Extra long diving trip, Koh Tao?

[dannus mannus]

Hello all. I want to take a month out to dive. A very exciting prospect but organising it is quite stressful! I'm not even sure where in the world to go!

It will be in August. Looking for good viz (15m+ essential) and warm temps (29*C+ ideally) and Koh Tao seems to fit this bill...

I have a DM qualification and just want to dive for fun and relax and as it's such a long trip, avoid tourist rates $$$

Does going to Koh Tao sound like a good idea? Where would I base myself? Who offers unlimited diving deals? Monthly accommodation? Could I dive the whole Island if I stayed in one base? ...getting around the island...Non-diving things to do for days off...

Anyone have similar experiences?

It's a big investment and I want to make sure it's a worthwhile trip by going about things appropriately.

Where else in the world would you go if not here? (feel free to pm)

Thank you

 

[ScubaERDoc]

I spent a week in Koh Tao a few years ago and definitely could see myself spending a much longer time there. Great town, plenty of dive options and it seems like it has a good population of people based there for an extended period of time. As I plan my current trip to Koh Phi Phi, I think fondly back on Koh Tao

 

[dannus mannus]

That's a good sign. Can anybody point me towards comfortable accommodation near Sairee beach? 10-20,000thb/month price range.

 

[ayeshacantrell]

My knowledge of long term accommodation here on Koh Tao is limited to around Mae Haad as thats where our dive centre is. However I can tell you that for that budget you will be able to find something for sure - a simple room and with AC, hot water bathroom and Wifi is around 8000-10000B a month. A plusher room will be around 15000B per month. These are difficult to book before you come. Instead I always advise our divers that we book something simple for a couple of nights and then they can go and have a look at these places for themselves and choose so that they get what they are looking for. The only exception to this is Bua Management - however you still might want to just look at what she has available when you get here...

You can contact her through her website Bua Management for renting and buying properties, houses, apartments villas, bungalows and rooms on Koh Tao, Thailand

Let me know if you have more questions
Ayesha

 

[chillyinCanada]

Are you going for the diving or for thread island and perceived value? I loved the island but didn't think much of the overall diving.

 

[dannus mannus]

Let me know if you have more questions
Ayesha

I did come across BUA in my searches... found it quite limiting as they didn't say where exactly their Sairee properties were...do you know this BUA person? That might be worth chasing...

---------- Post added March 7th, 2013 at 01:33 PM ----------

Are you going for the diving or for thread island and perceived value? I loved the island but didn't think much of the overall diving.

Definitely the diving. Maybe 65% diving 35% everything else. So that worries me, what's wrong? Location wise value, food, ambiance and convenience is very important but warm, interesting and good vis diving is essential. Where would you recommend?

Thanks for your comments

 

[ayeshacantrell]

Longterm accommodation is one of those things that you really need to be here to sort out - hence my suggestion to book something simple first and then look.

If you mail BAU then she will give you more details of exactly what is available and more description of where. You can mail me with the list if you wish and I can help you more. However do remember that like any rental accommodation it only comes free when people move out so its not also feasible to book way in advance too.

There are usually a notices up of places to rent too and if you want to pop in and see me I can give you some more pointers of where to look too.

If you look in my signature and click the link entitled "Check out the dive conditions from the last year as well as the current conditions on Koh Tao!" you will get a flavor of what we are seeing and what the diving is like too.

 

[Wingy]

Just wondering if Koh Tao on its own will be enough for an entire month...have you thought about Tao for a couple of weeks then hitting Krabi - Ao Nang - and spending a couple of weeks there where you can do both the phi phi islands, local islands and hing dang?

 

[ayeshacantrell]

August is not the best conditions for the west coast of Thailand.

 

[drbill]

I spent a month in Thailand, one week on Koh Tao and two weeks on Koh Phi Phi. Enjoyed both but felt the diving was generally better on Koh Phi Phi. The least I spent for accommodations was about 100 baht (private room with bath) on Koh Tao and the most 400 baht on Phi Phi. Your budget should make it easy to find something. Why not split the time between diving the Gulf and heading down to the Andaman Sea further south?