Surin vs. Similan Islands and How to Visit

[chschen]

Hi,

We will be on the Andaman Coast in early April, and we are considering diving in either the Similan or Surin Islands. We had originally wanted to go to Similan because of its reputation but met someone who had been there recently and said that there was a lot of tsunami or typhoon damage and recommended the Surin Islands instead. Can anyone give their opinion? Also, to visit the Surin Islands, is it best to do a liveaboard or day trips? And can anyone recommend any dive operators?

Thanks in advance for your responses!

Christine

 

[Quero]

Hi Christine. It's hard to know just what your friend was referring to in regard to damage to the Similans, but there was very little damage during the tsunami (which was 8 years ago), and we don't get typhoons here, although tropical cyclones do come once in a great while (with years between each occurrence). Perhaps what your friend was referring to was the coral bleaching event that took place about three years ago, damaging a number of shallow reefs. If so, the reefs at Surin Island were worse affected overall than the Similan Islands overall. The Similans has many beautiful sites with healthy coral, particularly at deeper reefs, and I personally always enjoy visiting the Similans. The principal dive site in the Surins that you might visit would be Richelieu Rock, which was not badly affected by the bleaching, and which is usually reached by liveaboard dive boat, although it is also possible to find a few daytrip speedboats that include this dive site in their weekly schedules. Liveaboard trips of four days' duration typically include Richelieu in their tours, and a few three-day trips do so as well.

My advice, if you've got the time and the interest, would be to do a liveaboard tour that includes both the Similans and the Surins.

 

[chschen]

Thanks for the information. Do you recommend any specific companies for liveaboards? We've never done one before but are willing to give it a try, though our schedule is not the most flexible.

 

[Scuba Cat Diving]

There are many dive companies that offer a large range of departure dates, generally you need 4 days and nights to do both Similan and Surin by liveaboard, but a few can do over 3 days and nights. If you have set dates then you will need to see which boats fit your schedule and go from there. Normally there is at least 1 boat departing each day if not more.
What are your dates?