Night_Rider Posted September 22, 2002 Report Share Posted September 22, 2002 Many thank to Khunsanook for a great resource. I arrive LOS Thursday evening and want to spend the bulk of my time w/a companion to-be-named-later on a beach where I'll snorkel and she'll no doubt cover herself w/clothing comparable to spf 5000. What are your recommendations for a beach this time of year? Looking to snorkel, swim, sanook and eat. I'm leaning towards RaiLay beach near Krabi and Ko Lanta. RaiLay I've been to before and loved. Ko Lanta I've never been. TIA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redbaron Posted September 22, 2002 Report Share Posted September 22, 2002 Anywhere near/off Krabi's great. Depends what you're after. Lanta's good for relaxing, not a huge amount to do, but a real chill out kind of place. Accomodation's quite cheap too, I paid well under 500B for a beach bungalow earlier this year on Lanta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pattaya127 Posted September 22, 2002 Report Share Posted September 22, 2002 Definitely this thread does belong now in the new regional site that is A&C too. Depending how much money you have, I think that the Andaman trip (off-Pukhet) is the highlight of any fan of scuba-diving. A few agencies in Phuket will provide sleeping and food on a yacht, since the national Park is still not allowing accomodation on the highland (at least, it was). A friend of mine used to have such an agency, only dedicated to scuba-diving, the boat life on offer was pretty luxurious, expect 100 to 200 a day ($$). I have heard even islands off Pattaya have decent underwater sights. Actually, you could do a lot worse than buying the LONELY PLANET guide to the "Islands and beaches of Thailand". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lopburi3 Posted September 22, 2002 Report Share Posted September 22, 2002 Don't understand your reasoning for a travel message being posted to this group; but what do I know? I do know that this is not prime time for travel to Krabi or Phuket area if you want sun. Suspect there will be much more indoor activity on this trip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
racha Posted September 22, 2002 Report Share Posted September 22, 2002 Here is some info I wrote for some dive web sites and a fishing boat magazine, sorry if it is a bit jumbled but i just copied it from my files and pasted it without checking it all, Racha yai Island Only 23km from Phuket you will find Racha yai Island with its beautiful scenery, natural surroundings, crystal clear waters and white powdered sand beaches. Go swimming, snorkeling, scuba diving, or just lie in the sun at the beach and enjoy this fantastic island. Enjoy nature walks through coconut plantations, and see water buffaloes in their natural surroundings. See how the local people are still living as they did a hundred years ago, growing mangoes, jackfruit, tamarind, and cashew nuts. The local people are shy, but very friendly and helpful. During the low season (from April to September) Racha islands east beaches are one of the only places in the Phuket region where the waters remain calm and scuba diving is fantastic. In the months November to March will anchor on the West side of Racha and from April to October the East side is more favorable out of the south/westerly winds. For the fisherman this one of the hot spots were you can actually see the sailfish jumping out of the water. The night fishing is good here also with plenty of squid also coming around the boat as the bright lights of the boat attract them. Racha noi Island Racha noi island is a great place to make a day trip from Racha yai island, the fishing is excellent with the deeper waters and drop offs in this area. Trolling to and from the two racha?s is highly recommended. Dolphins and whale sharks are quite often seen around this area as well as sail fish and lots of large pelagic schooling fish such as tuna, trevallys , rainbow runners etc. If you are an experienced diver then this is a good place to dive, the southern tip is rated a five star dive site. You will see lots of colorful soft corals, huge barracuda?s and lots of schooling fish as well. The southern tip is the place were the giant Mantra rays are regularly seen and they are very friendly as you can get amazingly close to these huge amazing creatures from the sea. This site is not recommended for beginners, as there are strong currents and deep waters so we require that you must be an advanced diver with experience to dive at the southern tip. Racha noi has one very nice beach that can be explored by taking the dingy ashore and fantastic snorkeling can be done here as well but it is recommended to use the dingy to pick you up as the currents can be strong a specially around the time of the full moon high tides. Phi Phi Islands The Phi Phi Islands in southern Thailand are a part of the province of Krabbi and are approximately 48 kilometers from Phuket. These islands are situated approximately 40 kilometers off the coast of Phuket. There are many places to anchor of Phi Phi all year round so it is a great place to stay if you like to go ashore to visit the many restaurants, hotels and bars. There are many nice places to go sit and relax to watch the sun go down while drinking your favorite cocktail. In 1983, the two islands Phi Phi Don and Phi Phi Ley were incorporated to become a National Park along with the other four islands in the group. Of these islands, only Phi Phi Don is inhabited by humans. Some of the islands receive day visitors only while others receive no visitors at all so there are plenty