Last Updated on July 12, 2022 by Tina
When looking for things to do on your holiday to Phuket, Thailand, one of the recommended activities you’ll come across would be a day trip to Phi Phi Island. The Phi Phi Islands are an island group located 40 kilometers southeast of Phuket. The largest and most popular islands are Phi Phi Don, the larger of the two, and Phi Phi Leh. It takes around 45 minutes to reach Phi Phi Island by speed boat. In this post, I am going to share with you everything you need to know about Phi Phi Island Tour from Phuket.
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Where to Book Phi Phi Island Tour From Phuket
There are many tour operators in Phuket offering a Phi Phi Island Tour. The tour normally includes a visit to Maya Bay and Khai Island. You can book your tour online through Klook or on the website of the tour operator. Another option is to book your tour in travel agencies around Phuket. You can also ask in the reception area of your hotel if they can help you book a tour.
When I was planning my trip, I checked the tours available in Klook. I really wanted to visit Maya Bay and I was planning to book the tour through Klook in advance. But I couldn’t decide on the date because I also wanted to visit Samet Nangshe but was having a hard time looking for an operator that does a sunrise tour. I ended up booking the tour in a travel agency near my hotel at 10:00 PM, on the night before the tour. (Good thing tour agencies in Phuket close really late.)
A guy I met during the tour booked in his hotel on the day of the tour. He said he just arrived in Phuket the day before. On the day of the tour, he woke up early and asked the reception if they are offering any tours for the day. They recommended to him the Phi Phi Island Tour.
Cost of Phi Phi Island Tour From Phuket
If you check the website of the tour operators as well as their brochures, the listed price for the tour by speedboat is THB 3200 for adults. But when you inquire about the tour with the travel agency, they will tell you that they will offer you a discount and say they will give the tour to you for THB 1500. And I think that is the price for almost all travel agencies.
The fee includes round-trip transfers from your hotel by an air-conditioned van (if your hotel is located in Patong, Kalim, Karon, or Kata Area), insurance, lunch, morning snacks/coffee/tea during orientation, English speaking guide, entrance fees, use of life jacket, mask and snorkel, water, soft drinks, and fresh fruits served on the boat.
Program Itinerary of the Phi Phi – Maya – Khai Island Tour from Phuket
The pick-up of tour participants starts at 7:30 AM. My hotel, Must Sea Hotel is located in Kata and I was told to wait in the lobby between 7:30 to 8:00 AM. I don’t remember what time we reached the pier. When we got there, we first went to the office of the tour operator Phuket Best Sea Marine.
We were asked to sign up for our insurance. You need to write down your passport number for this so make sure you take a photo of your passport’s information page. (No need to bring your passport). They also tied a yellow yarn to our wrists to indicate which group we belong to.
Before leaving for the tour, we were given a short orientation: the places that we are going to visit, what to see and do, safety tips, etc. There are biscuits, tea, coffee, and water that you can have while waiting to leave for the tour. They also provide sea sickness medicine, in case you need one.
Monkey Beach
The first stop of our tour is Monkey Beach. There’s not much to see there, other than the monkeys. You can go down to the beach if you want to see the monkeys up close (I didn’t because you can watch them from the boat anyway). We stayed in Monkey Beach before going to our next stop.
Related Post: How I Spent My 40th Birthday Alone in Phuket, Thailand
Snorkeling at Phi Phi Don
Our next stop was Phi Phi Don. Here you can either go snorkeling or diving for 45 minutes. As I have mentioned earlier, masks and snorkel are provided. They sanitize it every day but if you don’t want it as is, they are selling mouthpieces for the snorkel.
If you choose diving, you need to pay extra. You will be dropped off somewhere and a guide will accompany you.
If you don’t want to do snorkeling or diving, you can just stay on the boat and enjoy the view while drinking Coke.
Lunch at Phi Phi Don Island
After the snorkeling activity, our next stop was Phi Phi Don Island where we had our lunch. Our tour operator arranged our lunch in one of the restaurants on the island. We were given 1 hour and 10 minutes here.
It was a buffet lunch. The food served was Thai food and it was good. I love that they had Tom Yum soup. There is a separate buffet table for vegetarians.
After lunch, you can go swimming or walk on the beach and check out the shops. There are sun loungers on the beach but you have to pay I think THB 50 if you are going to use them.
Related Post: 9 Things to Do in Phuket for Solo Travelers
Maya Bay
After lunch, our next stop was Maya Bay. This was my favorite stop and the main reason I booked this tour. Maya Bay is located in Phi Phi Leh. It has crystal clear water and fine white sand, the pictures here probably didn’t do justice. Maya Bay is simply breathtaking.
Maya Bay is Thailand’s most famous attraction. It was made famous by the movie “The Beach”, a 2000 movie where Leonardo Di Caprio played the lead role. It got so overwhelmed with tourists that in June 2018, they closed it to tourists for rehabilitation. They opened it last January this year but with changes in the entry rules.
Visitors can reach Maya Bay through a floating dock behind the karst cliffs and walk to a newly constructed boardwalk. Boats can no longer anchor in the bay itself. Also, visitors are no longer allowed to swim in the area. You can just take photos and admire the beauty of the place. They have also set a limit to the number of people visiting. 
The sad news for tourists wanting to visit Maya Bay is that it is off-limits to visitors again. I’m very glad that I was able to visit it before it was closed on July 1.
Pileh Lagoon
From Maya Baya, we went to Pileh Lagoon. Here you can enjoy swimming by jumping off the boat. Or you can just stay on the boat and admire the view. You can also have your picture taken from the boat with the karst cliffs as your background.
Viking Cave
Before going to our last stop, we passed by Viking Cave. We only stopped here to take pictures of the cave. The cave is the site for harvesting swiftlet bird’s nest, used in making the popular Chinese soup.
Khai Island
The last stop of the tour is Khai Island. We were given 1 hour and 15 minutes here for swimming, snorkeling, or relaxing on the white sandy beach. You can also do other water activities like jet ski but for an extra fee.
There are sun loungers on the beach but you have to pay THB 100 to use them. But if you order drinks like fruit shakes, fruit juice, or cocktails, you can use them for free.
Our tour guides also gave us slices of pineapple and watermelon on Khai Island.
From Khai Island, it only takes 20 minutes by speedboat to get back to the pier.
What to Bring During the Tour
Here are the recommended things to bring when doing the Phi Phi Island Tour from Phuket:
- sunblock lotion, preferably a reef-safe one like Magwai Sunscreen
- hat
- sunglasses
- camera
- dry bag to keep your gadgets dry
- some Thai Baht to buy drinks on Khai Island and to give tip to the tour guides
- aqua shoes to protect your feet from sharp rocks
- good mood 😀
I highly recommend doing the Phi Phi Island tour if you are in Phuket. This is good even for solo travelers. On the tour, there were four of us who are traveling solo. And one of them became my travel mate after the tour. He was my seatmate in the van. And the most interesting of all is that he is also a geologist. Our profession is not so common unlike teachers or nurses so it’s nice when you meet one in random places.
Lastly, our tour guide Jamilla from Phuket Best Sea Marine is the best guide. She is super funny, keeps the group entertained, and makes sure everyone is having a good time. Her fellow guide Tanya is good too and even offered to take pictures of us in Maya Bay.
For more pictures from the tour, do check out my Instagram stories highlight. I posted some last month and will be posting more later. Liked this post? Subscribe to my blog to get notifications of my new posts. And please follow my Facebook page @iwentanyways and like my Instagram accounts @iwentanyways and @tnadeperalta for updates.
