Help me pick an island!

[Roztheoctopus]

Hello,

Next December I will be flying to Thailand for a wedding and plan to make a dive trip out of it! I plan to do a liveaboard in the Similan Islands, but my partner is not a diver (...yet)! My idea was to do 1 week of resort-type diving with him on an island where he plans to do his OW, and then one week solo on the liveaboards.

I got my AOW ages ago in Koh Tao, and while it was beautiful, I was wondering if anyone had other island recommendations for diving. I want my partner to have a good first diving experience while also being able to enjoy a relaxing island getaway! But since I have a bit over 100+ dives I also don't want to go to an island where the diving will be lackluster.

Thanks for the tips my fellow fishies!

 

[Centrals]

You have 4 Islands to choose from : Lanta, Lipe, Phi Phi and Phuket.
Phuket is waste of time and money.
Lanta is relatively expensive because the sites are far but good diving.
Koh Lipe should be more suitable for both of you. The island is quite a distance from Phuket.

 

[JonnieB]

You and your partner should go to Ko Lipe, in Satun province. Some of the best diving in Thailand IMO (better than Similans). It's basically a tiny chill island like Ko Tao (much smaller) but with good diving. Your partner can do his OW or just snorkel and other topside activities while you take morning or afternoon boat dives. Make your way to the Pak Barra Pier in Satun and it's a 1.5 hour speedboat ride to Lipe. My recco is Adang Divers. Forra and Castaways are also good. You can also do Lipe as a liveaboard from either Phuket or Hat Yai. A liveaboard from Phuket will make stops at Hin Daeng/Muang and Ko Haa National Marine Park, superlative dive sites too. If considering a LOB, book fast as DecJan slots will fill-up fast.

 

[Centrals]

I am going to Lanta and Lipe for 3wks in this coming Jan. In Lipe I will use Koh Lipe Diving School which several members had recommended. The big diving boat is the trump card.

 

[passeparici]

You also have Koh Chang that I like. Some people don't really like the dive sites but it really depends of some factors like visibility. I think the wreck HTMS Chang is wonderfull if you have good visibility (which happenend quite often when I dove it). You can also dive from Koh Phi Phi with nice dives and enough to do during the day for a non diver. Both those islands are nice to visit, Koh Chang is less "artificial" than Koh Phi Phi. Koh Lipe is very small. For a beginner Koh Tao is nice obviously but as you already have been there... Although the operators in Koh Tao have a tendency to go at the closest dive sites from where they are, you could try to change so you might to other sites.

 

[Centrals]

Just do not write bad review about Koh Chang even on TripAdvisor.

Thai hotel to drop charges against guest facing jail for bad reviews

A hotel in Thailand agreed on Friday to drop charges against an American guest who faces up to five years in jail for posting negative reviews as long as he issues a public apology for his comments.

www.reuters.com

All because of B500.00 corkage charge.

 

[Twiny]

Hi,
Koh Lanta, Phiphi & Phuket are redundant diving destinations since the enjoyable dive sites are anyway mainly on Phiphi.
I would not pick Phuket, except if you are interested in night life, because it is a long way to reach Phiphi and if currents are too strong the boats usually stop before Phiphi in Racha yai etc ... and it is not as good as Phiphi for diving.
Phiphi is really a busy island so I would from far prefer staying in Koh Lanta for a more relax holiday. From Koh Lanta, you have the possibility to dive Phiphi but also Hin Daeng & Hin Muang, great dive sites too (Mantas, ...).
The best in Thailand is most probably the Similans. The other diving destinations are under and visibility can often be problematic

 

[passeparici]

Just do not write bad review about Koh Chang even on TripAdvisor.

Thai hotel to drop charges against guest facing jail for bad reviews

A hotel in Thailand agreed on Friday to drop charges against an American guest who faces up to five years in jail for posting negative reviews as long as he issues a public apology for his comments.

www.reuters.com

All because of B500.00 corkage charge.

And also because this guy was a perfect as..ole ! This story is well known and this guy deserved a bit what he got. In short, don't give bad review (especialy the kind he gave) if you are the one to blame...

 

[passeparici]

Hi,
Koh Lanta, Phiphi & Phuket are redundant diving destinations since the enjoyable dive sites are anyway mainly on Phiphi.
I would not pick Phuket, except if you are interested in night life, because it is a long way to reach Phiphi and if currents are too strong the boats usually stop before Phiphi in Racha yai etc ... and it is not as good as Phiphi for diving.
Phiphi is really a busy island so I would from far prefer staying in Koh Lanta for a more relax holiday. From Koh Lanta, you have the possibility to dive Phiphi but also Hin Daeng & Hin Muang, great dive sites too (Mantas, ...).
The best in Thailand is most probably the Similans. The other diving destinations are under and visibility can often be problematic

The only thing with Koh Lanta is it is kind of far from Koh Phi Phi so you will spend a long time on the boats to reach your diving sites (if you want to dive the Phi Phi sites). True Koh Lanta is more relax and Koh Phi Phi is quite small and full of tourists shops but the islands around are more impressive than Koh Lanta's panoramas

 

[Centrals]

And also because this guy was a perfect as..ole ! This story is well known and this guy deserved a bit what he got. In short, don't give bad review (especialy the kind he gave) if you are the one to blame...

He did not commit any hideous crime but facing a long sentence(5 yrs) because of a really bad review. Cannot be serious.

Man sentenced to 28 years in prison for 'insulting' Thai monarchy

A political activist was sentenced to 28 years in prison by a court in Thailand on Thursday for posting messages on Facebook that it believed insulted the country’s monarchy. A court in the northern city of Chiang Rai found Mongkol Tirakote guilty in two separate royal defamation cases.

www.wionews.com

Thai man sentenced to 2 years prison for selling cartoon duck calendars

On Tuesday, the Taling Chan Criminal Court sentenced a man to two years in jail for the distribution of calendars containing cartoon ducks that allegedly mock Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn, also known as Rama X. The 26-year-old, whom the Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) identified as...

finance.yahoo.com

The only thing with Koh Lanta is it is kind of far from Koh Phi Phi so you will spend a long time on the boats to reach your diving sites (if you want to dive the Phi Phi sites). True Koh Lanta is more relax and Koh Phi Phi is quite small and full of tourists shops but the islands around are more impressive than Koh Lanta's panoramas

Next yr I am going to revisit Lanta and Lipe but you won't be see me anywhere near Phi Phi.
The best sites in the whole area are Hin Daeng, Hin Muang and Koh Haa and all are closer to Lanta than Phi Phi.
Panoramas? Personal taste.