Exploring Phi Phi Island by Speedboat

One of the best things you can do while in Phuket is visit some of the world famous islands on a speedboat tour. Phuket is an awesome destination to visit as it allows you to take a few quick day trips to near by island like the Phi Phi Islands, located on the Western Andaman Sea coast. During my 3 day stay in Phuket, I decided to take a day trip to the Phi Phi islands with Phuket Sail Tours.

Phi Phi Islands are some of the most well-known Thai islands and arguably some of the most famous islands in the world. The six islands that make up Phi Phi offer perfect white sand beaches and dramatic rock formations surrounded by turquoise water. The most famous scenes of the movie The Beach, staring Leonardo DiCaprio, were filmed in Maya Bay, which is located on Phi Phi Leh. If you have time to do only one day trip while in Phuket, it has to be Phi Phi Island Tour! The tour is a mixture of unforgettable sightseeing, swimming and snorkeling.

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HOW TO GET TO PHI PHI ISLAND

Phi Phi Island and is accessible only by boat and there are many tour companies that can take you there. Most speedboat tours include pick up and drop off from your hotel in Phuket. The main pier in Phuket to get to Phi Phi is in Phuket Town at Rassada Pier. If you aren’t too keen on taking a speedboat, you also have the option of taking a ferry, however it takes longer to reach the island and is crowded. A longboat is another option, but also the slowest option. I personally chose to get there the fastest way, which was by speedboat within 45 minutes. The ferry will take you about 2 hours and a long boat will take about 4+ hours. I wouldn’t recommend a longboat, as it is not safe for such a long and possibly choppy journey. a longboat for this amount of distance would also be very uncomfortable and hot. Best to save a longboat ride for a shorter distance traveling to a different island.

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PHI PHI ISLAND SPEEDBOAT TOUR WITH PHUKET SAIL TOURS

4,100 Baht per person (130 USD)

2,000 Baht for children (64 USD)

Includes:

WHAT TO BRING

• Hat
• Swimsuit
• Waterproof Beach Bag
• Towel
• Sunglasses
• Sunblock
• Sandals
• Change of Clothes
• Waterproof Camera (Go Pro)

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MY EXPERIENCE VISITING PHI PHI ISLAND VIA SPEEDBOAT

After plenty of research, I booked a tour with Phuket Sail Tours! Phuket Sail Tours is a family owned and run business that has been operating in Phuket since 2004. Tours are slightly more expensive than other speedboat tours, however you get what you pay for! After seeing some of the other speedboats throughout the day, I was so glad that I chose Phuket Sail Tours. Pick up times begin as early as 6 AM in order to ensure the speedboat leaves earlier than other tours to avoid the worst tourist crowds. Most importantly, they are known for not overloading their boats. On our particular tour, we had 18 individuals which made the space very comfortable for all on board.

After being picked up around 6:15 AM, we headed to the Phuket Sail Tours office where we grabbed a light breakfast. Following breakfast, we were educated on all the boat rules, given our snorkeling equipment and boarded our boat. Our speedboat glided over the Andaman Sea until we arrived at our first stop, Bamboo Island.

Bamboo Island, also known as Koh Mai Phai, is actually part of the Phi Phi islands but undeveloped. We had the opportunity to swim, snorkel, relax on the white sand beach and explore the island. Bamboo island is rather small and can be walked in about 30 minutes.

After about 45 minutes at Bamboo Island, we hopped back on our speedboat and headed for our next destination, Maya Bay! This is the beach I had seen many pictures of over the years and dreamed of visiting one day! “THE BEACH”! Being from Florida, Miami specifically, I have seen many beaches, but Maya Bay is pretty incredible! Although it is touristy, the beauty of this beach truly amazed me. The emerald water, the fine white sand, and the limestone formations surrounding the beach create a dreamy lagoon.

We hopped off the boat and headed in to take in the stunning scenery. We enjoyed swimming and sunbathing. It really is a tropical island with greenery everywhere that is unlike any other beach I have ever been to. We spent about 1 hour at Maya Bay before boarding the speedboat and heading around the corner to Monkey Beach.

It isn’t much of a beach, but rather an area of turquoise waters surrounded by rocks and trees with monkeys everywhere! We didn’t get off the boat, but got really close up to the rock formations where the monkeys were hanging out. They clearly know when boats show up they will be fed so tons of monkeys started approaching our speedboat. This little hungry fella jumped from the cliff side on to our boat and grabbed fruit right out of our hands before jumping into the water and heading back to his home. The rest of the monkeys chased after him, as he was not looking to share!

TIP: Remember not to get too close to these animals. Try to forego the need to feed them as they are wild. We were warned not to feed or touch the monkeys as they can be vicious and bite.

Next up was lunch at a restaurant off a white sand beach on the main Phi Phi Don Island. Everyone had worked up an appetite after all that swimming and snorkeling. We were able to sit and enjoy some local dishes, which included curry soup, stir-fried mixed vegetables, seafood, stir fried rice, chicken with cashew nuts, whole fried fish, fried rice, french fries and fruit. The restaurant was accommodating to vegetarians and all dietary restrictions.

As we wrapped up lunch, we were guided back to our speedboat and made our way to our next location, snorkeling around the Phi Phi Islands. The snorkeling is excellent in many spots around the islands and you will see various areas were speedboats anchor to allow you to snorkel. Get your snorkeling gear on, provided by the tour, and jump into the water for some exploring. Here, amongst the local marine life, the walls of the cliffs are covered with soft, hard corals and clams. We also spent some of our time diving into the water from the boat, which was my favorite part!

After jumping off the boat about 10 times, I made my way aboard and started drying off before heading to the Viking Cave. The Viking Cave got its name because of the mysterious paintings of European sailing ships covering the inner dark walls of the cave. The Cave is located around the bend at Phi Phi Le, once inhabited by seafarers, fishermen and maybe even pirates. Access to the cave is no longer allowed, as it is now preserved for the bird’s nest collection industry, but we can see the cave from outside. Our speedboat slowed down in front of this high cave in Phi Phi Leh. Not really a must see in my opinion.

Sadly, our day was coming to an end! As we headed back to the marina, I put on my hat and shades, sat at the front of the boat and soaked in the Thai sun for the remainder of our trip. I really enjoyed sitting at the front of the boat as the view was absolutely incredible! Nothing like coasting the sea on a speedboat with your hair blowing in the wind!

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My Review of Phuket Sail Tours

There are many companies you can chose for your tours, however I feel extremely comfortable recommending Phuket Sail Tours for a great day exploring the Phi Phi Islands! When booking, they were very prompt and professional with their communication. No requirement for a down payment to reserve your spot, they trust in you to just show up the day of your tour and pay at that time. Throughout the day of our tour, the crew were ace, they were so involved during the day making sure they provided information and a wonderful experience. Our guide was a cheerful and funny guy. He made this trip something to remember. The boat was new, clean and well maintained. The snacks on the boat were perfect for a day at sea and there was no shortage of water and soft drinks. The tour itself was everything we wanted from the trip plus more!

Thank you so much to Phuket Sail Tours for providing me with a complimentary tour. As always, all opinions are my own!

Would you take a speedboat tour to the Phi Phi Islands?

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