Could someone please describe to me the different areas on Koh Phi Phi? Like which part is the main town area and what can I expect if I stay in a hotel there? And what about the hotels that are further out like Holiday Inn and Outrigger? If I'm out there, will it be too far to get into town without a taxi or something? Is there plenty to do and see out there? Or are you stuck with resort restaurants only? Are the beaches better in one area over another? How many days is a good length to stay on Phi Phi? Are there any beach front home rentals? Or just hotels? Do the beaches offer water sports? Anything else I might want to know?

We will be a group of 6-8, fun loving adventurous 45-50 year olds, staying in Phuket for few days, and possibly touring around on a catamaran for 3-4 days, before arriving on Phi Phi...

have you read on line about PP?

Yes of course. I've also read many previous posts on here, but I just can't get a feel for the location of things. That always seems to be my biggest issue when planning trips and I know from experience that location is so very important. So often when searching online, marketing gets mixed up with reality, so I was hoping someone on here would give me their personal opinions from their personal experiences since that has proven valuable to me on my past trips.

there are a few people who have been there several times, hopefully they will chime in..

personally, I prefer the khao lak area.

Ton Sai is the pier area - seriously overdeveloped.

Long beach is the next beach along which is nicer.

Then there are a series of quieter beaches.

Phi Phi has no roads so if you stay on the quiet beaches you will be paying for boat rides everyday if you want some action.

I would pick a resort on long beach.

Given Phi Phi is small I would stay just the 2 nights. Apart from snorkelling there isnt much to do.

An alternative is to stay in Krabi and do a daytrip for the snorkelling. Krabi has a lot more options.

I enjoyed visiting Ko Hong more. NP island with beautiful beach and fish come up to you just off the beach. Cant stay there but can visit on tour from Krabi. Krabi has good kayaking tours plus hotsprings and other stuff.

I stay at Mama Beach every time I go to Phi Phi. Great quiet location, yet a relatively short walk from all the action. The owner is very nice also. The view from the sea view rooms is stunning! Hire a private boat for the day to go to the best beaches and islands nearby. Also go to Maya Bay very early (6am) to avoid the big crowds.

Thank you so much! This is the information I was looking for You both have been very helpful

I have another question...

I have 8 nights in the area, arriving in Phuket in the afternoon. If we don't up up doing the catamaran...how would you use your time? Is the area small enough that wherever we stay, we can do day trips to get around and see everything? Or would it be better to split it up into 2-3 locations?

Krabi/Ao Nang are better than Phuket. Less developped and you can easily do day trips to different beaches and islands. Also look into Koh Lanta. You can then go to Koh Phi Phi from there.

Our flights are already booked and we are arriving in Phuket and meeting up with others, so I would imagine we will stay there for a couple of days if only to get over jet lag.

But after that...is the area small enough that if we stayed the rest of the time on Phi Phi, would we be able to get around by boat to see Ao Nang or Koh Lanta? Or would it be better to spend say....2 days in Phuket, 3 days on Phi Phi and 3 days in either Ao Nang or Koh Lanta?

You can see Phi Phi on a day trip from Ao Nang or Koh Lanta but not really the opposite. Anyway, Phi Phi is worth visiting for a few days. You could do 2 days in Phuket, then go to Phi Phi for a while and then go to Ao Nang or Koh Lanta.

You could also just spend your time in Phuket and Phi Phi. There is plenty to do around just those places.

There are ferries connecting phuket phi phi and krabi. You could do a few nights in each. I prefer Krabi but Phuket has plenty of day tours. Lanta is a bit quiet and no real snorkelling.

On Phuket Kata beach is nice. Avoid Patong its really crowded.

Thank you, all this really helps a lot!

I personally find ao nang to be ugly with tourism and without merit..

Ao Nang is pretty small and the tours are excellent.

Without merit? Obviously you havent done any of the tours. Ao Nang is just a base not a destination in itself.

The scenary around Krabi and Phang Nga is stunning.

I agree. Ao Nang itself is pretty bland but the scenery and the tours that can be easily done from there are amazing.