Khao Lak-Need Some Advice

[Montanajim]

My wife and two boys are going to Thailand in late November. Everything I've read says that Khao Lak is more laid back than Phuket, which is what am looking for. I have only a couple of days in the Khao Lak area and I would appreciate some advice.

My older son (22) and I are AOW divers with about 25 dives either in Hawaii or the Florida Keys. My wife and younger son (13) finished their open water certification in February and have four dives off Kona in August. My wife is very much a beginner.

I've looked at a bunch of dive shop websites in Khao Lak and they mostly offer two tank dive trips to the Similan Islands. Given the time and distance to go to the Similans, I don't know why they don't offer 3 tank dive trips. Some of the dive shops offer speedboats to the Similans (and other dive sites) while others use larger but perhaps more "luxurious" boats. We really just want to get in as much scuba diving as we can and don't need a lot of pampering. We would prefer to use a speed boat with fewer divers but I don't know if that is possible.

Trips to the dive sites north of the Similans such as Richelieu Rock sound cool but I suspect they are too advanced for my wife and son.

I looks like we will have a Wednesday and Thursday to dive before our flight out Saturday morning at 1:50 am.

I would greatly appreciate any suggestions/advice that anyone may have to offer.

Thanks!

Montanajim

 

[stevenl]

Small speedboats with just a few divers are economically not viable. One additional dive would add another 2 hours to the schedule, and with a return time of 17.00-18.00 hours for most operators that is not an option. So yes, 2 dives it is. And again yes, I agree with your assessment that Similan islands themselves is probably the best choice for the family. However, Phuket has many different places, and e.g. Nai Harn would be quite laid back, as would e.g. Nai Yang (but further away from the pier). With from Phuket the option to do trips with 3 dives plus cheaper diving as compared to Khao lak, I would recommend you to look into those options a bit more.

Did you consider a short overnight trip BTW? Wednesday and Thursday diving at Similans, Wednesday overnight stay on the boat. That way you could do 7 dives, comfortable diving without traveling and in November you will still be ok with regards to number of people on board.

 

[Michaelszippy]

First of all, I'll caveat this by saying that my experience is 8 years old. I used the speedboats for one day of diving in the Similans. They run you out to tethered dive boats where the liveboards stay. You do two dives and then they take you back. If you only have one day to dive, this is your only option. If you don't reserve in advance and you have a little time flexibility, you can negotiate prices, including prices for stays on the liveaboards. When I was there the diving was simply unbelievable. My understanding is that there has been a lot of bleaching over the last few years and you need to be attentive to the specific sites. My son was there two years ago and did the speedboat thing and the site was bleached. The tethered dive boats are on strict schedules, moving from one site to another on a pre-arranged plan. So, if the boat is tethered at a bleached spot, you're SOL. Something to consider. Not sure where the best current info is on the bleaching situation, but you can probably find it.

Enjoy Thailand. We had a great time.

 

[Joelage]

I've just booked a trip with this group for 2016. From the perspective of communication and payment, they do it well. (They do day trips too)

Similan Islands Liveaboards Diving - West Coast Divers

Hope that helps.

 

[Divebooker.com]

Similan Islands is a good choice for diving. Please note that the dive centers may require at least AOWD certification to take you to the Similan Islands. You can check the dive centers available for online reservation here - https://divebooker.com/search/?rt=1&et=4&e=17496

 

[MikkelBC]

Similan Islands is a good choice for diving. Please note that the dive centers may require at least AOWD certification to take you to the Similan Islands. You can check the dive centers available for online reservation here - https://divebooker.com/search/?rt=1&et=4&e=17496

Maybe every thread in the forum would benefit from a short post with a link to your web page? (<-- irony)