Phi Phi Islands
On a Backpacker's Budget
Welcome to paradise! Phi Phi Island, or Kho Phi Phi Don, is an island off the south of Thailand halfway between Krabi and Phuket, where you will find the bluest of waters and the whitest of sands.
Getting to Phi Phi
From Krabi, you can get a fastboat for around THB 350 - THB 400 (around $18 AUD) including a bus from your accommodation. From Phuket it is roughly similar. It is a 3 hour fastboat trip from Krabi and a 2 hour trp from Phuket. The boats are great, airconditioned and comfortable, with coffee and snacks available for purchase. Once you get off the boat, your accommodation will most likely be a short walk away, make sure you download the offline google maps before you get there! There aren't really any taxis on Phi Phi as their aren't any proper roads, so walking might be your only option.
Exploring the Beaches
Tonsai Beach
The amazing part about Phi Phi is that the centre is so small, you can watch the sunrise on one side and the sun set on the other. The sun rises on Tonsai Beach area on the East, and sets on the Loh Dalum Beach area on the West, where you can find many bars and resturants.
Hiking the View Points
Viewpoint 3
There are 2 viewpoints you can hike, I suggest leaving your accommodation around 5:30pm and start with "Viewpoint 1", and then walk further up to "Viewpoint 3" to watch the sunset at around 6:45pm (depending on the time of year). It offers a stunning view of the whole island from over 2000m high, and took around 45 mins to get to from our hostel.
Hiring a Kayak
Buying tour tickets to see the island by boat and snorkel with the fishies is very expensive, so we suggest hiring a kayak and a snorkel and venturing out yourself, but maybe work on your upper body strength beforehand, we were exhausted!! We hired a canoe for THB 400 for the day (They initially tried to charge 600 but you can bargain it down), and we kayaked to Nui Beach (well we tried and only made it to a smaller nearby deserted beach before giving up.) It was beautiful nonetheless! You can also kayak to Monkey Beach nearby. There will be plenty of spots to stop and snorkel where you can see the water is fairly shallow and crystal clear.
Watch the fire shows at night
Near Stones Beach bar there are dozens of fire dancers who are crazy talented and intriguing to watch for hours whilst sipping a Pina Colada. They start every night around 8:30pm.
Ibiza Pool Party
Ibiza Pool Party Hostel
On Loh Dalum Beach area you can find the Ibiza Pool Party Hostel where they have huge parties in their infinity pool right on the beach on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The drinks aren't the cheapest but you are still welcome to join the party even if you don't buy anything! After the party ends, people generally move onto the beach to carry on drinking near Stones beach bar where the fire shows are.