Enjoy a Virtual 360 tour guide of Phi Phi islands classic tropical beaches, stunning rock formations and vivid turquoise waters teeming with colourful marine life, but sadly these days it’s more of a Party Island. Destroyed by the tsunami in 2004, the island has been rebuilt and in my opinion way overdeveloped.
I recently spent a few days back on the island having been away a couple years and surprisingly a lot had changed even in that short space of time. The first thing is all tourists arriving on the island pay a 20-baht fee to assist in “keeping Koh Phi Phi clean”. There is now a McDonalds plonked right in front of you as you arrive and walk off the jetty! This was a sign of things to come.
I remember sat chilling in the water with friends being chased around by a little territorial fish nibbling at me every chance it got, but now looking at the waters they just weren’t as inviting, looking rather bland and somewhat dirty. Where were they spending the 20 THB entry fee they’re charging everyone? As far as i can tell it certainly wasn’t on the environment and seems it’s just lining some big wigs pocket.
The best beach is the back beach on the opposite side of the island to the pier, but it is rammed with shops and bars through the entirety of its length, there really is very little that hasn’t been developed on. Don’t get me wrong I like a good party and enjoyed the party atmosphere but there is no longer anywhere to escape it if you wanted to. The Koh Phi Phi nightlife is youthful, radiant, zealous and party till the sun comes up is a basic rule of Phi Phi Island. This night party continuous the whole year and each night.
The highlight for me on both occasions was the sleep aboard trip to Maya Bay, it’s a must and I’ve been lucky enough to do it twice. Swimming with the plankton at night is mesmerizing. It’s also worth booking a trip around the other islands if you have the time. We booked a half day and took us to Bamboo island a stunning little place, monkey beach which was a laugh with all the monkeys trying to steal everyone’s stuff, Rantee Bay and Shark Point where after snorkeling we then watched the sunset. Sadly we didn’t get to see any sharks that day. Also bare in mind you’ll probably have to swim to the beaches from the boat, so you’ll want a dry bag if you want to take your camera gear with you.
It’s definitely worth the walk up to the view point, we went to the top at viewpoint 2, it is a bit of a trek to get up there, certainly longer than I had anticipated, but once there it’s an amazing view to watch the sunset with a beer. In fact we only just made it with less than 20 minutes hour before the sun set, so leave yourself extra some time.
Both times I stayed at the same place hotel Chang and was happy with the facilities, they even have a hotel pony that will come into reception to say hello. I will say avoid booking anywhere near the wasteland area, it might be an ideal location with next to no walking, but it can get pretty smelly on a hot day.
Food wise the street food is where it’s at. Do go to Only Noodles though, they were some of the best I’ve had. Hippies bar was cool with live music, fire shows, good food and a chilled out atmosphere. You will see the odd cockroach around phi phi to, I witnessed a mini stand off between one and a cat and neither were willing to budge. I didn’t hang around to find out who won.
Will I be returning in the future? Well honestly not anytime soon, I feel the place is now way over developed and way overpriced, perhaps in 10 years time. They may have started to clean things up by then (after all they have closed Maya Bay Beach for that reason), but even then I think I would only make it a stop gap as i was passing through. I would avoid the main central part of the island and perhaps look into exploring the north/eastern sides which I didn’t get to explore, it may be more expensive that side, but I think it would be worth the extra to escape the crowds.
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There are six islands in the group known as Phi Phi (pronounced ‘Pee Pee’). Phi Phi Don and Phi Phi Le are the largest and best-known islands. The original name for the islands was Pulau Api-Api (“the fiery isle”). The name refers to the Pokok Api-Api, or “fiery tree” (grey mangrove) which is found throughout the island.
- The islands came to worldwide prominence when Ko Phi Phi Leh was used as a location for the 2000 British-American film The Beach.
- Ko Phi Phi was devastated by the Indian Ocean tsunami of December 2004, when approximately 70% of the buildings on the island had been destroyed.
- The islands lie 40 kilometres southeast of Phuket and are part of Hat Nopparat Thara-Ko Phi Phi National Park. The national park covers an area of 38,790 ha which is home to an abundance of corals and marine life. There are limestone mountains with cliffs, caves, and long white sandy beaches.
- Phi Phi Le is home to the “Viking Cave”, where there is a thriving industry harvesting edible bird’s nests.
- There is a small hospital on Phi Phi Island for emergencies. Its main purpose is to stabilize emergencies and evacuate to a Phuket hospital. It is between the Phi Phi Cabana Hotel and the Ton Sai Towers, about a 5–7 minute walk from the main pier.
The original name for the islands was Pulau Api-Api (‘the fiery isle’). The name refers to the Pokok Api-Api, or “fiery tree” (grey mangrove) which is found on the islands.
- Phi Phi Don was initially populated by Muslim fishermen during the late-1940s, and later became a coconut plantation.
- The islands came to worldwide prominence when Ko Phi Phi Le was used as a location for the 2000 film The Beach.
- Ko Phi Phi was devastated by the Indian Ocean tsunami of December 2004, when nearly all of the island’s infrastructure was destroyed.
