: 14 November 2026. Prices were checked on or before that date against named sources: Phi Phi Cruiser and Andaman Wave Master fare listings published August 2026 (ferry from ฿450), Rassada Pier's 2026 pages (ferry ฿600–650, speedboat ฿850–900), the DNP fee schedule for Hat Noppharat Thara–Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park (฿400 / ฿200), DNP reporting on the 1 October 2026 Maya Bay reopening, November 2026 operator tour listings, and the DDC's jellyfish first-aid guidance (October 2025, repeated after August 2026). Where a price is a range, the table says so. Prices are in Thai baht (฿).
Every big Phuket guide has a Phi Phi page. The biggest of them — 159,237 views when we counted in November 2026 — is a genuinely good read with a strong ferry table. But its hotel section is booking buttons with no baht prices, it has no jellyfish section, no swim-safety-by-month guidance, and nothing on what a day on Phi Phi Don actually costs. That is the gap this page fills: every way to get there and what it costs, every fee and which ones are legitimate, Maya Bay's actual 2026/27 rules, longtail charter prices by the hour, bed prices by beach, a month-by-month swim-safety matrix, and the jellyfish first aid the other guide does not carry.
Short version: the Phi Phi Islands are a six-island archipelago in Krabi province, about 45 km south-east of Phuket, inside Hat Noppharat Thara–Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park. Phi Phi Don is the only inhabited island; Phi Phi Leh, 2 km south, holds Maya Bay. A standard ferry from Rassada Pier costs ฿450–700 one way (~2 hours); a speedboat ฿850–1,300 (45–60 minutes). Add a ฿20 Tonsai Pier cleaning fee in cash on arrival and a ฿400 national park fee (฿200 per child) at your first park site. Maya Bay is open — it reopened 1 October 2026 after its annual 1 August–30 September closure — but swimming is banned, boats land at Loh Samah Bay, and visits are capped and timed. Day tours run ฿1,500–4,990 per adult; a bed runs from ~฿300 (dorm) to well over ฿10,000 (peak-week north-coast resort). For the Phuket days around the trip, read our complete 2026/27 Phuket price bible alongside this guide.
The Phi Phi Islands at a glance
| Island | What it is | Stay overnight? | Main draws |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ko Phi Phi Don | The large, inhabited island — two limestone lobes joined by the narrow Tonsai isthmus | Yes — all hotels are here | Tonsai Village, Loh Dalum Bay, the Viewpoints, Long Beach, Monkey Beach, Laem Tong |
| Ko Phi Phi Leh | Uninhabited ring of cliffs about 2 km south of Don | No — day visits only | Maya Bay, Pileh Lagoon, Loh Samah Bay, Viking Cave, Palong Bay snorkelling |
| Bamboo Island (Ko Mai Phai) | Small flat island about 5 km north-east of Don, inside the national park | No | Wide white-sand beach, shallow snorkelling, the quiet end of a day tour |
| Mosquito Island (Ko Yung) | Small island north of Don | No | Reef snorkelling and diving when tours stop; landing restricted at times for reef recovery — your captain follows current park instructions |
| Ko Bida Nok / Ko Bida Nai | Two small offshore rocks south of Leh | No | Dive sites — walls, swim-throughs, leopard sharks; divers only |
There are no cars on Phi Phi Don: you walk, or you take a longtail boat. Everything — every beer, bed and building block — arrives by boat, which is why island prices run higher than the mainland. Phi Phi is in Krabi province, not Phuket: the park fee is the Hat Noppharat Thara–Mu Ko Phi Phi schedule.
Getting to Phi Phi from Phuket: every boat, every price
All scheduled boats leave from Rassada Pier in Phuket Town — not from Patong. From Patong, allow 45–60 minutes by road and arrive 30 minutes before departure. Shared minivan pickups from Patong, Karon and Kata run about ฿150 per person one way (Rassada booking pages, November 2026). The last ferry back leaves Tonsai mid-afternoon, which decides the day-trip question: an independent ferry day return gives you four to five usable hours on Don and no realistic time for a Leh boat trip as well. Ferries suit an overnight stay; a single day out is what the speedboat tours exist for.
