Diving Phuket - Racha Noi Island

Manta Ray at Racha Noi Sat 15 Feb 2014 

Sunset dive at Marita's Rock

Racha Noi Island diving - West Coast 

What a fantastic and beautiful weekend trip on MV Sai Mai everyone really enjoyed the overnight trip to Racha Yai and Racha Noi.

The two Raya islands are south of Phuket:

Racha Yai is about 90 minutes by diving boat and 30 minutes by speed boat from the Phuket port of Chalong. The island has beautiful beaches on the west coast with great sites for snorkeling and scuba diving.

The resorts on the islands can cater to everyone's needs, whether they are a five star villa resort or a basic beach side bungalow is required then you can find them here. I believe Racha Yai has some of the best beaches in Thailand.

Racha Yai is ideal for a day trip too. You can go there for a day trip to enjoy the snorkeling and walking along the deserted beaches and then lunch at one of the island restaurants or if you have more time on your hands you can spend two or three nights there. Away from the hustle and bustle of Phuket, its an island paradise waiting to be discovered.

Between 10:30 and 14:30 hours there are a lot of day trips to Racha Yai, but then when they have gone back, the white sandy beaches and crystal clear water are only just for those who stay longer or overnight.
 
We offer a fantastic dive day trip trip to Racha Yai 

For more information about our premium day trip to Racha Yai


Here are some fantastic places to stay for a night or two on Racha Yai all with excellent amenities and accommodation right on the beach front :-

• Ban Raya
• Rayaburi: 
• The Racha
• Raya Resort

Racha Noi is 30 minutes further south from Racha Yai and those that come here very rarely want to leave this small piece of heaven. The island has two beautiful beaches and in our humble opinion, view is best place for an overnight stay. Many people who come to Phuket year after year still do not know about this place it is a well kept secret.

The azure waters around Racha Noi are so clear that can you see the bottom 30 meters below and is a great place for Scuba diving and snorkeling. In peak season, when Phuket is overloaded with folk, you can spend all day without hardly seeing anyone or at the most, with only one or two boats insight.

The corals both hard and soft are healthy and full of life. The fish life is in abundance here to with all the usual Indian Ocean reef fishes adding colour, Barracudas to Nemo, to White Tip reef Sharks to Hawksbill Turtles all call this island home.

Because of the strong currents that run along Racha Noi it makes it an ideal environment for the bigger fishes too and sightings of Manta Rays and Whalesharks are common here.

We offer a fantastic dive day trip trip to Racha Noi with only a restricted number of divers guaranteeing a wonderful and peaceful time

The MV Sai Mai is available for private charters to Racha Yai and Racha Noi whether day trip or overnight stops click for more information...

Kayaking day trip from Koh Samui to Angthong Marine Park

Kayaking in Angthong Marine Park

Last month I was in Koh Samui and while there I went on an excellent day tour to the Angthong Marine National Park. I am happy to recommend this tour to anyone interested in a high quality tour from Koh Samui. There are several different tours running daily from Koh Samui, most of them are speedboat tours and they are a good way to see Angthong. The tour that I went on, though, was a slow boat tour that focused on kayaking around the islands and caves of Angthong. 

The boat took a leisurely 90 minutes to reach Angthong where we moored in the north of the marine park. On the journey we had breakfast and our guide briefed us on the day's itinerary. There were about 30 guests on board, a mix of nationalities. About half the passengers were German speakers so we were divided in to team English speakers and team Deutsche speakers.  In the morning the German speaking group would kayak first while the English speakers snorkeled and in the afternoon roles would be reversed. 

The snorkeling was ok but nothing to write home about. The water is not as clear as Koh Tao although the reefs look healthy. The corals were also very shallow and a few people returned to the boat with cuts and scrapes. I would recommend Koh Tao above Angthong for a snorkeling day trip. 

Kayaking in Angthong Marine Park

The kayaking on the other hand was very nice, the rock ledges, tunnels and caverns are beautiful. Kayaking was done in pairs, as I was travelling solo I was coupled with Jasmine from the US of A. We chatted away pleasantly as we got to grips with our paddling. She took the front and me the back so most of my photos feature the back of her head :) Our group of kayaks followed our kayaking guide like ducklings following mother duck. By the time we were back on board it was lunchtime. 

Lunch was served as we cruised south through the park to the Emerald lake. I was amazed as we traveled through the park how few other boats there were around. This must be one of the most beautiful places in the World and no one is there to see it. I was there just before Koh Samui's high season so I'm sure it gets busier but still, compared with tourist numbers in Phuket it's very quiet. Our tour guide told us that he makes a special effort to avoid the other tour boats. Because it's quite a small operation they have the flexibility to change the itinerary as required. For example we arrived at the Emerald Lake just as the morning tours were leaving but before the afternoon tours arrived so we got to the top view point alone.

The Emerald lake

When we arrived back down at the beach after visiting the lake we found that our kayaks were waiting for us on the beach and the boat had moved off further south so we paddled off down the coast to meet up with it there. By the time we were back at the boat it was 3pm and time to head back to Koh Samui. Some people sun bathed, other slept or chatted among themselves. All in all a very pleasant day.

Kayaks in Angthong marine park

Relaxing on the cruise home

For more information about Koh Samui tours and things to do please see out website: Easy Day Koh Samui

More on tours in Thailand at www.easydaythailand.com

Similan / Koh Tachai snorkeling liveaboard trips

Reggae Queen (aka MV Sawan)

Reggae Queen (aka MV Sawan) is a liveaboard boat for snorkelers only (no scuba divers). It runs twice weekly trips to the best snorkeling locations in the Andaman sea including the Similan Islands, Koh Tachai and the Surin Islands. As well as great snorkeling they also go to the best beaches. Trips also include a visit to the Moken sea gypsy village at Surin. Snorkelers on this boat regularly see sharks, turtles, manta rays and much more. They even see whale sharks.

Sawan is 21m long and 4m wide with a wooden hull and twin engines. She cruises at 12 knots. There are 8 twin bunk bed cabins and one master cabin with a double bed for a maximum of 18 guests. All cabins have air conditioning. There are five shared bathrooms. There is a spacious shaded area on the upper deck for relaxing on board. There is also plenty of room for sunbathing. Sawan has the full complement of safety equipment including life raft, life vests and fire extinguishers. 

 More details on our Snorkel Thailand Section.

Schedule:

Trips run from Nov to April every Sunday and Wednesday.

Sunday to Wednesday, starting Khao Lak finishing Kura Buri.

Wednesday to Saturday starting Kura Buri, finishing Khao Lak.

Transfers from Khao Lak hotels are included. If you need a transfer from your Phuket hotel we can arrange that for you.

Price: 12,100 baht per person (2012-2013)

Price includes: all meals, soft drinks, quality snorkeling gear, transfers Khao Lak hotel-boat-Khao Lak hotel. (Phuket transfers available on request).

Not included: Alcoholic drinks, national park entrance fees (1000 baht per person)

Book / Enquire Now