Dive from Phi Phi or Phuket?

[lifesabeach]

Hi..I've read a few posts about good sites out of Phuket and they mainly seem to be close to PhiPhi..so wondering where is best to stay ...I did my OW on Kata beach 10 years ago, have been to the Similans on liveaboards twice....will be in the Phuket area from next week for about 6 days....I want to dive two or three days...I could stay in Kata which I like and dive out of that area or cross over to PhiPhi and dive out of there....got to decide!...

been to PhiPhi in the early 90s and loved it...but its sounds like a hassle to have to get out there find a hotel, etc...not into the 20s party scene that much either...but looking at the map it looks like the transfer time to dive sites would be shorter from PhiPhi once I got out there....the sites recommended on other posts seem close by, Shark Point, Anenome Reef etc....are the prices for dives similar in both places?

no one seems to be recommending Koh Racha Noi, Rai....is that as good as or better than Shark point and Aneneme Reef?...if so that seems closer to Phuket and could be a good argument for staying in Kata..advice appreciated!

 

[GregT943]

I found Ko Lanta to be very nice to dive from. Ko Lanta is very laid back, and there is still a fair amount of budget accommodation. The beaches are great. They dive all the same places as Phi Phi but its not as expensive to stay there. I went diving with Lanta Divers. They have an awesome boat. I highly recomend diving Hin Deang and Hin Muang. Great dive sites. Last time I dove Hin Deang we had a 40 minute long Manta ray show. I know this doesn't answer your original question, but definitely consider diving out of Lanta

 

[Quero]

Some nice dive sites are a whole lot closer to Phi Phi than to Phuket, namely the Bida islands, so travel times will be shorter. Anemone Reef and Shark Point are about halfway between Phi Phi and Phuket, meaning not much difference in travel times. Diving from Phi Phi is a little more expensive than diving from Phuket when going to Anemone Reef/Shark Point/King Cruiser, but the nearer sites may be a little less expensive. It probably all evens out.

Phi Phi as a place to stay is beautiful, but frenetic unless you are at one of the beaches away from the village, but then you need to get a longtail to travel from your resort to the village to get to the dive boat. Some of the resorts have dive operators on-site, so if you wanted to avoid the hassle of getting to Ton Sai for the standard boat trips, you'd have to book with the dive op at the resort. I find the village noisy and dirty, crowded and unpleasant, but the young party crowd loves it there, especially for the bars and beach parties.

Getting to Phi Phi for a stay involves getting a ferry from either Phuket or Krabi, which in turn may entail an overnight at either place, depending on your flight arrival time.

 

[stevenl]

IMO Kata Beach is much nicer than Phi Phi, which has turned into a backpacker's party island (but there still are hotels away from that).

Racha Noi is certainly worth to dive from, just last week we had manta rays there. Racha Islands can not be dives from Phi Phi, only from Phuket and Racha Yai.

So I would dive from Phuket, and take the extra boat time (1 day) for granted. Also I would consider 3 days: 1 day Shark Point area, 1 day Racha Islands and 1 day Bida Islands.

 

[lifesabeach]

Thanks guys...appreciate the advice...by the way....how about Hin Deang and Hin Muang?...they sound like top dives...can they be done from either PhiPhi or Phuket?

...I'm guessing it might be a 2 day trip from Phuket..."nightaboard" trip? Anyone doing that or is the only option to dtay in Lanta?

 

[stevenl]

There are, albeit limites, options for daytrips and overnight trips from phuket to hin daeng and hin muang. From phi phi you'll have more daytrip choice.

 

[GregT943]

Thanks guys...appreciate the advice...by the way....how about Hin Deang and Hin Muang?...they sound like top dives...can they be done from either PhiPhi or Phuket?

...I'm guessing it might be a 2 day trip from Phuket..."nightaboard" trip? Anyone doing that or is the only option to dtay in Lanta?

It should be able to be done from Phi Phi. I can't say for sure, since I have only personally done the trip from Lanta. But Phi Phi and Lanta are very close to each other. Phi Phi is actually about a half hour closer to those sites. It is a decently long trip from both Phi Phi and Lanta so the dive ops might require a certain number of divers to do the trip.

If you go with Lanta Divers, the trip costs about 3000 baht if I remember correctly (less if you have your own gear). Their boat is actually a live aboard boat, but they just use it for day trips. So its big and comfortable. They also provided breakfast, lunch, and a desert after the last dive, and all the free drinks you want. Also free Nitrox.

 

[Quero]

Greg, there are overnight trips that visit Hin Daeng. Not many, but they're out there. I think it's a great way to get down to those dive sites, and you may be able to visit the Koh Haa group as well on an overnight trip.

 

[watboy]

My preference for day trip diving is Koh Lanta. From there you can easily dive the islands around PhiPhi (The Bidas, shark point, anemone reef, king cruiser), the Koh Haa group and also you can do Hin Daeng/Muang as a day trip. Do note that the main port of Saladan is on the northern tip of the island. If you take one of the big comfy boats from there, its about 2 hours to the PhiPhi islands and over 3 hours to Hin Daeng/Muang. You can take speed boats from Saladan, but also during high season when the weather is calm, the speed boats can leave from the southern beaches. If you take the speed boats, Koh Ha and Hin Daeng/Muang are only 30 minutes away. IMO, there is no better dive sites 30minutes away from your Mai Tai's and hotel room than Koh Ha and Hin Daeng/Muang. Speed boats are a pricer though, but it enables you to be back to your hotel by 3pm, go to the spa/take a nap, and enjoy bbq on the beach at sunset.