| Boat | Route / departures | Crossing | One-way price (adult) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standard ferry — Phi Phi Cruiser | Rassada → Tonsai, typically 08:30 and 13:30 | ~2 hours | From ฿450 (operator listing, Aug 2026) | Cheapest seat on the route; large, steady boat; best choice in rough weather and for big luggage |
| Standard ferry — Andaman Wave Master | Rassada → Tonsai, typically 08:30, 11:00, 15:00; some sailings continue to Laem Tong | ~2 hours to Tonsai; ~3 hours to Laem Tong | From ฿700 to Tonsai; ฿900 to Laem Tong (operator listing, Aug 2026) | The Laem Tong continuation saves a separate longtail if you stay on the north coast |
| Standard ferry — pier booking pages | Rassada → Tonsai, published 2026 departures 08:30, 11:00, 13:30, 13:45, 15:00 | ~2 hours | ฿600–650 one way; ฿1,200 round trip on the pier's own pages | Same boats via the pier portal; walk-up prices can be higher and high-season sailings sell out |
| Speedboat — shared | Rassada and other Phuket piers → Tonsai, frequent departures roughly 08:30–15:30 | 45–60 minutes | ฿850–900 on pier pages; ฿800–1,300 across operator listings | Fast and frequent, but a hard ride in monsoon swell; not recommended for bad backs or pregnancy |
| Speedboat tour (day trip) | Hotel pickup → marina → Phi Phi Leh + Don + often Bamboo or Khai | Full day, ~8–10 hours door to door | ฿1,500–4,990 per adult — see the tour table below | Not transport: a guided circuit. The only practical way to see Leh on a single day from Phuket |
| From Krabi / Ao Nang (for comparison) | Klong Jilad Pier (Krabi Town) and Ao Nang → Tonsai | ~1.5 hours by ferry | From about ฿450–460 one way (2026 listings) | Useful if your trip continues to Krabi, Railay or Koh Lanta — open-jaw via Phuket in, Krabi out works well |
Return sailings from Tonsai run at roughly 09:00, 11:00, 14:30 and 15:30 for ferries, with speedboats into the late afternoon. Times shift by operator and season — confirm when you book, never plan a same-evening flight on the strength of the last boat, and remember monsoon boats are cancelled outright: a flexible final day is cheap insurance.
The fees: what you will actually be asked to pay
| Fee | How much | Who pays | Where / how |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tonsai Pier cleaning / island fee | ฿20 per person | Everyone arriving at Tonsai Pier | Cash, at the pier on arrival. Small notes — there is no card reader moment here |
| National park entry — foreign adult | ฿400 | Foreign visitors aged 15+ | Cash to park rangers at the first park site (usually Maya Bay). Covers all park sites that day — Maya Bay, Pileh, Bamboo — you pay it once, not per stop |
| National park entry — foreign child | ฿200 | Foreign children, roughly ages 3–14 (one park listing uses 4–11 — carry the cash either way) | As above; under-3s/under-4s free depending on the listing |
| National park entry — Thai nationals | ฿40 adult / ฿20 child | Thai citizens | As above |
| Diving supplement | ฿200 per diver per day (reported on park-fee listings) | Divers, on top of park entry | Usually collected by your dive operator with the park fee |
| Phi Phi Viewpoint entry | ฿50 for Viewpoints 1 + 2; +฿20–30 for Viewpoint 3 | Everyone who climbs | Cash at the Viewpoint 1 checkpoint; keep the ticket for Viewpoint 2; Viewpoint 3 is private land with its own small fee |
The classic Phi Phi money trap is the tour headline price: some operators include the ฿400 park fee, many collect it in cash on the boat. A ฿1,500 tour plus ฿400 is a different purchase from a ฿2,500 tour with the fee inside — every price in the tour table states which it is. The reverse trap is a second "park fee" at a second stop the same day. One park ticket, one day, all sites: show the receipt.
Day trip or overnight? The honest answer
Take a speedboat day tour if you have one day and mainly want Maya Bay, Pileh Lagoon and a snorkel, with about an hour on Don at lunch. Stay at least one night if you want the Viewpoint without a crowd, Long Beach in the late afternoon, or a private longtail to Leh at 7 a.m. before the tour boats arrive — Don at 7 a.m. and Don at noon are different islands. Stay two or three nights if you are diving. The early longtail to a near-empty Maya Bay is the single best money upgrade in this guide, and it is only possible from a Don bed.
