Backpacking Koh Phi Phi
Everyone has an opinion about Phi Phi before they arrive, and almost everyone goes anyway. It is touristy, it is louder than the brochure suggests, and it is also genuinely one of the most spectacular places in Thailand.
The island is two limestone lumps joined by a sandbar with a village on it, and there is not a single car. You walk everywhere, or you take a boat. Days are for the bays, the snorkelling and the climb up to the viewpoint. Nights are for Loh Dalum beach, where the fire shows start around ten and it does not really stop after that.
Give it two nights. That is enough to do the boat trip, do the viewpoint at sunrise, have one big night out, and leave while you still like the place.
Why Koh Phi Phi is popular with backpackers
- The viewpoint, which is the photo you have already seen
- Maya Bay, and the boat trip around the bays and lagoons
- Snorkelling and diving straight off the island
- No cars, no scooters, no traffic noise anywhere
- The best beach party scene in southern Thailand
- Impossible to stay a stranger for more than a day
Best time to visit Koh Phi Phi
Phi Phi is on the Andaman side and follows the western monsoon: dry in winter, wet in summer. In the rainy season some boats simply do not run.
Maya Bay has rules now. After the closure you can visit but not swim there, and the whole bay shuts every August and September so the coral can recover. That is a good thing, and it is also why the water is clearer than it was ten years ago.
Backpacker budget: around €25 a day
- €9hostel bed
- €2.50local meal
- €2beer
- €8longtail per trip
Guide prices from our own days in Koh Phi Phi. Add a tour or a night out and it climbs fast.
Best hostels in Koh Phi Phi
Hangover Chill & Hill
Up the hill with a pool and a view over the village, which on a party island is worth a lot. Social without being relentless: everyone hangs out by the water in the day and walks down to Loh Dalum together at night. The climb back up at 3am is the trade.
Sweed Dee
Clean, modern and right in the middle of Tonsai Village, so the restaurants, bars and boat desks are all outside the door. The sensible choice for people who want to be out on the water at eight the next morning.
Slumber Party Phi Phi
It is called Slumber Party and it does what it says. Pub crawls, games, and a room full of people who all arrived alone this morning. Brilliant for one night, and you will know within an hour whether it is your kind of thing.
Best things to do in Koh Phi Phi
Maya Bay and the bays by longtail
Maya Bay, Pileh Lagoon, Viking Cave and Monkey Beach in one run. The difference between the standard trip and the early one is enormous: the first boats get the bay with a handful of people in it, the eleven o’clock boats get several hundred. Pay the extra for early.
Snorkelling around seven islands
The afternoon version ends with sunset from the boat and, on a good night, plankton in the water when it gets dark. Worth timing your day around.
A private longtail for the day
Split between six people this stops being a splurge and starts being the obvious move: you set the times, you skip whatever you want, and you are not on anyone else’s schedule. Round up the people from your dorm.
Your first ever dive
Two dives with an instructor, no certificate required. Koh Bida Nok is the site here, with a real chance of leopard sharks lying on the sand looking entirely unbothered by you.
Free and worth doing:
- The viewpoint hike, ideally at sunrise rather than sunset
- Walking over to Long Beach along the shore at low tide
- The fire shows on Loh Dalum, from a safe distance
- Snorkelling straight off Long Beach, no boat needed
Best area for backpackers
Tonsai Village and Loh Dalum
Everything is in the strip between the two beaches. Tonsai is where the ferry comes in and where the restaurants and tour desks are, Loh Dalum is the party beach on the other side, and the whole thing takes ten minutes to walk across.
What you get in this area:
- Every hostel, bar and restaurant on the island, within a few minutes
- The ferry pier, so no transfer on arrival or departure
- Both beaches and the viewpoint path on your doorstep
- The entire nightlife scene, which is either a plus or a warning
- Every boat trip bookable from the same three streets
If you want quiet, Long Beach is twenty minutes away on foot at low tide and feels like a different island.
