Dan's Adventure

While backpacking in Thailand I went to Krabi. Krabi is simply a jump off point to the islands and beaches that are nearby namely Koh Lanta, Koh Phi Phi and Railay. Railay is popular with climbers while Koh Lanta and Koh Phi Phi are famed for their beautiful beaches. The film The Beach made Koh Phi Phi popular, but it is what lies under the water that drew me to it. I wanted to dive.

Whilst in Railay I investigated options for diving at nearby Koh Phi Phi but there wasn’t enough interest for any dive trips to take place from Railay. Either Phuket or Koh Phi Phi itself are the best options for diving in that area. I didn’t fancy facing the crowds on either so made my escape from Railay on a ferry to Koh Lanta.

Arriving in Koh Lanta you could instantly be put off by the swarms of touts that meet the ferry and the larger than expected main town, but he further south you go on Koh Lanta, the more peaceful it becomes. Koh Lanta has several stunning beaches, none of which are crowded and all offer every type of accommodation from backpacker friendly bungalows to family beach houses. There are also a few fancier looking resorts dotted around the island. I stayed towards the south on a quiet beach called Klong Nin. It probably wouldn’t be as quiet in peak season, but when I was there almost everywhere seemed empty. Myself and a Canadian that I met on the ferry over shared a bungalow in a nice place called Nature Beach.

Along the side of the road were signs for tsunami evacuation routes and markers indicating the water level during the 2004 tsunami which hit the Andaman coast. The area that I was staying in was hit by 15m waves and the effects are still evident. Empty plots of beach front land which was probably previously populated and lots of newly built buildings are mixed between the traditional bamboo huts.

The main town on Koh Lanta has a plentiful supply of dive shops, all offering daily dive trips to the surrounding dive sites including one near Koh Phi Phi. Each of the dive sites is at least 2 hours by boat from Koh Lanta, so a dive trip consisting of 2 dives takes a full day. 2 hours there, 1 hour for the first dive, 1 hour surface interval, 1 hour for the second dive, and then 2 hours back to Koh Lanta. Since its such a long day, the dive companies all provide breakfast and lunch onboard.

I signed up with Go Dive to dive at Koh Haa, followed by Koh Bida the day after, and finally Hin Muang and Hin Daeng the next day. Hin Bida is one of the most popular dive sites at Koh Phi Phi and it was here that we spotted leopard sharks and bamboo sharks. Hin Muang and Hin Daeng are even further from Koh Lanta than the other dive sites, but are considered among the top dive sites in Thailand after the Similan islands, so I thought a trip there had to be done. The names translate to red rock and purple rock so called because of the colour of the majority of the coral on each. Diving here was the toughest that I have done due to the strong currents.

Koh Lanta is definitely my favourite place in Thailand. Great diving, great food, beautiful sunsets and extremely relaxed.