Phuket day tours to Phi Phi: checked prices
| Tour style (operator listing checked Nov 2026) | Adult | Child | Park fee ฿400/200 | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value speedboat, Phi Phi + Khai — Phuket Tours Direct listing | ฿1,500 | ฿1,500 (ages 4–11; infants free) | Extra, paid in cash | Max ~35 guests; Maya Bay, Pileh, Loh Samah, Viking Cave, Don lunch, Monkey Beach, Khai Island; hotel transfers from main beach areas included |
| Speedboat with Bamboo or Khai finish — Trip Thai Tour listing | ฿2,500 (Khai) / ฿2,800 (Bamboo) | ฿2,100 / ฿2,400 (ages 3–11) | Included | Maya Bay via the Loh Samah boardwalk, Pileh swim, Viking Cave, reef snorkel, Don buffet lunch, then Bamboo or Khai |
| Speedboat with Don Viewpoint stop — Love Phuket Tours PP9 listing | ฿2,990 | ฿2,790 (ages 3–10) | Extra, paid in cash | Maiton, Maya Bay, Pileh, a landing on Don long enough to climb to the Viewpoint, Khai Island |
| Early-bird small-group speedboat — Siam Travel listing, Nov 2026 | ฿4,100 | ฿3,100 (ages 4–12) | Included | 07:30 marina departure, max 32 guests, transfers, gear, lunch and insurance included; Maya Bay around 08:30, ahead of the main fleet |
| Sunrise small-group speedboat — Love Phuket Tours range | From ฿4,990 | Varies | Check the listing | ~06:00 departure, 10–20 guests; the crowd-avoidance premium, priced like one |
| Private speedboat, same circuit | From ฿45,900 per boat (Siam Travel listing) | Check the quote | Up to 20–32 guests depending on engines; for groups, the per-head maths can beat the small-group tours | |
Reading the table: the spread from ฿1,500 to ฿4,990 is group size, departure time and inclusions. Cheap boats are full boats that reach Maya Bay with everyone else; expensive boats leave earlier with fewer people. The park rules, the one-hour slot and the swimming ban are identical on all of them. Pay for timing and elbow room, never for a promised exception — an operator who says you can swim at Maya Bay is telling you, free of charge, not to book with them.
Maya Bay in 2026/27: the rules, exactly
Maya Bay, on Phi Phi Leh's west side, is the beach from the 2000 film The Beach. After up to 5,000 visitors a day destroyed much of its coral, Thailand closed it completely in June 2018. It reopened in January 2022 under the managed regime — confirmed in DNP reporting around the 1 October 2026 reopening — that you visit under now:
| Rule | What it means for you |
|---|---|
| Annual closure | Closed 1 August – 30 September every year for reef recovery (2026 closure confirmed; reopened 1 October 2026). Tours still run to the other Leh stops and view the bay from the boat during closure |
| No swimming | Swimming in Maya Bay is prohibited. Rangers enforce it. You may walk the beach and wade to about knee depth in the roped zone. The bay's shallows are a nursery for juvenile blacktip reef sharks and recovering coral — the swim on your tour is Pileh Lagoon, not here |
| No boats in the bay | All vessels moor at Loh Samah Bay, on the east side of Leh. You land on a floating pier and walk a short boardwalk and trail through to the beach from behind |
| Visitor cap | Roughly 300–375 visitors at a time (sources vary between per-hour and at-a-time figures); visits timed at about 1 hour per group. The cap is typically reached by ~10:30 a.m. in high season — go early |
| Hours | Daytime only, roughly 07:00–18:00 with ranger-managed slots; no overnight stays, no camping |
| On the beach | No food, no smoking, no drones without a park permit, nothing left behind. The marine-park ban on oxybenzone-type chemical sunscreens applies and crews may check |
| The fee | The ฿400 park ticket (฿200 child) is your entry — cash, once per day, all park sites |
Is it still worth it? Yes — with the right expectation: one timed hour as a guest in a recovering habitat, quite possibly with blacktip reef shark pups circling the shallows in front of you. During the September 2026 closure survey, the DNP recorded 278 adult blacktip reef sharks near the beach — the highest count of its survey year. That is what the no-swimming rule bought.
