stevenl
Contributor
Law5, you'd better check your calculations.
Koh Tao vs. Phuket
- Thread starter chocolate
- Start date
Please register or login
Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.
Benefits of registering include
- Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
- A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
- You can make this box go away
MatD4D
Registered
My opinion, Phuket diving is much much better. If you are a new diver just looking for cheap dives to clock up time underwater then Koh Tao may suit you but otherwise you will see more on Phuket or Phi Phi dives. Phi Phi is cheaper than Phuket.
OK, sorry Batfish, no harm intended
As for prices, a day trip to Koh Bon is 5000 bath incl equip for 2 dives
In Koh Tao you can do two dives with equip for 1400 baht, or 1800 if you dont know the shop....
partly because the divesites are much closer to the island at Koh Tao, and that the shops @ Koh Tao serve young travellers, while in Phuket the divers have nore money (are older) and more experienced (most of the times, allthough I have dived with muppets there too, bringing a camera on their 6. dive in strong current with no bouyancy controll whatsoever...)
So no matter how you twist and turn calculations daytrips are far more cheap @ koh tao, and if you are diving with an experienced buddy Chumpon Pinnacle, S.W Pinnacle, White Rock, Shark Island and Sail Rock are all good dive sites to keep you happy for 5-6 days...
As for prices, a day trip to Koh Bon is 5000 bath incl equip for 2 dives
In Koh Tao you can do two dives with equip for 1400 baht, or 1800 if you dont know the shop....
partly because the divesites are much closer to the island at Koh Tao, and that the shops @ Koh Tao serve young travellers, while in Phuket the divers have nore money (are older) and more experienced (most of the times, allthough I have dived with muppets there too, bringing a camera on their 6. dive in strong current with no bouyancy controll whatsoever...)
So no matter how you twist and turn calculations daytrips are far more cheap @ koh tao, and if you are diving with an experienced buddy Chumpon Pinnacle, S.W Pinnacle, White Rock, Shark Island and Sail Rock are all good dive sites to keep you happy for 5-6 days...
Bowmouth
Contributor
I think it's good to understand WHY Phuket daytrips are somewhat more "expensive" than Ko Tao daytrip prices.
In Phuket a diver will be picked up at his hotel and brought back by comfortable mini-bus or "song-teaw" pick-up truck. Phuket daytrip diveboats are comfortable and provide a comfortable dry area, a clean and comfortable bathroom, a comfortable sundeck and a comfortable dive-deck with a comfortable dive-platform. On most of Phuket's comfortable day boats there is both breakfast and lunch provided as well as softdrinks, coffee, tea and drinking water.
Phuket dayboats are mostly clean, do carry O2 and First Aid kits, have attentive crew and are in general well-maintained.
Divers will be dropped right on top of the reef and do not have to surface swim to reach their decent point. Also, divers do not have to swim back to the boat upon surfacing but will be picked up safely by the diveboat.
Lastly; the daytrip divesites offer some very good diving indeed with plenty of healthy reefs and marinelife.
In Ko Tao things are (often) quite a bit different....
In Phuket a diver will be picked up at his hotel and brought back by comfortable mini-bus or "song-teaw" pick-up truck. Phuket daytrip diveboats are comfortable and provide a comfortable dry area, a clean and comfortable bathroom, a comfortable sundeck and a comfortable dive-deck with a comfortable dive-platform. On most of Phuket's comfortable day boats there is both breakfast and lunch provided as well as softdrinks, coffee, tea and drinking water.
Phuket dayboats are mostly clean, do carry O2 and First Aid kits, have attentive crew and are in general well-maintained.
Divers will be dropped right on top of the reef and do not have to surface swim to reach their decent point. Also, divers do not have to swim back to the boat upon surfacing but will be picked up safely by the diveboat.
Lastly; the daytrip divesites offer some very good diving indeed with plenty of healthy reefs and marinelife.
In Ko Tao things are (often) quite a bit different....
Koh Tao for sure. There is some wonderful diving around the isalnd and beyond. However there will be times when you will be above the water and Koh Tao has some exquisite beaches for just laying around, some fantastic walks and scenery, lots of activities. But most of all, it retains some of that 'small island' feel. It is too touristy yet, so manages to still be quite personable. The Chaalok Bay end of the island is definitely the pick of the spots, as it is slightly away from the 'party' area, yet has some magnificent sunsets. Recomendation is to give Mark a quick email at Buddha View. He is a great source of info and will steer to in the right direction for what you want. Mark is the CD at Buddha. He will also give you some really good inside advice on accomodation and so forth.
Phuket is a very large island with plenty of jungle and even a national park. From your comments, it seems you restricted yourself to Patong. Since your wife likes Thailand so much, next time you come to Phuket, try to stay outside the tourist towns and you'll find the island to be quite idyllic, though perhaps not as unspoiled as parts of Tao.
bcdannymalone
Guest
- Messages
- 57
- Reaction score
- 0
As a KT instructor, I would have to agree that the diving is probably better year round on the Andaman side. However, if you're on holiday during the monsoon, you'll spend just a short period underwater and the rest of the time on land in a rainstorm. The seas can be very rough, so travelling to and from sites isn't fun either. I've spent many monsoons in Thailand and I can't imagine suggesting to someone to visit any area to dive during the rainy season. It's miserable.
That said, you can get lucky and have great weather during what is supposed to be the monsoon.
Monsoon in the Gulf is usually end Oct- Nov. Andaman side end May- Sept. You can also get rained on any time of the year here (it is the tropics, after all). Best bet is to try and avoid the rains if possible. Bet of luck!
That said, you can get lucky and have great weather during what is supposed to be the monsoon.
Monsoon in the Gulf is usually end Oct- Nov. Andaman side end May- Sept. You can also get rained on any time of the year here (it is the tropics, after all). Best bet is to try and avoid the rains if possible. Bet of luck!
bcdannymalone
Guest
- Messages
- 57
- Reaction score
- 0
Just a quick reply to Bowmouth's comments...
I don't know of a dive boat on KT that doesn't have emergency O2, 1st aid kit and usually an O2 provider on board for all trips.
KT is a small island and you'll not need to be picked up at your hotel, you can just walk down to the shop.
The boats usually leave for 2 dives and are back within 3-4 hours, so no free food, however they all offer refreshments and snacks such as fresh fruit and biscuits.
As we rarely have currents, and don't plan drift dives, DM's will usually DIVE back to the boat with their groups and avoid surface swims.
In short, it's just a different type of diving environment and Bowmouth should avoid trying to compare apples and oranges.
I don't know of a dive boat on KT that doesn't have emergency O2, 1st aid kit and usually an O2 provider on board for all trips.
KT is a small island and you'll not need to be picked up at your hotel, you can just walk down to the shop.
The boats usually leave for 2 dives and are back within 3-4 hours, so no free food, however they all offer refreshments and snacks such as fresh fruit and biscuits.
As we rarely have currents, and don't plan drift dives, DM's will usually DIVE back to the boat with their groups and avoid surface swims.
In short, it's just a different type of diving environment and Bowmouth should avoid trying to compare apples and oranges.
Bowmouth
Contributor
I wasn't comparing anything. I was just pointing out WHY daytrip diving in Phuket is somewhat more "expensive" than in Ko Tao.
Glad to hear Ko Tao daytrip boats are now all equipped with emergency O2. I haven't been diving at Ko Tao for 2 years now so (hopefully) things have gotten a bit better since then.
Similar threads
