Phi Phi Island in Phuket

Phi Phi at a glance

Phi Phi Don vs Phi Phi Leh: which island you actually visit

Almost every trip touches both islands, but you can sleep on only one of them. Phi Phi Don is the larger island and the only one with hotels. Its two curved bays, Ton Sai and Loh Dalum, meet at a flat sandy waist where the village, dive shops, guesthouses and the pier all sit. This is where ferries dock and where the nightlife runs late. Phi Phi Leh, about 15 minutes south by boat, has no hotels and no roads. You visit it on a boat tour for Maya Bay, Pileh Lagoon and Viking Cave, then leave. Because most Phuket tours reach both islands on the same day, you rarely have to pick between them. If you want beach time and a slower pace, base yourself on Phi Phi Don for a night or two and do Leh as a short morning loop.

How to reach Phi Phi from Phuket (ferry vs speedboat)

Boats leave from Rassada Pier in Phuket Town, about a 30-minute drive from Patong. You have two real choices for the crossing. The scheduled ferry is the cheaper, calmer option at about two hours each way and around 400 THB (Rs 1,150) one way, with morning and early-afternoon sailings to Ton Sai Pier. A speedboat is faster and pricier at roughly 50 minutes and about 900 THB (Rs 2,600) per person, and it is how most organised day tours run, because the saved time lets you island-hop before the afternoon crowds arrive. Longtail boats are for short hops between beaches once you are already there, not for the Phuket crossing. Book a full day tour and the operator handles the hotel pickup, the boat and the timing, so you are not queuing for tickets at 7 am. In peak season, book 24 to 48 hours ahead, because the good speedboat slots sell out.

For the full breakdown of routes and timings, see our how to reach Phi Phi Island page.

What to see around Phi Phi

Maya Bay is the postcard shot: a shallow, cliff-ringed cove on Phi Phi Leh made famous by the film The Beach. It reopened after a long rehabilitation and now runs on a timed system, open 06:00 to 18:00 with a visitor cap and no swimming inside the bay itself. Just around the headland, Pileh Lagoon is a channel of jade-green water walled by tall limestone, and it is usually the best snorkelling and swimming stop of the day. Viking Cave, also on Leh, is where local collectors harvest swiftlet nests for bird's-nest soup, so boats slow down but do not land.

On Phi Phi Don, Monkey Beach earns its name, so keep food and loose bags zipped away. Bamboo Island (Koh Mai Phai), a little to the north, has the softest white sand and calm shallows that suit families and weaker swimmers. For the classic view over the twin bays, climb to Phi Phi Viewpoint on Don. It is a sweaty 20-minute stair climb, best done early morning or near sunset. Loh Dalum Bay, back beside the village, is the shallow turquoise lagoon where day tours often pause for a swim. Most Phuket tours string four to six of these stops together, with Pileh Lagoon and Maya Bay as the anchors.

Planning to island-hop wider? Our guide to the islands near Phi Phi covers Bamboo, Mosquito and the quieter add-on stops.

Best time to visit, and the Maya Bay closure

The dry season, November to April, is the reliable window, with calm seas, clear water and the best snorkelling visibility. May to October is the southwest monsoon, when swells and short storms can cancel speedboat trips at short notice. The trade-off in those months is quieter beaches and lower prices. Whatever month you choose, start early. Boats reach Maya Bay and Pileh Lagoon in waves from about 9 am, so a tour that leaves Phuket by 7:30 buys you the quiet first hour.

One date rule matters more than the weather. Maya Bay closes to all visitors every year from 1 August to 30 September for reef and beach recovery, so it is closed right now (August 2026). Tours still run in these months, but they route around Phi Phi Leh to Bamboo Island, Loh Dalum and the Phi Phi Don snorkel sites instead. If Maya Bay is your main reason for going, check the current status before you book.

Day trip or overnight stay?

A day trip from Phuket is what most people do, and for a first visit it works well. You see Maya Bay (in season), Pileh Lagoon, Bamboo Island and a couple of snorkel stops, with lunch on Phi Phi Don, and you are back in Phuket for dinner. The catch is that you share the islands with every other day boat between 10 am and 3 pm.

Staying a night or two on Phi Phi Don flips that. You get the beaches at dawn and dusk when the day crowds have gone, you can walk up to the Viewpoint for sunrise, and you can dive or kayak at your own pace. It costs more and spends a travel day at each end, but for honeymooners and divers it is usually worth it.

Tours, prices and the national park fee

A standard Phuket-to-Phi Phi day tour runs about 1,500 to 3,500 THB per person (roughly Rs 4,300 to Rs 10,000). The price usually covers hotel transfers, the speedboat, a buffet lunch on Phi Phi Don, snorkel gear and a guide. Read the inclusions line before you pay, because the one fee tours often leave out is the Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park entry: 400 THB (about Rs 1,150) per foreign adult, collected on the day. Divers pay a 200 THB supplement on top of that.

"In monsoon months we book the 8 am speedboat, not the 9:30, so we clear the Phi Phi Don snorkel sites before the afternoon swell," says our TravelTriangle Thailand desk team.

Fares and the park fee on this page were cross-checked by our Thailand desk against current Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park rates and Phuket operator schedules.

If you would rather not book each boat and hotel yourself, our Phuket, Krabi and Phi Phi 6N/7D package bundles the crossings, stays and island-hopping into one trip. You can also check live Phi Phi entry fees and Phi Phi timings on their own pages. Across the 200,000+ Thailand trips we have planned, travellers most often pair Phi Phi with Krabi on a single 6N/7D route rather than visiting it on its own.

Planning your Phi Phi trip

Phi Phi rewards an early start and a clear plan. Decide first whether you are day-tripping from Phuket or staying over on Phi Phi Don, aim for the November to April window, and confirm whether Maya Bay is open for your dates. When you are ready to lock it in, our Phuket, Krabi and Phi Phi tour packages handle the boats, stays and island-hopping so you can just show up. For more of the region, browse the full Phuket travel guide.