Phi Phi Leh beyond Maya Bay
Pileh Lagoon (Pi Leh / Ao Pileh) is the swim of the day: a 600-metre, fjord-like inlet in Leh's east coast, walled by 100-metre cliffs, emerald water over a soft sandy bottom and no coral in the lagoon itself. Light is best roughly 11:00–13:00, when the sun gets into the canyon. Loh Samah Bay, your Maya Bay landing point, is itself a snorkel stop on some itineraries. Viking Cave, in the north-east cliffs, is viewed from the boat — a cave mouth wrapped in bamboo scaffolding where collectors harvest swiftlet nests, beneath wall paintings of ships; there is no landing. Palong Bay, on the west side, is the common reef-snorkel stop; turtles are reported regularly, and any guarantee is marketing.
Phi Phi Don: the island you sleep on
Tonsai Village sits on the narrow isthmus: pier, ATMs, clinics, dive shops, market lanes and most restaurants and bars within a few minutes' walk — busy, and loud late near the beach bars. Loh Dalum Bay, the far side of the isthmus, is the wide, shallow party beach; at low tide it becomes a sand flat, so swim near high tide. The Viewpoints climb the eastern hill on the signed tsunami-evacuation route: Viewpoint 1 (gardens, "I Love Phi Phi" sign) at 10–20 minutes, Viewpoint 2 (the classic twin-bay postcard, ~186 m) at 25–40 minutes, Viewpoint 3 (quieter, private land, +฿20–30) at 45–70 minutes. Entry for 1 + 2 is ฿50 cash at the Viewpoint 1 checkpoint. Go before 10 a.m. for light and empty steps, or at sunset and accept the crowd. Bring water.
Long Beach (Hat Yao), on the south coast, is the calm middle ground: a good swimming beach facing Leh, 20–45 minutes' walk on the coastal path or ฿100–200 per person by longtail. Monkey Beach, a small west-side cove, is a 10-minute longtail ride (฿200–300 per person return with waiting time, 2026 listings) or a kayak trip. Its long-tailed macaques are the attraction and the risk: keep distance, never feed them, keep food in a closed bag — a bite means a mainland hospital and a rabies course. Laem Tong, the north-east tip, is the quiet luxury end: the highest-rated resorts, no ATMs, and the village a boat ride away (~฿250 per person scheduled; ~฿1,500 private boat for up to eight). Between them sit Loh Bagao, Loh Lana, Pak Nam and Rantee — smaller boat-accessed coves for travellers who want Don without Tonsai.
Longtail boats: charter prices from Tonsai
A private longtail is Phi Phi's taxi, tour boat and best idea in one. The tariff below is one Tonsai agency's published 2026 list (Phi Phi Paradise Travel, TAT-licensed) — pier-side negotiation lands in the same territory. Agree price, stops and return time before boarding; the park fee is on top, in cash, on park routes.
| Charter | Price per boat | Covers |
|---|---|---|
| 2 hours | ฿2,500 | Up to 3 people included; +฿500 per extra person (max ~15). Departures from about 06:00–16:30; back before 18:30. Typical routes: Maya Bay + Pileh + Monkey Beach + snorkel stops, scaled to the hours bought. Park fee ฿400/200 extra, cash on the day |
| 3 hours | ฿3,700 | |
| 4 hours | ฿4,500 | |
| 5 hours | ฿5,500 | |
| 6 hours | ฿6,500 | |
| Short hops (per person, shared taxi boats) | Tonsai → Long Beach ฿100–200 · Tonsai → Monkey Beach return ฿200–300 · Tonsai → Laem Tong ~฿250 scheduled | |
The maths that matters: a 06:30 three-hour private longtail (฿3,700 for up to three people, plus park fees) reaches Maya Bay's boardwalk before the Phuket speedboats leave their marinas. Split three ways it costs about what a mid-range group tour costs — for a private boat and an empty bay.
