Our Full Dose of the Andaman Coast

Ko Phi Phi (pronounced Pee-Pee) is one of those places that comes to mind when words like "pristine," "breathtaking," and "enchanting" are tossed around. The landscape of the Andaman coast is truly beautiful - limestone cliffs jutting out of crystal blue, warm waters that lap against sandy shores lined with palm trees.

Bamboo Island

If you like those tropical/beach posters that college students and stressed out white-collared workers tack onto there walls - you can thank the Andaman coast. And if you like the gorgeous scenery in that Leonardo DiCaprio movie, "The Beach," you can thank Ko Phi Phi (it was filmed there).

Sunset with cool rocks

We arrived via ferry from Phuket and walked (there are no cars / scooters on Phi Phi) to our Guesthouse. We settled in and enjoyed the sunset on the main beach. Our Guesthouse there was pretty dingy (our room was RIGHT next to the septic system and we saw cockroach and her child crawling skittering around our floor a couple times). No matter - we spent very little time here, because everything is outside in Phi Phi.

Maya Bay - Location of "The Beach"

The next morning we took a long-boat tour around Phi Phi and its neighboring islands. We stopped to swim a few times and did some excellent snorkeling (TONS of fish here and the visibility is incredible). We visited "Monkey Beach," which hosted many, many Li monkeys who were not shy.

Monkey Beach

We visited Maya Bay (the actual beach where "The Beach" was filmed), which was gorgeous as hell, and watched the sunset from our boat.

Ahhhh, the beach (Maya Bay)

SWEET - Bamboo Island

Sunset on a Boat

There are a lot of young tourists / backpackers around Phi Phi and thus lots of nightlife to keep us satiated. Eventually, late into the night, the crowds wander down to the beach where makeshift bars / clubs / discos offer specials on "drink buckets." They are also big on "fire-shows" on the islands - professional fire jugglers perform and they get the drunken tourists involved with "fire limbo" and jumping through fire-hoops. (No pictures of this have been found yet...)

The next day we left Phi Phi and took a ferry to Krabi, which is on the mainland of Thailand. Again, we were greeted with stunning beaches, but this time with less of a crowd, and huge cliffs.

Krabi is a top destination for rock climbers, so I felt that I needed to get a taste of it here. Today, we took a longboat to Railey beach, and I signed up for a half day rock-climbing tour.

It was the first time I climbed outdoors, and it was awesome! The climbs were of varying difficulty but most had great views of the bay and the islands at the top of them. I will be sore tomorrow, I'm sure.

Speaking of tomorrow - we will be switching to the east coast of the peninsula - The Gulf of Thailand. First stop is Ko Tao where will be getting our SCUBA certifications. More later!

written by

bhkann on July 3, 2009 from Ko Phi Phi, Thailand

from the travel blog: Ben's SE Asia Voyage

tagged KoPhiPhi and Krabi

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