thailand/Bali feb/march

[slimcrappes]

Im flying into Bangkok on Feb 10th, planning on taking the night train down to Krabi and working my way up the coast to Khao Lak and Phuket (1month) and flying from there to Bali for another month. This is my first time in SE Asia. Any last minute recommendations for where to go, where to dive in these areas? Hoping to do a liveaboard to the similans, other than that my plans are pretty open. Seems the more I read about it, the more I just want to go everywhere. I'd like to do some snorkelling as well, and my budget is very much on the backpacker end of things, so big fancy resorts are pretty much out. I know this has all been covered previously, but if anyone else plans on being in these places at this time, let me know and perhaps we could buddy up for a while. Also, any ideas for good shops/trips in these areas would be appreciated. 2 more weeks and I'm vacation bound!Thanks!

 

[Quero]

From Krabi you can easily reach Phi Phi for diving, as well as points further south. If it were me from Krabi I'd continue onwards to to Koh Lanta, where you can get some really nice dives in the Koh Haa area, and even some down at Hin Daeng/Hin Muang, though this last suggestion will be more expensive due to the distances.

From either Krabi or Lanta, you can take a ferry up to Phuket, do some diving around here--again I'd recommend some Phi Phi area diving, along with Shark Point/Anemone Reef/Koh Doc Mai.

Going north to Khao Lak, you should definitely try to do a liveaboard trip to the Similans and Richelieu. There are budget-class boats, and you might be able to score a last-minute price on a boat that's not quite full a week or so before your trip.

As for snorkeling, it won't be as satisfying as scuba, but for a budget traveler, staying out at Koh Surin at the national park is an option.