Where to stay: hotel prices by area
The ranges below are the 2026 planning ranges from Phi Phi accommodation guides checked in November 2026 (phiphihotels.net's 2026 area guide is the anchor), per night for a double or a bed. High season (November–April, peaking Christmas–New Year) prices the top of each range and above; low season drops many properties 40–60%. Book two to three months ahead for December–February; in low season, walk-ins can beat online prices.
| Type / area | Typical per night | Character |
|---|---|---|
| Dorm bed — Tonsai / Loh Dalum | ฿300–700 | Backpacker hostels, several doubling as bars; the cheapest sleep in the archipelago and the loudest |
| Budget guesthouse room — Tonsai Village | ฿800–2,500 | Fan rooms at the bottom, air-con doubles above; everything walkable, nightlife on the doorstep |
| Mid-range hotel / bungalow resort — Tonsai edge, Laem Hin, Long Beach | ฿2,000–4,500 | The sweet spot for most couples: pool, breakfast, a walk or short boat to the village |
| Upper-range resort — Long Beach and the east coast | From ~฿4,500 | Beachfront calm, boat transfers to budget in, village treated as a trip rather than a commute |
| Luxury resort — Laem Tong / north coast | ~฿5,000 low season to well over ฿10,000 in peak weeks | The island's best beaches and highest-rated properties; boat-only access, no ATMs, resort restaurants by design |
Choosing by area beats choosing by star rating. Tonsai for restaurants, dive shops and late bars on foot (ask for a room away from the Loh Dalum bar strip). Long Beach to swim off your beach and boat or walk to dinner. Laem Tong if the resort is the destination. Price the transfers too: the Andaman Wave Master sailing that continues to Laem Tong beats an unplanned private longtail with luggage. For the Phuket end — Patong base and day trip versus moving to the island — our best beaches in Phuket guide, with prices and swim safety for every beach, prices the mainland alternatives.
Eating and drinking on Phi Phi Don
Everything is boated in, so expect roughly a third to a half more than Patong for the same plate. Typical Tonsai walk-in ranges, labelled as such: a Thai main ฿120–250, a seafood dinner for two with drinks ฿800–1,500, a western breakfast ฿180–300, a large local beer ฿100–160 in a restaurant (more in a beach bar), Loh Dalum cocktails ฿180–320. The morning market lanes behind the pier feed the island's workers and price accordingly — the cheapest hot food on Don. Carry cash; cards thin out fast beyond the village, and there are no ATMs beyond Tonsai.
Swimming safety, month by month
Phi Phi has no lifeguarded beaches and no flag system on most of its sand — the safety variable is the sea state on the crossing and each bay's exposure. This matrix is the companion to our Phuket beach-by-beach swim safety matrix; the same monsoon logic drives both, and its flag and rip-current guidance covers your mainland days.
| Months | Crossing from Phuket | Swimming / snorkelling | Maya Bay | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov – Apr (high season) | Calm to moderate; all boats run | Best visibility of the year; Pileh, Long Beach, Loh Dalum (near high tide) and Bamboo all swimmable in normal conditions | Open (no swimming, as always) | The Phi Phi of the postcards. Book boats and beds ahead Dec–Feb |
| May & Oct (shoulders) | Mostly running; squalls and cancellations begin/end | Good days are excellent and emptier; check the morning forecast and your operator's call | Open in May and from 1 Oct | The value window: lower prices, some weather risk |
| Jun – Jul (monsoon) | Rough crossings; speedboats thump, ferries are the steadier choice; cancellations happen | Sheltered east-side and lagoon stops (Pileh) still work on many days; exposed snorkel sites suffer in swell and run-off | Open, but landings weather-dependent | Go if your dates are fixed; keep the day flexible |
| Aug – Sep (peak monsoon) | Roughest seas of the year; most cancellations | Poorest visibility; swim only in sheltered water on calm mornings, with your captain's word final | Closed 1 Aug – 30 Sep — viewed from the boat only | The month to skip Phi Phi, or to visit Don quietly and cheaply with no Leh expectations |
Two standing cautions. First, boat safety beats beach safety as a Phi Phi risk: wear the life jacket in any swell, and treat a captain who cancels as a professional. Second, swim inside roped and buoyed areas, never in the Tonsai pier approaches or boat lanes, and never after the beach bars have done their work on your judgement — our Patong nightlife guide with real prices covers the getting-home half of that rule.
