The amazing Koh Phi Phi

I continued my tour of the beautiful waters surrounding Phuket by visiting Phi Phi Island today. Ko Phi Phi has gained reputation as a tropical idyll ever since the 1990's and is renowned for its emerald waters, clean beaches and its abundant coral reefs. Tourism to the beach saw a rudden rise right after the release of the Leonardo di Caprio flick - The Beach. The tsunami in 2004, however ravaged both the uninhabited Phi Phi Leh and the more commercial Phi Phi Don islands and there's been massive reconstruction and restoration work ever since. The islands remain as frequently visited as ever though, and I'm personally amazed at how nature keeps up with the continuous influx of people.

Phi Phi Island is home to the amazingly beautiful Maya Bay, which is one of the best swimming spots I've ever visited. The only way to access this bay however is either by longtailed boats from Phi Phi Don or as part of a tour. You won't notice many similarities with the set from The Beach though -- the crew obviously modified the beach with additional trees and other props.


Well anyways, around Phi Phi Leh you'll find many other views such as the Pileh Cove which is an egg laying spot for various fish including the butterfly fish, the angelfish, the moorish idol, clownfish, surgeonfish and the parrot fish. Its an amazing snorkeling spot if you want to interact with Phi Phi's amazing marine life. I'd pick Hin Klang as the best point for snorkeling though -- there is the coral mountain under the water surrounded by various fishes and living coral reefs ans sea anemones. There's also the Loh Samah bay which is a great swimming spot and there's the Viking Cave (above) which is a popular spot with the locals as a bird nesting spot. Bird's nest soup is becoming an increasingly prized delicacy, especially for its aphrodisiac and energizing qualities. Bird nesting is apparently an extremely risky job and in fact the chao ley are a community that specializes in the art. The nests are quite costly though (130000 THB/ 3700 USD per kilo) and the gatherers have government granted licenses to perform the task.


So much for bird nesting. You'll notice another strange sight around the island at this place that the boatmen call "The Monkey Beach" -- for the huge number of monkeys that live here. These monkeys seem to be strangely dependent on humans for there diet, as you can make out from the huge number of monkeys that wait patiently for tourists to come and feed them with bananas. They seem to have even familiarized themselves with Coca-Cola as you can see in the above picture.


If you plan to stay over at Phi Phi Don, be warned that accomodation is at a premium and costs almost three times as much as comparable quarters in Krabi or Phuket. I find this obvious since Phi Phi Don was teeming with visitors when I was there and I see this as a case of demand outpacing supply. The main beach at Phi Phi Don remains as beautiful as ever though quite crowded as well. If you walk inwards, you'll notice restaurants and landscaped gardens -- they've obviously got this place geared for tourists!


If you wish you could take a boat to the nearby Khai Island where you can find a lot of angelfish right on the beach, begging to be fed some sliced bread! I dont recommend this spot for swimming though, since its extremely shallow and you could dash into some corals damaging them irreparably and cutting yourself really deep.


Overall, Koh Phi Phi is definitely a place to visit, though its starting to become very touristy. An organized day trip could cost you between 1100-1700 THB if you shop around and an overnight stay could cost between 1700-3800 THB. JC Tour booked my trip to Phi Phi and I strongly recommend them if you want to travel there too.