phi phi budget travel

Great to relax on the beach and enjoy the nightlife. Not the cheapest of places around Thailand for a backpacker but still very enjoyable nonetheless.

How to get to Phi Phi

You can get to Phi Phi from either Phuket or Krabi (or an island between Krabi and Phi Phi). Both will get you into the main ferry area at the town of Ton Sai (also called Ao Ton Sai).

If you arrive at Phuket airport, it will cost about 400 baht to take a taxi to the ferry terminal in Phuket. Then it’s about 350 baht for a one way ferry ticket to  Phi Phi (about 2 hours). All this can be bought at Phuket airport as soon as you clear the arrivals area. If you’re unsure where to go in Phuket, talk to the information stall. They’ll provide you with good information. It’s easy to buy a ticket back from Phi Phi to Phuket so you can easily say no to the open ended return ticket. You may want to continue to another island after you arrive at Phi Phi so maintain flexibility.

Getting around Phi Phi

Walk or take a long tail boat. A long tail boat from Ton Sai town to Long Beach (aka Hat Yao) should cost about 80 baht during the day and 120 baht at night. The price is fixed amongst long tail boat drivers so it’s very tough to bata.

Where to stay?

I think the best area to stay on Phi Phi is Long Beach. It’s a gorgeous beach. All accommodation on Long Beach is a very short walk to the beach (ie 50 metres). If you stay in town, you’d have to walk quite a distance to the beach. And the beach won’t be as nice. Or you’d need to take a long boat to Long beach.
With Long beach, you can stumble out of your bungalow and be on the beach in a couple of minutes. Great to relax at during the day and then you can head into the party scene of town once it gets dark.

Long Beach Bungalows are the cheapest place to stay on Long Beach (400 baht low season and 600 baht high season for a private double room with fan). It is very basic. Rock hard mattresses and a crappy toilet. But it’s cheap.  During high season it’s worth it. During low season, i’d spend the extra 200 baht and stay at Paradise Resort next door.

Rooms at Paradise Resort start at 600 baht during low season. But prices increase to 1400 baht in high season which is a bit expensive I reckon.  Rooms are clean, comfortable, spacious - basically what you expect of a room if you’re paying 1400 baht a night.

Time of year

High Season is November through April. Low season May to August. Long beach becomes a little isolated during low season as long tail boat drivers will only take you between town and Long beach during the day. They are too afraid that the rougher waters in the night will break their boats. It might be worth staying at Ton Sai during low season and taking the long tail boat to the beach each day (or walking to the beach).

Maya beach & Phi Phi Ley

If you get a group of friends together, hire a long tail boat between you and then head to and from Maya beach. It will work out a lot cheaper than joining an organised tour. Plus, you will be able to get to more remote areas with the long tail boat than with a large tour operator.  And it is more personalised.

Cliff Jumping

If you wanna jump off a 15 metre rock face into the water, then you can certainly do it. Best way is to again organise a group of friends to take a long tail boat out to the cliff jumping spot. Make sure you bring your thongs (flip flops) as the rocks are quite sharp to climb up. It’s too sharp to put your bare feet on and be able to climb up the cliff.

If you’re not up to the 15 metre jump, you can make smaller jumps. But with the effort to climb up, you might as well climb to the top.

It’s a sensational experience (and very cheap) but you might get hurt. Unlikely that your travel insurance would cover it.

Drinking

Go to Ton Sai if you’re wanting a big night out on the drinks.  The buckets there are cheaper than those on Long beach. Eventually, everyone will head down to Hippies bar to drink on the beach. Just follow the crowd when the other places close.

Eating on Long Beach

3 options for eating on Long beach – Paradise resort, Long Beach bungalows and Phi Phi Hill. Each of Paradise Resort and Long beach bungalows are similar in terms of food and price. Nothing too exciting. Phi Phi Hill has a great view if you are willing to walk up all the stairs to get there. Otherwise, at the bottom, there are great cloth sun lounges to laze on whilst drinking a Singha/Chang or an Oreo milkshake.

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