Jellyfish at Phi Phi: the section the other guide doesn't have
Phuket 101 carries no jellyfish guidance for Phi Phi at all. Here is the checked version. Jellyfish occur throughout the Andaman Sea, and Thailand's Department of Disease Control (DDC) advises they are more common in the rainy season, especially in shallow coastal water after rainfall. Box jellyfish — the dangerous group — are documented in both the Gulf and the Andaman by the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources; serious incidents are best documented in the Gulf, and no honest guide can call any Thai beach, Phi Phi included, zero-risk in any month. Phi Phi has no vinegar-station network you can rely on finding stocked — in the rainy months, carry a small bottle of household vinegar in the beach bag.
First aid, exactly as published by the DDC (October 2025, repeated after August 2026):
- Get out of the water immediately and call for help. Call Thailand's emergency medical number 1669. A stung swimmer who stays in the water can lose consciousness and drown — leaving the sea is step one, before any treatment.
- Keep the person still and do not rub the sting. Rubbing discharges more venom into the skin.
- Pour household vinegar (4–6% acidity) continuously over the sting for at least 30 seconds. Vinegar stops unfired stinging cells from firing.
- Do not use fresh water, drinking water, alcohol or urine. The DDC names all four — urine included — as making things worse, not better.
- Get medical care for anything beyond a mild local reaction — severe pain, widespread welts, breathing difficulty or chest pain means hospital, fast. On Don, start at the Tonsai clinics and let them organise the mainland transfer; do not wait for the scheduled ferry with a serious sting.
Prevention is unglamorous and effective: a stinger suit or rash vest with leggings genuinely protects snorkellers in the rainy months, and heed any local who waves you out. In October 2025, swimmers at Patong and Kalim were stung by Chrysaora jellyfish — painful local reactions, treated with vinegar by lifeguards, per DDC reporting — which is the ordinary Andaman pattern: usually a bad hour, occasionally much worse. Our complete jellyfish safety guide for Phuket carries the species table and month-by-month risk matrix for your mainland days.
Worked budgets: what a Phi Phi trip actually costs
| Trip | Per person | Built from |
|---|---|---|
| Cheapest day trip from Phuket | ~฿1,900–2,100 | Value speedboat tour ฿1,500 + park fee ฿400 + pier-side extras; transfers from main beaches included in that listing |
| Comfortable day trip | ~฿2,900–4,500 | Mid-range tour with park fee included (฿2,500) up to the early-bird small group (฿4,100), plus drinks and tips |
| DIY overnight, budget (per person, 2 days / 1 night) | ~฿2,600–3,400 | Ferry return ฿900–1,200 + pier fees ฿40 + bed ฿500–1,000 + viewpoint ฿50 + food ~฿600 + longtail hop ~฿300 + park fee ฿400 if you boat to Leh |
| DIY overnight, mid-range couple (per person, 2 days / 1 night) | ~฿5,500–7,500 | Boat return ฿1,200–1,800 + room share ฿1,000–2,250 + early private longtail share ฿1,850 (3 hrs split two ways) + park fee ฿400 + food and drinks ฿1,000–1,500 |
| The early-bay upgrade | +฿0 over the mid-range tour, per person in a group of 3 | Private 3-hour longtail ฿3,700 per boat ÷ 3 = ~฿1,235 + park fee ฿400 — less than several group tours, for an empty Maya Bay boardwalk. Only possible with a night on Don |
The Phuket base matters too: day-trippers keep one set of hotel costs and add a tour; island sleepers pay island prices but buy the mornings. If Patong is your base — the pattern most of our readers use — the Patong condo rental prices per month page shows why that base makes the island splurge painless.
Practical notes nobody puts on the poster
Cash. Park, pier and viewpoint fees, longtail hops and most small restaurants are cash. ATMs exist in Tonsai only — arrive with small notes, including ฿400 per adult earmarked for the rangers. Luggage. Porters with carts meet the ferries for a small fee, and hillside hotels are stairs all the way: pack light or pay the porter gladly. Reef rules. Do not touch or stand on coral, do not collect shells in the park, and expect the marine-park chemical sunscreen ban to be checked. Drones need a park permit and are banned at Maya Bay. Tsunami safety: Don was devastated in 2004; the viewpoint stairs are a signed evacuation route — learn where the signs point from your hotel on arrival. Medical: Tonsai clinics handle ordinary mishaps; serious cases go to Phuket or Krabi hospitals by speedboat, so insurance that covers boat evacuation is not a luxury here.
