With Friends at Ko Phi Phi Don (posted Apr 13, 2010)

When we last visited Ko Phi Phi Don mid Dec 2009, it was pretty chaotic in the bay.  It was high season for tourists and cruisers.   When we went into the bay to anchor, we could not find a nice spot and instead ended up anchoring right next to the marked channel for boats going in and out of the bay.  It was a really, really rolly time.  When we went ashore, there were people everywhere.  It really was chaotic.

We have touched base with some friends from Singapore, who now live in Phuket.  When we found out that they were taking their boat to Ko Phi Phi Don the same time we were leaving Phuket, we thought it would be a great idea to cruise in tandem so we can spend more time together.  But we were a little hesitant about going into the bay again.

Before we got to Ko Phi Phi Don, we snuck into Maya Bay in Ko Phi Phi Ley to have a look at “The Beach”.  Maya beach was the filming location of the movie “The Beach”.  It was full of tourists and honestly; we didn’t feel it was that big a deal.  So it was, been there, done that, ticked it off.  We proceeded to Ton Sai Bay in Ko Phi Phi Don, the bay that we were not looking forward to.

But what a surprise.  This time, mid April, is not a high tourist season and most cruisers have been here and done that.  This time, we found a nice spot to anchor away from the traffic and man, was it nice.  It was so nice that we decided to stay 2 days instead of 1.  We had dinner ashore both nights and it was not that crowded.  Our friends and us did a little snorkeling and had a nice time.  All in all, we have to say that, if not for our friends, we would not have enjoyed Ko Phi Phi Don and would have left with a bad impression of the island.

Chris, Roger, Martin and Jess, we had a really nice time and it was so good to have caught up and spent some time together.  Let us hope that it would not be another 10 – 15 years before we meet again.