How to plan your days in Koh Phi Phi
Two days does it: one on the water, one on the island.
The bays by boat. Maya Bay, Pileh Lagoon, Viking Cave and Monkey Beach in one trip. Go on the earliest departure there is, because by eleven the bay is full and the photos all have strangers in them.
Tonight: fire shows on Loh Dalum, the party beach.
The viewpoint and Long Beach. Climb the steps to Phi Phi Viewpoint for the shot everyone knows: two bays with a thin strip of sand between them. Then walk on to Long Beach for the afternoon.
Tonight: eat over on the Long Beach side, away from the noise.
Snorkelling or diving. Bamboo Island has the clearest water anywhere near here. If you dive, Koh Bida Nok is the one, with leopard sharks on the sand.
Tonight: ferry back to Krabi or Phuket, or onward to Koh Lanta.
Food and drink in Koh Phi Phi
Phi Phi is small, car-free and built entirely around visitors, which makes eating here more expensive than the mainland. Everything has to arrive by boat, and you can taste the freight cost.
The fish market in the village is the exception and it is the move. In the evening the grills come out with the day’s catch laid on ice: you point at what you want and pay by weight. Better and cheaper than anything with a sea view.
What to eat here:
Getting there and onward
There are no cars and no scooters on Phi Phi. Everything is on foot or by boat, and that is a large part of why the island feels the way it does.
Getting there. Ferry from Krabi is an hour and a half, from Phuket two. Several boats a day in season, fewer out of it.
On the island. The village takes ten minutes to cross. For the beaches that are not connected by path, a longtail is about €8 a trip.
Onward. Koh Lanta is an hour and a half by boat and there is a direct service to Railay. For Koh Tao or Phangan you have to go back overland via Surat Thani, which is a full day.
- FerryKrabi 1.5 hrs · Phuket 2 hrs · Koh Lanta 1.5 hrs
- LongtailOut to the bays, about €8 a trip
- Day tripMaya Bay and the lagoons, half or full day
- Dive boatKoh Bida and Bamboo Island
- On footNo cars at all. Everything is walkable
Staying safe on Koh Phi Phi
Phi Phi is small and safe, and it is also a party island. Almost everything that goes wrong here happens on the beach after midnight.
- Wear shoes on Loh Dalum at night. There is broken glass in that sand
- Take water up to the viewpoint. It is steep, and there is no shade on the steps
- Ask what a boat trip includes: drinks, snorkel gear and national park fees are often extra
- Use the hostel safe. Dorm theft is the one common crime here
- Go near the burning ropes or the fire skipping on the beach. Those burns are the island's most common injury and they are serious
- Swim after drinking, including in the shallow bay
- Feed the monkeys at Monkey Beach. They bite, and they will go through your bag
- Touch or stand on the coral while snorkelling
Rebels on the Road tip
Do the viewpoint at sunrise instead of sunset. Everybody does sunset, so you queue on the steps and then share the platform with two hundred people. At six in the morning there might be four of you up there, the light on the two bays is better, and you are back down in time for the first boat of the day.
Frequently asked questions
How many days do you need on Koh Phi Phi?
Two to three. Enough for the boat trip, the viewpoint and one night out, which is about the right dose of this island.
Is Koh Phi Phi expensive?
More than the mainland, because everything arrives by boat. Around €25 a day, with beds at €9 and meals at €2.50.
Is Koh Phi Phi safe for backpackers?
Yes. The real risks here are fire shows, alcohol and the sea, in that order, and all three are avoidable.
How do you get around on Koh Phi Phi?
On foot. There are no cars and no scooters on the island, and for anything you cannot walk to there is a longtail.
Is Phi Phi only about partying?
No, although the party is real. The snorkelling, the viewpoint and Long Beach hold up on their own, and plenty of people come here and never see Loh Dalum after dark.
Can you still visit Maya Bay?
Yes, with rules. You can go and look but not swim in the bay, and it closes completely every August and September so the coral can recover.