FAQ
Can you swim in Maya Bay? No. Swimming has been prohibited since the bay reopened in January 2022, to protect its blacktip reef shark nursery and recovering coral. You walk the beach and may wade to about knee depth in the roped zone. Your swim stops are Pileh Lagoon, the reef sites and Bamboo Island.
When is Maya Bay closed? Every year from 1 August to 30 September, by DNP order, for reef recovery during the roughest monsoon seas. It reopened 1 October 2026; the next closure is 1 August – 30 September 2027.
How much is the park fee? ฿400 per foreign adult, ฿200 per foreign child (about ages 3–14), ฿40/฿20 for Thai nationals — once per day in cash, covering every park site that day. Divers pay a reported ฿200 supplement. Separately, everyone pays the ฿20 Tonsai Pier cleaning fee on arrival.
What is the cheapest way from Phuket? The standard ferry from Rassada Pier: from ฿450 one way (Phi Phi Cruiser), ฿600–700 on most other listings, ~2 hours to Tonsai. Add ~฿150 for a shared pickup from the west-coast beaches.
Is a day trip worth it? Yes, if you accept what it is: the greatest hits at speed, an hour in Maya Bay, a swim in Pileh, lunch on Don. Book the earliest, smallest-group boat you can afford. If the Viewpoint, Long Beach and an empty Maya Bay morning matter, no day trip delivers them — stay a night.
How many nights should I stay? One night transforms the trip (early longtail, sunset Viewpoint, the island after the boats leave). Two to three suit divers and slow Long Beach days. Beyond that, most travellers run out of island — happily.
Are there jellyfish at Phi Phi? Yes — they occur across the Andaman Sea, more commonly in the rainy season and after rain (DDC). Serious box jellyfish incidents are best documented in the Gulf, but no beach is zero-risk. Know the first aid: out of the water, call 1669, do not rub, vinegar (4–6%) for at least 30 seconds, never fresh water, alcohol or urine.
Is Phi Phi good in the rainy season? Don is open and cheaper June–September, and sheltered stops like Pileh work on many days. But crossings are rough, cancellations happen, visibility drops, and Maya Bay is closed through August and September. If Phi Phi is the point of your trip, come November to April.
Do I need to book in advance? In high season, yes — sailings and small-group early tours sell out, and Christmas–New Year beds go months ahead. In low season a day or two ahead is usually enough, and walk-in room prices can beat the apps.
Photo credits (Wikimedia Commons): Maya Bay cliffs — Nnthurber, CC BY-SA 4.0; longtail beneath the cliffs and longtails lined up on the beach — Bminieri, CC BY-SA 4.0; Loh Samah Bay — Christophe95, CC BY-SA 4.0; Tonsai Village from the viewpoint climb — Iro Bosero, CC BY-SA 4.0; sunset longtails — Jonny Clow, CC0. Photos show their subjects as captioned; the Maya Bay and bay photographs predate the current no-swimming regime, which the text above states plainly.
Sources checked for this guide
Operator fare listings published August 2026 (Phi Phi Cruiser ferry from ฿450; Andaman Wave Master from ฿700; speedboat from ฿850) and Rassada Pier's own 2026 pages (ferry ฿600–650, speedboat ฿850–900, ฿20 pier fee, ฿150 pickup), checked November 2026. DNP / Hat Noppharat Thara–Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park fee schedule and October 2026 reopening reporting (fee ฿400/200/฿40; closure 1 Aug–30 Sep 2026; ~300–375 cap; 278 blacktips recorded 2 Sep 2026). Tour listings checked November 2026: Phuket Tours Direct ฿1,500 (fee extra); Trip Thai Tour ฿2,500/2,800 (fee included); Love Phuket Tours ฿2,990–4,990; Siam Travel ฿4,100 (fee included), private from ฿45,900. Phi Phi Paradise Travel longtail tariff 2026 (฿2,500–6,500 per boat). Accommodation ranges: phiphihotels.net 2026 guide. Viewpoint fees: discoverphiphi.com, September 2026 (฿50 + ฿20), cross-checked against 2025–26 visitor reports. Jellyfish: DDC guidance, October 2025, repeated after August 2026; DMCR reporting incl. the October 2025 Patong/Kalim incidents. Prices, sailings and rules change — every fixed price carries its source and date so you can re-check it.
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