be five months away, but already Koh Lanta hotels are nearly full over Christmas and New Year. There are only a few rooms left during Christmas and New Year at the most upmarket hotels on Koh Lanta, so if you’re looking to spend the festive season on Koh Lanta, it’s best to start looking for a hotel now. You can use both Agoda and Sawasdee, two reputable online hotel booking services, to help you find a Koh Lanta hotel.

Villa Caley – one of Koh Lanta’s villas for rent

If you’re interested in booking a top end hotel on Koh Lanta, you might find that’s it’s actually more economical to hire a Koh Lanta villa instead – especially if you are a family or a group of friends. There are several great villas on Koh Lanta that can be rented by the week (minimum stay 7 days) – follow the links to see photos and info on 2 bedroom Koh Lanta villas and 3 Bedroom Koh Lanta villas.

Unsurprisingly, as Christmas and New Year is peak season on Koh Lanta, the hotels all increase their prices during these couple of weeks. Here are a few examples of some of the best hotels on Koh Lanta and the prices they are charging during Christmas and New Year. You should also bear in mind that some hotels have what’s called a compulsory gala dinner on New Year (and sometimes on Christmas Eve too). This is a (usually expensive) meal that you have to pay for if you are staying in the hotel at that time – you can’t opt out.

Despite the extra costs, the hotels are still selling out fast and only have limited rooms available. If you look on Agoda, the hotel booking site will show you how many rooms are left and confirm your booking instantly.

Layana on Long Beach is charging from $334 per night during 24th December to 1st January. They have a Compulsory Gala Dinner on New Year’s Eve 31.12.2010: 5500 Baht per adult.

Pimalai in Kantiang Bay is charging from $494 per night during 24th December to 1st January. They don’t appear to have any compulsory dinner requirement.

Chada on Klong Dao is charging from $223 a night. They have two Compulsory Gala Dinners: Christmas Eve 24.12.2010: 2800 Baht per adult & 1400 Baht per child under 12 years and New Year’s Eve 31.12.2010: 4000 Baht per adult & 2000 Baht per child under 12 years.

Rawi Warin on Klong Khong is charging from $250 a night. They also have two Compulsory Gala Dinners – Christmas Eve 24.12.2010:1850 Baht per adult & 925 Baht per child under 12 years. New Year`s Eve 31.12.2010: 4500 Baht per adult & 2250 Baht per child under 12 years.

The newly opened four star Houben is charging $144 a night. The hotel is still in soft launch mode, so some facilities like the spa are not open yet. There doesn’t appear to be any compulsory dinner.

There are still good rooms at decent prices to be had, but you need to start searching quite soon to secure a good deal – and keep an eye on any added extras. There are of course plenty of other hotels on Koh Lanta besides the five star hotels mentioned above – you can see all available Koh Lanta hotels during Christmas and New Year by doing a search on Agoda for your specific dates. If you are interested in booking a Koh Lanta villa, simply view the villas and send an email with your required dates to check on availability. Fast Speedboat Transfers to Koh Lanta can also be organised for you.