of quieter places to go to escape the main tourist areas. The island is made entirely of limestone and spectacular cliffs rise from the sea. Surrounding waters average about 20 meters in depth. Phi Phi Don is the main island and Ton Sai bay is a good place to do some shopping for extra supplies as they have fresh food and vegetables, bakeries and all the sorts of things you would find available in a small village. There are plenty of tourist items for sale as well as you go walking down the main walkway shopping area that runs through the island. Approximately 2 kilometers to the south is Phi Phi Ley and this island is uninhabited but receives lots of day trippers going to visit the caves there. The caves have many old drawings and are known as the Viking caves. The caves here are were the swallows nests are collected for the famous birds nest soup. You will see around this island huge bamboo poles that go into all the caves and crevices high up were the bird nests are located. Ko Yung and Ko Mai Pai are a few kilometers away and are a great place to escape the crowds from the main island of Phi Phi . There are pretty beaches with safe swimming in the bays on these two small islands and the snorkeling is very good here to. The other two islands Biddah Nai and Biddah Nok are further out and are a favorite places for scuba divers that are staying on Phi Phi to make there daily dives. Coral Island Coral Island more commonly known as its Thai name Koh Hey is situated 9 km off the south east coast of Phuket. The island has some coral reefs, hence the name Coral Island. The island has two long sandy beaches on one side, and a quiet bay on the back side. It is very busy here in the day time and full of tourists , if you wanted to go jet skiing or parasailing then you can find it here, Maiton Island Maiton Island has a luxury resort for anyone wanting to book a room in style. If you want to stay ashore then this is the best class accommodation available in all the islands near Phuket. There are dolphins around Maiton island that can be seen playing near the boat as you cruise past this area. Krabbi Krabbi has lots of small islands to visit; the most popular are area is Ao nang. Ao Nang Is approximately 40 kilometers from Phi Phi island. Ao Nang is a very large bay and one beach here is called Re-Lai beach. It is cut off from the main land by the surrounding Rocky Mountains, Re-Lai beach is a popular place with rock-climbers because of the rock formations here. There are many back packers and budget travelers staying here and you can find restaurants and bars open here in the evenings if you want to go ashore. Koh Lanta The Koh Lanta Marine National Park, 34 kilometers from Phi Phi islands is fringed with spectacular coral reefs. The major island, Koh Lanta, is around 26 kilometers long and four to six kilometers wide. There are a few sea gypsies living here and also there is some very basic accommodation on the island. The island offers many unspoiled beaches with golden sand and rugged cliffs. If you come here to dive, you will encounter some good sites. On the south of Koh Lanta, the water visibility deteriorates, and the water is quite shallow. There is an interesting cave to explore here called the Emerald Cave. A diver can swim through at high tide and come to the surface in a little lagoon that has a white sandy beach and lush tropical jungle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pattaya127 Posted September 23, 2002 Report Share Posted September 23, 2002 You are not uncorrect, it may not seem obvious that this section is taking care of all the regional aspects of visiting Thailand (though a quick read of the "forum subjects" will explain) as a tourist. Water sports being included. I guess sightseeing could be replaced with tourism. Ultimately, I think questions about certain spots in Thailand for any kind of activity beyond Nightlife, will be better followed up and focussed upon here than in GD. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lopburi3 Posted September 23, 2002 Report Share Posted September 23, 2002 Thanks. I did read the 'forum subjects' but did not get this information from it yesterday. Today I see it has been edited so maybe that has helped me as can now see it properly includes what I would call general travel information. I guess that sightseeing in an arts and culture setting to me would mean temples and such rather than snorkeling and bedtime activities. Getting too old! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
limbo Posted September 23, 2002 Report Share Posted September 23, 2002 The Gulf of Thailand has probably better weather conditions at the moment than the Andaman Sea. Try Koh Samui, Koh Phangan or Koh Tao if you're in companion rather than Pattaya. Koh Samet or Koh Chang might be worthwhile trying as well. Nitelife on the mentioned islands is probably best in Samui. Cheers, Limbo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pattaya127 Posted September 24, 2002 Report Share Posted September 24, 2002 bedtime activities ----------------------------- wait a minute! Only if this is about reading "Buddhist saints and thai amulets" in your bed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lopburi3 Posted September 24, 2002 Report Share Posted September 24, 2002 "Only if this is about reading" There's always a gotcha. At any rate the weather is currently reported very bad in the Karbi area so expect most of his time will be spent close to bed if he really travels in that direction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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