Thailand with a non-diver. HELP!

[jc60625]

My non-diving girlfriend and I are looking at a Thailand trip in January. After looking initially at both Khao Lak and Ko Lanta, I was dismayed at the length of the dives. Our last couple of trips (Dominica & Grand Cayman) have been the gone at 8 back by lunch kind of thing, being apart for the whole day just won't work. I then briefly looked at Koh Tao in the gulf and saw that the dives were much shorter and of the 'back by lunch' variety, however, what little reading I’ve done suggests I would be doing myself a great disservice flying halfway around the world to not dive the Andaman side.

Does anybody have any other suggestions? Is there any sort of a liveaboard that caters to those with non-divers offering land excursions or anything more than just snorkeling?

Thanks as always for the help… love this site!

 

[g2]

I recommend Krabi. Picturesque, fun, and things for non-divers to do.


Edit: And keep in mind, this is Thailand. Relax, go with the flow, and somehow... everything always works out.

 

[Quero]

You could do your diving at places where she can snorkel as well, which would mean that you would be together for the entire day other than when you are underwater and she is on the surface. At Koh Lanta, which you mentioned, the daytrips to the Koh Haa area are perfect for this.

In regard to g2's advice, unfortunately the diving daytrips from Krabi are also all-day excursions, so this suggestion won't address the OP's issue of wanting to be back for lunch.

Added: Some dive centres on Koh Lipe offer half-day diving. You might like it there.

 

[ktkt]

If she's at all into it, the snorkeling can be really great! My non-diving sister came with me on a 4-night liveaboard, and she snorkeled almost every time I went diving (which was 5x/day, as frequently as they'd let me in), and we snorkeled together on some of my surface intervals. She had a blast just relaxing and enjoying the fish, and I think I even have hope of converting her into a diver one day

 

[g2]

You could do your diving at places where she can snorkel as well ... In regard to g2's advice, unfortunately the diving daytrips from Krabi are also all-day excursions

... That also have activities for non-divers and snorkelers, which means you wouldn't have to be apart at all...

http://www.kontiki-thailand.com/index.php/diving-trips-3/schedule-prices

"Snorkeler, passenger or a non diver: Once on holiday a family want to spend as much time together, so If your family is not diving, why not bring them along as passenger and enjoy the day together. As an independent snorkeler, we will provide a snorkel briefing and equipment and we can all explore the corals and the marine life."

 

[Quero]

I recommend Krabi. Picturesque, fun, and things for non-divers to do.

oh, g2, your post seemed to be talking about Krabi itself.... I thought you meant things to do on land for non-divers. All ops in Thailand have non-diver packages for family members to go along, not just ones from Krabi.

 

[jc60625]

thanks guys... (especially quero, very relevant help!). I was hoping to find a liveaboard itinerary that had some land excursion 'stuff' in the schedule, probably wishful thinking. Koh Lipe looks promising, i'll have to look into that more.

thanks again.

 

[chrisinthailand]

Actually if you dive with Aqua vision in Krabi, they run all of their dive tours by speedboat, leaving at 8:00am and returning around 1:00-2:30pm depending on the dive sites and number of dives.

 

[Bexny]

Lipe is a great island for your sort of situation. There are a few dive centers which offer 2-dive day trips where you leave at 9am and return between 1-3pm, depending on that day's itinerary. Non-divers/snorkelers are welcome to join for around 500 baht which includes snorkeling equipment and lunch. On the big dive boats, it can be a very nice trip for the non-diver. There's the beautiful scenery to enjoy as you cruise around the archipelago, sunbathing, swimming, snorkeling or just relaxing. Or you could opt for a single dive in the morning or afternoon, most dive centers will cater to that request as well.

For more information about Koh Lipe, take a look at this website: Welcome to Koh Lipe Thailand
Loads of useful information, clearly presented. Hope this helps!