Koh Phi Phi Island Tour - Things To Do & More

Get ready for the Koh Phi Phi tour of a lifetime. We are going to talk about how to get to Phi Phi Island, what to do when you are there, what to eat AND what hotels to stay at! Are you ready? Let’s go!

Koh Phi Phi is the most beautiful island off the coast of Thailand. Yeah we said it. Number ONE! Okay, coming clean, we haven’t been to every island off of Thailand… But if any of them are even CLOSE to as beautiful as Koh Phi Phi then they have a LOT going for them.

We spent the better part of a week on Phi Phi island and had the time of our freaking lives! We wanted to stay for a month, learn to teach scuba diving, and camp out on the beach each night! Maybe next time…

There is a LOT to talk about with Koh Phi Phi. With so much adventure and things to do packed into a small island, Phi Phi is one of the most unique places on earth. Let’s start with the basics: how to get to Phi Phi Island

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How to Get to Phi Phi Island

Phi Phi Island is located off the coast of Thailand. The nearest city is Phuket, so we recommend making plans to fly/drive to Phuket first. From there, you have 2 options: swim or ferry from Phuket to Koh Phi Phi.

The swim from Phuket to Koh Phi Phi Island is over 50 kilometers, so we are going to go ahead and recommend that you NOT do this. Plus you are going to need your luggage along. Save the swimming for the beaches on the island.

The FAR better way to get from Phuket to Koh Phi Phi is to take the ferry. There is an awesome ferry that makes the trip a few times per day, and we would say the ferry is almost as fun as Koh Phi Phi itself!

The ferry is full of people making the same trip from Phuket to Koh Phi Phi, and everyone is looking to have some fun! You can meet a few people on the way if you’d like, or just sit back and enjoy the beautiful tropical paradise around you!

Things To Do in Phi Phi Island

Let’s go on a Koh Phi Phi island tour of all the incredible things to do. What do you say? Let’s get to it!

Go For a Swim

Koh Phi Phi’s waters are right up there with any on earth. Crystal blue, basically the color of the best gummy bears and freeze pops.

And the water is SO SO clear! You can grab a snorkel and some goggles and head out looking for fish! And if you’d rather do a guided swim, there are tons of snorkel and scuba options on the island for you to try out.

See the Fire Dancers

Recently, the island has been home to a raging party scene. Beach-side clubs and DJs rock out until 3 am, and fire dancers performing for the gathered tourists. And these fire dancer are INCREDIBLE! One of the best things to do in Phi Phi Island, without a doubt.

If partying and watching fire dancers is your thing, then Koh Phi Phi will be the best time you’ll ever have! We checked it out and partied one night, it was an AMAZING time people-watching.

Because of the partying, there are few people taking time to swim in the beautiful bays on each side of the town! More open water for us! And more for you when you throw on your most tropical swimsuit and head out for a dip.

Explore the Bays

One of the things we found unbelievable about Koh Phi Phi was the fact that you could walk out into the bays at least 100 yards and still touch the ocean floor! You can walk more than an entire football field into the bay people!

The island is shaped so that there are two stunning bays with a very thin strip of land between them. This thin strip is where the town is located, and therefore where you’ll probably spend a lot of your time.

When we say thin, we mean thin. You can literally walk from one bay to the other in 2 minutes. If you don’t like the vibes at one bay, just march on over to the other one!

Also on this thin strip of land is where you will find many of the Koh Phi Phi Island tours that take you anywhere and everywhere around the island. Side note: this is where the ferry from Phuket to Koh Phi Phi will drop you off as well!

Finally, on this thin strip of land between Phi Phi’s bays, you’ll pass 3 of the best Thai food places you’ve ever had! More on that later…

Hike to Phi Phi Viewpoint at Sunrise

One morning you HAVE to hike to Phi Phi Viewpoint. It’s a pretty quick hike, 45 minutes or so, and the view is SO much more than worth it.

Google Maps Link to Phi Phi Viewpoint

If you are up for it, set your alarm so that you’ll be able to watch sunrise from the top. Wake up about 1 hour before sunrise and start your hike to the top.

Once you reach the summit, sit silently with your honey and drink everything in. The view, the sounds, the smells, everything.

There’s a delicious breakfast cafe at the top of the hike for you to grab a bite to reward yourself for the trek! They might not be open right at sunrise, but they usually open up shortly after.

Monkey Beach on Koh Phi Phi

Monkey Beach was one of the things to do in Phi Phi Island that we weren’t able to see. We wish we would have had more time so we could make time to see Monkey Beach, but oh well. Now we have a reason to go back!

