The seaside at Maya Bay is without doubt one of the most well-known and photogenic locations in Thailand, and it was the primary factor accountable for bringing tourism to Phi Phi island. In reality, it’s now some of the well-known white sand seashores on this planet.
Maya Bay is open once more! It simply reopened for vacationers in 2022 after being closed by the federal government of Thailand for nearly 4 years, so now is a good time to go to the Koh Phi Phi islands!
Your entire seaside is surrounded by tall limestone cliffs. The water is obvious turquoise with child sharks swimming round, and the sand is white as snow. All the pieces about it appears good. Yep, that is paradise!
In fact, the fantastic thing about Maya Bay has attracted the vacationer hordes, identical to any of the wonderful locations on this planet, however in case you plan your go to proper you may nonetheless benefit from the seaside with out too many individuals.
This journey information will clarify tips on how to go to Maya Bay Thailand, present entrance charges at Koh Phi Phi Leh island, open / closed standing, and the whole lot else you have to know earlier than you go!
Maya Bay Day Tour Packages
To begin with, in case you’re on a decent schedule or need to skip the additional steps concerned in arranging your individual journey to Phi Phi island and Maya Bay, GetYourGuide has prearranged day journeys to Phi Phi from Phuket or comparable day journeys from Krabi, full with lodge transfers, boat tickets, island tour, lunch, and similar day return.
These day excursions go to the entire prime sights within the Koh Phi Phi islands, together with Maya Bay, Pileh Lagoon, and Monkey Bay.
We’ve used GetYourGuide for plenty of day excursions and actions world wide, they usually’re nice! Extremely really useful.
E-book Now: Maya Bay Tour From Phuket / Krabi
The place Is Maya Bay?
Maya Bay is a part of Phi Phi Leh island, which is positioned within the Andaman Sea of Thailand, about 40 kilometers (25 miles) southeast of Phuket and about the identical distance from Krabi.
There are six Phi Phi islands in whole, with the 2 major islands being Phi Phi Leh and Phi Phi Don, they usually’re all thought of a part of the Krabi province of Thailand.
The one inhabited island is Phi Phi Don, which has motels, eating places, and the whole lot else you may want for a brief keep.
Drone view of Phi Phi Leh island and Maya Bay Thailand
How To Get To Maya Bay
The one technique to attain the Phi Phi islands is by boat from Phuket or Krabi, and you should utilize both a ferry or a speedboat to get there.
There’s no airport in Koh Phi Phi, so the closest place to fly is the worldwide airport in Phuket (HKT) or the one in Krabi (KBV). You’ll be able to store for flights to Thailand on Skyscanner.
There are a bunch of boat corporations making the journey to Phi Phi each day from both Phuket or Krabi, they usually normally embrace free lodge pickup and drop-off.
Welcome to the seaside! That is Maya Bay Thailand!
The gradual ferry from Phuket to Phi Phi Don takes about 2 hours, whereas the quick ferry (speedboat) takes half as lengthy. In the event you’re ranging from Krabi as an alternative of Phuket, the boat journey instances to Phi Phi are about half-hour shorter.
Take note these are simply transfers to the primary island of Phi Phi Don. When you arrive, you’ll want to rearrange a longtail boat journey if you wish to go touring Maya Bay and the opposite sights within the Phi Phi islands. You’ll be able to organize this on the spot at Ton Sai Seashore in Phi Phi Don, and the costs are very cheap.
The opposite choice is reserving a day tour to Phi Phi by speedboat with a Phuket or Krabi-based tour firm. There are shared or personal excursions, they usually go to many of the major sights, together with Maya Bay, in a single full day. This could be a nice choice in case you’re on a decent schedule or need to skip the trouble.
Maya Bay from above
Maya Bay Thailand: What To Count on
Maya Bay is accessed by touchdown a ship at Loh Samay Bay (on the again facet of Phi Phi Leh island), after which doing a brief and straightforward shaded stroll via the jungle to get to the seaside. The stroll is flat and takes about 5 minutes.
