Becoming a Pirate on Ko Phi Phi
When I was in Luang Prabang, Laos, I had a conversation with someone about places worth visiting in Thailand. When I mentioned Ko Phi Phi, he made a face and said something like “That place is awful, you don’t want to go there! People only go there to get drunk, do drugs and have sex. I mean if that’s what you want, you’ll find what you’re looking for. But that’s not what I want to do when I’m travelling.”
While that’s a fair opinion, when backpacking you learn to take the opinions of individual travelers with a grain of salt. Why? Because you are you, and I am me. As our hyper-connected world has made obvious, everyone has different opinions about pretty much anything. Since my time in Thailand was limited, and my fear of scooters prevented me from getting around on less developed islands, I decided to visit Ko Phi Phi for two nights. I’m glad I did, as it ended up being a great experience.
Ko Phi Phi, together with Phuket and Ko Samui, is one of the most popular vacation destinations in Thailand. As a result, it’s also one of the most overdeveloped. When I got off the speedboat, I didn’t even feel like I was on an island. The dock led to a very touristy, paved marketplace with no beaches in sight. The first thing I saw? A McDonalds. Naturally, I grabbed some lunch there as I was starving.
After making my way through the marketplace I finally found the entrance to the beach. While Ko Phi Phi was once an untouched paradise, these days it’s seen in the shadow of its former glory. Travel blogger Nomadic Matt wrote a blog post about how much he hates the island mere weeks before I visited. I was prepared for the worst, but as I looked out on the view with the cliffs and forests curving in like a horseshoe, I thought it was beautiful. I knew I could relax here.
The beach itself was actually quite nice. While Matt’s blog mentioned lots of garbage, I saw none. There was a required donation upon arrival which went towards beach cleanup, so it’s possible things had improved very recently. Eventually I arrived at Blanco Beach Hostel, which was recommended by the Swiss guy I met in Khao Sok. While I stayed in a party hostel for the Full Moon Party, this was a much different experience as it was right on the beach.
After checking in I decided to relax on the beach for a bit. I took in the classic view of the colourful long tail boats along the shoreline. It felt like I was looking at a postcard but with all senses engaged.
While this wasn’t planned, I happened to be visiting Ko Phi Phi around the time of the Full Moon Party. While most Thai islands have their own full moon celebrations, everyone knows that the big one is on Ko Pha Ngan. As a result, Ko Phi Phi wasn’t nearly as busy as it normally is. It ended up working in my favour though as I didn’t seem to be experiencing the downsides of over-tourism. Oh yeah, more beach for me.
After grabbing dinner with some Americans I met at the hostel, we went to a bar with a Muay Thai ring inside. Despite having never fought in his life, one of the Americans fought a local in the ring and won! It was impressive to witness, from afar, with a beer. Unfortunately I don’t have photos.
By now it was dark out and time to party. Since I hadn’t been to the beach for several hours, it was my first time realizing how much the tide came in at night. On the way back we had to wade through the water in our flip flops! Things were off to a slow start when we returned to the Blanco bar, but it gave me the opportunity to take some photos of the black light art.
Eventually the hostel bars started to fill up and there were quite a few people partying on the beach. I wondered how much more crowded it would be if it wasn’t the night before the Full Moon Party. The tunes were blaring and the fire limbo, which I stayed far away from, was in full swing. It ended being a fun night, I met a lot of people and we had a good time. I also saw one of the most talented fire dancers I’ve ever seen, while standing on a pole no less!
The next day I went for a day trip on a party boat. Usually Blanco runs their own party boat, but since it was the day of the Full Moon Party not enough people had booked. I was initially bummed, but they ended up directing Blanco’s guests to the Pirate Boat. Yarr, it was time to become a pirate!
After boarding the Pirate Boat and grabbing a Chang at the bar we set sail to our first destination. I made friends with two American guys and a German girl. One of the American guys had a dual citizenship in Canada so we talked about Canadian stuff for a bit. Our first stop was Monkey Beach, I wanted to take pictures but the monkeys are notorious for stealing pretty much anything. One of the monkeys grabbed a girl’s flip flop and wouldn’t give it back!
Our next stop was Maya Bay, which was made famous by the Leonardo DiCaprio film The Beach. If you haven’t heard of it before, it’s OK neither had I. At this point we got off the boat and into some kayaks to explore the bay ourselves. Kayaking in pairs took some getting used to, but it was a cool experience and the views of course were incredible.
After exploring the bay we kayaked back to the Pirate Boat. We threw on some snorkel gear and swam in the bay for a bit. This was my first (and only) time snorkeling on my trip. It was really fun and helped me get over my fear of fish a little. Some people said they saw a whale shark, but I never got to see it.
At this point the sun was starting to set, so we got back on the boat and had some drinks while the sun set over the ocean. It was a jam-packed but fun day, and definitely one of the highlights of this trip to Thailand.
That night I partied a bit at the hostel again, but not too much as I had been day drinking and didn’t want to overdo it. So that sums up my time on Ko Phi Phi. Yes, it’s a tad overdeveloped and touristy. No, the beaches aren’t as pristine as less developed islands, or even Ko Tao. But it’s an island with a character of its own, and while it’s not for everyone I think it’s still worth visiting.
The next morning I returned to Krabi where I would catch a bus to my next destination. I would be visiting one of Thailand’s most famous beaches, one you can’t skip out on if you’re planning a trip in the south.
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