Phi Phi Island

Phi Phi Island the land of sheer cliffs, crystal clear waters, white hot sand and … tourists. The picturesque island made famous from the movie The Beach (1997). Phi Phi consists of two islands; Phi Phi Don (large) and Phi Phi Ley (small). Phi Phi Don is the one out of the two with human inhabitants; where people live and full of tourists and hotels. Scattered all over the island most of the hotels have their own secluded beach predominantly made up of individual bungalows however, the main town Tonsai Bay, does have a few basic shops, restaurants and bars. The only way to the island is by boat, there are no cars and it takes around 3 hours to trek to the other-side!

If your backpacking on a budget the best place to stay is Tonsam Bay with cheaper accommodation and a more lively nightlife this place is perfect for a few days of lazing by the beach, exploring underwater and the island and partying. If you want to stay in a more secluded hotel, expect to pay more. These are targeted towards honeymooners and people who ‘live the high life’; not myself. Either way, the island is amazing, such a picture perfect oasis in the middle of the Andaman Sea.

Phi Phi Ley is incredible, riding on a boat along the bottom of these 100m cliffs is magical, its even hard to capture the beauty and magnitude of the cliffs on camera. Unfortunately, the island is swarming with people; tourists out to see the famous ‘beach’. Most of them non-swimmers, they attack Maya Bay like a crazy army of ants.

There are many dive sites around both islands for those who want to explore, Phi Phi Ley offers more popular sites then Don but beware there are many many boats so use an SMB! Palong Bay and Turtle Wall are the sites we visit the most, as they are shallow, easy dives with the chance of spotting black tip reef sharks, turtles and many fish. Loh Samah Bay in the south is also popular amongst divers and snorkelers as it has protection from wind and currents (most of the time), in the bay it is shallow (5-6m) but you can explore the outside which is an interesting wall and pinnacle down to over 20m.

To the south of Phi Phi Ley there are two massive rock islands Koh Bida Nai and Koh Bida Nok. I personally rate them as the better diving out of the Phi Phi sites. Predominantly wall dives (down to 25+m) both islands are full of colourful tropical fish and even the odd turtle and shark! There are many dive shops around the island; in fact every few hundred meters! So don’t think your going to miss out.

If your going to Phi Phi, my suggestion is to take a good camera, be prepared for swarms of tourists, and try to hire a long tail boat to take you to explore the quieter sites. Even if your not a diver, make sure you get in the water and snorkel, its just beautiful.