Prior to now, boats might go inside Maya Bay and land straight on the seaside, however they don’t do this anymore. The Thai authorities has spent the final a number of years engaged on conservation, so the one technique to get to the seaside now’s to stroll to it from the again facet of the island.
I feel this modification was a good suggestion as a result of it retains the bay away from boats, though I do miss these good postcard images of Thai longtail boats sitting on the seaside at Maya Bay.
The principle seaside is extremely photogenic. It’s about 250 meters lengthy, and the tip of the seaside has a shallow cave that’s good for images. If you wish to escape the crowds, there are normally much less individuals on the far finish of the seaside.
The shallow cave at Maya Bay
Most Phi Phi island tour packages offer you one hour at Maya Bay, which is loads of time to discover the seaside, take photos from each angle, and dip your ft within the water (swimming isn’t allowed at Maya Bay anymore).
I’ve to say the seaside has been saved very clear, and we didn’t discover hardly any trash, though as many as 5,000 vacationers come to this seaside typically in a single day! The park rangers have finished an excellent job with cleanup.
Maya Bay was popularized by a Hollywood film in 2000 known as ‘The Seashore,’ starring Leonardo DiCaprio. The film itself was a little bit of a important flop, nevertheless it opened peoples’ eyes to the pure great thing about the Thai islands.
General, Maya Bay is a tremendous expertise, and it’s certainly one of our favourite seashores on this planet!
The seaside is about 250 meters lengthy.
You’ll be able to look and take photos, however they don’t allow you to swim at Maya Bay anymore. Solely dipping the ft.
Nationwide Park Price
There’s a nationwide park charge of 200 baht per particular person (~$6 USD), which is collected in money whenever you disembark at Maya Bay. The ticket additionally contains entrance to Bamboo Island and the opposite sights within the Phi Phi islands.
This charge is charged on daily basis you go to both of those two areas, so in case you go to Maya Bay two days in a row, you then’ll must pay the nationwide park charge twice.
Some Phi Phi excursions could already embrace this charge within the value, however normally you pay it individually in money whenever you get off the boat.
Is Maya Bay Open / Closed?
Excellent news: Maya Bay is as soon as once more OPEN for vacationers since October 2022!
The Thai authorities closed the seaside for conservation in June 2018, hoping to offer the coral and wildlife a while to get better. The remainder of Phi Phi island stayed open throughout this time, and solely Maya Seashore was closed.
Maya Bay stayed closed for a whopping 4 years, however lastly reopened for vacationers in January 2022. Within the off-season of 2022, Maya Bay was once more closed for two months (August and September), nevertheless it reopened for enterprise on October 1, 2022.
It appears doubtless that Maya Bay will probably be closed for a minimum of a few months yearly for conservation, in order that’s one thing to regulate, particularly in case you’re enthusiastic about visiting within the wet season.
This picket signal greets you whenever you enter Maya Bay.
The place To Keep
Maya Bay is uninhabited aside from Thai nationwide park employees. It has a small store with snacks and drinks, and there are restrooms by the trail whenever you first disembark at Loh Sama Bay.
There aren’t any motels at Maya Bay or Phi Phi Leh island, though you may keep in close by Phi Phi Don island. This could be a nice thought if you wish to spend some additional time exploring the entire sights within the Phi Phi islands.
You’ll find a few of our prime Phi Phi lodge suggestions under.
Phi Phi Island Lodges
Is Maya Bay Price It?
Sure, Maya Bay is certainly price it, even when you need to courageous the crowds! That is bucket listing surroundings, and the costs are very inexpensive.
I’d say Phi Phi is the only greatest place to go to in Thailand, and likewise probably the greatest locations in Southeast Asia. These are extremely lovely islands.
Maya Bay Thailand
Finest Time To Go to
The very best time to go to Maya Bay will depend on what you’re on the lookout for.
The climate within the Andaman Sea of Thailand (together with Phi Phi) is greatest from November to April, when it’s extra dry and sunny, and the ocean circumstances are higher for boat excursions. Nevertheless, that is additionally the height vacationer season, so it’s extra crowded.
