Koh Phi Phi is probably the most famous island in the south of Thailand – it is very beautiful and that’s probably the reason why Leonardo di Caprio and the film crew of “the beach” shot the movie over there… It is located in the Krabi region in the Andaman Sea. The island consists of two separate parts: Koh Phi Phi Don is where all the hotels and bars are located. It is also the first stop when arriving by ferry. Koh Phi Phi Lee is the uninhabited island with its well-known Maya Bay. It can be reached by speedboat or by longtail taxi from the main island. I guess it is one of the most visited areas in Thailand so don’t expect to explore the location in privacy. There will be a hell lot of people. Although we knew about it in advance we where still shocked when seeing crowds of people envading the islands. It’s insane! There are too many. At least during day-time when all the one-day-trip tours from other areas bring their guests to Koh Phi Phi. As the islands and the natural surrounding are heavily suffering from mass tourism the government started to ban trips to Maya Bay from time to time – I guess this will only be the case during low season as it is already the case for a few other Marine National Parks in the Krabi area. I doubt bans during low season are improving the situation but at least there is a new way of environmental responsability arising in people’s minds. Nevertheless I still remember clearly the various things we have seen when walking along the coastline. Old oil tanks, rusty iron, lots of plastic and other questionable stuff.
Shortly after our arrival to Koh Phi Phi we declared that it will be our first and last trip there. As we have been in the Krabi region quite a few times already, we thought it is a “must” to finally see Koh Phi Phi as well. However we definitely prefer more remote places like Koh Lanta or Koh Jum…
If you are looking for party nights with many people from all over the world though I guess Koh Phi Phi is the place to be. That’s one of the great things about Thailand – anyone can find his/her perfect spot over there 🙂
For one-day-trips to Koh Phi Phi I can recommend to arrive from one of the closer neighbour islands as this will allow you to have appr. 1-2 calm hours until the other tourist boats arrive at Koh Phi Phi Don.
Another possibility to enjoy beautiful Koh Phi Phi without mass tourism is to stay over night and have a look around early in the morning 🙂