Just because we weren’t able to see Monkey Beach doesn’t mean you shouldn’t. Here is some advice from Phi Phi Islands.

Advice on Monkey Beach From Phi Phi Islands:

Monkey Beach is located on the southwestern side of Tonsai Bay, about 700m from the jetty. It is a simply stunning 150m-long strip of white powdery sand fringed by emerald water. The backside of the beach is a rather steep limestone cliff, covered with lush vegetation that offers monkeys a comfortable habitat, which is where it gets its name from. Monkey Beach is often confused with Monkey Bay, a similar spot located on the other side of Phi Phi Don Island, at the entrance of Loh Dalum.

Different means are available for you to get to Monkey Beach: hiring a long-tail boat near Tonsai jetty is the easiest way but, if you are not afraid to make a little effort, you can rent a sea kayak and make the 40-minute journey by yourself. There’s no infrastructure on Monkey Beach, so do not forget to bring some water and snacks.

Monkey Beach is not only famous for its furry inhabitants. Its other point of interest is that it is a top-notch snorkelling spot. The shallow waters next to it host colourful and vivid underwater habitats, which really gives you the feeling of swimming in an aquarium.

What to Eat on Koh Phi Phi

Pad thai, pad thai, and more pad thai! Oh, and we drank a lot of coconuts. All of the coconuts.

There is one place you MUST eat on your visit. If we make one thing clear in this entire article we hope it is this: eat at Only Noodles. This is a tiny noodle stand nestled in the streets of Koh Phi Phi, and was the most delicious pad thai we had on our ENTIRE trip to Southeast Asia!

As a kicker, the husband and wife running the stand were the cutest local couple on the island. Make this a stop on a walk through town on your first day. If you love it (like we did) you will make a few more stops throughout your stay!

You should also drink as many coconuts as possible. They are INCREDIBLY cheap, and keep you well hydrated! Which is helpful in the Koh Phi Phi sun, especially if you are making the trip in Summer.

Plus, the coconuts can make for some awesome pictures. Full disclosure: expect them to make you pee.. a lot! Something in these coconuts really gets the juices flowing, literally.

Phi Phi Island Hotels

We had a lot of ups and downs with our hotel at Koh Phi Phi. The Phi Phi Island hotels can be hit or miss, so best to do your research ahead of time! We stayed at the Phuphaya Seaview Resort on the northern side of town. Let’s start with the good.

Phuphaya Seaview Resort – The Good

Location, location, location. We LOVED being just slightly out of the main part of the town. It was a ten minute walk into town, which was a great start and end to each day of exploring.

The location also kept us out of hearing range of the techno and EDM music bumping from the beach-side clubs. As a bonus, it was a shorter hike from our hotel up to Phi Phi Viewpoint, which is toward the north side of the island.

The view from Phuphaya really lived up to the hype. A gorgeous view of the bay from the pool made this place worth it. We were able to walk around town for most of the morning and afternoon and spend the evening hanging at the pool relaxing, reading a book or two and planning the rest of our adventure.

Phuphaya Seaview Resort – The Not-So-Good

Not all of the hotel rooms at Phuphaya live up to the hype. There are a few private cabins which look epic, but a lot of the rooms are pretty dingy motel-style rooms with absolutely no frills and no air conditioning.

This would be fine in most climates, but it’s tough when the temperature bottoms out at 80 degrees at night. If you don’t have a fan, then the room can get pretty hot and sleeping is a challenge.

While the view from the pool was awesome, there was no outside food or drink allowed in. There is a small restaurant/bar on site, but there were two issues with that. First, the prices are about double what they are on the rest of the island. Second, when we tried to order a drink, they didn’t have any of the materials to make the drinks on their menu…

If we had to do it over, we would look for somewhere with the same view and location as Phuphaya, but that allows outside food and drink.

Recommended Phi Phi Island Hotels

We recommend staying on the North half of the island, near where the road from the city ends. Check Expedia for what options are available at the right price for your dates, but to us these Phi Phi Island hotels look like winners:

Phi Phi Sea Sky Resort – Link
Phi Phi Viewpoint Resort – Link
The Beacha Club – Link

Wherever you stay, the fun that you have on your Koh Phi Phi tour will be outside of your lodging. The swimming, dancing, hiking, and excursions are what will make your Phi Phi adventure unforgettable!

Book Your Phi Phi Island Tour

All in all, we had the TIME OF OUR LIVES on the island of Koh Phi Phi. We were able to hike, swim, explore, dance, eat, drink, and be merry in one of the most stunning destinations on the planet!

Do you have any questions for us? We are happy to answer them! Let us know in the comments or on our About Us page!