Koh Phi Phi

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After Phuket we took a short boat journey to the island of Koh Phi Phi. Arriving at Ton Sai Pier we were met by masses of touts all trying to sell accommodation - thankfully we'd already booked. We stayed at P P Casita and they arranged for our heavy rucksacks to be put in a luggage buggy and wheeled to the hotel which was a 10 minute walk away. (This was really appreciated as it was 34c!) The hotel complex was really nice with lots of boardwalks around water features and a fab pool!

The island doesn't have any roads and the main village has an interesting maze of pedestrianised alleyways with souvenir shops, tour operators, internet cafes, massage parlours, bars and restaurants. It's a good place to wander around during the day as there aren't many touts around to hassle you (unlike Phuket!). At night the streets do get busier with a few more people trying to promote cheap drinks but it's not too bad. Koh Phi Phi has a bit of a reputation as a total party island and that the tranquil paradise that it used to be is long gone - but we disagree! There are a few areas that are quite noisy with music clashing as it's pumped out of neighbouring bars (and it feels a bit like Ibiza!) but you can find quieter places too.

The main beach called Loh Dalum Bay also never feels that crowded and there are stretches that are totally deserted. The bay with white sand, shallow calm turquoise water surrounded by impressive limestone cliffs is just awesome! We spent lots of hours one day sitting on old fashioned deckchairs, reading and listening to the funky chilled out tunes (choral version of pop songs!) from a nearby bar. It was total bliss!

Near the beach there's a Tsunami Shelter and Early Warning Tower that was put in place after the 2004 disaster. There's also a Tsunami Memorial Park nearby which is a very small patch of greenery with a few benches and a marble slab with people's names on who died. It's a nice idea to have the park but it's so small and it was overgrown when we visited so we felt it was a wee bit insulting.

Loh Dalum Bay and Ton Sai Bay are on opposite sides of a thin stretch of land so it takes just a few minutes to walk from one side to the other! Ton Sai Bay is also really attractive with longtail boats moored near the pier and again the beach is really nice, though covered in quite a bit of litter.

One evening just before sunset we walked (and eventually crawled!) up 300 odd steps to get to a viewpoint which looks out towards Ton Sai and Loh Dalum bays surrounded by the majestic cliffs. It's superb!

We didn't get round to visiting the uninhabited island Phi Phi Lay which is famous for Maya Beach, the one seen in the film 'The Beach' with Leonardo Di Caprio. We heard it's so crowded with daytrippers and boats moored in the bay that it looks nothing like what's in the film....... but Jen likes her boat trips so might visit it later on from Koh Lanta!

Koh Phi Phi is great for local Thai food and fantastic for the sweet toothed (like JP!) as the crepes, fruit ice shakes and icecream drinks are heavenly!

Next stop - Ao Nammao near Krabi!

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Comments

[StevieBoy]

Treat Extraordinaire
Doors! - ah've jist been gifted a £105 boattle of whisky fur Hogmanay. I cannae tell ye how much ah'm lookin furrit tae you bein back at yer work :)