The climate isn’t pretty much as good from Might to October. There are extra wet days, and there are frequent storms within the evenings. Nevertheless, there are much less vacationers in these months and it’s nonetheless doable to have an ideal journey in case your time is a little more versatile.
‘The Seashore’
In the event you go to Phi Phi within the wet season, it’s good to have just a few additional days to spare in case there’s some junky climate resulting in the boats being canceled for a day or two.
You’ll additionally need to be sure that Maya Bay is open, as a result of like I discussed earlier, typically it’s closed for a part of the wet season.
We’ve visited Phi Phi within the dry season and likewise within the wet season, on separate journeys. In each instances, we had a tremendous time and the climate was largely nice for weeks!
Extra Issues To Do In Phi Phi Island
Maya Bay is certainly one of many prime sights within the Phi Phi islands, however there are many different nice issues to see and do, together with blue lagoons, limestone caves, viewpoint hikes, hidden bays for kayaking, and way more.
Most excursions to Maya Bay additionally embrace stops at Pileh Lagoon, Viking Cave, Monkey Bay, and Bamboo Island. These are all spectacular locations and nicely price seeing. Pileh Lagoon is legendary for its brilliant turquoise water.
Don’t overlook to take a look at my full Phi Phi Island Journey Information for extra data earlier than you go to Maya Bay Thailand!
Learn my full Phi Phi Island Information for extra issues to do within the Phi Phi islands!
Pileh Lagoon is one other great spot to see close to Maya Bay, and it’s included in most Phi Phi excursions.
What To Carry
Listed below are some packing ideas to your journey to Maya Bay Thailand.
- Snacks & Drinks: You’ll need to pack some snacks and drinks within the boat, as a result of it’s tougher to purchase them at Maya Bay. You’ll be able to deliver these from Phuket or Krabi, or there are many low-cost snack and drink stands in Phi Phi Don close to the port.
- Sunscreen: There’s normally some shade within the speedboats and longtail boats, however you may nonetheless get roasted whereas swimming or strolling on the seaside, so that you’ll need to deliver a hat and sunscreen for the boat excursions.
- Waterproof Bag: Important for holding your electronics protected on the boats. I introduced a 30 liter bag and was in a position to match my drone, pill, digital camera, cellphone, and a bunch of different stuff inside. All the pieces was saved dry, even once I took the bag swimming just a few instances!
- Waterproof Telephone Pouch: Similar as above, however these are to your cellphone solely. Nice in case you don’t produce other electronics and simply want one thing small to guard your cellphone at Maya Bay Thailand.
- Snorkeling Gear: Good for exploring the clear waters round Koh Phi Phi island. Snorkels and masks could be borrowed or rented from the boat corporations too, however in case you plan to remain on the island or do a number of excursions then it’s higher to deliver your individual gear.
- Water Sneakers: These can turn out to be useful typically whereas snorkeling in case you have to stroll on rocks to get out of the water.
The dramatic limestone cliffs of Koh Phi Phi Leh island
Can You Fly A Drone At Maya Bay?
Thailand is fairly relaxed about drones, and you’ll fly them in many of the islands, however they don’t let you fly within the nationwide parks.
That features Phi Phi Leh and Maya Bay, that are patrolled by park rangers who will high-quality you in case you’re caught flying a drone. They’re particularly strict at Maya Bay, and the rangers there are watching all areas of the seaside consistently.
Nevertheless, in case you’re discreet it’s nonetheless doable to fly from different areas. For instance, you may park your boat at Pileh Lagoon or Viking Cave and launch the drone from there, and normally nobody is more likely to discover or care until a park ranger boat occurs to drive by and see you do it.
The drone restrictions don’t apply to Phi Phi Don island in any respect. You’ll be able to fly drones anyplace on Phi Phi Don and not using a drawback, though you’ll nonetheless need to be thoughtful and solely fly in locations the place it gained’t trouble individuals, in fact.
Phuket Lodges