Opinions on Phi Phi Island-Thailand, worth a night?
Dec 5th, 2003, 10:55 AM
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Opinions on Phi Phi Island-Thailand, worth a night?
Hello,
I am wondering if anyone has any experiences regarding Phi Phi island. It is inbetween Phuket and Krabi and it would be feasible for me to spend a night there en route. I'm not sure whether it merits a night vs. Ao Nang beach tho. Experiences and thoughts are appreciated.
I am wondering if anyone has any experiences regarding Phi Phi island. It is inbetween Phuket and Krabi and it would be feasible for me to spend a night there en route. I'm not sure whether it merits a night vs. Ao Nang beach tho. Experiences and thoughts are appreciated.
Dec 5th, 2003, 11:44 AM
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I took one of the day trips by boat from Phuket to Phi Phi and found it to be a lovely place! There were some motels there, but I wondered to myself what people would do if they went there and stayed over night. I found the 1-day visit to be just fine. If you are into swimming, snorkeling, diving, etc you might like to stay over. It really is a gorgeous place. I'm just not that much of a "water activities" person.
Dec 5th, 2003, 01:24 PM
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Have been to Phi Phi twice, each time for about a week. It's paradise, but only if you get away from Tonsai Bay.
Rereading your post, however, I don't think it's really "in between" Phuket and Krabi, at least as far as transportation is concerned.
Rereading your post, however, I don't think it's really "in between" Phuket and Krabi, at least as far as transportation is concerned.
Dec 5th, 2003, 06:19 PM
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Well where the day trip boats arrive on Phi Phi you have a 7-11 and all the trappings of commercialisation. Though much of the Island is still beautiful, keep away from Tongsai though unless you are into all that! Boats operate from Krabi and Phuket so you can stop overnight between krabi and Phuket, I would suggest longer, as someone else said it is far more of a tropical island. You will find Ao nang is reaching saturation point on building much the same way some parts of Phuket have become.
Dec 5th, 2003, 06:19 PM
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Mike, the PP Princess is on the back side of the town and faces a different bay. It has, I believe, gotten good reviews on here. The port town where the boats dock is also called "Tonsai Bay" and as you will see, it's pretty ghastly. We have stayed on a different, much more isolated part of the island and I find that preferable. If you want to be able to go to different restaurants, shops, bars, etc then it is best to be close to town, as the PP Princess is. What I like about Phi Phi, however, is being isolated on a relatively empty beach and just relaxing. Sorry -- I didn't mean to alarm you!
Dec 5th, 2003, 06:26 PM
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Mike, for an alternative if you are interested, check out Phi Phi Island Village. This is 20 min by longtail boat from Tonsai town, and on its own beach. (This is not the hotel we stayed in, which is closed for renovation, but friends stayed there and said it was great.)
Dec 5th, 2003, 08:43 PM
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I wasn't alarmed, Marilyn, but you did pique my interest. 
Though I understand that a lot of people don't like the town, we decided to stay at the P P Princess so we could have the privacy of the resort (our bungalow is on the beach) yet the ease of wandering into town if we want a quick bite to eat or whatever. Since I've already got reservations, I think I'll stick with them and hope for the best. Thanks for clarifying everything.
Though I understand that a lot of people don't like the town, we decided to stay at the P P Princess so we could have the privacy of the resort (our bungalow is on the beach) yet the ease of wandering into town if we want a quick bite to eat or whatever. Since I've already got reservations, I think I'll stick with them and hope for the best. Thanks for clarifying everything.
Dec 6th, 2003, 06:53 AM
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To James A (I guess)
James, I was on Phi Phi in the summer of 2001. I saw only a handful of little cottages along the beach where the boats arrive. Has Phi Phi changed THAT much??? It seemed to be pretty deserted when I was there. We took a longtail to Maya Beach and that was fun. I didn't see any 7-11 or other commercial places. Yikes! Has "progress" moved in and commercialized a beautiful hidden treasure???
Carol
James, I was on Phi Phi in the summer of 2001. I saw only a handful of little cottages along the beach where the boats arrive. Has Phi Phi changed THAT much??? It seemed to be pretty deserted when I was there. We took a longtail to Maya Beach and that was fun. I didn't see any 7-11 or other commercial places. Yikes! Has "progress" moved in and commercialized a beautiful hidden treasure???
Carol
Dec 6th, 2003, 10:00 AM
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simpson, it sounds as if your boat let you off at a secondary beach, not the main jetty at Tonsai Bay. Different boats do make different stops, some at other beaches on Phi Phi where there are hotels. (On our second trip we did not have to take a longtail boat back to Tonsai to get a boat back to Phuket. We were picked up by pre-arrangement on Laem Tong beach.)
We were there in Nov 2000 and Dec 2001 and noticed a pretty big change in that one year. Although I didn't see a 7-11, there were streets full of shops, bars, dive shops, internet access points, all in a sort of shanty town/quonset hut "architecture."
We were there in Nov 2000 and Dec 2001 and noticed a pretty big change in that one year. Although I didn't see a 7-11, there were streets full of shops, bars, dive shops, internet access points, all in a sort of shanty town/quonset hut "architecture."
Dec 6th, 2003, 06:09 PM
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I guess I thought we were dropped off at the "main beach" on Phi Phi when we went on our day trip from Phuket. The island looked like a jungle, but if you looked at a postcard picture, you could see that there were several resorts. I just can't imagine that we didn't really "see" Phi Phi... I didn't even realize there was a "town" of any kind! I'll just have to go back again, and stay for a while!!! LOL It's such a beautiful spot, it's worth another visit, for sure.
Carol
Carol
Dec 6th, 2003, 06:53 PM
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Carol, there are actually two islands. One is Phi Phi Don, which is where Tonsai Bay and the resorts are. The other is Phi Phi Ley, which is where Maya Beach (location of movie The Beach) is located. Maybe you spent the day on Phi Phi Ley?
Dec 7th, 2003, 10:20 AM
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Maya Beach was not on the island where we spent the day. We had to go there by boat. I thought we were on the large Phi Phi island. The rather large boat we took with a tour group from Phuket Town docked in a bay area with a lot of other boats. There were a couple of little resorts there, with small cottages overlooking the water.
Carol
Carol
Dec 7th, 2003, 11:03 AM
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OK, I give up. I haven't a clue where you spent the day! Could have been one of several bays on PP that fit the description. But you would know it if you were in the port town, believe me. I guess we'll all just have to go back to check it out, right? 
Dec 8th, 2003, 10:42 AM
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Thanks all for your dialogue. Does anyone have an opinion as to whether to skip Ao Nang beach altogether and to HQ from Phi Phi for island hopping, or is it recommended to see both places?
Dec 8th, 2003, 05:50 PM
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I haven't been to Ao Nang, but I'm guessing if you want to island hop around Krabi, you'd be better off basing yourself there. PP seems more isolated. If you google a bit you can find ferry schedules for Phuket/Phi Phi/Krabi etc. I'm not on my home computer or I'd give you a couple of sites to start from.