Phi Phi is a small Island and one of the most expensive places to stay in the whole of Thailand. If you stay at the resorts on the north of the island, Phi Phi is beautiful (but those places are expensive). I stayed at Phi Phi Chang Grand Resort, which was comfortable and far enough away from all the partying you could easily get some sleep. Definitely avoid hotels near the wasteland area, as it can get a little smelly down there at times.
- Hostel Basic dorm rooms start at 300 THB for many beds, but most fall into the 500-600 THB range. Private rooms for two people with an ensuite bathroom start at 600 THB. Most hostels include air-conditioning.
- Airbnb, you can find shared rooms in apartments for 490 THB. You can find entire apartments/homes for an average of 2,450 THB per night, while some are as low as 1,050 THB.
- Budget hotel Two-star hotels start around 1,000 THB for a double private room with air-conditioning and free WiFi. For luxury, the sky’s the limit. You can find private bungalows for as low as 800 THB during the low season.
Near the beach and in the town, meals will start at 170 THB for local dishes. Western food is more expensive at 850 THB, so it’s best to avoid that to save money. The Phi Phi food market in the centre of town has great prices for local seafood, fruits, and vegetables. Eat at the street stalls, the food is not only cheap, it’s delicious and they do the biggest slices of pizza which are great on the drunken walk back. You have to eat at Only Noodles, the best pad Thai on the island.
- Bamboo Island
- Booze Cruise
- Boxing
- Deep sea fishng
- Diving
- Fire show
- Loh Dalum Beach
- Long Beach
- Maya Bay
- Monkey Beach
- Padi Scuba Diving Center
- Party
- Phi Phi Market
- Rock Climbing
- Sleep Aboard
- Tonsai Village
- Viking Cave
- Viewpoint 1 (I love Phi Phi)
- Viewpoint 2 (Top View)
- Viewpoint 3
- Banana Bar (Rooftop bar with great cocktails)
- Cosmic Restaurant (I came here twice, very rare for me to return must of been good)
- Ciao Bella (chill on the beach with Italian food and beer)
- Dojo Bar (Drink & play beer pong)
- Hippies Bar (Fire shows, beer & food)
- Moonlight Beach Bar (Chill with a beer and food)
- Reggae Bar (Drink, eat and watch Thai boxing)
- Only Noodles Pad Thai (Tiny place, but the pad thai was amazing)
- PP Princess Pool (Chill with a beer from the pool bar)
- Slinky Bar (Fire shows & beer. Gets very busy)
- Stockholm Syndrome (Drink & play beer pong)
There are no taxis or buses on Ko Phi Phi, so you’ll be walking or cycling around the island. It’s not a big place though, you should be okay using man power to get yourself around. Travel between islands is best done by Long-tail boat, which costs around 150 THB per person for shorter trips. Longer trips are charged by the hour.
- Roads, Since the re-building of Ko Phi Phi after the 2004 tsunami, paved roads now cover the majority of Ton Sai Bay and Loh Dalum Bay. All roads are for pedestrian use only with push carts used to transport goods and bags. The only permitted motor vehicles are reserved for emergency services. Cycling is the most popular form of transport in Ton Sai.
We caught the ferry from Krabi.
- Air, The nearest airports are at Krabi, Trang, and Phuket. All three have direct road and boat connections.
- Ferry, There are frequent ferry boats to Ko Phi Phi from Phuket, Ko Lanta, and Krabi town starting at 08:30. Last boats from Krabi and Phuket depart at 14:30. In the “green season” (Jun-Oct).
- All tourists arriving on the island pay a 20-baht fee at Ton Sai Pier to assist in “keeping Koh Phi Phi clean”.
- Don’t book a hotel near the Wasteland area, it can get smelly.
- If you eat the street food like the locals, you’ll be hard-pressed to spend more than 200 THB a day on food (maybe not even that).
- Negotiate with long-tail boat drivers.
- Get a group together and charter a longtail boat. Split between four or more people, it should be cheaper than an organized tour.
- Haggle in the markets, especially if buying in bulk.
- If you’re on a budget, Ham & Cheese Toasties from 7-11 are a great, cheap & quick meal.
- Beers and drinks are heavily discounted when purchased at 7-Eleven. Purchase a few beers before you go out to the bars and cut your night’s budget by a lot.
- If you travel during May through October, you will be missing the peak season, and save quite a bit, even though you might catch some rain.
- There is a small hospital on Phi Phi Island for emergencies. Its main purpose is to stabilize emergencies and evacuate to a Phuket hospital. It is between the Phi Phi Cabana Hotel and the Ton Sai Towers, about a 5–7 minute walk from the main pier.
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri |
| +29° | +29° | +29° | +29° | +29° | +29° |
| +26° | +26° | +26° | +26° | +27° | +26° |
The dry season is from November-April and corresponds with the tourist high season. May-October is the rainy season with south-westerly breezes bringing rain in between the sunshine. Statistically, the highest chance of rain is during June and September (80% chance) with the lowest chance from November-March (5% chance).
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